Forum Discussion
So much for good vibes. Scan day sucked . They've called me back.
This may come out not making sense as I am somewhere in between being scared shitless and f*/#&%g furious.
So after the mammogram and u/sound the doctor popped her head in (obviously they could see I was starting to freak out) and said there was no changes to last years scans. Gave me a smile and said goodbye. Phew.
I was feeling quite positive after that until the receptionist rang and said I needed to come back for another targeted ultra sound as the MRI had picked up something. The other two hadn't, yet again!
Oh and the doctor wanted me to go tomorrow and follow her to their other facility as she is only in Ipswich on Thursdays and wanted to talk to me.
So my head is in a mess and the tears are starting, my heart is pounding and I've got the shakes.
I don't know if I can do all that again. I know I am over thinking and not to freak out totally before I know for sure. But FAAARRRKKK this shit,
So after the mammogram and u/sound the doctor popped her head in (obviously they could see I was starting to freak out) and said there was no changes to last years scans. Gave me a smile and said goodbye. Phew.
I was feeling quite positive after that until the receptionist rang and said I needed to come back for another targeted ultra sound as the MRI had picked up something. The other two hadn't, yet again!
Oh and the doctor wanted me to go tomorrow and follow her to their other facility as she is only in Ipswich on Thursdays and wanted to talk to me.
So my head is in a mess and the tears are starting, my heart is pounding and I've got the shakes.
I don't know if I can do all that again. I know I am over thinking and not to freak out totally before I know for sure. But FAAARRRKKK this shit,
207 Replies
- Hi @Zoffiel, did your GP tick the 'permananent' box on your certificate? I have had the same problems with Centre#+it after my 3rd BC episode earlier this year. If its not temporary they are essentially telling you to apply for dsp. I have a dsp application pending (I have other medical issues as well) - for 12mths no less, now with a social worker assisting me to see why it's taken so long, meanwhile 'surviving' on Newstart not being able to work. Contact them and ask to talk to a social worker to help sort it out and also advise of the stress and frustration it's causing you. It should be as simple as Dr ticking the 'temporary' box on the form, if he hasn't already. It has happened to me twice as Dr has said my circumstances are permanent but that doesn't suit the system because that doesn't correlate with their 'boxes' for Newstart. I hope you get a speedy resolution. It totally sucks. I wish daily I didn't have to have anything to do with them. Happy to help if I can. 🙂
- That's disgraceful, @Zoffiel - I hope your GP goes at them with both barrels!! As you say - it is declaring her as either incompetent or a liar!
Good luck! And who needs all this added stress right now, before the Xmas Break - cos they'll all shut down & not be available now til the New Year!! grrrr - My goodness @Zoffiel, why on earth do they have to make every darn thing so complicated for people who are being honest about what's going and have all the correct paperwork? The next person can rack up thousands of dollars in payments while working for years on end before anyone works it out. Seriously.
@arpie . Luckily there was no way the lady in the MRI machine would have heard anything. There is a sound proof wall and door between the desk and the machine so that is a good thing. - There are many things that are good in this country but too many are undermined by the illiterate, tick a box mentality of staff of organisations, designed to assist people, who have been allowed to turn that potential support into an Orwellian nightmare of patronising, ill informed inaction that, as they so rightly point out, is exceedingly likely to push people into depression or, if you are on Nauru, madness. And the only way to fight back is to spend your precious time, intelligence and energy in a war of words. Insufferable.
An extract from the lovely letter they gave me:
After careful consideration, a decision has been made that you are not eligible to be exempt from you mutual obligation requirements at this time.
This is because the medical evidence shows that your incapacity to work is not temporary.
Now, my brain is not what it used to be, but that second sentence is a beauty. I attempted to get them to pick it apart for me
Incapacity: physical or mental inability to do something or to manage one's affairs. That's OK, we can understand that bit
Temporary: lasting for only a limited period of time; not permanent So if something is not temporary, logic would dictate it is permanent.
Ergo, I am not eligible for an exemption because I am permanently damaged. Lovely.
My doctor, one of the most highly qualified GPs in the state (MB, BS, FRAGP) who also teaches at Melbourne Uni, suggests I can work 12 hours per week. Which I do. So, the implication is that she is either incompetent or dishonest. She will be thrilled. I dropped a copy of the correspondence of at the surgery. I can hear her ticking from here.
The outset is they now want me to:
Attend meetings with a disability support network who will, apparently, work with me to increase my hours of work by an extra 3 hours a week. Most weeks I do 15 hours, but there are occasions in the last couple of months where I haven't. The average has been about 13 hours a week. Most fortnights my Newstart payment is less than $20, but I need the safety net.
I need to find another job ( on top of the two I already have) because as a casual I can't control how many shifts I'm given. In essence, this is about me needing to earn another $70 dollars a week (at my current pay rate) or $42.20 if they find me a band 3 position at award rates or, if I am assessed as being say, 80% capable, I can be paid 80% of the base rate. That's $33.22 per week. Your tax dollars at work, ladies and gents. By the time I attend meetings I can see that being a huge saving to the general public, because I can not be allowed to lay back and bludge. Under any circumstances. Oh, and I also have to attend meetings with a social worker because--and I quote--'Being in your circumstances can lead to mental health issues like depression. We may be able to get you some assistance.'
It would be laughable were it not true.
- I'm not sure that I can contribute anything worthwhile to this situation as I am completely gob-smacked. How on earth anyone thought it was okay to have a party in an MRI room is just bizarre - and then no-one said "hang on a minute, there's patients in here"?????
@zoffiel I think you need to get your doctor to request the medical qualifications of your decision makers at Centrelink (I'm sure that you can make an admirable mincemeat of them but doctors do get pernickety about those letters after their names). - The bloody laughing & shrieking would have had the poor lady in the machine a tad uptight, I reckon! She'd have been worried something was going wrong with her procedure (AND not able to turn her head to have a look what was going on!) :( Such a poor show of 'professional behaviour'! :(
They could at least pretend they were looking after her best interests! - @arpie yep that attitude of it's not urgent sucks. Once diagnosed any test you have to have especially anything that is a second or call back is always urgent in our minds because our sense of security about it will be ok has forever been shattered. This is one of the things I think they need to teach medical staff. That along with no one enjoys being half naked in a stupid gown ever. I think it is called respect and some people just don’t have enough
@Zoffiel Centrelink just sucks. I sat there for 2 hours to get my safety net fixed because my radiology clinic had screwed up. While there I watched them deal with clients- their preferred method is not to of course but on this day they had about 6 computers and were trying to get people to log in and do whatever they needed to. In the time they spent mucking around staff could have just fixed the problem by actually seeing someone. You should have seen the eye roll I got when I said I needed to see a real human. Seriously I wanted desperately to roll out the I’m a taxpayer who do you think pays your wages? - Nothing to add @kezmusc, but I worked in the health field for 40 years so nothing surprises me. The stories I could tell....
- Well that didn't take long. I have had a reply to say the letter has been forwarded to the regional manager for escalation and they will be in touch tomorrow. Thank you@Zoffiel for the help. xoxox
Is there anything anyone wants added to the discussion? Assuming they call that is.
