PREPARING EVIDENCE, MEDICAL REPORTS AHEAD OF TIME

Dear fellow members and moderators,

Lately I have been gathering medical evidence little by little for when I need it in the future.

- Ie xray showing arthritis in my hands, which I did not have a few years ago when last assessed by PIP and ESA. I now get shooting pains at times in my fingers along with deformities of my fingers.
If you also get a summary telephone consultation from your GP or receptionist sent to your phone you can view or download it, send it to your own email, print it it may help your case if it backs up what you say ie cream to massage on fingers because of pain etc.
- i got a summary report from the gp who saw me who wrote that my fingers had changed shape and were deformed. I got that report sent to me by text.

- Other xrays showing deterioration of arthritis in other parts of my body which affects my lower limbs.

- I explained to my GP that physio does not work anymore as GP was going to refer me to them as I wanted an MRI and normally that physio departement is the one referring you for mri’s if they see it fit. The GP told me she would ask for an MRI request directly and explain the reasons why I could not go to physio.

I got a text from msk asking me to call them to discuss treatment, it was to give me the mri appointment so that is another evidence.

- if I have to go the A&E I always ask them to print their report ( it used to be yellow not sure if still the case) and if they write anything that I want to put forward I will include it in my report.

The reason I write this is that if someone is in my shoes they might find it helpful like I did, to say to GP as I am getting worse, can I get an xray, mri… and this I did now, half a year ago, a year and a half ago, but I keep all the evidence for when I did it.
Because as we know ‘they’ want proof and medical reports are helpful.

In the past when I requested my full medical report for free from my gp, I used so many things to back up my arguments as I saw internal reports I never saw I never knew was there, that might help someone on this forum.

- I used internal report from the physiotherapist (when they would write a few lines on their computer ie comment about my gait, difficulties, deformities etc, all helps) .
I never even knew that report existed as it was an internal report to the GP from Physio.

- At times when speaking to a GP you can ask the GP or receptionist to send you the summary report of that consultation by text.

- you can visualise the medication, patient summary report when you connect to your account online.

- on there you can see if a receptionist or gp calls you to and they may write something that may help your case.

King regards,
Best wishes

Hi,

I would definitely say this is good to do. However, I’d also say just be mindful depending on how long your award lasts for. The DWP generally likes quite updated evidence I think. Though obviously if it’s quite factual things that have happened, that’s not going to change it!

Just be mindful I’d say .

Best,

Matthew

Fair enough matthewafollows, except that many of us don't have any more recent evidence as clinics assess you, maybe try a treatment, and eventually discharge you, back to "care of GP" not because you're cured but there is nothing more they can offer. So you are stuck with those clinics' old letters.
If only someone instructed the DWP to accept that inherited conditions cannot be cured as medicine stands [with extraordinarily rare exceptions] and so the effects on daily living and mobility will never improve, only often worsen with age. Therefore they should stop wasting taxpayers' money reassessing such claimants so often.