Hello, my name is Kieran,
I want to share my personal account of the difficulties I’ve faced with a Prescription Cannabis Centre that provides my critical and life-saving prescription for cannabis. This story is more than just a narrative; it’s a glimpse into the struggles individuals like me undergo when systems fail to operate as they should.
My Battle with Mental Health:
From a young age, I have battled various mental health issues including anxiety, depression, PTSD, OCD, and BPD. Since the age of 12, I’ve been prescribed various antidepressants such as Sertraline, Zopiclone, Promazine, and Mirtazapine. However, these treatments were not sufficient on their own and oftentimes damaged my health further. This led me to seek out prescription cannabis as an alternative, without which today, I would undoubtedly no longer be alive.
Chronic Mismanagement at the Prescription Cannabis Centre:
I am currently a patient at a UK Prescription Cannabis Centre, where I’ve experienced significant challenges in obtaining my prescribed medication. Between October and January, I often found myself rationing or being completely out of my medication due to the centre’s mismanagement. This included:
– Inadequate staffing and infrastructure, which appeared to be a result of inadequate investment.
– Prescription errors by clinical staff who prescribed the wrong medicine.
– Unprofessional interactions with a doctor who repeatedly and inappropriately referenced my past addiction and arbitrarily restricted my medication without clear reasoning.
– Withholding of information, as they would not provide registration details of regulatory bodies despite repeated requests.
The Impact of Centre Errors on My Life:
The consequences of these errors were severe. I submitted my concerns in October and a formal complaint in November, only to face bureaucratic hurdles. Attempts to communicate with the centre were frustrating; it often took up to an hour to connect with someone, only to be abruptly disconnected without answer or resolution. The first formal response I received to my complaint, and the first opportunity to speak with management, was four months after I initially reported my concerns and had chased a response every week thereafter.
My ongoing struggle to resolve this complaint has left me financially and mentally strained and has often resulted in me bearing the cost of additional fees due to clinical delays. This further deteriorated my mental health, forcing me to fend for myself more often than not.
My Centre ignored, belittled and dismissed many of my concerns and has not shown me any evidence of having carried out an investigation into my safeguarding concerns, acknowledged responsibility or offered any accountability in my care. This has left me feeling isolated from those I trusted to understand my condition and provide the compassion and responsible, patient-centric care they purported to offer.
Kieran and his wife Michaela
Conclusion:
This experience has been a taxing journey, one that has impacted every facet of my life in recent months. It underscores the critical need for reliable, compassionate, and professional healthcare services, especially for those of us dealing with vulnerable debilitating illnesses. Patients should not be solely responsible for demanding better care and standards.
Patients have often been left to fend for their own care and to fight for what should be their basic rights. I hope this particular instance serves as a call for further regulation of the basic level of service that should be expected of those clinics to whom we entrust our life-saving care, often at an unaffordable cost.
As I continue to seek resolution and advocate for better care, I hope my story will serve as a call to action for improved patient support and accountability in healthcare institutions. By sharing these experiences, I aim not only to shed light on personal struggles but also to push for systemic changes that might prevent others from enduring similar hardships for which I am sure I do not stand alone.
Kieran
