What a great service you are doing! I feel so lucky that a friend of mine knows and trust Greg Jefferys and Greg in turn knows and trusts you! I look forward to a consultation next week.

I just read Greg’s blog entry of 24th October and it has brought again to my mind what has been nagging me greatly for some time – ie. the question of how to get UK doctors on board with generics just as is happening now in Australia. My personal ambitions to help with this are small but so far unachieved. It seems to me that in Australia it took just one person to ‘infect’ one hospital with the idea of using generics. That is how the idea has been spread. So I would like to infect my local NHS hospital with this idea, but so far I have not been successful. Maybe I am being too optimistic but I think that some of the objections I have met with are due to lack of information rather than downright rejection. eg.
–
When I asked for a script to take to India my doc said it would be no good to me because he is not licensed in India.
–
He was very freaked out about the possibility of my obtaining fake drugs. I think he was genuinely concerned for my safety.
–
He did agree to give me medical supervision if I went against his advice and obtained generics.

It has to be appreciated that I don’t get much face time with my doc, or any of the support staff. I don’t want to rock the boat and maybe lose the possibility of medical help from them. I think they are mostly well meaning people under the cosh of higher ups and Big Pharma, and though they feel sorry for me having hepC, I find myself feeling sorry for them having to preside over the financial disaster of the pricing policies of Big Pharma and the resulting invidious rationing of the drugs.

So my challenge as I see it is to get the information to them without putting their backs up, in the hope that even some of the ideas of Doc Freeman might catch hold. My doc does not know but needs to know that:
– His UK private script is OK for most suppliers
– The drug supplies are being obtained from trusted sources and then tested.
– There are buyers clubs, they are very organised and they are succeeding in protecting us.
– With his resources he could easily establish a testing facility himself for the use of the buyers of generics.
– Everything that is being done is legal in Australia and the UK. No patents are being violated.

They have a notice board at the hospital clinic but I’d need permission to post a notice. I’d have to write a notice first that would be likely to get permission. Right now the mere mention of ‘generic’ receives a shudder. You guys in OZ have the most experience with this stuff. Any comments / advice would be welcome. I might only get one shot at this so I have to make it a good one, ie. that my notice goes round the staff at the clinic, not straight into the bin,

Thanks
dt

yes..good idea!

dointime

“When I asked for a script to take to India my doc said it would be no good to me because he is not licensed in India”

I really feel for the hoops you guys in the UK are having to jump through.
When I got my sof and riba from India it arrived with a script written
out by an unknown Indian doctor even though I had provided a script from my own Australian doctor.So really all your reluctant UK doctor would only be doing by writing a script is saying it is ok for you to take these drugs in the UK and it is ok for an Indian Doctor to legitimately write out a script for you.I got my stuff through Greg.I am not sure it works the same with the buyers club.Hope this helps

Agree DT – Maybe, just maybe if UK Drs understand DrF has Professionally tested these generics as safe they ‘may’ be more open to writing a prescription? I mean, if they are not, it would go against all their reasons for being a Dr in the first place ……
Surely? …..

It ‘could’ also be said, that by refusing to write a prescription for legitimate generics, they are also putting their patients at risk from less reliable sources of meds and worsening liver disease with NHS delays. I guess they would need to stipulate that medicines were ordered via Dr F & his trial or Buyers Club.

I mean, if they blatantly refuse to at least consider this, I can’t think of any reason do to so – Can you?

dointime

” I think that UK people have to travel to OZ to pick up their meds via the buyers club these days?”

Why would you have to come all the way to Oz to get your meds?.I mean we would love to have you here spending your money,but some very cheap fares London-Delhi,London-Chennai,London-mumbai and other variations are often available.30 day visa on arrival is now available at major airports,India is full of very highly qualified hepatologists often with a string of English degrees.See the Taj,ride a camel in Rajasthan,,visit the Dalai Lama in Mcleod Gange and go back with your meds at a fraction of the cost of travelling to Australia.

Hi miko3,

You are of course correct about places to access meds. You took my sentence out of context though, and I apologise if it was confusing. I was referring to a post by London Girl and commenting that to access the buyers club meds it would be necessary to travel to Oz, implying that from the UK, that would not be my first choice. If I had to travel then I agree that the Indian international hospitals put many hospitals here to shame, and that includes their consultants, many highly trained all over the world. The only thing they do not have yet is the generic Harvoni, but that should come soon. For myself with chronic fatigue, mail order is my preferred option, and no sight sweeter than the Fedex delivery guy.

dt