Private dr hospital /advise please

[deepetshopboy]

Hi im thinking of taking my dad to see a private dementia consultant just for check /memory test and advise on tablets hes on
Hes always been under nhs local memory clininc for 7 yrs who ive various problems with accesing tablets he needs to the point of last yr i completed sucide because my father wouldnt sleep was aggressive and restless a big change overnight in a graudual decline of 2018/19
Over the course of 7 yrs my dad was put on dementia tablets donezpril in 2013
Mementine 2018
Then after despairing hundreds of complaints and during lockdown was put on antidepressants 10 mg
And 4 mg melontiin
No sleeping tablets so had to get him over the counter herbal ones but dad becoming resistant .
Fast forwardnow hes okish a lot calmerbut restless and obvious decline
He’s sleeping is erratic too
I was recommend to see a private dr by my dads carer so im thinking of trying that my worry is that they wont be happy in the memory clinic and the gp wont prescribe the tablets the private dr has recommended
Any experience of this ? thanks

 

[Jessbow]

Sleeping tablets are rarely prescribed for people with dementia. It increases their likelihood to fall.


If the GP wont prescribe, in my experence, he is unlikely to want to do so on the reccomendation of anyone else, unless its a practitioner that he has refered you to.

 

[deepetshopboy]

Oh right .my dads carer looks after a few private clients who have sought out help from private drs she said all of them are on sleeping tabs
And one lady in partular was a demon and very aggressive and they took her to a private dr and he immediately put her on tabs and she turned into a sweet old lady overnight .
Maybe I’ll discuss it with private dr about the possibilities of gp not going to give him the tabs

 

[Louise7]

I would be wary of seeing a private doctor for sleeping tablets as they will not have details of your dad's full medical history and whatever they recommend may well not be suitable for your dad. It's also not a good idea to use herbal medication without first checking with a pharmacist/GP that it will not cause a problem or adverse effects to other prescribed medication. Have you spoken to the GP and memory clinic about your dad's erratic sleeping problems (and also your own GP about the effect this is having on you) as they may be able to adjust the dosage of his medication to see if that will help. As @Jessbow has said, if your dad's GP or the memory clinic won't prescribe sleeping tablets there will be a good reason for this. I expect that your dad's carer was just trying to be helpful but she is not giving good advice.