11/04/25 The saga continues...

 Of course it couldn't possibly have gone smoothly...

This morning I had an appointment with my dentist to fit a new crown after root canal treatment last week. I took my Pre-Bisphosphonate Therapy Dental Review Form with me and gave it to him. Being the thorough and efficient dentist that he is (and far and away the best time-keeper ever, I rarely have to wait even a minute beyond the appointment time) he took a couple of new X-rays and compared them with my last ones before announcing that I have two teeth "requiring investigation" - one will need an old filling replacing and a possible crown, the other will be a new crown and probably a root canal job. So I went to reception to make an appointment. First one available was in June, meaning a delay of at least a month and probably more before being in a position to start my 2nd line treatment.

I was not pleased, but nothing to be done.

So I tried to contact Haematology at Broomfield Hospital to talk about this. Every 'phone number I have - reception, Clinical Nurse Specialists, Secretaries - didn't work. Either cut off immediately or "This number is no longer available". I tried the hospital's main reception and they gave me a new number. "No-one is available to answer this call".

I found some contact details on the Dental Review form for the centralised Haematology service in Basildon. I 'phoned the number. "This number is no longer in use. Goodbye".
So I wrote an email and sent it off. At least that hasn't bounced back as "Undeliverable, address not recognised" yet, but I won't be surprised if it does.

Then it was time for my regular online backgammon game. And while we were on our second game I was interrupted by a 'phone call from the dentist. He's had a cancellation and can fit me in at the start of May, just a week before my next haematologist consultation when I hope to fix the details of the new treatment. And I'll have had an MRI (tomorrow) and a CT (next Wednesday) by then as well. So, after after something of a roller-coaster day when I have several times felt like throwing my phone across the room or out of the window, all the pieces have fallen neatly into place. Sent an email to cancel the first one. But why do we have to through all this frustration?