Today I had my first doctor appointment with a GP (general practitioner) since my arrival to Ireland. The practise is located at St. James Gate, about a 10 minute bus ride away from Sprangers Yard, and used to serve the employees of the Guinness brewery exclusively before opening up to the general public. It’s now part of a network of practises under an umbrella called “Centric Health,” which seems to be somewhat like the One Medical network of boutique doctor offices in the U.S. On a side note, the intake form I had to submit prior to scheduling an appointment was fairly routine and unsurprising, asking the standard questions such as name, age, gender, DOB, address, phone number, next of kin, etc. That is, all except for one question: “Are you a twin?” When I subsequently spoke with the receptionist to make an appointment, I joking asked about this, speculating if they wanted to know if I had a twin for potential “spare parts.” That got a chuckle. She had no idea why that question was on the form. I imagine it’s probably intended to identify patients for twin studies.
I arrived a little early, and the receptionist was expecting me… I just gave her my name and was directed to a large waiting room, no clipboards or other check-in paperwork required. The office was clean, well maintained and empty of any other patients. One wall of the waiting room displayed a historic timeline of the medical practise first established by Guinness. I waited a few minutes before the GP appeared and ushered me into his office. My impressions of him were positive. He’s a tall man with a lean build, probably younger than me, and an accent that sounded a bit different than an Irish one. It turns out he moved to Dublin from Australia in March 2020 right as the pandemic was taking off. He listened attentively as I explained my medical history and current medications that I take. Neither of the two prescription drugs I take regularly are licensed as treatments for my health issues in Ireland, which I knew beforehand, and it’s unclear if my new GP would be able to write them “off label.” He said he would look into this further and get back to me. For now, he put in an order for a standard panel of blood tests, which they can do on site, but since I have to fast for the tests I’m going back first thing in the morning. He briefly checked out my throat that’s been scratchy for a week. He said it didn’t look serious but if I seen him sooner he would have recommended I get a COVID-19 test just to make sure it wasn’t a sign of a break-through infection, even though I haven’t had a fever or other symptoms. At this point though, he said there’s not much point in getting tested. Other than that, my blood pressure was 130 over 80, so not too bad.
Thankfully I still have my U.S. health insurance through the end of September, and I’m able to refill another 3 months supply of my prescription medications. I was on hold for over an hour (!) with the CVS in San Francisco to get them processed for delivery to my mailbox service, who have forward them to my sister for re-shipping to me. I’m looking forward to not having to do all that again!
I walked back home after the appointment to enjoy the weather and get my daily steps in. Since I had already taken the afternoon off from work for the GP appointment, I also had a chance to go to the An Post (the Irish postal service) delivery unit to pick up my CMA certificate that was sent to my mailbox in SF and that I had forwarded to myself in Ireland. I swear, the An Post delivery person never waits around when they attempt a delivery… they just ring my apartment buzzer once then leave a notice in my mailbox. When I pick up the intercom there’s no answer. It’s very frustrating, since this means I have to make a trip to the An Post pickup place every time something larger than my mailbox is shipped to me through regular mail. At least the bus is relatively convenient, and the stop is at the end of the line which means I can walk to the An Post facility a block away, pick up my package, and then re-board the same bus that’s still sitting at the stop where the driver is taking a break before heading back into the city centre.
Until next time….
