Somewhat Urgent. (Help?)

After a recent chain of events (and after talking with people who are familiar with this), I think I might have appendicitis.  Okay.  That's bad.  I know it's bad.

The thing is, I don't usually get sick, and I totally forgot about registering with a GP in the area in which I live.  Bad, I know.  Please don't say that I should have registered, because I know I should have, and I really don't want to be chastised for it, as I'm having a bad enough day already.  (Sorry if that sounded rude.  It wasn't my intention.)

I live in a city (Derby) where there is an NHS walk-in centre.  I'm here on a student visa.  I have proof of where I reside in the UK.  I just am not registered with the NHS.  Can I walk into the centre and ask for medical treatment here?  What will this cost me?  Am I even allowed to do this here?  I have my visa and proof of residency like I said... just not registered with the NHS.

I wasn't so sure about going, as everything started two nights ago, but today was quite painful, and I really would like to go to this centre tomorrow.  Any advice? 

If you really think you have an appendicitis go to the nearest A&E NOW.  If you think it can wait go to the walk in center tomorrow. 

As long as you are here for longer than 6 months as a student then you are covered by the NHS.  I believe tourists are covered for emergencies.   You shouldn't be charged, but I am not sure how you go about proving it.

Either way, just go to the doctor, they will treat you and that is the most important thing. 

My student visa provides that I'm here for 3 years.

The pain is not severe to the extent that I can't move.  It's just an inconvenience that really bothers me and worries me.

I'm going to go to the Walk-In Centre at the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary tomorrow.

Edit:  Thanks for the help.

If you really think you have an appendicitis go to the nearest A&E NOW. 

I agree!! I had it and didnt know it. I just had some pains in my lower right side which got worse and worse. I actually stopped at the closest hospital on my way to work and they kept me and operated within 3 hours. It can be very dangerous if not dealt with immediately. Please go!

How long did they operate after the pains started?

How long did they operate after the pains started?

I remember I had to be at work at 4pm. I worked an hour away in Raleigh.I was having niggly type pain which worstened as time passed. How I managed to drive an hour is beyond me. I stopped at the closest hospital in Raleigh and registered at the Emergency room. I waited about an hour and was getting frustrated and in dire pain. I told the receptionist I cant wait and I was going to another hospital. She said she would advise me not to leave and they saw me immediately. They did a pelvic exam and a pregnancy test to rule out girlie stuff. Then they gave me barium solution to drink and gave me an MRI which showed the appendicitis. I was totally alone and just wanted to go home. The surgeon came in to see me and said they are operating as soon as they can round up a team. I was scared to death and told him I wanted to go home and he told me he wouldn't let me. He said a week ago a 44 year old woman refused treatment for her appendicitis and she died! I was operated on at midnight. But it would have been sooner if they had theatre staff ready.

I hope you feel better soon!

If you think you have appendicitis don't wait til tomorrow to do something! At least call NHS direct tonight and they will run through the symptoms with you and if they think it could be appendicitis they will tell you what to do.

0845 4647

I am with everyone else on this, I sure hope you've gone to the A&E!

Go to A&E!  One of our students starting feeling ill.  He was vomiting, mainly, and had a fever.  Went to the Student Health Centre during the day and they fobbed him off, told him it was a virus.

Thankfully, he didn't live alone, because his flatmate heard him stumble in the bathroom and collapse at 1AM and phoned an ambulance.

His appendix had ruptured!

He spent over a week in hospital after the operation and was very weak and ill for weeks afterwards because he couldn't have laparoscopic surgery to remove it - they had to do a larger incision because time was of the essence.

Everybody, thanks for your concern and help.

I figured that I either had appendicitis or a really bad Urinary Tract Infection. I've had the latter before twice as a side effect of medication that I was on, and it sucked -- but it felt like it, this time, about ten times worse than usual.  Worries of appendicitis came up when I was lying in bed with my boyfriend three nights ago and he was extremely worried about that because of the location of the pain.

Needless to say, by the time he got home from work, he was freaking out, and we went to the A&E.  So, we get there, and it's full of people who look just about miserable and it's a two hour wait until a doctor can see a patient.  It didn't seem to matter that I didn't have a GP -- I feel like in America it definitely would have mattered if there was no insurance.  I had my passport with visa, so the check in guy looked at that, and then asked for "Next of Kin", which I found to be particularly morbid (at that time....  Has anybody ever been asked that in America?).  So, I said what was happening, and that the pain was severe.  The guy told us to go through the back door, because he was going to let us in to see a doctor immediately.  We bipassed the entire 2 hour line, which was great.

Anyways, so we get back there, and I have to do a bunch of tests.  A woman does a blood test and puts in an IV.  I'm waiting there for a while.  I'm wheeled into another area to wait for a doctor.  I'm there for about an hour.  IV is starting to prickle and such.  Another nurse comes in to help me and basically says, "Well, you aren't pregnant!" to which my boyfriend and I just say, "WE KNOW!" which was rather amusing.  Anyways, she confirms that I have an extremely bad Urinary Tract Infection, and luckily, not appendicitis.  So, I get antibiotics (FOR FREE!!!!!!!) and I get told what to do, and my boyfriend gets told to keep close watch and stuff like that.  Afterwards, she goes, "Oh sh*t.  You weren't supposed to have an IV.  And the woman before forgot to give you pain killers.  Damn.  Sorry!"  But other than that it was a really good experience.

Sorry for the story share, but I felt that it was an extremely pleasant outcome.  When somebody told me that if I had an operation I probably wouldn't be able to go home for Christmas, I practically lost it.

All's well end's well... or something like that.

Oh good. I'm glad you went to A&E and glad you got sorted!

Glad it turned out well. Asking for next of kin is common both here and in the US though!