Dr Philip Hammond 2014-06-02 Person 5 5 0

We saw Dr Hammond last week in Bath following an extremely worrying time with our daughter. Dr Hammond diagnosed our daughter with having CFS/ ME . During the one and a half hour appointment, Dr Hammond explained the illness and its symptoms, understood our concerns over the severity of headaches, nausea, fatigue and host of other symptoms it presents and listened to my daughters concerns over not being able to attend school and the psychological effects of missing out on vital social interactions with her friends. We all found Dr Hammond to be approachable, compassionate and supportive. He had read the Doctors notes beforehand, and during a ten minute break asked to see my diary ( which I had kept so that I could remember symptoms, significant dates etc. which he did read) . His caring but professional manner meant that he was able to give realistic advice based on what my daughter wanted and how this could be achieved by taking the necessary steps. He encouraged her to contact friends, so that she did not feel as though she was missing out on her teenage years, agreed a bank of time with her during the day for her Red Time activities and said he would write to the school about her immediate educational needs. He certainly didn't mind my daughters inability to stop yawning and lack of concentration at times! We came away with lots of vital information which made my daughter feel more empowered and the whole family felt we were now going to be supported through this difficult period. An excellent re-assuring consultation, so many thanks Dr Hammond ! My only wish is that I had not had to do the hard work myself in researching the clinic and going back to the doctor to specifically ask for this referral (I was originally referred to general paediatrician all of whom had a sixteen week waiting list , which is far too long when a child has been absent from school for a whole term and is in such pain at times). Had I taken that route I would still be waiting.