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Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report
- sgbd
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1 year 9 months ago #278476 by sgbd
Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report was created by sgbd
Hi guys, any help here would be appreciated.
I'm filling out the PIP review form for my husband, who has horrible CFS/ME. He can walk short distances without a stick but only by pushing through his pain. I was going through his full medical report and, I suppose he walked into an appointment 3 years ago without his stick, so a nurse at an asthma clinic recorded that he can "walk normally now".
He was not asked about his CFS or general mobility. I'm very frustrated and upset because I feel this can be used against him on the mobility section, despite him needing a wheelchair more than half the time and a stick most of the rest of the time. Does anyone have any advice? Should I point out the note and call it inaccurate? I'm afraid that if I don't include these medical records, they'll just get them from the GP anyway.
Thank you for reading!
I'm filling out the PIP review form for my husband, who has horrible CFS/ME. He can walk short distances without a stick but only by pushing through his pain. I was going through his full medical report and, I suppose he walked into an appointment 3 years ago without his stick, so a nurse at an asthma clinic recorded that he can "walk normally now".
He was not asked about his CFS or general mobility. I'm very frustrated and upset because I feel this can be used against him on the mobility section, despite him needing a wheelchair more than half the time and a stick most of the rest of the time. Does anyone have any advice? Should I point out the note and call it inaccurate? I'm afraid that if I don't include these medical records, they'll just get them from the GP anyway.
Thank you for reading!
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- BIS
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1 year 9 months ago - 1 year 9 months ago #278500 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report
Hi sgbd
The DWP rarely contact doctors for information, and even if they did, they would not be asking for your husband's medical records - there's one form the GPs are asked to fill in, and many doctors (but not all), do it rather poorly!
What I'm trying to say is that the DWP rarely has a full record of a claimant's health, and they tend to have what people choose to send them. Our advice is don't send anything that could harm a claimant. However, that has to be a personal decision. I always give an example where I advised someone with a mental health problem not to send in a letter which contained the sentence "X can't work at the moment" because I knew although we had lots of evidence of how ill X was and they had never worked and were never going to work in the future, I did not trust the DWP to understand that. I didn't want to risk them giving a short-term award, assuming that he was going to work in the future. That was the choice we made, and they didn't include the letter even though it came from a key worker. The DWP never queried that there was no letter from a key worker.
The thing to ask yourself is how important it is to include the letter from the asthma clinic. If it's important, then include it and point out the error. If it's not - then don't include it. Not including the letter doesn't stop you from saying that he has been to an asthma clinic or what impact it has on his care and mobility as pertaining to the PIP criteria.
BIS
The DWP rarely contact doctors for information, and even if they did, they would not be asking for your husband's medical records - there's one form the GPs are asked to fill in, and many doctors (but not all), do it rather poorly!
What I'm trying to say is that the DWP rarely has a full record of a claimant's health, and they tend to have what people choose to send them. Our advice is don't send anything that could harm a claimant. However, that has to be a personal decision. I always give an example where I advised someone with a mental health problem not to send in a letter which contained the sentence "X can't work at the moment" because I knew although we had lots of evidence of how ill X was and they had never worked and were never going to work in the future, I did not trust the DWP to understand that. I didn't want to risk them giving a short-term award, assuming that he was going to work in the future. That was the choice we made, and they didn't include the letter even though it came from a key worker. The DWP never queried that there was no letter from a key worker.
The thing to ask yourself is how important it is to include the letter from the asthma clinic. If it's important, then include it and point out the error. If it's not - then don't include it. Not including the letter doesn't stop you from saying that he has been to an asthma clinic or what impact it has on his care and mobility as pertaining to the PIP criteria.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Last edit: 1 year 9 months ago by BIS.
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- Bud
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1 year 9 months ago #278504 by Bud
Replied by Bud on topic Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report
Hi sgbd,
You could do a diary for a week or two of what life’s like for your H with CFS. No one will know him like you do.
You could do a diary for a week or two of what life’s like for your H with CFS. No one will know him like you do.
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- sgbd
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1 year 9 months ago #278507 by sgbd
Replied by sgbd on topic Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report
Thank you so much for your help! I really really appreciate the thoughtful and detailed response. If you don't mind a follow up question- do you recommend writing the PIP review for my husband using I (I need a wheelchair) or he (He needs a wheelchair)?
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- BIS
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1 year 9 months ago #278508 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic Pip Review and Inaccurate Full Medical Report
Hi sgbd
I prefer to use "he needs a wheelchair."
You said that your husband has CFS/ME, which can include symptoms such as cognitive dissonance (brain fog), exhaustion and pain. We know that the DWP doesn't always take the condition seriously, and so if a person puts in a report that says "I" all over the place and appears perfectly written, assessors tend to think people don't have the problems they say they have. So when I help people, I always use a third-person point of view and write he/she/they.
BIS
I prefer to use "he needs a wheelchair."
You said that your husband has CFS/ME, which can include symptoms such as cognitive dissonance (brain fog), exhaustion and pain. We know that the DWP doesn't always take the condition seriously, and so if a person puts in a report that says "I" all over the place and appears perfectly written, assessors tend to think people don't have the problems they say they have. So when I help people, I always use a third-person point of view and write he/she/they.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: denby, sgbd
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