ESA - Why is it so hard to claim?

woodbon

ESA AND THE PROBLEMS THAT CLAIMENTS FACE

Why does the Government want to treat ill and disabled people like potential criminals? The new ESA health tests do not seem to be crude and intrusive in the form of questions they ask. ie Can you control your bowels so you do not need to change your clothes because of soiling them? Can you control your bladderso you do not need to change your clothes because of wetting them? Then a space to tell them how often this occurs and if you need to wash.
This is not information that they should ask the claiment, but should be obtained from the claiments GP or other medical sources. It degrades the person to be asked such intamate questions, makes the likelyhood of proud, dignified people refuse to admit to such a
problem. I have worked with disabled and elderly people for 10 years and I have an NVQ in Care, I know that people can go to great lengths to cover up and deny having these problems.

They do not ask if you can spend the day walking and what effect the effort of walking short distances or the effect that the exertion will have on your health and whether you would be able to do that 5 days a week.

Their are so many examples of such questions that I will not go any further. People are writing in to charties, in great fear and upset, after being informed that benefit they have claimed for a long time will be stopped if they fail to fulfill the criteria of the form. The assessors are not medically trained, but are called Health Care Professionals, but they are not nurses or doctors, they have been given rights to ask people to do things, which in some cases may well cause the claiment pain and further harm.

Does the Government think that the NHS doctors, who spend many years training, cannot assess thier patients properly and honestly?
I am going to write to my MP and that is about the limit of my ability as a single person to complain. Should Charities and Disabled people not try to get together to protest. The figures on The Shaw Trust Web site state that 80% per cent of the cliams fail and ESA is only paid to 16% per cent of claimants. The Shaw Trust works with the Govenment trying to find work for disabled people.

Sorry to rant for such a long time and I'm sure anyone who has got to this point is fed up! Some of the letters on this site are from people who are in desparate worry about these claims and loss of money. We should have better ways of doing things in this day and age.
Sue

ritwren

Sue I agree with every word you say. I just got one of those forms this week and I've been trying to hold it together ever since. For a lot of the questions i.e. can you climb 2 stairs if you have a hand rail, etc....... it really depends on how my limbs are at the time. Yes mostly I can but I can't walk to the corner shop without holding on to the wall sometimes because of the pain in my foot and I can't sleep all night because of the pains in my neck and back... I could go on but there's no point there's nowhere on the form to say these things.
I have tried so very very hard to remain as positive as I can with this diseasedespite pain, sickness and fatigue but it seems to be getting more difficult by the day not helped at all by these forms and being made to feel useless on one hand and a scrounger on the other.
rita

carol101

I have never had to claim any benefits so can't really answer but it does make me so mad when you see people whojust can't be bothered to work for a living and they get everything handed to them on a plate yet the people who really need it get turned down.

Can you believe, me Dad is 62, fighting cancer, but can not even get 'pentioned off on ill health' because they take into account that both my brothers still live at home and both are working and there is too much money going into the house!

It's nothing to do with money, my Dad has cancer

I would really get going if i could but i'd get banned from the forum!

Carol X

kathbee

I agree Sue
its shocking.

All the forms including DLA, ESA
do not ask questions that have meaning
on a person's illness. Goodness knows which
moron dreamt them up but they are to catch
genuinely ill people out.

It sickens me.

Kath

woodbon

HI,
Carol, I'm so sorry about your Dad and I try to can understand how you feel, it must be awful. I hope things work out for you.

Surely, the whole thing could be handled better and cost less if the word of the Dr was taken as an honest, professional opinion, and just checks made to make sure the claim is honest and that could be done without all the form filling, with help availabe and people encouraged, but not forced to take part, and everything done to respect the claiments situation. I also feel that all medical tests and checks should be carried out by a fully trained Doctor or Nurse.

Thanks you for the replies, I'm going on again. I'll stop :roll:
Love Sue

vonski

Hi Sue

I agree with you too, I think this government do it to flex their muscles and let us know they can perhaps they think we are too weak to fight back. We don't know how to work the system like some do and they won't tackle them.

Love
Vonski x

tkachev

The questions are too basic.Perhaps they should have a question how many hours a week do you feel pain free all over!
Carol,can your dad get DLA(fast-tracked and non means tested)?He might qualify if he cannot dress,wash or feed himself due to the cancer.
Best wishes
Elizabeth

wendylou

ritwren wrote:

Sue I agree with every word you say. I just got one of those forms this week and I've been trying to hold it together ever since. For a lot of the questions i.e. can you climb 2 stairs if you have a hand rail, etc....... it really depends on how my limbs are at the time. Yes mostly I can but I can't walk to the corner shop without holding on to the wall sometimes because of the pain in my foot and I can't sleep all night because of the pains in my neck and back... I could go on but there's no point there's nowhere on the form to say these things.
I have tried so very very hard to remain as positive as I can with this diseasedespite pain, sickness and fatigue but it seems to be getting more difficult by the day not helped at all by these forms and being made to feel useless on one hand and a scrounger on the other.
rita

I agree all the way what maddens me is that they don't believe what your GP says, how these scrounger do it i don't have a clue, all i can say is they are very good actors and the likes of us honest one's cannot get a thing and we are really suffering oh i am so mad :x i will have to stop know as my blood pressures rising. All the best to the honest one's going through this stress that we could do without.Wendylou.x

woodbon

Well, I've done it! :shock: For the first time in my life, I've written to my MP about the forms and the high level of refusal of ESA claims. My MP is a Conservitive, Richard Bacon. I have met him once. He came to the Leonard Cheshire home that I worked at and met some of the residents, to see if they had any concerns. I must say his manner and the fact that he was the only prospective MP to visit us, was impressive? I reminded him of that visit! It was, of course, election time! :roll: His site is set up to e-mail problems, so I did! I don't expect it will make any difference, but if people tell them, they have know the concerns of one group of people.
Love Sue

ritwren

Good for you Sue8) . Unfortunately it's not until it starts to affect you or those you know, i.e. others on the board here, that you realise how unfair the system really is. I was telling my family and friends about it and they are absolutely shocked at the type of questions being asked. Nobody can understand why when folk are attending their GP and/or Rheumatologist and they say a person is not able to work at the moment, the ESA cannot just take their word for it.
rita

suncatcher

I absolutly agree with you and i have an nvq in care and i am shocked and appalled at our treatment. I since having my medical am also shocked at a few people who i know asking me to tell them what was said in my medical. I told them i have the same rights as theyhave to complete privacy regarding what is said in my medicals and that is between me and the doctor i have not become public property all of a sudden and they have not the right to know.
I really wish we would all march on downing street they need to know our strong opposition to all this. The prime minister should pick on the fraudulant claimants not put strain on those who dont deserve it. :x :x anough rant from joanne

shelleymogui

We have just got to the point where we have to appeal. I say it like this, like it's all part of the process, because it seems like it is. Even people at the jobcentre on the phone said, 'everyone appeals' 'theres no way round it' and so we have now filled in the form and sent it back today.

Just wondered if anyone else has done this and how long the turn around is to hear news?

I don't understand how people who really need this and people who are signed off work and quite obviously ill can't get this help from the system that they paid into when they were well and working. It really makes me angry.

Good Luck all who are applying. x