Please hold - Indefinitely

 Please hold – indefinitely

What can I do to make an appointment -

Three weeks is too long to wait?

I need a blood test and some ointment

And I’m not feeling to great.

I’ve filled in a triage form

But would like to talk to a physician,

I think this is more than a germ

And might require an admission.

I’m not here to complain

But nobody’s got in touch!

The receptionist is not to blame

And all this tech is double-dutch.

I’ve sat in a long phone queue

Forever at number one.

I’ve walked out to speak to you

To see if anything can be done?

Monotone recordings, a voice of a female.

In case I start getting worse.

Try to see a GP – even this has failed.

This whole so called system is cursed.

The waiting room is unfilled

So are the doctors’ chairs

Where are the people with skills.

Do you have a minute to spare?

I need specialist advice

To help stop this pain and worry.

Health, we’re paying the high price

And nobody’s in a hurry.

I might need an operation

But there’s hardly the interaction

And up and down the nation

Where are the plans of action?

I want to know what’s wrong with me

And wasting so much precious time,

Spending ages on the PC

And I’m no longer in my prime.

I can’t see properly on my phone,

Just need to be in the loop.

It’s frustrating I’ve been postponed,

I Need a proper health group.

There is an endless queue

Of questions and no reply,

The wait to get to see you

There’s a problem I can’t deny.

Disorganised chaos is a definition;

NHS is slipping away.

No communication in addition

And yet another delay.

So how do I make an appointment?

It’s many years that I’ve been.

There’s no help, just disappointment

And will I ever be seen?

Copyright Linda Lawrence

30th September 2026