Chamber Member Benefit Proves to be Just What the Doctor Ordered

16th July 2012

When Brenda Jordan began experiencing severe pain in her leg, she knew she needed to see a GP quickly.

The pain, which Brenda described as being -like bad cramp had left her in agony and struggling to walk, but she faced a wait of at least a week for an appointment at her local GP surgery. Concerned and looking for a faster solution, Brenda turned to the GP telephone consultation service, DoctorLine(tm), available on her Westfield Health cash plan. Brenda, Director of HR & Operations at Sheffield Chamber of Commerce, said: -My leg was really hurting, so naturally I wanted to find out what was causing the pain as soon as possible. I used the DoctorLine(tm) benefit on the Chamber Plan we have through work and managed to speak to a GP within the hour. -I was diagnosed with a pulled muscle and the GP advised me to use some over the counter medication and drink tonic water I'd only ever heard of drinking it with gin! -I did as he instructed and within 24 hours my leg was starting to feel better. Just three days later, I was back to normal. Without the fast access to a GP that DoctorLine(tm) provides, I'd have been in pain for a lot longer. But Brenda's experience of DoctorLine(tm) didn't end there she used the service again after waking up with a blood shot eye. -I looked in the mirror and there was a large red dot very near to my pupil. Anything to do with your eyes is concerning, so I immediately phoned DoctorLine and spoke to a GP on the same morning. -He explained that it was nothing to worry about and that it would start to dissolve in the next few days. He explained what to do if it didn't clear up, and advised me on how to look after my eye in the meantime he even advised me on whether or not I could wear eye make-up for my night out that evening. -I followed his instructions and again, just as he predicted, the redness faded in a few days. The Westfield Chamber Primary Health Plan is available to all members of Sheffield Chamber, and the organisation has also chosen to provide the benefit for its own staff. -I have used the Chamber Plan since I started working for the Chamber in 2005, said Brenda. -It goes way beyond the obvious but very useful dental and optical benefits. I've suffered from shoulder and neck pain for a number of years, and the plan enables me to visit the chiropractor or osteopath for treatment and a speedy recovery. Westfield Health has recently enhanced its DoctorLine(tm) benefit to include an online consultation service, which enables policyholders to discuss their symptoms with a GP via a webcam. The Chamber Plan provides employees with cash back towards the cost of everyday healthcare such as dental, optical, therapy treatments and diagnostic consultations. It also provides fast access to MRI, CT and PET scanning facilities, a 24 hour counselling and advice line and up to six face to face counselling sessions or cognitive behavioural therapy sessions.   For more information, please visit www.westfieldhealth.com/chamber or call 0845 6021629, available 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.