If you’ve ever chased a diagnosis for persistent fatigue, unexplained pain, gut problems, or any collection of baffling symptoms, you may already know the rules of the game: medical pass the parcel.
You unwrap the first layer with your GP. They listen, nod, maybe order a blood test or two. Then, just as you think you’re getting somewhere, they hand the parcel to Rheumatology. Rheumatology has a quick peek, shakes their head, and passes it on to Neurology. Neurology, after a polite shrug, parcels it off to Immunology, then to Cardiology…. And so the music plays on.
Meanwhile, you’re still sitting there with the same symptoms, wondering if the prize at the centre is an actual care plan… or just another referral letter. By now you’ve had a panoramic tour of nearly every medical “-ology”, and your health record looks as though it’s been collecting stamps for a loyalty scheme.
Why Does This Happen?
- Specialist silos – Medicine is organised into neat boxes: heart, lungs, brain, joints. Sadly, your body didn’t get the memo and try to get all together is a job itself.
- Time poverty – The average NHS GP appointment lasts nine minutes. That’s barely enough to describe one complex symptom, let alone five.
- Knowledge gaps – Long Covid, ME/CFS, and overlapping autoimmune issues are still under researched. Some clinicians admit they don’t feel confident managing them. Others… pretend.
- The human factor – A recent UK survey found nearly 1 in 3 patients with chronic illness felt dismissed or “not believed” during consultations. That’s not imagination; it’s a systemic common problem.
The Emotional Whiplash
The contrast is striking. One week, you meet a doctor who leans in, validates your experience, and says, “This must be incredibly hard.” You leave lighter, even if nothing is “fixed”.
The next week? You get the polite smile, the rapid hand-off, and maybe even the subtle suggestion that stress is to blame. (Translation: we don’t know, and we don’t have time.)
It’s hard not to feel like the parcel itself, something to be passed around until the music stops.
So How Do You Survive the Game?
- Keep score – Document everything: symptoms, test results, flare triggers. It’s your evidence base when memory falters or doctors skim.
- Find your team – Patient groups and advocacy networks can offer more insight (and sanity) than a dozen leaflets.
- Spot the good players – When you meet a clinician who truly listens, hold on tight. They may not have all the answers, but empathy and the willingness to try are half the medicine.
- Remember your agency – If a clinician dismisses you, you’re allowed to ask for a second opinion. You know your body best.
The Small Victories
The prize at the centre of this pass the parcel may not be a cure, not yet, anyway. But there are wins worth celebrating:
- A test result that sheds light instead of more confusion.
- A specialist who admits “we don’t know” but helps you manage anyway.
- A fellow patient who says: me too.
These are not small things; they’re survival tools.
The Bottom Line
Living with complex, multi-system illness is exhausting enough without playing games. But until medicine catches up, the pass the parcel continues: some clinicians are brilliant, some are burnt out, and some simply pass you along.
The irony is that for a system designed to treat people, it often feels like a game of avoiding responsibility. Yet in that gap, between being dismissed and being believed, patients build resilience, communities, and louder voices for change.
So yes, the music may keep playing, but remember this: you are not just the parcel. You’re the person holding it together, demanding better, and insisting that your health story deserves to be heard.
Long Covid Journey 