Anyone been trasfered from IB to ESA recently?

[help_me]

Firstly Hi i'm new!

anyways where do i begin, i've been on IB for around 6 years for anxiety and depression

Had a few medicals in the past. the last one i failed cos the doctor lied and gave me zero points but i appealed and won.

Now i've had my migration letter through and received my ESA50 which needs to be returned in about a week.

i'll tell you a little bit more about my illness and history before i go to the questions.

in the past 2-3 years my condition has gotten so much worse. i now suffer from severe depression and agoraphobia which has left me housebound because i suffer from pretty horrific panic attacks if i ever leave the house. heck i suffer from them when sometimes just thinking about leaving the house. i also get NO sleep at all and this affects my memory so badly that i ticked the box for "being unable to set an alarm clock or washing machine" because they are geuinely difficult for me if i have no one there to show me. i wont ever be able to remember it as the lack of sleeps leaves me in a state of unawareness. a lot of the time i just sit staring at the wall, for what feels like only 2 minutes but in actual fact is about a few hours!

anyways in the first section of the ESA50 where it asks what help i would need going to an assessment i basically asked them if they could try and come to a decision without asking me to go to a medical.

Do you think this is likely to happen, that they might listen to my plea?

I've heard that nowadays they are desperate to save time so they just put a lot of IB claimants straight into WRAG. is this true, do you think that is likely to happen to me?

also do they REALLY very rarely call your doctor or is that all changing now? cos if they do then i really need to get into contact with my GP as i havent been to see him for... well a few years due to being housebound. :| i wont actually be able to go and see him, rather have a consultation over the phone to keep him uptodate with whats been going on with me.

sorry few more questions:

when the lady phoned me, before sending the forms, she said you "MAY" be asked to attend a medical. am i naively right in assuming that medicals will be more for people with physical conditions? because its confusing when some people say medical and some say face-to-face assessment, it leaves me wondering whether the two are the same thing or different.

anyways what can i do to avoid having to go to one cos i REALLY am dreading having to go as i'm housebound and dont know if i can even handle having the doctor come to my home. surely there has to be a third option. is there something i can get my GP to say or send to them to make them just go straight to a decision without making me have a medical?
is there something i can say to them? i'd much rather be put straight on wrag and have to appeal than have to go to a medical (obviously i wont say this in my form) is there anything anyone else has said or done to avoid them having a medical?

i mean i had one before, they failed me but i won. surely they're not stupid enough to try and pull this stunt on me again.

and last question i can think of is, anyone (preferably someone from london) who went to a medical recently. please tell me what time you went and most importantly - WHAT WAS THE WAITING ROOM LIKE? as in, were there A LOT of people waiting with you or was it relatively empty? how long did you have to wait till you were called in



i know thats an awful lot of questions but if you can try answering as many as you can i will be sooooo grateful as this is seriously stressing me out to the point where.... suicide is sounding like the pleasant option again i know, shame on me for saying that. it even ruined my entire Xmas and will obviously ruin my new year. just hope it doesnt ruin the whole of the new year!

its the waiting, i hate having to wait!!!

thanks for taking the time to read this... xx

[RaeUK]

I can't answer all of your questions and I've never been on IB, only ESA. However, what happens is this: you complete your ESA50 and send it off together with any supporting evidence you have. Based on this, a decision will be made as to whether a face to face assessment is needed. This is known as the Work Capability Assessment. The clue is in the title. The WCA is not a medical and certainly will be nothing like any you have had for IB. It is an assessment of what work you may be capable of. However, do bear in mind that a WCA isn't always necessary.
There are two groups to ESA. The Work Related Activities Group (WRAG) which is slowly being brought into alignment with JSA and some work activities are expected. And the Support Group where it is determined the claimant is not capable of any work at all.
Obviously, this is only the basic outline and I would have no idea where you might fit into this. Read around this forum and you will pick up plenty of pointers and links to the descriptors (you can also google ESA Descriptors 2012 for more info).
Whilst it is unusual for them to contact a GP for further info, I personally think it is always best to have regular contact with your GP so they know how best to help.
Any supporting evidence you have from any NHS professionals you are being seen by would be useful. Likewise charities like MIND can assist.
Best wishes.

[Thomos]

Firstly Hi i'm new!

anyways where do i begin, i've been on IB for around 6 years for anxiety and depression

.. xx

At these assessments the so called HCP will want to see all of your medication and what effects they have? if you haven't seen your GP for a while do you get repeated prescriptions?

[help_me]

hi, thanks RaeUk. yeah good news is i arranged a phone consultation with my GP today so hopefully when i speak to him i can keep him uptodate with everything thats been going on and may even beg him to write a supporting letter for me so send off with my forms.

thats interesting what you say about the WCA, the woman over the phone definitely said "you may be asked to attend a MEDICAL" no mention of an assessment so fingers crossed this means i wont be asked in for one.
do you know where a WCA is held by any chance? is it in a medical centre or at your local job centre???

i think i have provided them with enough information so far, telling them about all the things my illness DOES NOT allow me to do. so.... heres hoping that will be more than enough for them. anyways will be keeping you guys uptodate on everything that happens, once again thanks for taking the time to answer me. much appreciated

oh and happy new year! xxx

[help_me]

hi thomos, see the thing is the only medication i was prescribed in the past was citalopram, dunno if thats the right spelling, an anti-depressent. i took it for a few weeks but had terrible side affects to them plus they werent much help, didnt do much for my depression and so i stopped taking them. i have put all this info down in my forms, telling them what i used to take and why i dont take them anymore. and like i said to raeUK i booked a phone consultation with a doctor today and i will let him know what my illness is like now and my history and see whether he can provide me with anything new.

[RaeUK]

That's good news about your GP.
The WCA is dressed up like a 'medical' to try and give it a bit more of a caring feel, imho. The assessment is with a 'health care professional' and the room is dressed with a medical couch and appropriate paraphernalia. However, it is the computer programme that runs the show.
These are held in ATOS offices up and down the country, some of which are in government buildings.
Happy New Year to you too.

[help_me]

wow thanks for the quick reply RaeUK. yeah so i've had these medicals before, i've been to about two of them and like i said in my original post i was given zero points for the 2nd one but appealed and won. i really hope that works in my favour and that they dont try and pull that stunt on me again. if they do i might just have to get into contact with my solicitor

anyways that will be IF i have to attend one which i really am hoping and praying that i can avoid.
if my doctor cant provide a supporting letter then at least i will have updated my medical records to their computer so thats something i guess. if the worst comes to the worst then... well lets cross that bridge if we ever come to it.

one last question, IF i really had no other choice but to go, do you think arranging a time for 9am is the best option? as in do you think the centre is likely to be pretty empty if i had my appointment booked for the minute the centre opens?

[RaeUK]

I'm not normally this quick, I just happen to be passing through!
I suspect every ATOS centre is different. I have been to my local one three times and at no time would I have called it busy. Three or four people at the most. But I live in rural Dorset so it might be different in a more built up area or city.
The important thing, for now, is to gather your evidence for the ESA50 and get it all sent off. Don't forget that even simple things like a copy of your prescription can be evidence as it proves the medication you receive.

[help_me]

ok thanks, thats some more good advice.

its hard to tell how these centres will be, first time i went there were soooo many people there but the second time i went there was only one other person there and i was seen straightaway.

hoping the same thing will happen again IF i am called in a third time around. i live in london and the IB to ESA transfers been going on for a while now so... hopefully most of them have been seen now, especially the ones in my area.

[Thomos]

ok thanks, thats some more good advice.

its hard to tell how these centres will be, first time i went there were soooo many people there but the second time i went there was only one other person there and i was seen straightaway.

hoping the same thing will happen again IF i am called in a third time around. i live in london and the IB to ESA transfers been going on for a while now so... hopefully most of them have been seen now, especially the ones in my area.

I'm not in the London area but i can say with the back log of claimants needing to be assessed i expect these centers will be busy, even when people with severe anxiety problems like myself Atos didn't make my appointment any easier as there were about 10 people waiting to be seen and you can expect a delay in waiting sometimes?

I hope you do avoid another assessment by Atos, if this is your third time going this seems abit much to me?