Hi all my MT has advised me to make a rdv with a heart specialist. Blood tests done & he’s happy with results. But 2 months on I’m still unable to get a rdv. Even OH specialist not able to give me a rdv until 2022!! He is an existing patient with ALD status since 2015 (move from uk to France) so he has a rdv late January 2021
Anyone else having problems as new patients? I’m in Dept 03 an hour from Vichy area. TiA for any guidance
Pressure your MT to get you an appointment with a Cardio he has some influence with. Medicine is just a club like any other profession. The MT will send a email to his chere collègue…
BTW, TIA is probably not a good acronym for those of us with dodgy tickers 
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Actually my physio suggested that.
Oh what does TIA mean then …I’ve got used to it as Thanks in Advance!!
Can be medical shorthand for Transient Ischaemic Attack, I think.
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A (minor) stroke I think, but Paul our resident Doctor can elaborate 
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Beaten to it 
Thanks everyone for TiA explanation!
Any further advice on my dilemma before I have a TIA
Has your MT suggested you take Soluble Aspirin 75 mg daily to help avert mini-strokes? You might ask him/her if not. It’s commonly prescribed in suitable patients as an aid to preventing thrombosis or embolism which can lead to TIA.
If you are prepared to travel some distance, then you could try a search on www.doctolib.fr to find a Cardiologist who can see you sooner. You can then make the appointment online.
From a brief search I see that there is a Cardiologue in 03000 Moulins by the name of Dr Codin OLARIOU who could see you on 17th or 18th December (10 days from now). Hopefully that will be soon enough for your needs.
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As has been suggested… go back to your MT.
If the MT is unhappy with the delay there are other routes to be followed… including sending you to hospital A&E if it is really urgent.
I confess that after a first TIA I’d expect more than a pat on the head and a Junior Aspirin (though that is part of the prescription)
I’d expect a physical, identification of risks, ECG to identify any rhythm abnormalities, blood workup including lipids and coagulation studies, glucose and/or HbA1c, carotid doppler scan, echocardiogram (to identify persistent atrial septal defect), CT/MRI head to make sure it was not a stroke or other intracranial pathology.
Once all that had been done medication (including Aspirin, if heart rhythm is normal) but possibly statin, diabetic meds if that was discovered in the workup, anticoagulation and rate control meds if AF (atrial fibrillation) was discovered plus a statin if there is hyperlipidaemia. Oh, and discussion of lifestyle, weight, exercise, reducing obvious risk factors such as smoking etc.
For younger patients with AF “rhythm control” may be preferable which could include cardiac drugs and/or cardioversion (use of a timed electrical pulse to shock the heart back into a normal rhythm). In older patients they tend to revert back to AF if you try rhythm control so “rate control” is normally used (AF tends to make your heart beat too quickly, adding to the loss of efficiency cause by the irregular beat).
I could be a bit out of date with this - it’s a while since I did any acute or stroke medicine but did spend 18 months between an acute stroke ward placement and the stroke rehab ward, so I do have a little experience here 
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My trust runs a 7/7 TIA clinic for upto 4 people the usual pattern is blood,ECG. MRI and consultant review ,often Dopplers but these aren’t available on the day at weekend and further investigation ie echo cardio gram ,24 hour tape etc as determined on examination, any necessary meds are also prescribed. This does seem to work well as a system
What @anon88169868 describes was my experience to the letter here in France treatment for which continues to this day.
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It is also worth mentioning that a new TIA is not something I’d be happy with a leisurely referral to a cardiologist - ideally in needs to be to a stroke specialist and, as TIAs can be the warning shot for a full stroke or symptom of a more serious problem, pretty quickly (normally in the UK there are fast access clinics where the investigations can be done quickly, as Eddie describes).
I nearly posted that Paul,if the issue is TIA then the Op would be better under stroke than cardiology
All interesting stuff but reading through the thread, where does it say that the OP had a TIA?
The thread progressed through to TIA as a result of a him using an abbreviation for «thanks in advance» which has a secondary medical connotation…
OTOH, what @anon88169868 describes about discussion of lifestyle, weight, exercise and reducing obvious risk factors (smoking, drinking alcohol) is extremely valid and is initially at least in the province of the MT whilst waiting for an RDV. Are there any language issues in play here?
If it was more serious and pressing, I would expect the MT to pack the OP off to Urgence either under his own steam or by ambulance with a referral letter - so the fact that hasn’t happened is encouraging news - distressing though it might be to have to wait for normality to resume in these Covid challenged times.
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Ah, yes - the dangers of landing in the middle of a thread. Now that I go back and re-read the original post I see it was used as “thanks in advance”.
Anyway - the advice re: TIA meaning Transient Ischaemic Attack still stands, if your MT is taking a leisurely approach they might be a bit out of touch with current management.
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This made me wonder if she had been warned there was a possibility of her having a TIA
I took it as a flippant remark… such as one makes when one is anxious about something…
Treatment in France (as a rule) is swift when it needs to be… which is why (as I have already suggested) the MT should be made aware of the delay… and perhaps also a good idea that he/she understands the anxiety of the patient.