Bowel removal?

Starting to flare again and really I refuse to go back on prednisone ever again. Im only 23 and I've had that much pred with this that it's ruined my life, job/career, money everything. Tired of having nothing and being so tired/lethargic all the time. Im on 6-mp and pentasa but it's obviously falling through. I did have remission for a while there but now it's starting again. If I go back into hospital with this that's me lost my job again.

So my question is, im in the UK. Which has a total garbage health system weather your on nhs or even private it's equally poor. My bowel doctors are terrible, kept telling me just to come off some of the meds so I stopped the pentasa and this flare up happens. I refuse to deal with them again.

Is there any way any country out there offers some sort of surgery that I can pay for where as they would remove the large bowel and do the pouch operation in one? I really don't want a bag but I'd settle with that? Im 23 and I really can't go thru my life like this as really there is no life. Thanks.

Some US people with poor/little insurance go to India for surgery that costs much less there. There's even a name for it, "medical tourism". My concern would be what standard doctors are held to and what after-care is done in recovery.

This is a serious operation and you'd need a doctor and staff mentoring you through recovery. Doing this in a foreign country would raise my stress level but if you have no better choices then you would have a pretty good attitude instead of stress.

I'm sorry for your situation and hope you can find a resolution you are happy with.
Are there perhaps locations of UK with better access to surgery?

If you're prepared to go to India, or wherever, then you should be able to go another part of the UK. What area do you live in? I'll recommend my hospital and GI if you're interested. Can't guarantee they'll help you, but I have had good treatment there, including a recent colectomy, which went very well. (Having a few problems accepting having a bag for life, but that's not the surgeon's fault!)

Btw, Pentasa is useless for UC, as it works mainly in the last part of the small bowel. But even for Crohn's it's not much cop: many studies have shown it to be no better than a placebo. So I extremely doubt that it was coming off the Pentasa which caused your flare-up, but was simply a coincidence. Nevertheless, the fact that your gastro docs prescribed Pentasa for UC is a slightly worrying sign of their incompetence or lack of knowledge.

Finally, you don't mention Remicade (better known as Infliximab in the UK). But it would be worth trying that before surgery, if you can. To get given more than 3 doses, you'll need a gastro doc prepared to diagnose you with interminate colitis or Crohn's colitis, because I don't think it's approved as a maintenance treatment for UC (might have changed, but too lazy to check the NICE guidelines). But I knew one old lady in my hospital who'd been on Remicade for 7 years for her colitis: it was the only drug which worked for her.

Yes, I don't see why you can't change hospitals. I believe you can elect to have surgery in any NHS hospital or is that no longer the case? It would definitely be worth traveling if you're going to get it. I would ask for recommendations on the UK UC boards and from the UK residents here.

Not all healthcare on the NHS is poor! I had very good care on the NHS throughout my twelve years of having UC before having to have a colectomy and j pouch creation. I also had a fantastic surgeon and excellent aftercare. The NHS has saved my life on more than one occasion and I will always be grateful for our healthcare system!