topic Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect in Roaming

Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 03:12:45 GMT

How can I ring a GP in Oz? A voice tells me to enter a number to connect but I keep getting static

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

bristolian — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 08:16:27 GMT

Are you in the UK or Australia?

Can you call other Australian numbers?

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 09:18:20 GMT

I’m in Australia. I’m paying for extra from EE while I’m out here. I turned on data roaming and everything else I could think of but I couldn’t even ring my son.
My DIL WhatsApped me, asking if I’d managed to get an appointment, when u told her how ill I felt she made me an appointment luckily. I can’t tell you how scary it was not being able to get help when I needed it.
I still can’t make a phone call for some reason. I’d love to know how to. I have an iPhone 11.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

bristolian — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 09:39:34 GMT

Regardless of any billing add-on, your ability to get coverage abroad (which calls, texts & mobile data rely on) is dependent on roaming being activated - which allows your phone to connect to foreign networks. Data roaming simply means using mobile data whilst roaming.

Have you used your phone abroad previously, did you receive a welcome text message on first arrival abroad? These are good evidence of roaming being enabled if so. In these cases, manually cycling through all available local networks often resolves issues - toggling flight mode can have the same effect.

If not...On PAYG, roaming is auto-enabled once your phone is used in the UK first. On pay-monthly, this needs to be enabled manually - usually by texting ROAMING to 150 before leaving the UK. Did you do this?

If you are on pay-monthly and now find yourself abroad without having enabled roaming, your only recourse will be to contact CS to request it activated. You can either contact +44 7953 966150 from another working phone, or +44 800 9566000 using a web-calling app such as Skype over WiFi.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 12:11:14 GMT

I always activate data roaming for when we arrive, we were with EE last year as well and before that O2.
We did get messages off EE both years but we didn’t get one off Optus which we might have had previous years. I have phoned my son previous years but maybe not last year. We FaceTime or WhatsApp family in the U.K.

i think it’s the message off a provider that need to be able to ring people here over the next few months.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 12:12:31 GMT

Yes we’re on pay monthly.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

bristolian — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 12:44:27 GMT

@Ja1441 wrote:

I always activate data roaming for when we arrive, we were with EE last year as well and before that O2.

Data roaming is just a phone setting allowing the use of mobile data whilst already roaming.

You still need to roam in the first place to text-roam or voice-roam. I otherwise refer to my previous post - you've not answered some of the relevant points. Crucially, did you enable roaming prior to leaving the UK, or have you used your phone abroad previously?

FYI you can also edit posts for a short time, negating the need to send multiple short responses.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 13:56:58 GMT

Yes to both questions. I’m sorry I feel so ill I’m giving up trying to fix this problem.
Thanks for your replies.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Leanne_T — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 14:42:06 GMT

I am very sorry you are poorly and hope you feel better soon @Ja1441

If you could get in touch with our mobile guides once you feel up to it, and would like the account looked into.

The team will check everything from our side for you and make sure roaming is fully set up for you so you can use the phone when you need to.

Take care and please come back and let us know how everything goes.

Leanne.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

XRaySpeX — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 17:24:48 GMT

Data roaming plays no part in making a phone call to a GP. It does not give you the permission to roam.

Re: Doctor in Australia. How to ring it won’t connect

Ja1441 — Sat, 14 Dec 2024 02:51:33 GMT

Thanks Leanne,

I’ve only been asthmatic once over twenty years ago, so when I became so wheezy I was struggling to breathe I was panicking. I have been prescribed prednisone now which should kick in soon.

For cycle rides, if needed in an emergency, my husband will take his phone off aeroplane mode and WhatsApp call my son or daughter in law his What3words location.

I feel safe now, as school has broken up, so dil or one of the children is with me all the time. So annoying to be ill while here with them.

I will look at the mobile guides you suggested.