To ask to speak to a doctor ?

OP, it very much is the nurses’ fault, for not recognising his deteriorating condition and taking action.
It being a weekend is irrelevant.
It’s frightening to think that this is an example of hospital care.

Doctors in hospitals especially on a weekend are rarer than unicorn shit

When my husband was deathly ill (like 3 times had to be shocked back ill) the useless morons went on the ward once a day spoke to him for 2/3 minutes then went off again

I caught one of them at the nurses station on Grindr which he's allowed to do but not when he's getting paid to work

The only time they materialised was when he flat lined then they all came out of the woodwork

Db was an alcoholic and spent time in hospital. The nurses were great but I was rarely able to speak to a doctor, and the nurses were unable to change course of action. Db unable to advocate for himself. I wrote a letter to the doctor and left it with the ward sister. I think it helped, I was able to explain my concerns and I n is from the nurses that the doctor read it and took it seriously

I am talking about when he hopefully gains capacity.

Dm was fast tracking a Power of Attorney when db died. It was very difficult because though he had given written consent for dm to deal with his medication etc the surgery kept on wanting to speak to him. By this time he'd had a tracheostomy and was unable to speak.

Impossible if he lacks capacity, you'll need to apply for deputyship or the court of protection

This is the level of care we've experienced for the last 20 years, it's frightening and neglectful when not even drinking is aided. I fought for FIL who had gone in with delirium to have an IV drip because he was out of it and convulsing. He'd not drunk or eaten anything for 48hrs, just things put in front of him. The drip helped loads and am not medical trained at all.

Please get him some more attention if able. So pleased for your brother he has you, I really hope they listen to you fast.

OP you sound great and I hope things improve.

In the medium term, I would consider getting Power of Attorney for both health and finances in case it’s needed.

Unfortunately not has no legal right to medical info without the patients consent but staff do try and share information when they can

I have experience of someone with a similar illness. I’m not sure how it is with weekends or bank holidays, but in that hospital the doctor did rounds once a day and if you are very insistent they might let you sit on a round. It’s not during visiting hours and they are not very happy about it but as NOK you deserve to have some actual info. I went with the NOK to take notes, and in order to get permission to come in she had been very assertive and not taken no for an answer.
I know everyone is very busy but it’s like getting blood from a stone sometimes and it’s stressful when the person is urgently ill. I was NOK for an elderly relative and was told she might not make the weekend. When I came in the next day I asked how she was doing and was told she was “very poorly” 🤨 which didn’t really mean anything given the circumstances

hope he’s better today and getting correct management 💐

Do they know he's a heavy drinker, why was he admitted to hospital.

He needs you to speak for him! My late db was an alcoholic and he was always put on withdrawal meds if he was admitted. Our parents, particularly dm (retired nurse) was his main spokesperson though he often resented her getting involved. When ds(23) had sepsis almost 2 years ago I couldn't believe how difficult it was to find a doctor in a&e. I truly believe he would have died if dd1 had not advocated for him (she's a doctor).

Personally I'd be calling for a second opinion, either the doctor on call or the itu outreach team who, sadly, doctors take more notice of than "plain old " ward nurses, you can call and ask switchboard to bleep them as an outside call. There will be medical cover and an admission team, amu is fine, but he can't be left untreated for withdrawals, he needs medication, fluids and blood tests, plenty of patients don't wait for a scan. It's difficult getting info, nok is not a legal right, it's frustrating so good luck. You can also ask to speak to the matron covering amu or the site manager.

You're next of kin and he needs you. Stop being so polite and worrying you might upset someone

Do it

Insist on seeing someone.

Good luck @3smallpups you're doing the right thing

At the very least I’d expect him to already be on chlordiazepoxide, Pabrinex and lactulose. Has he been given any of this? Pabrinex is a bright yellow liquid given IV, chlordiazepoxide is oral capsules (from memory they are very brightly coloured, but it varies) and lactulose is a liquid.

AMU isn’t such a bad place for him to be; I was an AMU nurse for a few years and looked after many people with decompensated cirrhosis, which is what is probably what is happening to your brother. There will (or should) be a doctor that covers AMU full-time and can update you on his care. The nursing team can refer him to the drug and alcohol liaison service, if there is one in your Trust. He also needs to be under the care of the dietetics team as proper nutrition is crucial for his recovery, the nurses should also be able to complete a referral for this.

I would ask the nurse looking after your brother when the daily ward round is happening as that will be when you get to meet and speak to the consultant and juniors involved in his care and find out exactly what is happening.

I hope he recovers

Shocking.
I had a similiar situation with my father. Not an alcohol disease. There wasn’t a doctor to be found. I could buy a pasta salad and even a chicken leg in the huge airport style lounge downstairs. But in a hospital it was bereft of any staff to actually crack on with medical care. He was in terrible pain and it took me ages walking around to find anyone.
While I was with him a man in the bed opposite called for a nurse. She came and said ‘ I cannot understand you’. And walked away. Some nurse. I went over and said what is it ? He pointed to the floor. He had dropped a pencil he had been using for his crossword. Then he pointed to the water. I poured him a cup.
He was so grateful.
The state of some hospitals is shocking.

@3smallpups ask if they’ve followed the CIWA protocol for alcohol withdrawal and say you would like it written in his notes that you are very concerned about his alcohol withdrawal and are requesting a medical review. Once they have to write it they will
want to cover their backs I’m sure.
Definitely push for a review and raise your concerns, bank holiday or no bank holiday weekend.

I feel your frustration. I asked daily to speak to a doctor re my FIL about his heart failure. I'm a doctor and they kept sending the young FY1 doctor who was great but couldn't answer all my questions as she didn't have the level of experience.
Once the palliative care team got involved it was much better but I had to fight for that. Things tended to get left and some staff really didn't know what they were doing.
Actually the best staff were the care assistants.