To boggle at remote areas and NHS in general.

[hermionestranger]

Just back from a rubbish holiday. Dh had car accident Monday before we left, he is ok just sore.

First night on holiday me and both DS' cane down with some noro bug or other. Next day we were all ok and eating by lunchtime. No sleep had by us all though do very tired and early to bed. Ds1 spent that night vomiting and by middle of the day was unable to walk, complaining of tummy pains and running a temp.

We took him to the nearest tiny a&e who diagnosed possible appendicitis and said we would have to take him to the nearest surgical unit. 75 miles away! He's actually ok and getting better save for now a word throat/ear ache.

The rest if the weeks weather was shocking and dh was poorly later in the week.

So aibu to wonder how people in remote communities manage when serious conditions arise?

Also aibu to wonder if we are having sinister this year?

They take themselves to hospital, or wait for an ambulance or drop dead, just the same as anyone else. What did you expect? People who choose to live in rural areas know where the hospitals etc are and decide it's worth it. Or people live somewhere that used to have adequate provision and it gets closed down like where I live and they suffer the consequences whether they want to or not It's only really in big cities that everything is on the doorstep nowadays.

I wouldn't call where we live remote, but I know ambulances just 'hang about' in a place away from the hospital so they don't have to drive too far if needed.

er... what's sinister this year?

It's just never crossed my mind before, we have a selection of massive hospitals here. I have to say that we have never been treated so kindly here as we were on monday.

Thanks NHS Scotland.

Summer not sinister, even my phone has given up in summer this year.

Our daughter has cancer and this hospital, 2 hours away, is the nearest place she can be treated. We 'manage' by my living here and my husband with the kids over there.

It is hard going. I used to work for OOH NHS on the phones, we covered some rural areas and islands and it worried me every time a call came through for the isles because there was only 1 GP covering a massive area. I wouldn't live anywhere rural, 1 because I'm scared of the dark and 2 because I would be constantly anxious about getting ill - I'm a bit of a worrier!

Air ambulance for emergencies. Most things are not life and death emergencies though are they?

I had to travel 2 hours to visit my ex when he was an inpatient. (4 hours return)

The 'local' hosp is not specialist and we both have been admitted to hosps at 70 min distance and 120 min. I was an emergency but not life or death - it was a long ride and I was rushed through a very busy A&E on arrival.

Managing ?? erm... stay well :)

Expat your poor daughter. It must be so difficult for you all. Hug.

I'm so naive sometimes. I am such a city mouse sometimes I don't think I could live away from having a city on my doorstep, although ds2 hasn't needed his inhaler since Tuesday! The air is just so much cleaner!

My last sentence is way too flippant in light of expat's post. She has described the scenario which anyone living rurally dreads. Ongoing hospital care.

Centralising specialities is a major issue for us. DoH decrees that services are 'best' if provided in volume (partly agree with this) but allowance has to be made for locality. It's no good having a hosp with excellence of care if you cannot access it because of distance.

Should have guessed it was a predictive text howler!

Round these parts there is an air ambulance, which is (very) partially funded by the police/nhs trust, but to keep it in the air we have to fundraise. The local papers are full of families doing sponsored thingys after someone's life gets saved by it, one of our local villages always splits its summer fete take with it and the Village Hall, it's got a couple of charity shops... that sort of thing.

When I lived very rural (Hebrides), I was once airlifted by the Air Ambulance 130 miles away to the nearest 'proper' hospital, Raigmore in Inverness. Air ambulance saved my life, it really was a life or death situation (first anaphylaxis).

EVERYONE should fundraiser for air ambulances, I do a tabletop sale every year for my current local one, this years raised £120. It's not much, but given that an air ambulance saved my life 16 years ago, I try to do what I can.

However, now due to my own disability and my DC's ongoing health issues, I live within a 5 min walk from my local large hospital.

We always give to the local air ambulance because it airlifted one of our neighbouring farms customers when she had a bad fall from a horse.

It's like the RNLI, everyone should give to them to. They don't just save lives out at sea, they're on the beach and in Wales over he weekend rescuing people from floods.

I have to admit using the OOH service when on holiday with DS in Wales last week did make me very greatful that where I live I have such easy access to hospitals. I think it is something that you can very quickly start to take for granted.

There was someone on the Childbirth but saying that in her remote but of Scotland, EMCS is done by GPs! That makes my head spin! They must have nerves of steel!

I know someone training as a GP in Highlands & Islands - she's been sent out to Australia to do a course there as their rural doctors do everything.

My PIL live an hour from their hospital & spend most of the week driving backwards & forwards for various appointments (FIL has lots failing at the moment...); they are looking to move nearer to their hospital.

My youngest ds (18months at the time) was taken ill while we were staying with friends in (very) rural Scotland. Friend knew their GP was in a close by village that day so called and booked ds in. We drove an hour to be seen. I was shocked that as the GP only visited that particular area once a week the surgery was held in the church. DS ended up being airlifted to hospital for treatment. The care he was given was fantastic but it does bring home that there's not blanket provision of services even in the UK.

Ooh round here means a 40 min drive to the doctors or a 1 hour drive to hospital. Thankfully I've not had to use either. The air ambulance is amazing, but gets no bus funding, it's charitable donations only.

It's not just remote rural places, my parent's local hospital closed its A and E, their nearest is 30 mins down the motorway.

sash yes yes - in Glasgow the new maternity hospital is at the Southern General Hospital which is right next to the Clyde Tunnel - now I'm not pregnant and no longer work for NHS but i can't imagine how long it would take an ambulance to get through! (Told you I was a worrier...)

roughtyping

And Scotland doesn't have many winters without snow. I think it is one thing to chose to live in a rural area, another to live in a town and then lose your health care.

I didn't require emergency treatment but whilst on holiday in remote Scotland, 5 hours from Glasgow I needed to see a doctor. Doctor came out within 30 mins and was lovely. In a city I would have been expected to go to OOH surgery.

Lifeboat or helicopter here. The thing every pregnant woman dreads - giving birth in the lifeboat, inside the boat is just a space so all the crew (and living in a small community you know them all by first name) get to watch!

I guess when your local big hospital is 30 or 50 miles and your nearest sainsbury's is 60 miles ( Tescos 50). It's just the way the world is.
Yes it was an hours drive to hospital, but it's 30-40 minutes here. 1/4 the distance, but 50 limits and traffic.

Both in my childhood area and here people have been very been very grateful for the air ambulance.

I always put money in the box because the M6 on saved a DF and his mates lives. They crashed a light aircraft on take off.