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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

in thinking the hospital really should see my mum NOW?

40 replies

icecold · 17/08/2012 15:52

Mum fell over on holiday 2 weeks ago and hurt her hip/leg. Went to local cottage hospital who said soft tissue industry but didn't have cray facilities anyway....

Came home next day and went to local A&E, cray showed aggrevated arthritis on knee...told to take co-deine.

She went to FO day before yesterday for follow up and because it still really hurts. GP reads in notes, consultant had checked cray and there is a fracture! Told to go home and wait for fracture clinic to call her in.

She's waited 2 days, no call. Had to have GP to house this morning, cuz codeine has given her extreme constipation. Can't poo or wee, or move and is in agony. Given laxatives and told to keep taking codeine and wait for fracture clinic to call!

OP posts:
Original poster
icecold · 17/08/2012 15:53

Industry= injury
Cray= xray
FO=GP

OP posts:
lisad123 · 17/08/2012 15:56

If she's in that much pain take her to a&e but if she can handle it, there's this thing called a phone that works two ways! Call them yourself and chase them

HaveALittleFaith · 17/08/2012 16:01

Chase the fracture clinic but if she's struggling that much I agree go to a&e.

chocoluvva · 17/08/2012 16:07

Your poor mum - that's miserable.
Def chase up some help for her.
Good luck :)

CaliforniaLeaving · 17/08/2012 16:10

Constipation from the codeine has to be the worst thing. I'd chase up the fracture clinic while dealing with the constipation.
Once she goes she'll feel a ton better. Get her some glycerin suppositories and drink lots of water. Worst comes to worst she may even need a fleets ready to use enema
If theres any food she eats that makes her go stock up. In this house it's applesauce, no idea why. But for others it's bananas, or any juices.

chocoluvva · 17/08/2012 16:12

Prunes and vitamin C tablets . 1000mg every 2-3 hours until the required effect.

CanoeSlalom · 17/08/2012 16:15

Sorry to hear about your Mum. Not at all unusual for the NHS to delay things, unfortunately Sad. I agree you should chase it up with the clinic and ask the GP to do the same. Can the GP not give better pain relief in the meantime?

HaveALittleFaith · 17/08/2012 16:15

Probiotic yoghurts help that gut too. Make sure she's drinking plenty of water too.

Birdsgottafly · 17/08/2012 16:17

If she isn't passing water, but is drinking, then you need to phone the GP, back, who will probably tell you to go to A&E or a walk in, as she will develop an infection.

She may need suppositories.

Have you phoned the fracture clinic?

dixiechick1975 · 17/08/2012 16:19

I'd phone fracture clinic

VivaLeBeaver · 17/08/2012 16:19

You. Might need to take her to a&e.

I had a crazy time after a hospital visit with dd and a fracture while on holiday last year. Hospital at home wouldn't accept referral from another hospital so couldn't get a fracture clinic appt, went to gp who referred us and the referral was lost, went back to gp next referral also lost, gp rang fracture clinic and bollocked them, they said they'd ring me, they didn't. It took over three weeks to get an appt.

Xayide · 17/08/2012 17:15

Try chasing but be prepared to still be mess about.

Was told by local hospital that request for phyio hadn't been made - it had from original hospital more than once they just kept losing the requests. Original hospital provided prof of the requests - still nothing so we had to complain to head bod at local hospital before we got it sorted - took few months.

Found out later a lot of people were having issues with this department at similar time to us. It was a black hole - and they weren't very nice or helpful when we rang them.

In mean time go back to GP with the pain - maybe try seeing a different GP often helps.

Original poster
icecold · 17/08/2012 18:28

Thanks for replies

GP chased fracture clinic this morning. Suprised that they don't want to stabilize it more quickly. And that they don't seem bothered that she had been taking codeine for 2 weeks! And the consequences of that! And that she has ongoing health problems and could REALLY do without the added pain

But your responses suggest it is quote normal. And not bad practice.....

OP posts:
Birdsgottafly · 17/08/2012 18:29

I have known a few people whose lack of treatment and on going pain set them on the road to alcoholism.

WelshMaenad · 17/08/2012 18:30

If she is immobilised by pain, take her to a&e.

Xayide · 17/08/2012 18:32

I'd consider A & E - or a complaint to get things moving - two weeks of pain is a long time.

CanoeSlalom · 17/08/2012 18:55

Only "normal" thing about it is that a lot of people are let down in a similar way. I wouldn't say it was good practice.

valiumredhead · 17/08/2012 19:38

Take her to A and E and refuse to move until you are seen.

ChunkysMum · 17/08/2012 19:46

Do you know which bone she has fractured icecold?

Original poster
icecold · 17/08/2012 19:56

Tibia definitely. She also has similar pain in top of leg, so possibly humerus as well??? They only xrayed lower leg

OP posts:
ChunkysMum · 17/08/2012 20:03

How did she fall?
Did you say she has pain in her hip?
Did they put her in a cast?
Can she weight-bear on her leg?
Is she holding the leg in an unusual position? (If so what position)
Is she known to have osteoporosis?
Did they say whether or not the tibial fracture was displaced or not?

Sorry for all of the questions.

Original poster
icecold · 17/08/2012 21:29

She fell playing bat and ball with my dd1; enthusiastic lunge Hmm she is really unfit and over weight

Pain was in pelvis in the beginning; she was convinced she had broken her hip. That is why she went to cottage hospital on holiday; that is the area they xrayed when she went to A& E on her return

My OP is a bit inaccurate, because she went back to A&E AGAIN, when the pain seemed to move to her leg....so they xrayed lower leg, told HER it was aggravated arthritis, but wrote in her notes that she had a fracture! Hmm

She is on crutches and can weight bear a bit

I am assuming it isnt displaced, or it wouldn't have been missed by whoever looked af the xray and said it was arthritis....

Spoken to her and she has passed some faeces, so feels q bit better hut very sore. Said she has been too preoccupied by pain of constipation to Chase fracture clinic today, but will tomorrow.....

I just think its a bit shit Sad

OP posts:
Original poster
icecold · 17/08/2012 21:34

No osteoporosis, but rheumatoid arthritis

OP posts:
HaveALittleFaith · 18/08/2012 07:22

Honestly? I'm not sure you'll get much joy from the fracture clinic on a Saturday. I think you should either get her seen in out of hours or take her to A&E. I really do. She needs to be seen and sooner rather than later.

PavlovtheCat · 18/08/2012 07:30

she definitely needs to go to A&E. if she is in that much pain not touched by codiene she needs more pain releif at the very least. poor mum hope she feels better soon.