To think the new 111 system is cumbersome?

[Lonecatwithkitten]

I am a vet. Got bit by immunocompromised cat on Friday these types of bite are high risk for cat scratch fever as these cats are more likely to have infectious agent. I would never take antibiotics for sake of it.
Today bite hurts more than it should throbbing pain and I feel achy and flu like all signs of cat scratch fever, the last time I had this I just phoned the GP and they put up a prescription.
So try out out of hours have to call 111. Run through questions are you bleeding - No can you breath normally - Yes. Symptoms my likely diagnosis - you need to go to A and E!!!! No I don't totally inappropriate I am neither an accident or an emergency. After saying I accepted the risks of not attending A and E finally agreed to get a nurse phone me. Nurse phones back lovely knowledgable nurse yes fine sounds absolutely like cat scratch disease unfortunately she can't prescribe need to get a local out of hours GP phone fine
Out of hours GP phones I go through it all for third time claims never to heard of bacteria, never to heard to medical name of disease or cat scratch disease!!! but accepts that it must exist as I am giving clear information. Had no idea what to prescribe which I then help her with!
Is this really better than previous out of hours system?

Not the system at fault, just a particularly dim dr. I used 111 last weekend as I had stupidly run out of prescription pain killers. The dr asked what I wanted and faxed the prescription to the nearest chemist.

I also used it on Friday as I suspected DS had conjunctivitis. We got an OOH appointment at MIU. Then he got sent to the main hospital.

Altogether a fab service!

111 is the bane of my life. When I work a weekend and visit elderly people and those with disabilities I often need to speak to OOH GP. Every time I jump through the same hoops repeatedly.

This weekend took the biscuit. I have a client who is 105 years old. Blood in stools, which I reported in, then find out she saw GP on Friday and had low Bp. By now I am at next call. My office calls 111 to request home visit. 111 say no as caller not present with patient! So we have to get another carer to go to the house, call 111 and go through it all again.

When you ring and say Mr X tells me he has abdominal pain, and they go "is he breathing and conscious" I really want to scream. Yes you arse. He is talking to me.

Last year I called 111 5 times in 2 days for my DM. She was vomiting and dehydrated. They kept saying norovirus. I said no, this is different, vomit is dark brown.

Finally get her to hospital after calling 999 . She had a bowel obstruction and was vomiting fecal matter.

I have no faith in 111 at all.

I'm ignorant - can we still call nhs direct?

But there are too many layers to it and those questions don't filter at all. When our PCT ran the out of hours you phoned if it was felt you needed to see a doctor they told you to come down, if a call would do they arranged it. Knowing what it costs to run an out of hours service I would say that the current 111 system is actually more expensive than the old system due to additional layers.
What frustrated me was I had started the call with I am a vet. Then when she told me to go to A and E I politely pointed out that as in an emergency I can legally treat humans my veterinary degree trumped her questions (not quite in those words).

I burst some stitches after a minor op and wanted to know whether I needed to get it re stitched as it was bleeding a bit. Called 111, went through a long triage conversation, all very nice and chatty. Then the daftie asked me if I'd lost a lot of blood. I said no, it was only 6 stitches and I've burst three of them. And he said "is it more than a mug of blood?" What the actual fuck??? If I'd been haemorrhaging into my Emma Bridgewater, I wouldn't be chatting on the phone!!! He told me to go to a&e. instead I texted my nursey neighbour who told me to cover it and keep it clean.

Yup I agree.

Had to phone them myself a couple of weeks back with mastitis. was out of hours. I knew it was mastitis and told them so but still had to go through the rigmarole of establishing I wasnt having trouble breathing or talking, I wasn't unconscious, I didn't have palpatations or chest pains etc. etc. Eventually I was told what I already knew - you need to see a GP to get antibiotics let me make you an appointment.

Honestly if I was unconscious I wouldn't be talking to them would I? surely they can use their common sense to override parts of the computer program?

Dont, a 999 operator would have asked you the same re: mug of blood, it's just the most easily understood way of estimating how much blood you've lost and one of their standard scripted questions.

I used to work for an OOH GP and saw exactly what a shambles the 111 service was - it fell over completely here two days after switchover and the old OOH took over for the forseeable. Patient's lives were very much put at risk in those two days 111 had it.

That's the point though, it's not 999!

when my DH had a burst appendix they told him to phone back in a couple of days if he was no better!

and about 15 mins of who are, your gp, what is your nationality, what language does your child speak (I´ve just told you she´s not even 2 - she doesn´t speak!) before you even get to `what are the symptoms?´