to think a HCP should know more than me about baby care?

[DorothyMantooth]

Following a call to 111, I had to take 12 wk old DD to OOH GP (Harmoni) on Fri night. I had called to check whether sustained screaming over several hours was normal, and was advised that DD needed to be examined within 2 hrs.

Frankly, I was horrified by the standard of care offered by Harmoni. Several reasons for this:

A) the first thing the GP told us was that he had been about to go home, as he didn't realise there were any more patients despite our appt being made more than 1 hour before. The guy was clearly not interested in being there.

B) the first question he asked was whether this was our first child (she is). Made no secret of the fact that he thought we were hysterical parents from this moment on.

C) DD is a thumbsucker. When he saw this, he said "please buy her a dummy". Although I am not keen on dummies myself, we have actually tried her with one several times, but she really doesn't like it. When I told him this, he told me to tie it around her neck on a piece of string "and she'll get used to it". By this point I was fuming (none of his business whether I give my baby a dummy or not IMO) and pointed out that this was contrary to current advice as this could be a choking hazard. He said he meant a long necklace, like those used for security passes etc. When I asked what medical reason there was for preventing her sucking her thumb at this age, he said her thumb will become infected. I gave up at this point.

D) after a maximum 30 second examination (took her temperature, listened to her heart), he declared that there was nothing wrong with her. I was perfectly prepared to accept that this was the case but really thought he might have even pretended to go through the motions with her.

AIBU to think that a HCP, whether NHS or private contractor, should have at least a basic understanding of current guidelines for baby care (not in depth stuff, just things like don't put string round their necks), not impose their own (unrequested) views in areas that don't concern them and most of all do a proper examination when they have a tiny screaming infant in front of them?

Well, then, just say, "I am going to remove her clothes and I want you to look at her rashes and I want you to feel her abdomen" and "No, I want you to take her temperature/listen to her heart for longer". He can't read your mind about what you think he is supposed to do. He does what he knows how to do. This complaint will never be upheld and will waste everyone's time. I would complain to sympathetic friends and family who will all agree what a terrible service this was. This is a perfectly valid and reasonable need but nothing to do with the doctor.

Well, since you already know not to tie it, don't tie it.

I agree the dummy advice was very wrong.

The lack of tummy touching sounds normal, I was in hospital for a week with ds when he was 5 weeks old, he didn't poo the entire time and they just said it was normal they didn't feel his tummy once.

I also think he was right to advise against thumb sucking, it is easier said than done and his solutions sound unhelpful and dangerous but I think it maybe distracts from your valid complaint ( that he said to put the dummy round her neck) if you say all the more subjective complaints too.

To tie anything around a baby's neck is incredibly stupid and highly dangerous. A doctor telling a parent to tie anything around a baby's neck is bloody insane. Has the man no common sense whatsoever? That is unforgivable and really ought to be reported.

Infected thumbs from thumb sucking does happen, in fact it happened to my grandson. It was a nightmare to deal with.

I think asking if it was your first child is fairly reasonable. The baby is very young so you probably don't have much experience and often new mothers of first-borns do worry more than someone who has been through it all before. I don't necessarily think he was unreasonable there.

WRT the dummy issue, my concern was less for myself (since I know not to put strings around my baby's neck), and more that the GP is giving out dangerous advice which might be followed by others.

I'm gobsmacked at the suggestion you should tie the dummy round a baby's neck. That shows a complete lack of common sense!

You're kidding right Hadassah? You think that OP should have to tell the doctor how to do an examination?

Luckily my doctors have always been excellent - and a screaming baby would have been checked out all over.

I don't know about the pooing - but it seems to me that there's 'normal for babies' and 'normal for your baby' - my nephew pooed once a week, and that was normal for him. DS pooed half a dozen times a day, and that was normal for him. Had either of them changed habit for a few days, and been screaming then the doctor needs to listen to that as a possible symptom.

What a ridiculous thing to suggest, tying a dummy around a baby's neck! This dr definitely needs reporting! The risk of infection from sucking a thumb is minuscule, and I say this as a mother to two boys who both had infection from biting finger nails!!!!

My point was not that the OP should tell the doctor how to examine. The doctor knows how to examine and he examined; however, for her own reasons the OP was not happy with the examination and it was not what she wanted. She can say that she is not happy and ask for what she wants. That's not telling anyone what to do.

It's about the fact that the OP might know he was wrong, but someone else might not realise, follw the advice and end up losing their baby.

I had to take DD2 to the docs for a bad nappy rash. It was in August and we ended up with one of the new registrars. She prescribed steroid cream and the told me to apply it over her barrier cream. When I questioned the logic of this she actually had to look it up in the book, before laughing nervously and saying that I was right and the steroid cream should go on first.

She then qualified this by saying it had been a long day

I do appreciate that they have to learn somehow, but if she could make such a basic mistake on something that is actually common sense and requires no medical training to understand she could have easily been giving out spurious advice on much more serious issues.

Both my experience and the op's show a distinct lack of common sense. I have several nurses in my family and in my experience it unfortunately seems an all too common trait within the medical professions.

I have found it very difficult to get through to the out if hours surgery in Camden. The number on the James Wigg website for Harmoni leads you to someone who tells you to call 111. 111 tells you to go to the emergency GP walk in at either Whittingt

Or UCH, who get cross with you for bringing a child who is not an emergency but should be seen by an out of hours GP. I am a first time mother, not an hysterical one, but I need to be able to get my baby to a doctor when she needs it. And I don't want to be clogging up the A & E departments. It's a mess.

I understand that the out of hours service probably gets its fair share of hysterical first time mums but I was also annoyed to be asked that question over the phone myself.

It seemed a bit patronising. My daughter was about 8 weeks at the time and was feverish, not happy (can't remember details) etc... She's 2 this week and that has been her only trip to the doctor for a problem so it isn't like I constantly pester them with trivial matters.

Luckily when I arrived at the surgery the nurses were lovely and agreed it was a stupid thing to ask. They said "look, if you are worried, bring her. We don't care, we'd rather check a small baby every time and not take risks"

YUNBU to feel as if you weren't taken seriously.