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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To make appointments with these GPs purely to tell them it’s their fault?

326 replies

TheAngryBatBot · 28/01/2019 20:52

5yo DD has had a wart on her hand for the last two years. To begin with I thought it would go away. It didn’t and it grew. I have never had warts and neither has any of the rest of the family - I have no experience of them. Googled, but as she was under 4 to start with, a lot of the treatments weren’t suitable.

When I showed the GP and asked what to do, she pulled a face and asked why I wanted to do anything with it. I muttered about being worried she might get teased, but the GP looked at me like I was made, so I accepted her response that I should do nothing. I felt pretty mortified for even asking.

Despite feeling like a complete tosser for wanting to sort out the bloody wart, I took her to the pharmacist when she was 4 and he gave us a gel thing to put on. This didn’t work, and a friend who had had warts suggested going back to the GP and getting them frozen off. So, I thought maybe I’d just had a strange experience and another GP might actually help. Well I got the same fucking response - a sideways, judgmental look and the feeling that he thought me a neurotic mother were all I got from this GP too. It’ll go away on its own he told me.

DD has had a bad spell of health lately, she has ricocheted from virus to virus and also unfortunately developed eczema on her face. Between the blocked, runny noses and the eczema she has touched her face a lot. Tonight I have discovered a fucking wart on her beautiful face. Sad On closer inspection, she now also has 3 other smaller warts on her hand, along with the very large original wart. I am so upset. With myself for accepting what the areshole judgmental doctors said, but also with them. I don’t have a degree in medicine and didn’t know they could spread like that. Why didn’t they help me with the original wart? Why did they not consider the fact that they could spread?

I am a teacher and if I rolled my eyes and dismissed a concern raised by a parent which then escalated, I would have my arse handed to me, not only by that parent but also my line manager. I’ve got an appointment with another GP tomorrow who I really hope will actually help us properly with this (I’ve been told he is very good). But AIBU to want to make appointments with the previous two GPs, show them DD’s face and tell them that I hold them personally responsible for this?

Disclaimer: I would never waste GP time by actually doing this. But AIBU to want to? As I said, in my job I’d be hauled over the coals.

OP posts:
CrabbyPatty · 28/01/2019 21:34

You make a fair point about her overall health and the facial warts do maybe change the situation. Be assertive about getting them to look at everything bit keep your cool :) Maybe don't bring up the warts first but slip in at the end about whether they would consider treating them. But you need to weigh up the pros and cons.

Prizepudding · 28/01/2019 21:36

I’m also in Scotland and our health board no longer do wart removal. Our lovely GP said she would never recommend freezing off warts in children as it’s far too painful, she tried for a dermatology referral and the hospital wrote back saying they would not offer appointment or treatment. I would second the advice of neat tea tree oil, we did this for a few weeks and the warts fell off with no marks left. Could just be a coincidence but I was amazed, they have never come back.

Italiangreyhound · 28/01/2019 21:38

OP I totally get why you are angry and I would be fuming.

Is it affecting her self esteem, if so, say so.

I;d be icy cold and clear, not emotional at all and explain she needs to be created for this or to work out what is going on.

I'd try and see another doctor than the two you had before.

"TBH, I’ve seen almost every GP in the practice, and they just tried to get us out of the room as quickly as possible by prescribing antibiotics or another cream for her eczema. None of them have actually looked at all the problems she’s had as a whole and tried to investigate or help us. I’m really really hoping this GP tomorrow will listen."

I know it is not popular to complain but I think I would or if I were not referred onto the hospital I would complain.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/warts-and-verrucas/

If people would want to treat a wart they cannot see, how can anyone imagine that a wart on display would be something a child or adult would easily ignore. Yet...

"Most warts – except those on the face – can be treated using an ‘over the counter’ preparation that is available without prescription from the child's local community pharmacist (chemist)."

www.gosh.nhs.uk/conditions-and-treatments/general-medical-conditions/warts

So there must be an alternative, unless she is too young. At any rate the eye rolling and generally shit attitude is very unhelpful. I have complained at my GP surgery for something. They were very polite and I felt I may have helped others who wold have had the same thing happen!

Fartymcnarty · 28/01/2019 21:38

This happened to my son when he was younger. Started on his hands and doctors wouldn’t do anything. He eventually ended up with about 10 warts on his chin and round his mouth which he had to have cut off with some sort of circular scapel. I would press your doctor to deal with them now before they spread even more!

Youmadorwhat · 28/01/2019 21:39

I’m surprised they didn’t offer to treat it to be honest, my DD had two veruccas last year and I took her to the gp and she froze them. Then prescribed me a cream. 2 weeks later they fell off. Now we are in Ireland where you have to pay for prescriptions etc so it could be a tad different

Girlsnightin · 28/01/2019 21:39

Duct tape worked on my DS's verrucca so work a try. Stick a bit over the wart and keep on overnight. Remove in the morning and repeat each evening. It worked in a week after months of bazzuka etc.

phenomenalcat · 28/01/2019 21:40

My little girl had a verruca on her foot for a year or so and then all of a sudden it got some friends and went massive and black. We had tried lots of treatments but when I took her to the pharmacist to see if they could suggest anything else he said they were the worst he'd seen and to go to the doctor. We did and apparently we are very lucky as they have a wart clinic in our area. However a week before her appointment all the little buggers fell off and I had to phone back and explain we no longer needed the appointment. When talking to other people I found out there is usually a master wart/verruca and if you tackle that all the others will go, which they did but it still sounds far fetched.
Anyway we got them to go by using an over the counter freezing product. You may need to apply a couple of times and I would just do the main one on the hand to start, I don't think it would be suitable for a face. It does go very cold but was bearable. Make sure you follow the instructions. Fingers crossed.

Italiangreyhound · 28/01/2019 21:41

treated for this...

"If you have to waste their time..." velourvoyageur what a very odd thing to say. The doctors at my surgery are there to treat patients not eye roll!

Italiangreyhound · 28/01/2019 21:41

OP hopefully the chemist will know what to do but ....

"Most warts – except those on the face – can be treated using an ‘over the counter’ preparation that is available without prescription from the child's local community pharmacist (chemist)."

soulrider · 28/01/2019 21:42

I've had one in the same place for 10 years, it's resisted all the things people recommend, tea tree oil, bazuka etc.

Thinking about paying privately to see if I can have it sorted, do chiropodist type places treat ones on hands?

stopfuckingshoutingatme · 28/01/2019 21:42

Ah OP
It’s very annoying
You will hate me for saying this but
Some stuff just can be taken care of , offline
I remember my granny burning my warts off Grin you are right to be annoyed , as over stretched of not they could have advised you when sat there

Bumblebeeeee · 28/01/2019 21:44

private gps can freeze them off on hands. for face id go to a plastic surgeon

AFOLNerd · 28/01/2019 21:45

Dd made more fuss about the over the counter stuff we tried than the freezing.
The dr was great with her, talked her through it and while it was clearly uncomfortable while happening within 5 mins of it being done dd was happy munching her way through the tube of smarties I brought with me as a distraction!

I hope you have a better time with the nice dr. There is one at my surgery that I just avoid as he is so dismissive about everything.

wheresmyphone · 28/01/2019 21:46

try pharmacist
we tried 3 different treatments, all none prescription, third attempt got rid of them all
good luck

OhDearGodLookAtThisMess · 28/01/2019 21:46

I'm not quite sure why you are holding your GP responsible for the fact that your daughter has a virus which has led to warts cropping up.

DH had terrible infestations of the damn things on his fingers and toes. One on his big toe looked like a bloody cauliflower, with black dots all over. Horrid.

He tried every remedy known to man - from the GP, to specialists, to old wives' tales. He had them frozen, he tried cider vinegar, bazooka, banana skins, duct tape, you name it.

Then, after about 8 or 9 years, he suddenly noticed that they were reducing. And within a month or two, every single one disappeared. Bizarre.

AGHHHH · 28/01/2019 21:46

There is no 100%effective treatment for warts or verrucas.
We can't magic something up.

Where did the OP say she expected them to magic something up? It was about the fact they didn't even offer to try.
There are potential treatments available and instead of offering those were judgemental instead.

pbdr · 28/01/2019 21:46

Cryotherapy to her face could leave her with a visible scar. I know that it is not nice having a wart on her face, but this is not the GPs fault, it's just bad luck. The GP was absolutely correct to say that leaving it alone is the best course of action in a child that young; warts are self limiting and will go away without scarring in their own time. They are unpleasant, but entirely normal in childhood.
I think putting a formal complaint in over advice to let a wart run its own course would be an enormous overreaction.

PopGoesTheWeaz · 28/01/2019 21:49

when my DH had a wart on his hand for over year, gels didn't work but a week at the beach did. Friend who is a nurse said it was soaking in the salt water that did it.

ChristmasFlary · 28/01/2019 21:56

This is interesting. It says Walt's can be spread by touch....

www.healthline.com/health/how-to-remove-warts-on-face

cvcv · 28/01/2019 21:57

It’s astonishing that you are so sure that your medical knowledge surpasses that of doctors’. The finger wart did not cause other warts. Your daughter has a virus.

Butterfly84 · 28/01/2019 22:00

I wouldn't have them frozen off. I know someone who had hand warts frozen at the hospital, and had to go probably ten times as nothing was changing. The pain she felt made her cry it was that bad and she was an adult. Just let them run their course.

Schuyler · 28/01/2019 22:00

Freezing them off is painful, can leave scarring and appears your concerns are mainly cosmetic. While, as a parent, I understand you are upset over it, I can see why a GP may not offer this treatment due to pain and scarring. I know people who’ve had warts frozen as they kept injuring their skin from it and knocking the warts but not for cosmetic reasons.

SilverySurfer · 28/01/2019 22:07

Feel free to ignore this as it sounds completely bonkers.

My DF had several warts on his hands for a long time. One day when his DM was visiting and he was having a moan about them, she told him to take a piece of raw meat, rub it on each of the warts and then bury the meat in the garden. As the meat rotted so would the warts. He resisted as it sounded so absurd but eventually he did it and within a few weeks, didn't have a single wart.

BudgieBalls · 28/01/2019 22:08

Sounds ridiculous but when I was a nipper I had a wart on my finger, my lovely great auntie asked if she could buy it off me for a penny, I remember thinking it was odd and obviously wouldn't work, I think I had to rub the wart with the penny then bury it somewhere secret. I went along with it because, hey, nobody wants a big wart, couldn't actually believe it when it'd gone the next day! No jokes. ShockGrin

Boohooyouho · 28/01/2019 22:10

My son had loads of warts on his hands for about 3 years (3-6) the dr said that they don’t treat them as they go away by themselves and the freeze them off is too painful, they won’t do that until they are 11+. Sure enough they went away. I actually don’t know when but noticed this summer they had gone.