To not be surprised people go to A&E and call ambulances overnight?

[SinkGirl]

DT2 has chicken pox,DT1 had it two weeks ago,

Today he’s gone downhill gradually and from 7pm onwards he was crying nonstop. At first I thought he’s just itchy and distressed, gave the last of the day’s calpol at 6:30pm so couldn’t give any more. By midnight we’d tried everything and he was screaming and hitting himself in the head. He has ASD and is nonverbal so can’t tell me how he’s feeling, but this is not normal for him.

Still, he only had a slight fever at this point, no other signs of infection etc. My main concern was something potentially causing a headache? So I figured I’d call 111 for advice. Called them for DT1 a couple of weeks ago but it’s the first time I’ve used the service for years.

Took 15 mins to get through to someone and she could hear DT2 screaming in the background. She sounded concerned and tried to speak to a clinician but they were all busy, so said they’d call me back.

At 2:10 he finally dozed off, for 20 minutes, then woke up screaming again. Dozed off again at 2:45, 111 called back just before 3am. I told them he had just fallen asleep and he’s dozing in and out but very distressed when he wakes. They can’t assess him while he’s asleep so they say I either have to wake him or close it. They get me to agree I have no current concerns and close it and tell me to call back if I’m worried. Of course 5 mins later he wakes up again very distressed, then settles again. Now I’m faced with either another wait of several hours, at the end of which he may be asleep again, or just waiting for GP to open. If he had a higher temp or other worrying signs I’d go to A&E but I understand why some people would have gone already.

People get crap for bypassing 111 but honestly I’m not surprised they do!

I don't know how old your child is, but if they're screaming/distressed for this amount of time just take them to A&E. I don't think it's worth taking the risk with young children.

Aww your poor boy and poor you that must be incredibly stressful. I tend to agree with TenSheets. I hope it goes well and your dc feels better asap.

How would he be taking him now? I know it might potentially cause more distress in an unfamiliar place?

I do hate how long it takes them to call back.

Do you have a walk in clinic you could go to in the morning? Or will you be able to access a doctor that knows your child (would trump anything else!)

I hate 111.it just doesn't work.

Everytime I've used it, they've just said "you're better off waiting in A&E".

No, no walk in - out of hours GP service is managed by 111 here. Right now he’s asleep on my tummy and has been for about half an hour, the longest stretch he’s had tonight so very reluctant to wake him up as his temp feels okay and no other scary sepsis symptoms or anything. My main concern was some kind of complication affecting his head / brain like swelling causing pain, but I’m sure if he had something like that the pain would be stopping him from sleeping. I’m not able to sleep in this position so I can keep an eye on him.

I’d hate to go to A&E and for them to say there’s nothing wrong with him, it’s just a meltdown, but it’s just so out of character - but of course he’s covered in painful blisters so could just be that!

how old is he OP? When my DD got CP at ten it was very severe...awful really. If he's older like she was, then he's probably just highly distressed with it and feels very unwell.

I hope he feels better soon. Is he cold or clammy? Is his breathing OK? Do his eyes react to light?

Yes, obviously good intentions but 111 often just doesn't work. Your poor little one l, I hope he's still asleep and feeling a bit better when he wakes.

If not, take him to A+E. An A+E trip in middle of the night is pretty awful in my experience, hopefully won't be as bad once it's light.

Love to your little one xx

In rare case, chickenpox can cause encephalitis. Go to A&E

You can’t just take an infectious child with CP to A&E though- you at least need to tell them you’re coming so they can put you in isolation. I would’ve thought an OOH GP appointment would be more suitable.

Hope he’s feeling. Better today, sounds awful

Yanbu . when you are scared that your child is very unwell and deteriorating and there is no out of hours support , there seems to be no choice .
111 is not fit for purpose in my opinion . twice in the last year they have sent an ambulance to my house and twice the paramedic did what an out of hours doctor could have done .( Febrile convulsions). It is a huge waste of resources and I was hugely apologetic and embarrassed to the paramedics. They said it is normal nowadays for them to be used as out of hours doctors since 111 came into force.

I hope your son is feeling better today. x

I’ve taken a toddler with hand foot and mouth in before - I already knew he had hfm but he had been screaming for hours by that point and nothing was making it better. They were totally fine checking him over, and gave us something to help with his pain. I felt like a bit of a prat but they were so nice and happy to help

I've worked in a&e, given the details here I would go. They won't judge at all. go with your instincts. Hope you're both ok.

When baby was under 5 Weeks he had an awful cough, bringing up feeds and really wasn't himself.

It seemed to be getting worse, so as it was night time I rang 111, they decided that he needed an ambulance as she could hear him and it was concerning.

We were told not to move him, and wait, the paramedics would be able to treat him at home, but they would decide what was best when they arrived, we waited for 3 hours......only for the poor paramedics to tell us that it was the rules that an under 5 Week had to be transported to A&E no matter what they were called out for.

If 111 had made us aware if that, we would taken him in ourselves instantly, however we were led to believe that baby could potentially be sorted at home and thought that would be the better option.

I still feel bad now for taking the service away from someone else who may have needed it more, the Paramedics were amazing though, and despite having bronchiolitus the baby really wasn't fazed!

I think that 111 potentially stops people who don't need to clogging up a and e. I think you have to trust your instincts though.

Did you speak to a GP?
I would have asked to speak to a GP or if a paramedic could come and assess. You could ring A&E and speak to someone then they are prepared if you decide to take him.

I found 111 really helpful and professional. They took my details, made sure I could get someone to come and sit with me while they contacted a doctor. A doctor phoned me 20 minutes later and after questioning a paramedic was sent to my house. They were on there way back from a shout. They assessed me and took me to hospital. I had very high blood pressure.
I have used them again recently and I had a return call from a doctor and an appointment at Out of hours service. Despite appointment I had to wait 1 1/2 hrs. Ring them back if you are concerned and ask to speak to a doctor.
I hope he improves. Difficult to know whether he is just upset about being ill or it is his headache. I would be erring on the side of caution as he is non verbal.

111 also left me waiting 8h for a call back for a 3 week old with a high temperature. In the end we got tired of waiting and went to a&e where we had a full sepsis screen and a uti was diagnosed. Unfortunately their systems are not set up for small children. They spent ages asking me if my 3 week old was responding to his name! On the same evening they also blue lighted a preschooler with norovirus

“Unfortunately their systems are not set up for small children. They spent ages asking me if my 3 week old was responding to his name!”

Something must’ve gone wrong there. They are perfectly set up for small children

So sorry to hear about everyone’s experiences with their poorly little ones :(

The boys are 2.5 so pretty typical age for chicken pox. DT1 was really unwell for a couple of days but nothing like this. DT2’s blisters started on Friday, mostly in his nappy region and his most delicate area is now absolutely covered in huge blisters. Loads more spots came up yesterday so it definitely seems to have worsened yesterday - the day before he had a temp over 40 for a while but nothing that bad since.

He had a few short bursts of sleep (10-15 mins) and then I managed to get him to sleep in his cot about 5. He’s asleep now, just plying myself with caffeine before I go and wake him - we have a video monitor so I’ve checked on him and he’s sleeping normally, but don’t feel I can just let him sleep in case he’s unwell in there. At least he can have more medicine now.

Will see how he is and call the GP if he’s still so distressed when he wakes up. He’s absolutely exhausted, bless him (as am I).

I only spoke to a nurse - I appreciate they can’t do the proper assessment if he’s asleep but some actual medical advice from them or a doctor would have been helpful. The nurse I spoke to definitely wanted me to say he was just distressed because he was tired and itchy. I don’t know if that’s the case.

Most of my friends’ little ones have had a relatively easy time of it with chicken pox so I really wasn’t expecting it to be as bad as it has been for both of them.

They are not perfectly set up though. I feel sorry anyone dealing with that system, there are posts here every single day from sick and stressed people who are trying to access to a doctor. It doesn't sound good at all.

I hope your son turns the corner today, I found the 3rd day with chickenpox was the worst. Is there any chance a spot is infected and he can't tell you? I hope he gets well soon.

CP can be really awful.
My Ds had a fairly easy time but DD was inconsolable for 3 or 4 days. She had spots everywhere, it wasnt til she was on the mend we realised she had them in her mouth. She was covered.
Lots of oaty baths and antihistamine helped but I basically carried her like a monkey baby for those days, she just wanted cuddled.
So hard, OP.

Let him sleep it off.

Poor baby. Poor you

Don’t wake him! Let him sleep.

With the autism added in chicken pox can be an awful sensory process for them soon could be as “simple” as that causing him to get disresssed

Hope he perks up soon

I’ve only ever had good experiences with 111. We’re in Scotland, so that may be why. I’ve never waited more than half an hour for a call back and they’ve always been really helpful.

@Passthecherrycoke they’re not though. Things might be better now, but we’ve had awful issues with them. Twice they’ve missed early sepsis for us, in two different children, at different ages and times. This article is from roughly the same time period: www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35403822

My point is, that whilst people should use 111 (and we do) they should also trust their instincts and when things are bad and you just know in your gut something is wrong then just go in. It takes a lot for most people to want to move a child to a&e at 3am, most of those children are very unwell

111 is a bit pointless