AIBU to think this about MN threads asking for emergency medical advice?

[WeBuiltCisCityOnSexistRoles]

Threads asking for urgent medical advice seem to be increasing and some of the replies are irresponsible and downright dangerous...

So AIBU to think these threads asking for emergency medical advice on MN should just be locked with a single standard response MNHQ message pointing them to NHS info?

If people need to seek emergency medical advice the phone numbers are 999 and 111. And people shouldn't need to ask MN to decide which one to use, use their adult judgment and if it's wrong they'll get directed appropriately by professionals.

People need professional advice - not random people on MN who tell you whether or not you should go to A and E. You may as well pick up a Magic 8 ball - except MN will give you 800 different answers instead of 1!

Yes I know the NHS is hugely under pressure and people should use emergency care only in genuine emergencies - but that doesn't make MN the "replacement" for emergency advice - 111 is the place to call if you don't think it's 999.

And if people are posting on MN because they aren't aware of the 111 service - a "standard" reply
MNHQ could advise them - similar to the way there is a "standard" MNHQ reply where people have reported concerns over abuse or wellbeing etc and MNHQ posts with links to organisations.

And I know people panic in a crisis and don't always react as they would normally, or can't think how to react - but that's what 111 or 999 is for.

And yes I also know the "professional advice" can sometimes be a computer logarithm - but that doesn't mean random replies on MN are more reliable to rely on!

Obviously this is a bigger issue in that the NHS should be funded properly so we aren't in the fucking situation where people are so desperate to seek advice they rely on randoms on the internet!

But "I have bad chest pain should I go to A and E?" questions shouldn't be treated like a discussion where User6253 says "yes go but don't ring 999" and User2455 says "no ring an ambulance NOW" and User72636 says "no A and Es are so under pressure...get DH to come home from work and take you" and User485757 says "have a paracetamol and a rest, are you stressed at work?"

It's not fucking helpful. To anyone!

I really would prefer to see them locked with a standard MNHQ reply directing them to the NHS. AIBU?

There's no way to control what people post about though.

What would you like to see in practice?

People have to take some responsibility for their own gullibility also. People who can think aren’t stupid enough to swallow everything they read on MN.

Especially anything that comes from a ‘HCP here’ poster…..for a start a dr/nurse/midwife etc has no reason to be so vague about their actual job so I always assume a ‘HCP’ is more likely to be someone who does the admin for a naturopath than someone with actual science-based quals. But also any actual dr/nurse/midwife can’t advise randoms on the Internet from whom they’ve taken no history and who they haven’t examined.

I think if you really don’t know this and truly can’t think critically at all you’ve got bigger problems than what people write in response to your posts on social media.

Problem is that if someone is unsure, doesn't want to make fuss, not confident etc.

Then they may well ask here if no real life help.

Also lots of people are gullible/ naive. And lots of people have little idea about what is prob ok or not. Plus things like it's their child so naturally v worried, health anxiety and etc.

IME on here I've seen loads of troll OPs. And never a thread where something sounding Def iffy where it wasn't vast majority saying do something. If anything it's the other way around. Over cautious.

I think it's harsh to say that posters who are worried/ uncertain/ no idea how to tell bad or not, and as a result are credulous. Are essentially a bit dim or whatever you meant!

I don't know. Sometimes people want an ear.

A family member has been in a traffic accident tonight; the police came to tell at 1230, we spent several hours trying to get an update from the hospital, and my husband set off in a taxi about 30mins ago (the family member for some reason has been taken to a hospital over 40miles away). All we know is that they are critical and as of 330am were still in theatre receiving blood- and also I have found some ghoulish comments from rubberneckers on the county police's traffic post about the crash. I have no one to talk to (child is sick and asleep, husband has gone and will still be en route, can't ring best friend at 4am...)

So here I am spilling my guts on MN.🤷‍♀️

I think the medical emergency threads... some of them will be hypochondriacs, some will be trolls, but a lot will just be scared women desperate for someone to talk to.

I'm in France. Many posters are abroad.

Thanks to the help of posters on Mumsnet- they were a nurse and 2 doctors - my child didn't die from appendicitis. She got misdiagnosed the first night. The second night I knew enough to make sure she was treated.

I’ve seen people on here who have had serious conditions diagnosed as result of people advising not to be fobbed off by what HCP are saying, and to persist in going back/ask for a second opinion etc.

Considering the fact that even NORMAL threads on MN seem to feature about 80% “I’m not good with confrontation,” “I don’t like to speak up,” “I’m a people-pleaser,” “I was taught not to make a fuss,” as part of the reason for a problem, often women who post here need that extra handhold to even call 111, much less 999.

We also have the largest gender-health gap of all G20 countries in the UK, due to huge inequalities for women in pain treatment and cancer deaths.
lordslibrary.parliament.uk/womens-health-outcomes-is-there-a-gender-gap/

The fact is, because we have been socially conditioned, because there IS a huge health gap, maybe a woman with what some of us might think are very obvious symptoms comes here for reassurance that calling 111 or “bothering” anyone is the right thing to do, and in fact, they’re not bothering anyone at all and their health IS a priority.

If the NHS site had a separate disclaimer for assuring women that their symptoms were serious and guaranteed deprogramming the “don’t make a fuss” they’ve been taught all their lives in five minutes of reading so they’d be sure to call 111 if necessary… then you’d have a point. Until then, we sometimes have places like MN to fill in that bit of the health gap (not the medical part, obviously).

The fact is, because we have been socially conditioned, because there IS a huge health gap, maybe a woman with what some of us might think are very obvious symptoms comes here for reassurance that calling 111 or “bothering” anyone is the right thing to do, and in fact, they’re not bothering anyone at all and their health IS a priority.

Exactly. I'm guilty of this myself- I'll tell someone else to call 111 for symptoms without a problem, but put it off ad infinitum for myself because of the whole 'is it really that bad/ would I be a time-waster' complex. Sometimes I have to use Mumsnet to give myself a kick up the backside.

YABU. I've seen several threads where someone's life has been saved, or much more serious illness has been prevented by someone "not wanting to be a bother" being told to go to the GP or A&E and get something checked out.

The "not wanting to be a bother" or perhaps an "I'm fine" thing can certainly happen in men too, a lot don't get medical treatment when they ought to. I saw it with DH and had to drag him to A&E one time. They had him on an antibiotic drip within an hour.

Oh the irony, I had to leave the thread for unexpected medical reason! (That'll teach me to post grumpy threads about it)

So a range of opinions (I wish MNHQ would allow voting on the app). It seems to be consensus that threads should be allowed to stay but perhaps a MNHQ post could be posted if people flag it up? In the same way relationships can have a signpost thread to Women's Aid if people think it would be helpful to them?

I think this thread demonstrates part of the problem (not to target any posters) that anyone can post medical advice and state they are a HCP - they could be anyone and advice could be wrong but relied on by someone vulnerable.

Also the issue of women being socialised to minimise issues and refrain from seeking support, but I think that's worthy of a different stand alone thread.

@PlanktonsComputerWife sorry for the situation, I hope you have some support and comfort, waiting is awful.

@Letsallscreamatthesistene

Agree with you OP. Im a nurse practitioner and most of the answers to medical type threads are incorrect. I dont know what prompts people to answer if they have no medical training but ive taken to calling it out when I see it. It can be dangerous and needs to stop.

I also agree. I've seen someone claiming to be a doctor dishing out advice on a MN thread. The person spelt two medical terms wrongly. I contacted MN and was told that they were just typos, and they left the person's posts up! They clearly weren't typos as they were words spelt the way a lay person might spell eg appendicitus rather than appendicitis, or diarrea rather than diarrhoea. I've been very sceptical ever since.

I don't want to make this a thread about a thread (as it's rude to OP as well as being a MN faux pas) but there is a current thread at the moment about going to A and E which demonstrates the problem - some replies are shockingly stupid and downright dangerous (including ones from those claiming to be professionals!) If an OP is vulnerable, and especially if they're unwell, I really think a "neutral" post from MNHQ signposting NHS and reminding everyone about not relying on randoms on the internet, would be a good thing.

I can't see how it would be of any harm and only a benefit.

I agree with that WeBuilt. Just a standard response they can paste onto the thread if someone has concerns and reports a thread.

While the threads that lead to lives being saved are important I think there is some bias. People may be less likely to post back spending hours in A&E or getting a GP appointment to be told it was something they should at least asked at the chemist first. Equally how likely are people who follow “don’t waste NHS time” and are really ill come back?