Waiting for ambulance and have missed a call back

[pompomseverywhere]

Posting here for traffic as Google hasn't come up with anything.

Waiting for an ambulance for my mother. She's on the floor after a fall. Ambulance will be 8 hours.

6 hours into the wait I've missed a call back. Will an ambulance still be coming? Should I ring someone? Her neighbours rang twice as they were first to the scene and they were told not to ring back again unless anything changes.

The indignity of leaving an elderly lady on the floor to wet herself for 8 hours is utterly disgraceful. Your poor mum.

Thank you, I've had a large glass of wine and I'm almost certain everyone is OK. It's just terrifying that the un trained public are expected to support in that type of situation.
Sending hugs x

Last Jan my DH slipped at the corner of our cul de sac and broke his ankle. Ambulance came within about 20 mins. I guess it's just luck of the draw.

My mum fell over in the toilet before covid and had to wait 8 hours for an ambulance, in winter, and died 5 days later from kidney failure.

@AllThingsServeTheBeam

This is absolutely awful. 8 hours waiting for an ambulance to then have an obscene wait at the actual hospital. Your poor mum and you.

I'd call 999 back.

Our friends elderly mother fell in a supermarket car park and broke her hip. She had to wait seven hours lying on a cold and wet floor. Absolutely shocking. The system is broken

@MistyMountainTop

My mum fell over in the toilet before covid and had to wait 8 hours for an ambulance, in winter, and died 5 days later from kidney failure.

So so awful sorry

I would definitely ring back and tell them your mother is in absolute agony, an 8 hour wait seems ridiculous and your poor mum and the stress for you all. Yes ring and say you had a missed call. Ask them for advice and how are you meant to leave your mum on the ground for 8 hours. Shocking and know not the ambulance crew's fault but governments for not putting more money into the nhs. Hope you get the help your mum needs soon, wishing you both well. Keep her warm and sips of water and pls update us tomorrow let us know she is ok.

So sorry to hear that MistyMountain, that is just shocking, your poor mum and your family. Lost my mum years ago so know the grief you must be going through and please hope you are looking after yourself as grief is horrible up and down and miss my mum so much. Big hugs xx

Thank you. It was a massive shock, it did get social services involved to give her some help but she should have had longer.

So broken hip and needs a pin and plate put in rather than a replacement hip. She should be up walking the next day!

Thanks for all the replies and support. Mumsnet is fab isn't it.

This is really not good enough. Hope your mum recovers quickly OP.

MistyMountaintop just awful that you had to go through all of that and shocking to be honest. Really know what you going though so please be kind to yourself.
So glad Pompomseverywhere that your mum has been seen and hope she will be feeling better as very traumatic what you all have been though. Try to unwind a bit and thanks for updating as so nice to hear the outcomes and yes some lovely women on here and supportive and a few not so as have been verbally called out and attacked earlier. Best of luck xx

Shocking, but glad she is now getting appropriate treatment and care.

@Iamthedevilinthedetail

The ambulance men are going to lift her into a chair to take her out. Is there no one who can help her into a car or chair? Two people can lift her (and they will). I'm not sure after 8 hours on the floor that she's in a bad way so maybe get her up again?

Did you read the OP's updates before posting?

We waited an hour recently for an ambulance to come from out of area, DH had had a massive stroke. There was a wait for a 999 handler to answer the phone and they kept my call to them as short as possible because the calls were backing up.

@bloodywhitecat, hugs. I know what you've been through.
For OP and all others posting on this thread... the situation is dire for anyone calling 999 because they have a loved one in urgent need of medical help. It's very hit and missed - and it shouldn't be.

I am just so sorry to hear about your mother OP. I'm sorry, but can you imagine anyone else breaking their hip and being left on the floor, unable to use the toilet, in their own urine for 8hours?!! No! I feel as though the elderly are treated differently, as though falls are expected and not particularly serious! That is terrible service. I really hope that she is much more comfortable now and makes a good recovery.

@Tiddlesthecat

I am just so sorry to hear about your mother OP. I'm sorry, but can you imagine anyone else breaking their hip and being left on the floor, unable to use the toilet, in their own urine for 8hours?!! No! I feel as though the elderly are treated differently, as though falls are expected and not particularly serious! That is terrible service. I really hope that she is much more comfortable now and makes a good recovery.

Age doesn't come into it. There aren't enough ambulances or paramedics for the volume of calls and that's all it boils down to Not the ambulance services fault, or the staff. They're doing the best they can with a system where there could be 10 cardiac arrests and 9 ambulances. Then the time to wait and drop off/handover at hospital. All the time more calls coming in and no matter how many you go to, they just keep coming

Hope your mum is getting good care pompomseverywhere. Sounds like good news that she doesn't need a replacement hip.

(My dad did need a replacement. His surgeon cheerfully told me they were going to do it quickly because it's best done in the first 24 hours. Since he'd spent over half of the "first 24 hours" waiting for the ambulance to arrive, we were well past that point by the time I got the call. But I bit my tongue cos it wouldn't have done any good at that point ).