MIL has been in A&E 17½ hours. AIBU to think this is totally unreasonable

[PearlyShamps]

MIL has pain shooting from her groin, down her leg. Cannot walk or bear weight. GP advised to call 111. They advised to go to A&E. There, at 6pm yesterday, she was told 5 hour wait. She and her husband (both well into there 70s) have now been waiting almost 18 hours. She has been triaged, but not seen by a dr. They have missed 2 meals and a night's sleep. We feel useless and unable to help. Its utterly ridiculous!

I'm sorry to hear that OP. I'm afraid it seems the same everywhere.

A few weeks ago my MIL spent over 24 hours sitting in an ambulance at A&E, one result of which is that she now has bedsores on her heels.

I was in for 19 hours last week and people were complaining that they couldn't see their GP for 3 weeks so that's why they were there. But I literally called my GP to chase up a referral for a scan on my problem (I didn't even ask for an appointment) but they were so worried about my symptoms they got me in with my GP within half an hour, who sent me straight to hospital. So it just proves the people that are desperately ill will be seen by their GP quickly, and the ones that have to wait for 3 weeks for an appointment just have to realise their issue isn't urgent enough for the GP, so sure as hell isn't urgent enough for A and E.

I get so frustrated as that 19 hours I had to leave my mum with dementia on her own, while people with sore throats got dealt with. And don't start me on the time I once had to wait with my mum for 8 hours with a suspected stroke! Bring back the first lock down where people were so scared of covid, they literally only went to A and E with life or death issues or broken bones, the wait was only 10 minutes then!

Glad she’s getting tests now.

two weeks ago a colleagues friend fell down the stairs and couldn’t move/feel anything from the waist down. Was a six hour wait for an ambulance for a suspected spinal injury with paralysis. It makes me scared how bad things are.

It's absolutely shocking. Family member of mine who is in her late seventies fell down her stairs in the middle of the night breaking her wrist and hip. She couldn't get to the phone so she asked alexa to call her son. After he arrived they then had a 12hr wait for an ambulance. 🤯

My dil’s df had terminal cancer and died on a trolley in A&E. Dil had to say goodbye to him on the phone. The effect on her mental health was terrible.

I think the GP is at fault here. She didn’t have an accident and there is no emergency if after triage she has been sat in a waiting area for 17 hours. She should have been treated through the GP and referred forwards if necessary.

Do you really think thats what happens in other European countries? You actually believe that in Germany, The Netherlands, France, etc, their excellent healthcare systems only provide healthcare to employed people? You have never bothered to google to find out that the State provides healthcare to those who do not work?

No, I assume those unemployed will probably get it free. But I'm talking about those that are working but just couldn't afford to pay for their healthcare alongside everything else. There's always that stretched lower middle people forget about

Nah. The Nation very possibly including your in laws voted for this when they voted Leave and Tory.

I voted YABU as this is the current state of the NHS. Undoubtedly there will have been people there who were a higher priority. Im not saying it’s right though but it is a reality. An older and fatter population, where the majority do not seem to want to fund if properly have led us here

20 hour wait in a&e for my mum who had sepsis. 6 day admission. 72 hour wait for a bed on a ward. The "care" she recieved was awful.

A poor woman in the triage area actually dropped dead. No, I'm not kidding.

Oh, and it was a 1.5 hour wait for an "emergency" ambulance 2 weeks ago.

I actually thought she's be dead by the time they got to her.

Im so sorry they are going through this.

I was stuck in A&E from 1am- 8am recently,
I gave up in the end as I was so ill and exhausted and got picked up to go home.

Next day I was being resuscitated after my heart stopped. Drs kept asking me why I discharged myself from A&E the night before, as I nearly died.

My DH is mid 70s, I'm almost 70. We'd be most offended at people taking over, family or not. If they have capacity and don't want help you are right to let them deal with it.

I had pneumonia in April and waited 11 hours in A and E sitting on a chair before being put on a trolley. It was nearly 24 hours before I was given painkillers and treatment started.

Nurse of over thirty years agreeing the NHS do not let the over 70's die. 2/5 of the NHS budget is spent on the over 65's. Falls alone in this age group cost the NHS more than £4.6 million a day! (Many avoidable but that's another argument).
Over 70% of my clinics are made up of the elderly with chronic conditions or having had previous life threatening events they've been pulled through so we can all live longer and longer.
So utter nonsense.

@ChiswickFlo That's awful, I'm so sorry I was recently admitted for suspected sepsis and went straight into resus from the ambulance. It's definitely a sign that the NHS is struggling when even sepsis isn't being addressed speedily. I know I was lucky.

To those saying this woman shouldn't be in A&E at all - you can't possibly know that without knowing her full medical history. The GP is in possession of this information so hopefully they made the right call. Someone mentioned a hot water bottle - how do you know the pain isn't called by a DVT or something? It really isn't fair to assume she shouldn't be there, I highly doubt this poor couple would have sat this long without good reason.

Thanks for the reply op regarding food and drink, that is lovely that the reception staff looked after everyone. Let us know how she gets on!

My dad when he was terminally ill & had been told to get to hospital ASAP was left sitting on a hard plastic chair for 14 hours with no treatment, this was pre covid.

Shed had sepsis a few months earlier...I kept telling them.
She was dehydrated too.
I had to beg for pain relief for her
If you haven't been to a&e recently you just have no idea
The nhs HAS collapsed.
Its already happened.
I imagine this winter lots of people will die and they'll bring the army in

I need blood tests
Can't get one til mid July
Dr won't treat me til he gets results
So...I continue to suffer

@ChiswickFlo I have been recently, that's what I'm saying. I was just admitted a couple of weeks ago with suspected sepsis. It obviously varies from place to place, but no question things are generally terrible. I'm so sorry she was treated so poorly.

Sadly my area is one of the worst performing in the country

The fact there is any postcode lottery aspect is so deeply unfair and sad. @ChiswickFlo

The staff aren’t in the waiting room, they’re working. We don’t get time to notice who is waiting where.