Should I go to A&E?

[ShrillSiren22]

I’m severely anaemic. I have a gastric condition which regularly causes internal bleeds which leads to anaemia and I normally have 3/4 blood transfusions a year to deal with this.

I’ve been feeling anaemic since April when I went to my GP as usual and my Hb was 80 which is borderline for a blood transfusion but anaemic enough for an iron infusion. As I’m under a gastro consultant at the hospital he has to contact him to sign it off before I can go to hospital to have my iron infusion/ blood transfusion. Except the gastro department has not been answering the phone or returning my Gp’s calls/ emails since April.

My GP is tearing his hair out as my hb is now 56, the lowest it’s ever been. I am sleeping downstairs as I cannot climb the stairs to bed. I am driving my dc’s 100 m to school as I cannot walk. I am sleeping nearly 20 hours a day, I’ve lost 9lbs as I can’t eat anything, I’ve constantly got a blinding headache and I’m sobbing nonstop. I don’t know what to do and why no one will help me.

My GP has even driven to the hospital to try and get someone in gastro to sign it off but no one will. There’s nowhere within an hour drive that does it privately even if I could find a way to get there as I can trust myself to drive that far without falling asleep.

Id have to take my kids with me to A&are but I can’t think what else I can do.

Hope you get it sorted @ShrillSiren22 and the wait isn’t too long

Sadly often nothing gets done until things escalate. 😪

I think a lot of us misunderstood and thought that you had no support ever op, as you say this is actually just a run of bad luck really rather than the 'norm'. I wonder what can be done to avoid this happening again, it is really horrific that you have been left to get this bad. As you said, they could have done an iron transfusion months ago and avoided the need for blood transfusions - which should always be their priority given the pressure on blood resources. What should have been a simple and quick procedure months ago is now a massive deal, all because of the gastro teams mismanagement.

Please know we are all on your side, even if some of our posts didn't come off that way

Really hope you get it sorted and that you and your children are ok.

I'm glad you went to A&E OP, your kids can handle a few hours waiting around, your health is important than not going because you don't have alternative arrangements for your children or fainting whilst at home.

I hope you get the treatment you need.

I'm sick of seeing the poor OP having to repeat herself over and over.

I was in A&E for 11 hours last week OP. Hope you are seen asap.

OP this sounds so awful for you! I’m glad you’re in A&E. It’s absolutely unacceptable that it has got this far without you being transfused. 56 is horrifically low. I’d be expecting you to need several units!!

I’m sorry you’re in an impossible situation. Going to A&E with your children is obviously your only option so I hope you decided to go. I really hope the wait isn’t too long and that they can do something to help you. Sounds like you need a long term management plan that doesn’t involve you going via A&E for your own health and sanity.

Email the communications team - it’ll be on the website for media enquiries. If you’ve not heard back by Wednesday then go to a&e. I am only suggesting you delay because this weekend is supposed to be horrific for A&Es (I’m currently on call in case we tip into a major incident and know most are in a similar position).

The non response from gastro is shocking so I’d also formally complain cc’ing in the ceo.

I collapsed and ended up in A&E with a hb of 55 - my bone marrow shut down as it got so low and I ended up admitted for 3 days (and had to go back on the 4th but they agreed for me to go home overnight) - severe pancytopenia (where your bone marrow shuts down and all your blood components end up low) has a 50% mortality rate - I ended up with 3 units on admission

Her GP sounds wonderful, driving to the hospital himself, bending over backwards to get the OP treatment. Or did I misread?

Apologies if I missed that part. I was reading it that the GP said there was nothing they could do unless the gastro consultant agreed to the transfusion - which most GPs would find unacceptable and at a certain point would overrule.

I’m getting a blood transfusion tonight. Phew. They’ve taken bloods so they can cross check them and I should be hooked up in 90 minutes or so. Boys are fine, loving being left to play on their screens in peace and no one has said anything about them having to go anywhere else (yet, anyway).

You are doing your best and your kids will manage. You'd have far bigger problems to solve if you don't get the medical attention you need. Keep going OP.

Cross posted.

Brilliant - just think how much better you are going to feel in a few hours :)

Happy for you OP. Big hugs.

Excellent news am so pleased for you !

You’ve done the right thing OP. Hope you’re feeling better soon 💐

I’m so pleased to hear they are organising a transfusion tonight. When you are feeling a bit better I would contact PALS so there can be an investigation into what has gone wrong and something can be added to your notes detailing what should happen in the future to prevent this happening again. Alternatively, they may be able to add something to your notes before you leave.

I work in medical receiving. Hb of 55 is an emergency and would definitely be transfused overnight. Taking children to A&E is obviously a last resort situation but you are needing urgent medical attention, obviously it is not something you would have done if you had another option.

We would get you triaged, hb checked and Group and save done, get you reviewed by a doctor. Ideally in my hospital we would do what we could to get you all to a side room but also you would really need to stay in acute medicine where there are doctors and plenty staff close by. We would need to contact social services for an emergency placement, have only had to do that for people who care for a husband or parent. Could you contact their father if he gets home from abroad tonight? I understand the tone that in the past he hasn't been top helpfully but ypu would hope if its an emergency and your kids will either go to foster care or you take them for one night then he might see sense? I'd imagine that the duty social worker would contact him first any way.

Hope you are feeling much better by tomorrow am when your blood is through. This should have been managed way before this stage. I'm so sorry you've been let down.

@Beseen22 Ive contacted their dad but not heard anything back yet. He’s in London, we’re in Devon so he’s unlikely to be able to get down here in time for it to be helpful even if he wanted to. I’ve asked though.

@Thereisnolight the GP is adamant that he can’t refer if it’s not be signed off by the gastro consultant. I don’t know exactly how it works but he certainly seems to be doing everything he can and has been in contact with me loads to let me know his frustrations, that he hasn’t just forgotten to do it etc.

This is wonderful news!

cake and a gold star each for your lovely boys

Great news , hope you feel better soon .

OP I just want to say I 100% believe that gastro have been a bit shit because I’ve got two mates who’ve both had their treatment just vanished through the pandemic to the point where one nearly died and one now has a stoma. So I can well believe that you are getting radio silence. I don’t blame the departments per se, they haven’t just decided to be rubbish, it’s just the pressures on services and the pull for ages to cover covid care :(

best of luck and hope you feel much better soon!