To be really annoyed with GP in light of strep A concerns?

[PeppermintChoc]

My sons pre-school has had several instances of Scarlett fever. He came down with a rash, white things and temp, complained of a sore throat. I would usually just have thought it’s viral but after calling pre-school they said don’t forget about SF and encouraged me to see the GP. They’ve had some really poorly children and staff.

Rang GP and he didn’t want to see him. Had a phone appt. He actually said “don’t worry about Scarlett fever it’s really rare” I said he’d been in contact with it and that didn’t change his mind.

My son was fine, fortunately, but reading about all these really poorly children and can’t help but worry that if one of mine does come down with something it’s luck of the draw as to whether they’ll see them. Conversely on another occasion he had tonsillitis and the only reason the GP (diff GP) picked it up was because he examined him. GP was surprised he wasn’t more poorly as his tonsils were awful and covered in pus.

I’m terrified at the state of our NHS. I am always reluctant to call “just in case” but I wish we could - really we should be able to be seen just to put our minds at rest. I’d rather pay £50-100 and feel happier my children aren’t seriously unwell than wait until they get really poorly just to justify going.

Yes, fever, rash and a sore throat all of which the OP’s son has and he’s been in contact with scarlet fever. He either needs a face to face or antibiotics prescribed without one I would have thought.

It’s not good enough OP and I think it’s probably going against the advice given to medics by the UKHSA to exercise caution at the moment. I’d phone 111 and see what they say.

It's also normal in France and Germany (where I have lived) to take your child to the doctor when they are ill, you don't wait until they are 'sick enough', that would be really weird. But then they have functioning health care.

OP if you are willing to pay for reassurance I would just see a private GP. I've already bookmarked some in case ever needed, it will be about 50 quid which as a one off we could manage.

Agree with you OP
He's been in contact and has symptoms. He should have been seen face to face.

He son didn’t have Scarlett fever though and recovered fine without needing antibiotics.

If you are wanting reassurance for some ailment you could pop and see a pharmacist? They are very knowledgeable.

GP’s don’t have the capacity for people to pop in for reassurance sadly. People are dying of cancer because they can’t get appointments in time for assessment and referral so an appointment to be examined for reassurance often isn’t possible. The state of the NHS is dire, I say this having a loved one waiting (…and waiting) for ‘urgent’ cancer treatment.

Advice will vary spending on the GP. Medicine is a lot of well educated guess work. Last year my child came down with some of the symptoms of SF and as they had been in contact with a confirmed case the GP prescribed antibiotics without even seeing them - we just a spoke on phone and I sent a photo.

The NHS really is in such a mess at the moment. Underfunded, under staffed and under appreciated by many. The service you get is so hit and miss depending where you live. I'm lucky I'm in a big city so have quite a few options available.

I didn’t feel it was a minor ailment hence seeking the advice of a GP. I do consult pharmacist where appropriate as a first port, eczema etc. Once recently for my own tonsillitis which turned into Quincy because the pharmacist said give it a couple of days before seeing the GP….

GP are human and can make mistakes.

Yes he did - fortunately. I am still able to reflect and consider the course of action, given the circumstances at the time wasn’t appropriate. Another child was sent home and died! It shouldn’t be Russian roulette.

I appreciate the enormity of the pressure the nhs is under. But I don’t think that makes substandard healthcare ok.

This is what I was getting at really - here we let our illnesses progress. Often we recover, but often we suffer unnecessarily because we feel we should avoid getting advice for things whilst we can bear them.

It still is fab as he was right? Why go to the doctors if you think you know better than the GP

The doctor doesn't need to see everyone with symptoms face to face

You do realise that children are dying? It's not funny to dismiss genuine concerns the child's all the symptoms and has been in contact with children who have the virus a bit of empathy is not an Unreasonable ask

Our GP always does, even through covid.
One of my DS had a bad rash all over his face in 2020 and we got a face to face that day even though they have the facility to just send a photo.

Yes and that's great but for a lot of things they don't need to and can just do it from a photo. I've taken my little one in all through the covid times too and when I had PND they insisted I came in. But they've also diagnosed my husbands scalp issue with a photo and issued antibiotics for my child without seeing them. If they ask the right questions they don't necessarily need you to come in.

You're right to be annoyed OP. Scarlet fever even if mild needs antibiotics to prevent complications and also to stop you spreading it to others. Without antibiotics you can be infectious for up to 3 weeks. Some children have mild cases but can still pass it on to others.

I had scarlet fever as a child, as did brother, confirmed by throat swab.
But the sore throat is really severe, and the red rash noticeable...Plus high temp.

Did you ask the GP for a face to face appointment when you had the telephone appointment?

I asked for a appointment and was told I’d get a call. You just get what you’re given - I assumed they’d want to see him. Every other time they have.

This is the crux of it isn’t it, a decent practice nurse who trusts the parents instincts. My DD was exposed to scarlet fever through preschool, she had mild viral symptoms so I called the doctors, they asked ME what I wanted to do, if I felt it was just viral they'd trust me or they would see her if I felt she needed to be seen. I didn’t feel it warranted a visit but felt better checking with them and they said if I changed my mind they would happily check her over.

Our practice nurse once told me always trust my instinct and keep pushing with GPs if things didn’t feel right.

Like you op there have been times I’ve taken my DDs just to check, as they may have been unwell too long or I’ve just not been sure and they have needed antibiotics, one GP visit ended in an ambulance being called.

I know we are lucky with our GP surgery, they will always see children straight away.

I agree with you OP that if what you’re looking for as a parent is reassurance then you should be able to access that from a medical professional, in person, not have to wait until your child is “I’ll enough”’ to be seen.

Unfortunately, though, the NHS will always need to operate this type of triaging system because there aren’t enough GPs, or enough hours in the day, to see everyone who wants to be seen.

Personally, that means I’m happy to pay to see a private GP and have private healthcare for any treatments I might need. It’s not always that straightforward with young children though, as some private GP services don’t take on under 5s. It isn’t a great situation.

I’d skimmed the OP and hadn’t realised the OP’s son hadn’t got it now but it was a previous infection.

But the point still stands. Nobody knows whether the OP’s son had scarlet fever or not. The GP was wrong about scarlet fever being rare and even if it was the OPs son is in a setting with a known outbreak. He’s fine with the benefit of hindsight but the GP in question had no way of knowing that. The reason that scarlet fever is always treated even if the child is well us because untreated it has a high fatality rate.

If the OP’s son hadn’t been fine would we be saying the same thing or would we be blaming the GP? Because I think this thread would have gone very differently.

I had Scarlet Fever, 5 years ago, when I was 58!

Go to your pharmacist. I'm in A&E with DS at the moment, 2 kids in front of us booking in were sent in by pharmacist, both were diagnosed with Scarlett fever by said pharmacist. Please don't use a doctors appointment for stuff like this for reassurance.