Doctor refused to see 3yo with suspected scarlet fever

[Phyllisdoriss]

My 3yo presented scarlet fever symptoms Sunday morning. Classic temperature, sandpaper rash, strawberry tongue so almost certain scarlet fever.
Phoned 111 at 10.30, get through around 12. Was told a clinician would call back within 2 hrs but very busy so could be longer.
Get a call around 3.45. Not the clinician but someone checking in. Clinician phoned around 7pm, really lovely lady who said she would make a referral to GP and that they will be ‘duty bound’ to see DC next day (today). DC was comfortable and settled down to sleep so she didn’t want to send us anywhere through the night, could end up being really late. We have a baby too.
This morning I phone GP first thing to book appointment. They acknowledged the referral from 111 and tell me a doctor will be in touch.

3.35pm my GP surgery phone to offer an appointment at a surgery 30mins (on a good day) away for 4pm. I said that would be impossible, so they offered 4.30 and that is the latest they can do. I accept the appointment but think it’ll be a tall order to get 2 toddlers, one quite unwell, in the car and there for 4.30 through two busy towns at rush hour but I was going to try my hardest. We got to the desk at 4.36 a flustered mess (I’m never late and hate being late)

They refused to see DC as we had ‘missed’ the appointment. I said they were duty bound to see her which they said they would but we could be waiting a while. As I’d had to rush everyone out of the door I’d not packed and snacks/toys so the thought of a long wait was not ideal but no choice.

At around 6pm a lady comes to tell us that they would not see her today. I said you’re duty bound to see DC today and she rudely responded with “you missed your appointment” and other remarks like “other patents managed to get here on time”. Yes but have other patients traveled as far, with such short notice, alone with two very young children?
Poor DC was even trying to show them crying saying “but look, I’ve got a nasty rash”.
AIBU to think this is truly appalling.

*strop not strip! But yes they do that too!

Poor kiddy. I’m a GP and would definitely squeeze in an acutely unwell child unless they were much later than this - apart from anything else regardless of what’s happened it’s not the child’s fault they weren’t there on time. I’d be more likely to ask to them to rebook if it was a more chronic problem that had been going on a week or two and therefore could probably wait as people turning up late is a bit of a nightmare and means we run later for everyone else and go home late too.

I know it’s frustrating and miserable for everyone who’s sat waiting past their appointment time… I promise you it’s not because we don’t respect your time or don’t care, it’s because other stuff has gone wrong whether that’s an urgent call from the ambulance service asking for our help, a patient who’s been very upset and sat and cried with us for 30 minutes in a 10 minute appointment or even something I’ve found personally difficult or upsetting and had to take 5 or 10 minutes to collect myself to be ready to see the next patient with my professional head back on. So please be as tolerant as you can be of our lateness - I am almost always late by the end of a surgery but it’s because I’m trying to do the best job I can for everyone I see and 10 minutes is not enough.

Just to clear a couple of other things up… an advanced practitioner will probably have been a nurse practitioner - not a doctor but entirely capable and competent to see a sick kid, so not fobbing you off.

I do think it’s right that you need to see / speak to a clinician to get antibiotics - I know everyone is scared by group A strep and scarlet fever but they aren’t always appropriate for every kid brought to us (I’ve seen a fair few kids with snotty colds and essentially normal tongues that their parents are worried about) so please keep in mind that you’re seeing a clinician for assessment and treatment if appropriate, not just for an antibiotic prescription.

OP - hope your child got sorted and is feeling better today.

🤣🤣🤣 are you f’ing serious?? We all work stressful jobs. you get a handsome salary for yours, which in the grand scheme of jobs, is relatively cushy/ socially valued, flexible and well paid. Cry me a f’ing river. Seriously.

”OP needs to take responsibility for her child”. Ok maybe we just sack off GPs altogether- (to be frank they are largely a waste of time in my experience). We can all pop down to tescos and pick up our antibiotics - oh right we can’t.

OP was given 45 mins notice of an appointment 40 mins away. She has two small children. She was 6 mins late. (And you accuse her of expecting the GP to “pander” to her schedule 🤣😡). This was despicable behaviour by the practice- especially given the patient was THREE and displaying symptoms of Scarlett fever. Absolutely disgraceful.

im appalled by your response, and hoping you are not actually a GP.

OK, so you knew that you weren't ready to go out. You knew that it was rush hour, and that you would need time to park, walk to the surgery etc. Clearly you don't actually think it was feasible to get there on time, so why did you accept an appointment that you couldn't get there for? You should have pressed them for an alternative or asked them if they would see you if you arrived a few mins late.

So what? If the OPs child gets worse do you think she will give a shit whether its medical or non medical staff who let her down?

this is a.parent with a sick child and you are nit picking her choice of words because she dared to assume the person she was supposed to be having a medical consultation with was medical staff?

Aren't you a delight.

You only need some antibiotics anyway. They have lowered the threshold for prescribing them so shouldn’t even need to check him over, he obviously has all of the classic symptoms anyway. Just a quick prescription would have resolved this whole issue.

Op can you get an antibiotics today?

How is your dd

I hope your DD gets the help she needs today OP. I would ring them every hour until you get an appointment or a prescription. I know that's a waste of resources but needs must.

People are such losers on here. Of course YANBU. People are trying to poke holes in your story. Super pathetic.

You had barely any notice and were 6 minutes late and then made to wait there and still not seen. Shameful.

Complain asap. I hope you manage to get your DD seen asap.

I know it’s frustrating and miserable for everyone who’s sat waiting past their appointment time… I promise you it’s not because we don’t respect your time or don’t care, it’s because other stuff has gone wrong whether that’s an urgent call from the ambulance service asking for our help, a patient who’s been very upset and sat and cried with us for 30 minutes in a 10 minute appointment or even something I’ve found personally difficult or upsetting and had to take 5 or 10 minutes to collect myself to be ready to see the next patient with my professional head back on. So please be as tolerant as you can be of our lateness - I am almost always late by the end of a surgery but it’s because I’m trying to do the best job I can for everyone I see and 10 minutes is not enough.

I think a lot of people are tolerant and respectful of why doctors might run late. The issue is that GP surgeries in particular are very intolerant of patients running late as if we could never have something happen in our lives to make us late. Aside from traffic jams, buses being cancelled and all the other things that slow people down that are outside their control people are often rushing from their jobs where they might have been dealing with something distressing or they couldnt just leave.

I've been in a last minute rush to the GPs from taking calls from grieving relatives letting me know their loved ones have ded. But that apparently isn't a good enough reason to be on the last minute. How is that any different from some of the scenarios you are describing?

I didn’t know until then that I would be sent 13 miles away! I had been waiting and ‘ready’ all day. You can’t ensure full tummy’s and empty bladders all day! It was my only option, it wasn’t unfeasible I tried my hardest to get there. They was a chance I may have made it in time, 6mins is nothing when unexpected things happen, it’s like hitting every red light as opposed to green, the motorway was slow, icy road conditions. They did know it would be tight. You would have declined the appointment? Where would that have left me and DC? I wasn’t prepared to do that

Ahhh so she should have been able to accurately predict the traffic conditions to a place she had never been to before? What a wonderful skill!

GPs vary so much. I phoned my local surgery in February as I had covid and was getting worse. The receptionist could hear how much I was coughing and struggling to breathe and got the doctor to phone me. She could hear the same and said she'd see me in her lunch break. I had to drive onto car park and phone to let them know I was there and then I was taken in by a side door to a "hot" consulting room. Dr was considering sending me into hospital but in the end we agreed to try antibiotics first, they helped but 5 days later I had to phone back and immediately got a prescription for stronger antibiotics, Dr said she was only doing this as there had been improvement otherwise it would have been hospital.

My understanding is appointments are booked for 10 minutes so if the OP arrived six minutes late for the start of her appointment she hadn't actually missed the appointment, she'd missed part of it. I don't know if it is the same everywhere but at my surgery if the see an advanced practitioner/nurse practitioner/paramedic you get 15 minutes so if it is the same at OPs surgery she had 9 minutes of her appointment time left.

Disgusting that a child wasn't seen. I'd be contacting CQC and lodging a complaint, I work in care and that would result in an inspection to look at the processes at the surgery.

She'd already done that when she'd been offered an earlier appointment.

Whilst the op is batting off all these posts re minutes has the child actually got what they need?

I’d be on it this morning if they still have a rash etc

God there are some right 'computer says no' mardy arses on this thread.

YANBU OP, they have treated you badly.

Reminds me of when I took my mum to her GP appt during the pandemic and the staff didn't answer the door bell so we were late when they eventually opened the door. Instead of apologising, they accused us of being 10 minutes early and that that was the reason we had missed our appt and couldn't be seen.

I demanded to speak to the GP, and were seen soon after.

No we are back in the urgent care queue again today. I have been given a link to submit photos which I’ve done so hopefully can avoid face to face and I’ll just be sent to collect a prescription at some point today. Child is ok in themselves, although a bit short tempered and over sensitive, rash looking less angry, tongue looks quite bad - white with lots of red spots, throat not too bad. I think DC is fighting it well but the need for antibiotics is more to prevent the spread as without, can be contagious for up to 3 weeks - we don’t want that!

Hope you can get them without having to drag dc out again.
I’d definitely follow up afterwards.
I can’t believe people are nit picking over time taken to get there. Receptionist shouldn’t be offering appointments people can’t get to.
If they had told Op when she rang first thing or at midday when afternoon list sorted it was 13 miles away unknown surgery at 4.30pm then she could have set off at 3.30 and would have been there. Instead at 3.30 she’s at home still waiting for a call assuming it will be at drs she always goes to. She could have ‘been prepared’ and got double buggy out to nip down to local surgery absolutely no use if they suddenly send you miles away.

I think it is poor of the GP Surgery not only to not attempt to see you when you arrived, but also to leave you waiting and then at the end of the day to say ‘sorry no’. If they really could not have seen you then they should have rearranged for the following day/advised/signposted to where you could be seen if needed.

To everyone commenting on the distance of the surgery, as part of my work I share information with GP Surgeries. I don’t work in health care so it is via external contact. More and more surgeries these days are part of ‘groups’ - there can be multiple surgeries on different sites that are actually linked together. It isn’t unusual for the ones I have contact with to send patients to other sites for urgent appointments.

The inconsistency is what is so irritating though! If OP ends up getting a prescription today without her DD being seen face to face then why didn't that happen on Sunday? Or Monday?

Op I think this thread will just go and on attracting goady fuckers. They've got nothing supportive to say.

And I hope you are sorted now, with dc back home and with meds.

Every time I go to a GP or any kind of doctor they keep me waiting for at least 40 minutes past my appointment time. And they couldn't see a poorly child who was 6 minutes late through no fault of her own? How do they live with themselves? 😡

A bit late to thread, but:

1. they were cruel to let you wait 2 hours and then not see you
2. you were offered an appointment which you didn't make. I am not sure how much else they can do. They can't just magic up appointments to see people who want to be seen.
3. I can understand that they were a bit fed up with your if you were going on about them being duty bound. I can also understand that at this point yu were upset and frustrated.

1. it was just under an hour and a half
2. it was a short notice appointment 13miles away through two busy towns, somewhere I’d never been before that I tried my hardest to get to but didn’t quite make it in time by 6 mins for a 10 min appointment
3. They had no right to be fed up with me. I was waiting patiently. I was told they were duty bound to see my child. I only said it when they were refusing to and standing up for myself and DC, fighting for DC’s right to be seen, diagnosed and prescribed treatment. None of this was DC s fault. I was doing my best and the guilt I feel is unbearable