I know IABU, blatantly using this for traffic. Emergency situation, no ambulance still, and need advice

[TheChinkOfaGlass]

Hi everyone

My Auntie had a fall this morning and has seriously hurt her hip. Luckily she was close enough to the bed to get herself up on it.

999 said it is not an emergency and to contact 111, she was in severe agony and is 78 years old. I rang 111 who after assessing her, decided she did indeed need an ambulance.

I had originally offered to take her to the hospital but she lives on the top floor of a maisonette, and is unable to sit up (so a car journey would be no good and I would be unable to carry her to the car anyway. I did get help but she declined due to the inability to even sit up).

Her husband is disabled so isn't much use (I mean this in the nicest possible way, he is trying his best) other than keeping an eye on her.

So we could be waiting hours for an ambulance but in the meantime she is soaked through on the bed due to urinating on herself. I am going there in the next 30 minutes.

Is it safe to roll her to change the sheets to make her more comfortable? I don't like the idea of her lying in a soaking bed while she waits. I am also scared of causing more pain/damage by moving her. We do not know what's wrong, she thinks it may he her hip. I just don't know what to do. I have never experienced this kind of thing.

Her partner has managed to change her underwear but when the bed is so wet, it wouldn't really make a difference.

This is awful. Tbh although I'd usually say never move but I'd probably see if something could be sorted. The local mountain rescue team could they maybe help? (Sorry if that's already been mentioned)
Have 111 given any idea of an update time? If not I'd call back and ask - I know you shouldn't but tbh this sounds as if your aunt could deteriorate very quickly and become more emergent. Maybe some kind of update would help her stay as positive as possible.

OH OP, this is horrific, I wonder could you turn up anywhere in person and see if you can get any assistance at all? What if you turned up at her GP surgery or similar to see what they can do? I know that folk can't just go about turning up at places demanding attention, but this does seem particularly serious and out of the ordinary so I think you'd be justified.

Hi OP,
This happened to my neighbour last week but he was outside. When his wife rang the ambulance she were told there weren't any and they would call back at some point (I heard this - it was on speakerphone). To cut a long story short when I looked at him after two hours I thought he would die of cold before they got there. DH made a makeshift stretcher out of an old flysheet and some tent poles and we got him in the back of an estate car and took him to hospital with another car following as back up. We rang ahead to say we were coming. His life was saved.
I know you're on the third floor - is there any way she can be got out on a stretcher and put into a vehicle? I don;t mean to sound stupid, but this is an emergency. Can you call your local newspaper and ask to speak to a reporter? Not in an angry way but an asking for help way? That will trigger action on their part (they will do a story and it will shine a light on this disastrous situation) Can you put out a call on Facebook for people to help you who have expertise? Broadcast your situation far and wide. The more the better to get action. Thinking of you 🌺

Oh god, I've just come on and see your poor auntie is waiting. I'm so very very sorry.

Oh my god, this is unbelievable op, your poor Aunt (and you). I’m totally shocked. Could the GP surgery arrange an urgent visit from district nurses or offer some form of interim treatment or support. She need to get some pressure relief or she will have pressure sores on top of everything else. Why haven’t the technicians even arrived, this is bloody awful. I’m praying you get some assistance from somewhere soon.

Another here joining in the chorus of poor Auntie and poor you .

How is her pain? Have you found any way of sorting toileting ,I can only think bed pan or nappies ?

I keep thinking how your Auntie must be one of many others .

Yes agree that you need to start making some noise. My other concern is that it will be evening again soon enough now and everything like a GP etc will be closed so it might be better to take some positive action now before things start closing.

Call the GP
999 again
Your MP
Your local ward Councillor

I did read last week of an off duty firefighter strapping her granddad to a board and loading him into a van .Apparently it was imperative that he didn't sit up and that he was kept flat .
But would such an approach have to queue like the ambulances at the hospital or would they by pass ?
Take blankets ,hot water bottles, pads ,snacks ,phone charger .List of meds and actual meds .

I'm so sorry you're still in this terrible situation OP. Last week a relative of ours fell in her home and the fire service had to be called to gain access. They arrived within ten minutes and got in the house, got her up off the floor and on a chair, and requested an ambulance which arrived within the hour. A neighbour had rung 999 for her just before and was told an ambulance would take at least 5 hours. The fireman/woman confirmed it would be quicker because they requested it. Could you perhaps ask the fire service to attend to help her get downstairs or something and let them request the ambulance? I don't know, I'm just casting about for ideas. It's really dreadful and sad what's happening.

I think mountain rescue or fire brigade .(with apologies to both services )

someone mentioned Mountain Rescue.

i think this is a great idea - they have the equipment and the expertise.

This is dreadful. Agree with whoever said that it's time to start making some noise.

Well done you guys for quick thinking.

When I was in the ambulance queueing at the hospital with my mum the paramedic actually said that while she’d usually never advocate moving someone who has fallen, she actually would nowadays as the “long lay” on a cold floor is often causing more problems. Something that just wouldn’t have happened in the past when ambulances actually arrived promptly.

How this government can live with itself is beyond me.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11557625/Pensioner-93-left-lying-floor-waiting-ambulance-25-HOURS-hip-fracture.html

Poor auntie. This really is a shocking state of affairs.

I was just about to suggest mountain rescue but see others have. Our local team are bloody fantastic and I often thinking I fell whilst walking the dog at least they would come and rescue me.

This is deeply shocking.
Is there no one with a van locally that could transport her to the nearest hospital?
Better that then die, surely??

Just dreadful.
Older people need to be so blooming careful not to trip or fall, as bones are like a stick of chalk.
It pays to take great care moving around a home, as you are basically on your own these days if you fall and break something.

Nursing homes..Why so few?

OP I have no advice but just want to say how angry I am on your behalf. Its absolutely unacceptable that anyone should be waiting that long for emergency medical care.
Wasnr Boris lying in an nhs icu when he had covid? Yet him and his scummy mates are happy to siphon money away from the nhs utter utter shits the lot of them

This is terrible. I'm so sorry your auntie is left to suffer like this.

Can you put a post on your local Facebook asking for any HCP to please, please advise re next steps and care?

And as a last resort advice on how to safely move her and get her to hospital yourselves? Or with help from local people?

This is horrendous.

Can you say whereabouts you are?

I am horrified for you and I really hope she will be ok and sorted soon. Mountain rescue sounds like an option at this point. I would also start emailing some heads of trust and cc-ing their Comms teams and press at this point.

I had the misfortune to need urgent care yesterday for my daughter.

• 40 min triage call by 111 (it's really quite simple she has a chest infection, can't get in with GP)
• sent to urgent care on a pre booked appt
• waiting time at urgent care is 7 hours
• luckily we waited 2 hours as pre booked
• told by GP at urgent care she doesn't seem that bad - come back tomorrow - are you having a laugh!
• booked private GP appointment today and told we should have automatically been given anti biotics due to current strep A risk and the threshold for prescribing has been reduced at present nationally.

Now I recognise my situation is no where near as bad as many on here. But I saw enough to see how broken it all is.

• why have we got qualified nurses spending 40+ mins on a phone call when they could see several people in that time?
• why have we got GPs in an urgent care centre and privately online?
• if the staff were actually in an old fashioned surgery would that not help??

How awful for you. I’d be looking to use local social media to see if anyone can help to get her to hospital. Have you tried private ambulance companies? There are several around my area with paramedics. If not trying to find a van and anyone who is medically trained. My heart goes out to you and her. I really hope you are able to get her the care that she needs.

This is horrendous. I’m so sorry for your poor aunt and you too OP.

I’m also absolutely dreading the time when any of my elderly relatives need an ambulance; it just seems impossible