To put together a grab bag for A&E?

[Rainallnight]

I’m not planning on going to A&E. And I’m the last person to be any sort of prepper - I’m barely on top of the laundry or anything!

But I’ve been thinking that if anyone in the family ends up in A&E, it’s going to be for a lonnnnnng time and it would be handy to be able to just grab a bag of stuff that would see you through.

I’m thinking at the most basic level stuff like phone charger, snacks, bottle of water, book. But then I find myself thinking pillow? Sleeping bag?

Has anyone done this?

(the backstory for the avoidance of later drip feeding is that I was at the GP yesterday and they briefly thought they needed to call an ambulance for me and my first thought was ‘bugger, I don’t have a phone charger on me’. I didn’t have to go in an ambulance and I’m fine).

I'm still a bit wary of potential COVID restrictions limiting visitors. I've got used to only one parent being allowed so some things are essential such as a charger to be sure I can contact husband.

We have a hospital grab bag because DS has various health conditions

Phone charger
Snacks (cereal bars)
Bottles of water/juice
Coin purse with change and a £5 note.
Socks
Underwear
Travel toothbrush and toothpaste
Book
Pack cards
Baby wipes
Masks
Sanitiser

I have attended a& e regularly in the past 18 months.One thing I have learned is to take a packed bag with me. In the bag I have iPad ,chargers ,books snacks and drinks and toothbrush toothbrush and wipes
I have learnt my lesson the hard way. I think people have looked at me as if am strange.
I once spent 20 hrs in A&E I now tell people be be prepared before you go.

I think it depends on circumstances if you have friends and or family and live close to the hospital I don't think its very necessary as they can bring you stuff if needed. I tend to just chuck a charger and bottle of water in my handbag and if I get admitted I get others to pack me a bag

You've reminded me to re- pack mine tomorrow, thank you!

There's nothing wrong with being prepared. But usually when I have to take my daughter up. Either by taxi or ambulance. I grab a few things in a few minutes. Bottles of water iPad, chargers for phone and iPad etc. A blanket for her because we don't know how long we will be waiting.

But you might not be well enough to do that yourself if alone. So will be worth having one packed. If by ambulance they tell me to get a few things together anyway like PJ's change of clothes etc.

Don't worry about toiletries and towels. Hospital always have some for people taken in unexpectedly. If you don't have a nighty or PJ's they will give you a gown to use. Only thing they don't have is deodorant. Even got me a comb last time so I could wash her hair. I have washed clothes with handwash if we haven't been able to get home.

The vending machines mostly take cards now. But sometimes the card reader doesn't work. So some change comes in handy if vending machine doesn't have any to give out. We don't usually bother taking food up. It's usually late when we go anyway. But there has been a couple of times family brought us food up. But we usually get something from the vending machine. They did toast for us in A and E because daughter needed to have something to eat to take her meds. You can have food delivered but there needs to be someone at reception to retrieve it.

Some of these bags would be enormous...

In principle sounds sensible, but honestly, I'd forget where the bag was, half the stuff in it would have to be duplicates of things I use constantly ( can't live in bag) and i baulk at having so much unused stuff.

The one time I was an emergency admission, I was too ill for 5 (all) days to use any of this stuff.

Forgot to add any medication you are taking as well. They can get it from pharmacy. But have to wait for doctor to prescribe it.

May I suggest a laminated set of instructions pinned by her front door stating where her go bag is and what it looks like. It can also have details of useful contact numbers and instructions for things like pets (names, food, routine etc), allergies and medicines. I also have a laminated list of contents inside my go bag as it saves the admitting nurse time listing your possessions. It just makes life so much easier for the person with your relative.

My DD has underlying health conditions which from birth to around 4 year old required multiple ambulances, a&e trips and hospital stays.

I found having a bag always packed for both of us relived a lot of stress and made hospital stays more comfortable knowing we had everything we needed to see us through the initial days.

It's fine saying to have a list but when you are waiting on an ambulance in a life threatening situation it is still incredibly hard to focus on packing a bag when you are just in full adrenaline mode.

I've used mini toiletries in the one I've put together, all small except adding a pair of pjs!
Somehow I've got a load of sample sizes of toothpaste (free from the dentist), shower gel, face wash etc. every so often I use them and add different ones in. Socks, flannel and knickers are just old ones

Bag is about 35cm x 25cm
The only thing I would have to grab would be my phone charger lead, the bag and a pair of pjs

I have one due to health issues. If nothing else, it helps you feel more in control when needing to go in.

Just has what I need for a couple of nights.

I once spent 3 days in hospital in the same t-shirt and knickers before anybody could bring me a change of clothes so yes for that reason alone! However most of the things mentioned I keep in my car or handbag for emergencies anyway, so I'd encourage you to think about just generally being well prepared in general. I keep a charged powerbank and cable in my handbag for example, as well as a few long life snacks. In my car I have a bag with a spare set of clothes in, sanpro, painkillers, first aid kit and, well, last time I got stranded anywhere (at a garage waiting for 4 hours or work to be done on my car in the freezing cold) I managed to produce said powerbank for my nearly dead phone, a book, extra layers of clothing, a bottle of water, a cereal bar and even a hot coffee 😂

Keeping a cushion or pillow and a sleeping bag in the car for emergencies sounds like a plan though, and is just a case of changing where things I already own are stored.

@pinkstripeycat

Surely if you are waiting over 12 hours to be seen it’s not an emergency. Someone had apparently been waiting in a Swindon A&E for 99 hrs!

I kinda wish I had this level of blissful unawareness.

Real emergencies that once were a 20 minute wait for an ambulance maximum and do no pass go once you hit the door at A&E are taking 9, 12, 20 hours to get an ambulance to them, and then the same again to get admitted once at A&E. Our NHS is absolutely properly fucked. The sooner people start acting with awareness of this the better.

I recently took DS to A&E after seeing Gp (head trauma).

I took food, water, charger etc.

Except there was nowhere to plug the charger in in the waiting room! Next time I'll take a power bank.

DH was overseas for the week and couldn't bring anything. We've only recently moved so no one else could help.

I have chucked together one on the way to A&E with my toddler every single time as I know I’m in for a very long wait and not taking the nearest toys I can grab is a huge mistake. I was thanked foresight on a 9 hour overnight A&E stint with other parents who had no toys to occupy their children (they were completely valid in having just rushed out the door or being brought in by ambulance whereas my DS needed a bad cut gluing up so I had time to pack a bag before leaving despite genuinely needing to go to A&E).

Swindon (Great Western Hospital ) is my nearest hospital . I can well believe a 99 hour wait to be admitted to a ward , they’ve been posting on social media over Christmas pleading with people not to attend unless life threatening as they are so overwhelmed .
Over Christmas someone in my village who fell and broke their hip on the drive in the extreme weather (when it was below freezing) was taken to hospital in the back of a van on a scaffold board after they were told there simply wasn’t going to be an ambulance for hours and hours and this poor person would have died of hyperthermia .
What a state of affairs 😟

I read about that case. Utterly shocking!!

I don't think I brushed my teeth once when I was in hospital for 5 days. I am pretty sure I dragged myself to loo but that wasn't often. Teeth cleaning wasn't a priority. Or washing. or the state of my pants.

Honestly can't recall doing anything but sleeping and some brief visits for 1st 4 days.

I think I'd only do it if I had a health condition that meant it was likely that I'd end up in the ED. Otherwise you've just got bags of stuff lying around for something that will probably not happen. Might be better to make a list on your phone of stuff you would pack if you needed to go. Would take a few mins to chuck a charger and some clothes and toiletries in a bag if you didn't have to think about what to pack.

Yes - precisely why I have one, on the other hand, when I need to go I'm in no state for throwing a bag together and I don't want others going through my knicker drawer on my behalf!

Tbh when I've had to call 999, even looking at a packing list would be too much. Generally it's my young daughter that is the patient and she is likely in my arms so other than maybe asking my oh to get a couple of things, I find it better to have some things ready. As you say though it is very different if there are pre-existing medical conditions that increase the likelihood of ambulance call outs.

As my bag is always half packed and ready to go it gets used a lot. It's quite handy for long journeys but I have young kids and visit family / friends hours drives away. A List on a phone is just as good as long as you also list where to find it. When my mum was admitted, the paramedics packed for her. So first thing on a phone list - location of empty overnight bag!

The paramedics put your bag over the back of your trolley. I was trying to get to my phone in resus. Everyone swormed in, hooked me up to drips then swormed out once it was decided I wasn't about to die. So maybe keep your phone in your hand.

Also I was told multiple times I was likely to be robbed blind by all the nhs staff so be careful what you pack. Ie unless your accompanying someone else, don't take your hand bag. Plus a few of the dementia patients told the nurses my things belonged to them, so in my case if they wanted a scene or my 90p Primark hairbrush, they was welcome to it.

The nhs staff told me i woukd be robbed, not that the nhs staff would Rob me 😄

So multiple times I was asked if I had any valuables or jewellery, in hindsight I would have left all valuables at home. But in the end I felt my stuff was safe enough.

I had appendicitis in 2022 and turned up to hospital (sent by OOH GP) with absolutely nothing because I was convinced I was going home. It was my own stupid fault of course but when it OH eventually brought me in some things the next day it felt like he’d picked the most unsuitable items I owned

So it has definitely crossed my mind since to have a bag packed with nice comfy pyjamas, some cosy socks, toiletries etc. Not a huge amount of stuff but just enough to comfortably get you through a day or two in hospital without having to try and pack it while you’re ill or in pain.