Emergency child surgery cancelled because of the doctor strike

[Nindaelita]

Yes... just had the phone call yesterday. My daughter's emergency eye surgery was just cancelled, she has glaucoma and uveitis which medication isn't touching it at all so she can lose her eye sight.

What you make of this? I really feel helpless and the only thing the hospital told me was they can only reschedule it for in a few weeks time. What if she doesn't have a few weeks time anymore?

I understand why these strikes are happening and I support them as does many people. Everyone should have good work conditions and a pay salary accordingly. But until you have a member of your family on the line for emergency treatment and you feel like you being let down by them happening you won't understand the despair some people go tro...Meanwhile let critical patients on a limbo.

Judge me all you want but my child and hundred others are being put in a dangerous situation.
And I don't think I'm being AIBU..

Call your MP urgently, they might be able to help get your daughter rebooked ASAP.

It's really unfair on people who are having operations cancelled, but then underfunding of the NHS is also harming these people. Unfortunately many of the people making the decisions are fit and healthy and/or have private healthcare.

OP I would feel exactly as you do. Horrendously stressful situation I would speak with the consultants secretary as soon as possible and see is anything can be done, they can maybe put you on a cancellation waiting list and may be able to reassure you a little.
Hope your DD gets the treatment she needs quickly.
Shit show of a government.

Exactly this. The more people leave the worse it is for those who remain. I’m only 4 years out of medical school and have planned to leave more times than I can count. Ive been left covering hundreds of patients alone. Struggled to pay my bills on some rotations as the pay is so poor. Arranging childcare while I work an 80 hour week including lates, nights, weekends. Worked tirelessly through covid, covering medical admissions and the respiratory ward. All for the government to not bother to even turn up to discuss our conditions. I can promise myself and most of my colleagues will be gone soon

I don't know how appointments work in the NHS but it annoys me that if an appoint is cancelled you go back to tge end of tge queue, surely its fairer (albeit I know more difficult to do) to shuffle everyone back by a day?

It has been regarded as emergency since her eye pressure has been in the 40s almost 50s for over a month 30 to 40s in previous months and no medication is doing anything to lower it. This number is dangerously high...I know she won't die sure... but I want my daughter to keep her eye sight. To me It can't wait no.

I appreciate that that these strikes need to occur but when it will put children's well being at risk that's when the line should be drawn. Last NHS strike they didn't cancel children's appointments let alone children's emergency surgeries at my current hospital. Again I do understand why they happening but it's very unfair, trying to explain to my child her surgery won't go ahead while she already has been affected by her illness for so long and waiting, not just physically but mentally as well.

I have nothing but gratitude for the doctors and nurses that have accompanied her since she was diagnosed, she has had excellent service and we've seen so many specialists at this point. But I am frustrated, and so must be all the parents from all the other children this will affect...

Yes very good point, I was thinking of the more junior end of things but you are of course right

If the hospital cancel your admission they have to get you back in within 28days (or at least try to) you don't go to the back of the list

I'd write to the ceo and formally note that if the delay causes any deterioration to your daughter's sight, that you will hold the hospital responsible.

I think it's despicable this is how the NHS repay the public who closed down on principally the behalf of the NHS in response to Covid.

Other systems of public health don't have the same backlogs arising from closure of the NHS. Many NHS staff (admin) are still working from home.

It's a national disgrace. I blame Sir Simon Stephens who was in charge of the NHS and a former adviser to BLiar.

Ah yes and the ceo will pull staff from his arsehole.

@WimbourneWasps notwithstanding your less than charming turn of phrase I hope you don't work for the NHS. If you do, where has all the equality money gone if an NHS employee assumes a CEO must be a man.

FWIW my local hospital has just announced they have overpaid staff for £2m because they didn't take them.off payroll when they left and neither did they keep forwarding addresses. I think they are expecting to write off around £1m. The NHS needs to manage its resources before asking for more.

@nellyelloe
Well I think you have misunderstood me. I don’t support the strikes because of the impact on people. But I am not saying that I support the strikes on one hand but only if it is somebody’s else’s child that is impacted not mine. If you support strikes (like the OP) then you have accept that people and maybe even you personally will be impacted.

Understandable that you're frustrated, upset and annoyed- most of us would be, if not all. The reality is that others on the list will also have had cancellations that are detrimental to their health and there'll be a lot of work going on to reschedule. Its a sad state of affairs but strikes are a last resort and the government weren't bothered enough to even actually engage with the BMA.

I think it's despicable this is how the NHS repay the public who closed down on principally the behalf of the NHS in response to Covid.

This is a strange take when the lockdowns were for the benefit of society as a whole but I suppose inevitable when the government went with “stay home, protect the NHS” as its covid slogan. Maybe they should have gone with “stay home, don’t end up being left to die on a trolley in the corner of A&E because we don’t have enough beds/staff/ventilators to cope if everyone gets sick at once so difficult decisions about who gets treatment and who doesn’t will need to be made”. It’s less pithy but gets to the crux of the matter doesn’t it?

Are you actually stupid

Maybe, but this is a poster that always pops up on threads like this to complain about doctors and the NHS. She’s taken against the whole profession because an F2 once asked her if she was retired, or something.

@memorial No. Are you?

@Nindaelita there is generally a plan OP but it’s usually to provide A&E care and continue ward based care. Anything after that is a bonus and they simply won’t have enough consultants to go around for everyone. Totally get your disappointment though x

@OnOldOlympus rather more to my arguments than that. Such a pity those who work in the NHS can't cope with the concept they might not always be right or culpable for the provision of sub-optimal services:

QEQM
Telford
Bristol

And the failure in particular to address womens' pain as effectively as mens'. Post natal care. Vaginally mesh. Etc, etc.

Not forgetting the waste, mismanagement and over booking of clinics.

No I'm super bright. I'm also smart enough to know that "protect the NHS" was to ensure the NHS could function to treat and save people in an unprecedented pandemic. Not to protect the staff who were putting themselves at risk.
You're either properly stupid or purposefully stupid either way not covering yourself in glory.

I would've thought the doctors' strike would not affect emergency treatment or surgery

Sorry to hear about your daughter's situation

I support the junior doctors in the upcoming strike this week

Look higher up for someone to blame- to me it's the government who are responsible for much of the mess the NHS is currently in

@memorial very interesting article about lockdown and the potential risks in the Telegraph today by Lord Sumption.

I always agreed with Sikora and believed the entire lockdown was wholly disproportionate.

Many many people in the NHS did less rather than more during Covid, based on very poor statistical analysis.

Isn't this what the doctors wanted or there would be no point in the strikes if it didn't disrupt.

So sorry to hear this Nindaelita. Is there anyway you could go private? If that isn't possible I would be tempted to try and get the story out there as quickly as possible eg via social media, papers etc and see if publicity can be used to improve your daughters outcome.
It is dreadful to think of anyone losing their sight when it could be saved but for a young child to be in this position is simply heartbreaking. I hope that it gets resolved positively.

The government are relying on cases like yours in the hope you turn against those striking. They really are deplorable.

Corbyns policies for paying wages appropriately was destroyed by the media by saying where are they getting the money as there is none, then this government just suddenly finds it by the fistfull for dodgy friends, dodgy contracts, a war we are not part of, the missing 14.5 billion they claim dont know where it went during the pandemic bullshit and the ability to pay 'cost of living payments and energy payments' to everyone rather than cap the energy prices (but why would they do that when they have shares in said companies). But nothing available for ordinary peoples wages. It's laughable really

Hi OP, my youngest daughter (13) has glaucoma and uveitis and recently had about 18-20 months of high pressures (57) in her right eye. The left is stable. She has had 12 eye operations altogether and Baerveldt tubes placed in both eyes when she was younger. Unfortunately, the right tube got blocked, despite previously working well for several years, and she had the blockage removed in December 2022. Prior to that she was on several eye drops for both the pressure and for the uveitis and also an oral medication Acetazolamide) to help bring the pressures down. Due to the pressure in the right eye she had loss of vision and the consultants didn’t know if it was temporary or not. However, once the pressure stabilised in her right eye the sight returned to normal after about 12 days.

How old is your daughter?

The strikes are unfortunately needed but I completely understand your worry and anxiety. It’s so scary to think that your child could lose sight, I honestly don’t think that people who haven’t been there can understand how bad it can be for your child and how anxiety inducing it is for a parent.

If you ever want to talk it out feel free to PM me xx