AIBU to be angry at A&E?

[fashu]

I'm currently in hospital A&E, I've been here for 9 and a half hours. I'm 35 weeks pregnant. AIBU for getting upset or should I just suck it up?

At 8pm last night I had the oncoming of a migraine, funny vision, light-headedness etc.
I went to tell my husband and called the midwife, then started having a chat with DH. Mid conversation I started talking nonsense. Instead of car I was was saying mayonnaise, on top of other things I was just talking crap.
I tried to Google the symptoms and I couldn't type either. I couldn't think of what I wanted to write, although I knew what I was doing and when I did think of the words it looked like this 'hdhcjsk'

I panicked a bit and went back to my husband and then I went completely numb on in my hands and my mouth. I panicked and told him to call an ambulance. Ambulance came just over an hour later and said I needed to go to hospital as it sounds like a mini stroke.
Queue major panic mode!

Paramedics called maternity unit they said its not for them but keep them updated.

So I arrived in an ambulance at A&E just after 12am. Went to majors and the triage said to wait in waiting room and they will tell senior doctors.

Well I'm still waiting. 35 weeks pregnant on a hard metal chair. For 9 and a half hours. Panicking that I've had a mini stroke.

I've told the reception and nurses several times that my belly is now hurting from sitting for so long and being awake for 26 hours. I asked for water and they said I had to use the vending machine for a can of coke.
Receptionist told me I'm not poorly enough for a bed or the arm chairs.

I'm so upset, emotional and scared. DH has dropped kids off at my mums now as they were asleep and didn't want to disturb them in the night.

But, am I right to be upset or is this just how it is? Surely a pregnant woman with suspected mini stroke should be left for this long alone without treatment?

You would hope to god they tested BP, bloods and urine at triage. All easy to spot pre eclampsia that way. On maternity ward anyway where they know what they are looking for.

If is was eclampsia she would be in very serious trouble. Eclampsia is very serious, she be very ill indeed. Ten hours in and not in intensive care is very unlikely its eclampsia.

Problem is pre eclampsia can go very bad very fast. Any nurse not checking a woman s bp In the third trimesters BP would be insane

100% this. Horribly misogynist from top to bottom.

No but I can only vote from the options I’m given and the Tories will never be my choice for the very reasons stated by people on this thread relating to the dire state of our NHS and the overworked and sometimes therefore compassion-fatigued staff.

Exactly, you would have a band put on and baby’s heart and movements monitored. I had this multiple times with both pregnancies. If they don’t have these facilities at a&e she should be at the maternity unit. In the third trimester you are treated as a priority in the maternity assessment unit as babies can be born premature and they will err on the side of getting baby out past a certain age if they are in distress. The a&e unit have no idea how OP’s baby is. They have made an assessment based on her symptoms but seem to have completely disregarded the fact that she is pregnant and there is another life to consider too.

You are being dramatic! If she went into labour then her symptoms would change!
It has been explained why there is no water fountain in A&E
At 35 weeks we don't ask all women to stop what they are doing and be monitored 24 hours a day!
People sleep overnight and don't have water!

You are directing your anger at the hard working staff who never stop and have to sustain abuse day after day night after night. Direct it at our pathetic government who for the last 13 years have cut public services to the brink of collapse.

Agree. I'm really hope they take care of you and the baby ow. Horrific that they left you to sit so many hours with a possible stroke and heavily pregnant! Utterly disgusting. FFS, couldn't they have some water at least. This was a huge reason why we opted to go private for my high risk pregnancy.

She has had a suspected mini stroke and they have not monitored her to see how her baby is. It’s the absolute basic in what you would expect when a patient is pregnant.

@widowtwankywashroom OP has been diagnosed with a blood clot. Is that serious enough for you? Or is the 10 hour wait justified for a blood clot?

I've had this in my pregnancy with my son and it was a migraine with aura, it happened twice and both times I was talking nonsense , the 2nd time I couldn't get my words out and the left side of my body went numb! Sorry you're having a long wait, not sure there's much the staff can do as everyone there is just as much a priority and they're so understaffed! X

I had a similar thing happen when pregnant OP (though I didn't have to wait 9 hours on a chair!). They prescribed daily aspirin for the remainder of my pregnancy and a while after. I wish you and your baby well.

Hemiplegic migraine. I have identical symptoms to what you describe they can be debilitating and I find are hormonally induced most times

She hasn't been diagnosed with anything, she is suspected to have something and she is having an MRI today

It doesn't surprise me, I was on one of those chairs for 18 hours when I had kidney damage. They are a farce
, I hope you've never voted conservative because if you have you have no right to complain.

This..why are people soo accepting of this treatment on this thread..the woman is pregnant surely this is a priority alongside her other symptoms..the two things could definetly be connected. She really should be monitored at this stage. This is just awful OP. Hope you get seen soon..

Not unreasonable to be pissed off at all. If it is a stroke you MUST be treated ASAP.

She repeatedly asked for a drink and was told she had to buy one.

mind you I’ve been sat in A&E and witnessed a woman with a VISIBLE broken arm wait 4 hours to be given any pain relief.

whoever mentioned compassion fatigue is right.

@widowtwankywashroom fuck me are you this pedantic and twatty in real life? You know exactly what I meant. Is the 10 hour wait still justifiable for a blood clot?

What a ridiculous statement. Everyone has a right to complain regardless of their political preferences.

Things weren’t much better under the labour government either. We still waited for hours. No government will be able to fix the NHS until they accept it needs a longer term plan than the 4 year election cycle which they fill with sticking plaster government policies that have no long term impact.

Glad to hear that you've been assessed, OP, are now on a ward and expecting to have an MRI in a couple of hours.

I hope your husband has been able to join you. All the best and fingers crossed for a good outcome.

@fashu I had exactly this scenario at 35 weeks. Ended up being admitted for an MRI and for 4 days on anticoagulants, before they decided it was a migraine after all. Had to do another 7 days of injections and then all good. Fingers crossed the same for you. CVTs do happen but they are rare unless you have underlying conditions is what I was told.

Are you that horrible nurse from Question Time?

Probably!
Have you actually any idea how long the wait in A&E is? Maybe get off your high horse and find out what waiting times are.
A 10 hour wait isn't acceptable for anyone? Not just a pregnant woman.

Believe me, if at triage her symptoms, history were indicative of a stoke then she would have been in resus and CT'd before you could blink.

Your in cloud cuckoo land if you think it will be any better under labour
There have always Been long waits in A&Ed unless it's immediately life-threatening ,
Obviously its not a great scenario and its.complicated further by the Op being heavily pregnant but its not a first come first served service

Wait until you hear what they do to women in labour...