To think only the patient and maybe one companion needs to sit in the waiting room?

[BoobsOnTheMoon]

I'm at the (very small rural) MIU, on my own, waiting to get a burn looked at. Every single other patient has at least one person with them. There is only one other patient who has just one companion and that's an 8 week old baby!

There's an older baby with 3 adults.

A youngish girl with 2 parents and 2 other children.

A man who has brought 2 young adults (well old enough to leave at home or in the car) with him.

An elderly lady who had 2 adults with her and then another 2 adults came in to join them, but there were no chairs left to sit on so they pulled over a couple of patient wheelchairs and sat in those. The whole group (elderly lady included) are doing the cryptic crossword.

Wtf? Easily 3/4 of the people in this waiting room are not patients. Surely thats not normal, or is it?

I agree with you ! There’s no need for all those people to be clogging up a waiting area! & especially using the wheelchairs
ive been to A&E twice in my own in the last month & coped , there’s not enough room for additional people & can make it very claustrophobic, there’s one time my daughter came with me when I was severely dehydrated, unless you were a carer you were asked to leave as there was a bout of neurovirus , so I was left in my own & my daughter had to go home ,

Surprised at some of the responses on here. I agree with you, I recently went to A&E for a minor injury on my own and was shocked at the volume of family/friends. Not only does it take up space but it almost feels like a day out for some of them. Personally I wouldn’t subject more than one relative to sitting in a hospital waiting room as I can not see the fun in that at all. Of course before anyone starts I am not referring to those who are seriously unwell or have additional needs, I am referring more to those sat in minor injuries with a sprained ankle requiring an entourage. It’s not necessary for the vast majority

Your situation is unique because of your daughter’s care needs. The OP is referring those who do not have additional needs/ learning disabilities. That goes without saying they need additional support.

It does affect us, when a elderly lady came in with an entourage of a dozen family members and I was holding onto the only seat for my daughter who had a very bad case of tonsillitis, she had no fluids for 3 days, couldn’t swallow (hence repeated journey to toilet), when seen was put on the drip and taken to another hospital by emergency ambulance. So those that are taking up extra seats gave me the rage.

They should be giving up their seats for patients. I agree with OP surely the whole family doesn’t need to attend. The one good thing about COVID is people weren’t able to treat hospital visits as days out. What is wrong with people they need an entourage even in A and E? It makes it crowded which is disruptive for staff and patients.

It’s a long thread that I have not fully read but have any medics posted that it pisses them off?

I agree with you OP, unless the patient needs to bring dependants along for their safety or has some additional need or other, it should be one companion per patient in the waiting area at busy times. If a patient wants extra support during an examination or whatever, the extra people could wait elsewhere and just come in for that.

Taking my son to A&E last year in the morning ended up spiralling as the day went on and him having a cardiac arrest. I'm so happy I wasn't alone and had my mum with me as we waited 20 minutes in a room to find out if he was still alive.

I only took him in as I suspected he was dehydrated from a tummy bug. Turns out, he had a bowel obstruction which was caused by cancer and some of his bowel had started to die which caused septic shock and multi organ failure.

Of course people should give up their seats to patients, some inconsiderate ones shouldn't mean no one can't have any family support.

@TabbyCatInAPoolofSunshine My FIL cannot be out of sight of his wife. If he is, he becomes so agitated that we end up with a health emergency. Dementia is a beast that knows no sense

A+E nurse has commented that it is utterly ridiculous

@Gloriia
As someone who is dealing with someone with dementia who cannot bare to have out of sight such as @ToffeePennie and I - you have no idea.
You can try to keep them separated but you'll end up with the other one in A&E because their agitation leads to further health problems.

What was your plan if she had to be admitted to a ward? It sounds very difficult for all of you, but you really do need to come up with a strategy for this sort of emergency that doesn't involve taking an elderly dementia patient everywhere his wife goes. There will be times, especially as they both age, that this absolutely isn't possible or appropriate.

Maybe they are from families where you have to be physically present to show that you care.

How much does anyone need to "show they care" for a minor injury

My DP and DS knew I was off to get my burn checked out because they were there when it happened but I didn't feel the need to alert my extended family, or for them to show me how much they cared. DP checked I felt ok to drive and then stayed at home with my DS (who is autistic with complex needs, btw).

I agree with you OP. Some people treat hospitals as if they are social spaces. They are not good places to bring loads of friends or family too. Did people learn nothing from COVID about how infections spread? i have been living with terminal cancer for over 6 years now (Yes, I’ve been lucky) and I always worry about the infections in full waiting rooms. It’s inappropriate to bring loads of people with you. I have often witnessed this and it is concerning imo. Of course sometimes people need to bring others due to family circumstances, but really others just take the piss and treat it like a trip out.

I get that op, i don't agree with it. Just saying that some people like an audience.

I don’t think you are being unreasonable. There are exceptions of course but generally people seem to treat it as a day out.

My gran has dementia. If she needed to go it would be better with 2 adults as say one need the toilet she can’t be left alone.

I can understand both parents wanting to be there for their child.

Last time I went for myself, my husband just dropped me off. It’s boring enough as it is. No need for more to be bored!

Yes it’s unreasonable.

Yes, it’s none of your business. Jog on.

Tourist29, I was thinking the same thing about the grocery store while I was reading the comments.Some of these self absorbed shoppers bring their whole family and let their kids run wild while jamming up the aisles so no one can get through.

Increasingly this is becoming more of a norm and it drives me nuts. I agree. I don’t see why so many people are needed at once. Plus if there are so many adults and a child doesn’t need to be there, just take the child home. I remember once seeing two children and mum and dad in the ER for a basic injury. Not necessary. One parent could stay at home with the other child.

That’s not really a relatable post to what the OP had spoken about.. that’s an extreme and serious reason for someone to be attending A&E.. not the average joe with a sprained ankle bringing every Tom dick and Harry. You’re missing the point entirely

I agree, I work at a hospital and book in patients. Often I feel like saying ‘oh have you brought the whole family for a day out’?!! It makes me mad for several reasons but one is that it proves that most (adults) of them don’t work☹️.

You don’t need the whole blooming family for a cut finger!

For me it's about availability of seats. If there's plenty, then fine. But if patients are standing or awkwardly asking for a seat because whole families are taking up so many, then there needs to be a rule for 1 support person maximum at busy times.

Was recently in a&e with my daughter. Place was like a war zone. Elderly standing, place packed out. Certain ill patients laying down taking up a row of seats until their family+ friends arrive for a picnic + interpreter. 12 hour wait for bloods. Would rather my national insurance came back to me to pay for private to at least get a blood test and results without the PTSD of a&e