AIBU to be appalled by delayed NHS care for possible shoulder fracture

[WiggyClawsThe2nd]

So I requested a doctors appointment for excruciating pain in shoulder 5 weeks ago now. Got an appointment 2 weeks later. Was referred to an urgent physio to assess, this was another week later. Physio booked an urgent xray for another week later (today) to check if it was broken. Told it'll be another 2 weeks to find out if it's broken. So by the time the results come, it'll be 6 weeks since it was broken. I know the NHS is struggling but this is ridiculous is it not? Surely a break will be impossible to fix right by then?
AIBU to be absolutely appalled?

My DH had a rotor cuff tear. Waited months to see the consultant surgeon who put him on the urgent list for surgery. Eighteen months later he had the surgery. It was too late of course the torn tendons had shrunk. The surgeon did what he could under the circumstances.

A friend had the operation within four days but that was years ago. She made a full recovery.

My advice get a private x-ray if you can.

Pay out your own pocket for private health care then.

the NHS system is simply amazing but so overwhelmed.

With the greatest of respect you need to get over yourself. Absolutely no need to respond to everything written on your thread or even read it. Getting offended by people’s reasonable responses is just daft. Pulling the thread because of it is weird.

Unlikely to be fracture as you would have been in pain straight away. As others have said more likely soft tissue and now have frozen shoulder due to lack of movement due to pain (had it myself and is excruciating so i empathize ifbits that). To be honest a lot of fractures in that area are conservatively managed anyway and just left to heal themselves, if an operation was required its unlikely to have been done straight away.

I'm personally fed up of hearing NHS bashing stories, if people were more sensible in what they went to A & E with then the service would cope better but when it is urgent the NHS is the best! I had a fall on wet muddy path, a day later arm was infected, within a matter of hours I'd been x rayed for foreign bodies, bloods taken, antibiotics given and operation arranged for next day despite it being a bank holiday!

This.

Sure you’re not getting grumpy cause people don’t agree with you?

but yes, get the thread deleted so you don’t look like a moaning bugger

I think the waits are normal for the NHS unfortunately. I think you have been unfortunate in the process you have needed to follow.
In our area, we can self refer to NHS Physio, all referrals are screened by the Physios and a phone call made to the patient to determine need. If at that point the Physio thinks it is urgent, they will assess you the same day or next day in Minor Injuries, will order an xray after that appointment.
If this were available in your area it would have reduced the delay as you wouldn't have needed to see a GP. If self referral isn't available, ask them why as it is really common across the UK.
All xrays need to be reported on which can take time. The Physio should be able to view the report, and normally the xray itself, a lot of Musculoskeletal Physios will be able to see if you have a break even if small.
Hope you feel better soon.

I broke my wrist emptying the tumble dryer (don’t ask) but ignored it for about 5 weeks because the pain wasn’t that bad unless I moved it in a certain way but it was very annoying. When it showed no signs of getting better I went to the GP who sent me for an x ray the next day. Within a day or two he rang me to tell me it was broken but said there was nothing they could do for it then because I’d left it too late so I had to give it time. It was my fault, not theirs, I never bother the doctor unless I’m half dead.

People are being a bit mean trying to say that OP was daft for not going to A&E in the first place. I think it’s fairly common to try and soldier on if you have a trip or fall and you think it’s probably just soft tissue injury as you’re not screaming in pain or feeling faint with it ir whatever.

I’ve been told I’ve had a healed previously broken rib on a chest x Ray as an incidental finding while scanning for something else, and on another occasion a chip out of my ankle bone which they said was from an old injury. I bet there are loads of people walking round with old injuries that they didn’t get checked out at the time as they thought it was just soft tissue damage and would heal on its own with some ice and rest.

My broken shoulder showed on scan wasn’t evident on X-ray however the treatment for torn rotator cuff & broken shoulder is the same, just a sling.

I had a potential stress fracture recently in a high risk location. It didn't feel like an A&E type emergency to start with and I didn't want to be a time waster, so I put a GP request in. They gave me an appointment with a physio for two weeks later, no call/check with the GP at all despite some red flag symptoms. I tried to get a more urgent appointment but there weren't any! I knew I'd end up in the same position that you have in terms of x-ray timelines (I'd been there before!) so I eventually gave up and went via 111 to A&E.

X-ray, CT, urgent outpatient MRI all within 5 days and fracture confirmed. So in future I'd always just go to straight to A&E/urgent care if any fracture is suspected. GP route would have left me walking around for weeks on a high risk injury and possibly resulted in surgery. It is really confusing when you can't find an appropriate route to get help.

however the treatment for torn rotator cuff & broken shoulder is the same, just a sling.

…unless it’s not (which is quite often)

I had a full thickness rotator cuff tear and no sling. Just left to get on with it for 8 months until they operated on it.

Could you possibly afford private treatment OP? If they are talking about losing control of your bowels and having numb feet, it sounds as if they suspect nerve damage.

Radiographer here. Not going to comment on the pathway you followed to getting the xray but what I will say is if the radiographer saw a fracture, they would not have sent you home and would have sent you to A&E. Also if the physio genuinely thought you might have a fracture and wanted it ruling out they would have mentioned that on the xray request, the fact you got sent home and told to wait up to 2 weeks for the results suggests they didn't. At my trust any patient that has a request stating potential fracture has their images looked at by a reporter/radiologist immediately and you would be told straight away if there was a fracture. Same at our local minor injuries walk in centre. I would assume this is common practice everywhere, not just where I work.

A&E will ask what happened and be unimpressed with a very old injury that is in a treatment pathway.

I fell and tore my shoulder..it was what I fell on when I shattered a bone in my leg..it WAS hugely painful OP couldn't lift it away from my body ...the leg was a surgical priority...anyhow when they xrayed they didnt find a fracture in my shoulder, despite my pain, just noted calcium deposits in the tendons. The pain lifted in time...has the physio given you exercises to do to prevent muscle atrophy?

They’re just the same people that always put the boot in whatever the OP says. If she had posted saying she’d gone to A&E for it they’d be self-righteous / mock horrified / patronising / faux-naïve questioning her about that instead. ‘Why didn’t she call 111/ I had my arm cut off and I waited for my GP appointment while looking after my whole family and doing my job blah blah blah’

It’s the same people on every thread whatever the OP says.

Physio here. Would have expected immediate pain if a fracture so physio likely being cautious and depending on your Trust's pathway, an x-ray maybe required before something like an ultrasound just to rule out a fracture. If RC tear, depending on the severity, age, other comorbidities, you could be waiting several months for surgical repair. I would engage in physio ASAP regardless. As PP has mentioned, you may be at risk for secondary frozen shoulder following a trauma. The NHS is far from perfect but it does get an awful lot of hate for something that is working with very limited resources and budget and huge demand.

But that's an accident that has resulted in extreme pain. It is what we have A&E for.

I went to A&E 48 hours after a car crash as at the time I felt OK ish then 2 days later I could hardly move and my neck was extremely painful.

Do you not have a minor injuries until (MIU) near you? Ours are brilliant for xrays and stitches and other non emergency stuff. I took DS when he split his head open when he was 3 and they were brilliant.

I hurt my shoulder once omg the pain at night was excruciating so so painful ,, I was taking strong painkillers (which caused my eyesight trouble) they offered me physio which did nothing , eventually I got an appt , (after crying at the drs ) but by that time the pain had started to subside , I mean it was months and months later , lovely dr who sent me straight away for an x-ray . Got the results straight away and he said it had fused together , so that was that !

Go private

IME A&E isn’t any better my husband has been waiting 4 months for an MRI and results of said MRI we know he’s torn his ACL and is in daily pain. All these people saying you “took the wrong route” aren’t acknowledging the absolute state that the NHS is in. This is an NHS issue not the OP’s fault for seeing the wrong HCP. The longer people keep apologising for the NHS or the worse it’s getting.

Erm I don’t understand why you didn’t go to A&E as in accident and emergency? You would have got an X-ray there and appropriate pain relief. A&E! You’ve had some sort of trauma to lead to this pain! Soft tissue injury can be equally as painful but no diagnosis can be made without an X-ray

Hugely over the frequency of NHS-bashing posts now on MN, when often they are written by people with only half the facts / understanding of why decisions have / haven’t been taken. It’s called clinical reasoning - and it follows NICE guidelines for a reason.
Yes, we sometimes mess up. But in the vast majority of cases we do Stirling work (which seldom gets posts started about 🤔).

That said - I do hope you make a good recovery soon OP; the pain sounds lousy. I’m in the torn RC camp, with secondary frozen shoulder…