to be cross with my GP?

[goldilocksandmylittlebear]

My GP is single glam 'I don't really like children' type.

I took my 12 month old to see her after a few visits this month as he has been continually unwell. He had a high temp and sure another she found red ears, red throat and high temp.

She looked at me as if to say "not you again" and said this was all part of growing up, you don't need antibiotics and off you go. "Try to relex"

The next day his temp was 104 after a day of calpol and nurofen every 2 hours. His eyes were rolling, he was floppy and being very sick. We took him to A&E and he was admitted and put on antibiotics straight away.

She missed he had broncalitis last year when he was 10 days old and we ended up in hospital for 10 days on oxygen!

I want to take him back to make sure antiobotics have worked but she always makes me feel like I'm over the top and a time waster.

AIBU - or over the top?

if your GP has missed these two thing in such a short amount of time and the fact she makes you feel like you're needlessly taking up her time you need to change. As others have said write a letter outlining what a useless DR she is.
I've taken DS to the Med Centre so many times because he's just not himself and they are always happy to check him over and put my mind at ease. Children as young at yours go down hill very fast, you did the right thing taking his to A&E. Well done.

Hotbot, what are the signs you need A&E as apposed to out of hours? I'm so glad we went to A&E and were admitted. I wonder what Out of hours would have said?

Homeinthesun your right, I just worry if I complain she may be even more hard work. The doctor I really trust has a full list, not sure what would happen in that case?

is this the only surgery in your area?

Yes, we are a small town.

You don't have to change who you're registered with, that's just a technicality. You can see whichever GP you like in the practice.

Taking a child back to see if antibiotics have worked isn't really necessary - if they have worked he will be better, if they haven't he won't be so you need to see someone again.

Most cases of throat and ear infections don't need antibiotics, research has shown that even without treatment they illness usually runs it's course, and antibiotics don't usually speed up the process. Obviously if a child has deteriorated (as your's did) then they need to see someone, as a very high fever, vomiting and floppiness has gone beyond a 'normal' ear/throat infection.

Hope he is better soon.

I would say that I second the idea of a letter to the practice manager, it would be brought to the GP's attention that her attention to detail, diagnosis and bedside manner has not been accepotable on at least two recent occasions and may ( that is just may) be enough to make her think twice in the future when seeing someone else's dc.

Would also say that the practice should have no problem in allocating another GP

goldilocks I am a doc so just trying to put another side - I don't think YABU by the way and can understand why you are upset with your GP.

BUT a lot can change in 24 hours. And 80% of throat infections are viral and antibiotics will not only not help but also encourage resistance of common infections to antibiotics which in the long term is a potentially catastrophic thing to happen for the whole community. This is why docs are resistant to prescribing antibiotics in the first instance - this is the RIGHT thing to do.

Bronchiolitis is also not only difficult to diagnose in the first stages and also is not that serious in most babies (I speak as a mum whose ds1 was also hospitalised with this as a baby after seeing the GP 3 times and A&E twice).

Despite this though the one thing you SHOULD be told is that if things get worse then you should always come back or go to A&E - either is appropriate if your child is getting worse. And if you are not told this you should always do this anyway - even if you think you are wasting your docs time. If you do not agree wih what they say then ask for a second opinion from their colleague or take to A&E for another opinion. Sod upsetting the doc - what matters is making sure your child is OK and your mothers instinct is more important that any assessment by a doctor. I DO know that it is hard to stand up for yourself like this and you shouldn't have to battle but in the real world sometimes you will have to unfortunately.

Also none of this explains your gp's dismissive attitude and for that alone I would change gp's - either to a new practice or a different one. I wouldn't worry about what they think either - I would be surprised if they even notice as amoung the thousands of people they see they will probably have people who leave all the time for all manner of reasons.

ANyway I am waffling now... To summarise my rather long winded post I think that if you are worried about your dc then take to A&E for a second opinion. Good luck and hope you manage to be taken more seriously next time you are worried (which is all you want afterall isn't it?).

Thanks for your comments Alicet, I am surprised about Bronchiolitis not being serios in most babies as his ward was full of RSV positive babies, some on ventilators.........very scary. I take your point though that things can change and she is off course human!

I think its more her mannar which you highlighted. I asked her anout a flu jab for him and she tut tuted. I asked a friend who is a nurse and she said they recommened it for babies who had had Bronchiolitis. Maybe this is a classic example of where I should have asked for a second opinion?

I think as a first time mum who worries all the time she isn't the best choice of gp but i'm sure she has skills else where?

Glad to be of help goldilocks. The fact you saw a ward full of babies with rsv is because only the ones who are seriously ill need to be admitted to hospital - there are loads and loads who have it in the community and get better without needing this level of care.

If it makes you feel any better even with my medical knowledge I take my boys to the docs at the drop of a hat and make no apologies for it! Most famously when ds2 wouldn't stop crying for a couple of hours and promptly stopped as soon as we arrived in the GP's surgery after they had kindly added us on to the end of surgery and then looked so obviously just knackered that I felt like a right arse!

Ask to see another GP next time. Like you say she may well have other areas she is better at - find out from friends in the vollage which docs are best with kids and ask to see one of them next time.

Thanks Alicet!

OP - kids get sick so, so, so fast. Really, they can go downhill so badly in 24 hours. What's more annoying is how fast they get better after they have passed their illness onto you!!

I've taken my DS to the GP several times for throat infections. A couple of those times was before we were due to fly long haul, and the GP pointed out to me that if we weren't due to fly in x number of days, he wouldn't prescribe the antibiotics. It's a fine line between judging the infection to be severe enough to require the antibiotics. It certainly doesn't help a child's immunity to always be dosing them up, the body does need to learn to fight the bugs themselves.

My DS just had the flu and a throat infection, which he so kindly passed onto me. The only reason the GP prescribed penicillin was that the throat infection had developed into tonsillitis which she didn't think would clear up properly on its own. I on the other hand, had had a tonsillectomy, so she didn't think I needed anything, bar pain relief.