Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to expect an out of an hours doctor to coma and see my doctor when...

160 replies

pinkdolly · 10/01/2009 14:12

My dh is serving away with the forces. I dont drive and even if I did, I am ill with bad flu and a chest infection and 27 weeks pg so cant take anything for it (I haven't slept for 3 days!). I have 2 other young children, 1 of which also has flu.

My poor dd1 (6) has blood coming out her ear and is crying in pain despite having calpol and nurophen. She has flu and I think (tho I am not a doctor myself) she may have perforated her ear drum. She hardly slept all night due to the pain.

Now I know it's not life threatening stuff, but come on you'd think they'd come out and see her. Nope, I have to ring around trying to to find someone to drag her out for me while I stay here looking after myself and my other sick dd. Grrr...!

OP posts:
brimfull · 10/01/2009 14:56

lucyellensmum-how do you know it does?

Original poster
pinkdolly · 10/01/2009 14:57

I have managed to find someone who will take her in for me.

And I do appreciate what you are saying that it is not life threatening. I just remember when I was a kid and very poorly at home. Mum would call the doctor and out he'd come. Now you have to be practically dying to warrent a home visit.

And tho it doesn't sound a lot, my poor dd is in so much agony and I am so sleep deprived. It's just been one thing after another since dh has been away really.

And the out of hours doctors surgery is not at my local surgery it is a mile and half away. Again does not sound too bad but would you drag your dd and yourself there and back in these circumstances.

I just needed to moan really am very fed up at the minute.

Thanx for your replies

OP posts:
SalBySea · 10/01/2009 14:58

agree with others about getting yourself antibiotics and paracetamol (which I was told are relatively safer than a high temp in pregnancy)

If you can get someone to go to your house to mind your other child, could you not go with her in a cab to the surgery and both be seen?

Original poster
pinkdolly · 10/01/2009 15:00

should add, might have been a bit misleadng about myself, sorry I am taking paracetamol and was prescribed antib's on wed. I just feel like my sinusus are about to explode and cant take decongestant or anything flu related to get rid of it.

OP posts:
LucyEllensmummy · 10/01/2009 15:01

SMS - i don't think pinkdolly has spoken to a dr, that was my point - that would of course change things slightly.

ggirl, i don't - but if it were my child and i coudlnt get out of the house for the reasons the op describes, i would expect a home visit. Err on the side of caution.

PD hopefully your DD will be on the mend soon - do take some paracetemol and drink plenty of fluids. Talk to a pharmacist about any cough medicines you might be able to take. I feel your pain, ive had this bug thats going round and its horrible.

roisin · 10/01/2009 15:02

I'm pleased you've found someone to take her pinkdolly, and hope they are able to help her.

It is tough when you're ill yourself and have children to look after, but home visits are really a thing of the past these days except for the elderly and genuinely housebound, and also to certify the dead.

FunkierThanAMosquitosTweeter · 10/01/2009 15:03

Do you have the number for your families office? My neighbour had kind of the same problem when her DD was ill, and they arranged for someone to give her and the children a lift to the doctors. I don't know if this is any help, just a thought! Hope you all feel better soon.

Marthasmama · 10/01/2009 15:03

I perforated my ear drum when I was young (15/16), but old enough to remember. My ear bled, but it was watery and didn't stop the pain. It was absolute agony and I had antibiotics as it was also infected. I am not a doctor but I can't help but feel that a child in that much pain needs to be seen. People call 999 for much less (not that I am suggesting they should of course!). It also raises the question as to what situation GP home visits are for. If something WAS life threatening you'd call 999 or go to A&E. Surely home visits should be for people who can't get to the doctors to be seen.

LucyEllensmummy · 10/01/2009 15:04

pink dolly, you can do a steam inhalation which might help your sinuses a little. Also, do this - blow your nose by holding one finger over one nostril, blow like mad but just hold the tissue under your nose, its gross and horrible, and quite unbelievable what comes out - you could do this after inhaling steam. You Could add some vicks or carvol but again, check with a pharmacist. That and massage your temples - it all helps.

Hope you feel better soon.

aGalChangedHerName · 10/01/2009 15:05

I know it's shit but i have had to take mself and sick dc to the docs more than once. Wrap up and get a taxi.

FWIW my surgery doesn't do home visits unless you are genuinely housebound.

FunkierThanAMosquitosTweeter · 10/01/2009 15:06

Hm sorry just realised unless you are living in MQ that is probably a stupid suggestion- sorry !

LucyEllensmummy · 10/01/2009 15:06

marthasmumma, that is an EXCELLENT point, if its life threatening thats a 999 job surely?

Actually, my betting that this whole farce of a system actually puts a strain on A&E as i know of several people who have said to me "oh i dont bother with out of hours i just go straight to A&E" so that is just passing the buck really isn't it.

Quattrocento · 10/01/2009 15:10

TBH I am a bit cynical about GPs. This comes from multiple misdiagnoses from lots of different GPs (the most potentially dangerous being diagnosing an ectopic pregnancy as cystitis, despite loud protestations from the patient).

So for anything serious or life-threatening of course you should just go straight to the hospital.

But this isn't serious or life-threatening - just painful and uncomfortable for a small child. Why shouldn't the doctor attend to her?

DorisIsAPinkDragon · 10/01/2009 15:12

I know you are feeling rough but I stil think you should go with her as a 6 year old will not know her own medical history or alergies etc....

27 · 10/01/2009 15:14

Quattro - It doesnt sound like the GP is refusing to see the daughter, just not thinking it is suitable for a home visit.

Quattrocento · 10/01/2009 15:18

I understand that - but why refuse an out of hours visit? On this one occasion? I did some googling to establish that the average GP works 44 hours a week. Not massive hours. Their average earnings are off the scale though.

On this occasion, a home visit would have been killing two birds with one stone.

chloejessmeg · 10/01/2009 15:19

Haven't read whole thread. The doctor should
come out to you though.

"27 weeks pg so cant take anything for it (I haven't slept for 3 days!). I have 2 other young children, 1 of which also has flu."

You can take stuff. Paracetamol is absloutly fine and will help any pain/fever. Antibiotics can be prescribed if needed, you can get antisickness injections or tablets if you are being sick, inhalating steam for sinuses etc etc.

I would get a cab to the hospital to be honest.

When you say you have flu.. what do you mean? What symptms do you have?

SlightlyMadScientist · 10/01/2009 15:20

Chloe - OP is taking ABs and paracetamol. She was talking about cough meds.

herbietea · 10/01/2009 15:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

StripeyKnickersSpottySocks · 10/01/2009 15:33

You might have had more luck if it had been during the week. Were I am the Out Of Hours Dr is based at the hospital and covers the whole town, you have to go and see them. If they came out and saw you then there would be no Dr left. Its a bit like a less serious version of a&e.

My mum had a home visit from her GP when she was so dizzy she couldn't stand up and was vomiting. She had labrynthitis so not serious but the GP understood how hard it would be for her to get to the surgery.

SalBySea · 10/01/2009 15:38

Quattrocento I think that gps make a big bulk of their money out of extra work ON TOP of their standard hours, like consulting for nursing homes and doing bank work

A lot of the out of hours docs are doing bank (i.e. over time)

They are restricted as to what they are ALLOWED to do, this comes from the government, not out of not being bothered! I'm sure they too would be sympathetic about the OPs personal plight, but medics have so much less autonomy than in the past (like the docs in the OPs examples from her own youth) - they HAVE to follow triage pathways and meet targets and follow protocols set by non medical people.

I'm not saying its right, just that that's how it is, I'm sure the doctors dont like it either and would much prefer to be able to practice like the gps of olden days

I'm guessing that each call to out of hours docs is given a score (like when you're admitted to a&e) and they are only allowed to do home visits for people who score over a certain amt - no exceptions

27 · 10/01/2009 15:41

Quattro

Its just a lot more efficient for them to have people come to them. That way, if they spend 10 minutes with each patient they can see 6 patients in an hour (just an example). If they are having to get in the car and drive around the place, trying to find houses in street they are unfamiliar with, maybe they would only be able to see 1 or 2 people an hour, so everyone else has to wait longer to be seen.

Also there is the question of how good the assesment is actually going to be - whether the person is seen in a well lit health centre with all equipment to hand or whether the GP is going to have to go, with only the equipment they can fit in a bag, into an unknown envionment, where possibly the family might not even turn off the TV when they are trying to see the patient. (I'm not sying the OPs house would be like that).

As I understand it home visits now are restricted to cases where the disadvantages of a home visit are outweighed by the fact there is no reasonable alternative ie the genuinely housebound and the dying.

naturalbornmum · 10/01/2009 16:19

OP, Please ignore Moondog - most people do.

YANBU at all - of course a doctor should have come and seen you and your family. I hope you all feel better soon.

naturalbornmum · 10/01/2009 16:25

It is a disgrace that people in real need, like this case are not helped.

TBH I think doctors sometimes talk crap, people know when they warrant a home visit or not! There is no way that I could carry either of my children to the doctors (I am pregnant too).

naturalbornmum · 10/01/2009 16:28

Please rememeber that you know yourself and your child better than any medic - this has been proved to me on at least a couple of occassions including my DC life threatening condidtion that was nothing according to the GP.