Mothers Instinct or Qualified Doctor, Who's Best To Advise?

[karlahine]

Well, it's been yet another week of illness in my household but of a different sort this time. I was called on Thursday from my son's Grammar school that he was very poorly. He had seen the onsite Doctor but was advised there was nothing wrong and just a genreal virus. When I picked him and took him home, I obsereved his illness and saw a couple of tell tale signs from when he was little. His record shows that 1) He had a consultant when he was a baby as he had a very low immune system which meant that any bug he contracted he would be prone to a febrile convulsion should a fever accompany the infection. 2) Because of this fact and the amount of antibiotics they threw at him he is now allergic to amoxycillin.
So, as I was saying before I digressed there! I was looking at him and noticed the bright red ear and the extremely high non shifting fever. My instinct kicked in and I made another appointment for another Doctor close by to which I learned I had done the correct thing as he had full blown tonsilitis (as the Doctor called it "a mucas fest") and an ear infection and prescribed an alternative to amoxycillin straight away. It's now been 4 days and I'm glad I went for the second opinion, i dread to think what he'd be like now without it!

Well my very experienced GP says there's nothing to beat mothers instinct. He says that if he's examined a child, found nothing wrong, but the mother is still feeling there's something not right he will refer them further because they're usually right. I think he's great!

Mothers instinct- as you'd never forgive yourself if anything terrible happened and you'd done nothing.

My ds1 was sent home from hosp after a convulsion when he was 2. Had spots in him, was told they were just part of the virus.

Took him home, kept him dosed up on calpol and ibuprofen. Spots worsened and wasn't happy it was just a virus.

Phones hospital and spoke to consultant, he said its normal etc.

Wasn't happy so took him straight to the gp. She immediately phoned the consultant and told him she was sending ds1 back to him immediately.

Ds1 had blood poisoning.

If I hadn't trusted my instinct he could be dead. That was three years ago and I'm welling up now just writing this! Always trust your instinct.

But glad your boy is on the mend

I came across a Doctor like! Too far and few between what a shame they are great, there should be more like them!

@BoysBoysBoysAndMe Thank God! Bless the stress that must have caused you, you poor thing. I remember a doctor shouting at me and basically said he was the qualified doctor and I am nothing, just a mum therefore I know nothing! Needless to say ladies, he no longer works at that surgery!!!

A GP dismisses a parent's instinct at their peril speaking as a mum and a GP
You know your children inside out and I don't....my most helpful question is "Did you just want them checked up 'just-in-case' or are you really worried about DC?"

Well what made me cross about my situation is that when they did the blood tests originally and the results showed there was this bacteria in the blood - I can't spell it - they dismissed it as cross contamination and didn't act on it!

Now I always trust my instinct - though I have to admit I've been wrong about things on occasion, but is always prefer to check and apologise for wasting a dr or nurses time, rather than leaving my child with an illness untreated if I think it needs treating iykwim!

When DD was less than a day old and having her routine checks at the hospital, the paediatrician said to me to always trust my instincts as a mother, because he had seen countless times when a mother knew there was something wrong before physical symptoms could be seen by a doctor. Luckily DD has never been ill so I have never had to act on that, but it did give me a lot of confidence in my ability to know my own child.

Both. I think doctors do have a lot of experience and often get a rough time with some of the complaints that people make when they get things wrong, but I also think mothers instinct means a lot. My story is almost identical to BoysBoys ... DD was 19months and became quite will quite quickly. She was seen at A&E and sent home one morning, she was seen at the GP again the next morning as I still wasn't happy - and sent home again with no meds. That night she developed a non fading rash and I rushed her to A&E again from where she was transferred to ICU with septicaemia fighting for her life. We also were lucky, she made it, but it was very touch and go. I don't blame the doctors who saw her - but I do think that the GP especially will never ignore my concerns as a mother again. She was very upset when DD was taken so ill and has been very kind and helpful in the couple of times we have had to see the GP since. They do their best - no-one means for serious situations to be missed.

I had been back and forth to the docs for months with DS who was 4 at the time. He had constant persistent night time coughing. He was on asthma inhalers and Singulair tablets but they did nothing to help. When I said I was worried that it wasn't asthma and was something else my GP looked at me with exasperation, rolled her eyes and told me that I 'just had to accept that my son has asthma' in a very nasty and patronising tone. The upshot was, I paid to see a private consultant at the hospital and they did lots of tests and it turned out he didn't have asthma at all - he had severe silent reflux. Within a week of starting the reflux meds he was absolutely fine. Needless to say I changed my doctor immediately after that. Mothers instinct should never be dismissed in my opinion.

DS1 had bronchiolitis at 5 mths followed by a severe chest infection, we went back 5 times in 4 days until the xrayed him. I doubted my instincts then as he was my first and I thought I was paranoid. I was right and have never doubted my instincts again.

Mothers are rarely wrong ime. I ha to take dd2 back to hospital four times before they listened. She had pneumonia
I also told my consultant I was worried about dd2 size and he kept telling me she was fine ect. She nearly died and was 5lb 3oz at term

Mother's instinct. Last Easter DS 9mo had an ear infection apparently - antiB and calpol etc, 3 successive gp visits and I felt he was not breathing ok, told Gp, got ignored. Took him to a&e - saved his life - brochilosis! He was not breathing ok..
Someone you hear/see/touch all the tine, every day from day 1 - you know them!

I think a lot of gps seem to struggle to understand young children and their illnesses for some reason. I really do think every practise should have to have a peads specialist.

A gp made out I was a paranoid mum when Ds was 8 weeks old and that he just had a cold .. thankfully I trusted my instincts and took him to a and e - he has bronchiolitis and was in for 12 days with 5 days in hdu,

When he was diagnosed as asthmatic at 12 months it took about 4 months of fighting for the gp to accept this and put his meds on repeat! 3 times I have taken him with his asthma to be told either he is fine or be given antibiotics. Each time I have asked for steroids an been refused. Each time he has ended up being admitted and needing steroids.

Children can get ill and change really quickly, so it isnt necessarily mums instinct vs doctor. Regardless if the child has been seen by a doctor and felt to be fine at that time, if you then feel that they have worsened and need to be seen again then then that should be done.
Most GP's build that kind of safety netting into the standard advice anyway.