Broken arm - can’t get seen by NHS - help please

[BrokenarmbrokenNHS]

I don’t know how to get my dd help - please could anyone advise?

My dd has an accident at school last week (Thursday). I took her for an xray at minor injuries and they said they didn’t think it was broken. A day later we had a phone call to say it was indeed broken and dd is in a lot of pain. I think it’s the radius bone as it goes into the elbow. They said they would refer to the fracture clinic and we had a choice of 2 hospitals as we are between hospitals. So I chose the more convenient one. This was on Friday on the phone.

My DD’s elbow has now been broken for 5 days. We have been referred to the wrong hospital, but I thought I will not worry about that, I will just go to it even though it’s an hour from her school. But they will not give me an appointment. I was supposed to wait to hear from them, they haven’t called. I’ve called them directly and they say she’s on some bloody list.

meanwhile my y13 dd has a broken elbow with nothing other than a sling and is shitting herself about buggering her A levels up this summer due to not being able to write and being in loads of pain.

What am I supposed to do? Why can’t we get help? This is crazy to leave a fracture for 5 days with nobody giving a shit. I foolishly thought the NHS still dealt with emergencies. I have no idea what to do. Please help.

When I broke a bone a couple of years ago it was put in a cast at minor injuries and I was then referred to the fracture clinic

A&E stands for Accident and Emergency.
IE; a broken bone is an accident that requires treatment from medical professionals and will not heal correctly if left alone. Please take her to A&E.

You need to go back to minor injuries or A and E. If you can get in touch with your GP surgery to explain what has happened they might be able to do something although generally it's the hospital that gives the GP the information if you've broken a bone

You could also ring NHS 111 for advice

Who will then refer her to fracture clinic which they have already done
the examination x ray and diagnoses has already been done
they can’t fix this in A+E
the level of urgency would of been assessed when they called her back

I wouldn’t be waiting for an appointment for a suspected break. They just give a sling and recommend pain relief anyway.

They've abdicated responsibility. It fell down the back of the sofa.

If her arm is sore, you ring your local minor injuries and make an appointment. If you don’t have one you go to A&E today.

Sling and fracture clinic follow up is normal for an elbow fracture, and a 5 day wait is usual if fracture is undisplaced. Many elbow fractures just need a sling, if fractures are minimal they can get missed on an Xray and picked up later by a radiologist, it's very unlikely a significant fracture would be missed, but regardless the OP has had the usual A&E treatment for a fracture and a referral has been made to the appropriate specialty

If she's been already referred to the fracture clinic - you'll need to wait on an appointment. When I broke a bone two years ago (not my arm) I got it put in a cast but it needed an operation - I saw the fracture clinic first and then had to wait for a call to get operated on

I had to wait for a letter from the fracture clinic giving me an appointment to see them then I had to wait for the call to get a slot for the operation

Maybe TS has actually gone to A&E, hence no updates ...

Well I continued to hassle the fracture clinic and I was shocked to be told that she has been virtually reviewed in her absence, obviously no doctor has had hands/eyes on her arm ever and that the fracture clinic will send an appointment for 2 weeks time and I can Google some exercises for this fracture.

I want all of my taxes back.

So the fracture clinic doesn’t believe she has a fracture based on what you have told them. So why do you think she does?!

My daughter broke her wrist skiing. She saw a doctor in France who put it in a sling so she could fly home and gave her the x rays. She went to her A&E at home who said they’d contact her to have it plated within 7 days and put a small splint type ‘pot’ on it. It would be ok for upto 13 days. All was fine.

If a consultant has looked at an X Ray they'll be able to determine what the next steps are. No doctor looked at my leg when I fractured it. I was x rayed by staff at minor injuries and put in a cast and then sent home.

They’ve said it’s a fracture on the phone.

The fracture clinic do believe she has a fracture. I don’t understand the comment.

They just can’t be arsed seeing her

The x-ray will tell them far more than having a look at the outside of her arm. I understand you are anxious and concerned but she has had an x-ray which has been reviewed there isn't a lot more anyone can do.

I know when I broke my elbow I was expecting surgery (it hurt like hell) or at least a cast but in some circumstances there really isn't anything more to do than support it in a sling. L

This sounds like a radial head fracture, it doesn't need a cast, management is in a sling. Most fracture clinic referrals are reviewed within 3-5 days and patients are seen by the orthopedic team within a couple of weeks

Contact the minor injuries unit and they will resolve the fracture clinic referral issue

For example:
www.royalfree.nhs.uk/application/files/1517/5033/9691/RFL956_Discharge_advice_radial_head_or_radial_neck_fractures.pdf

Thank you
It’s gutting to be 5 days into the injury and not to have been advised of this.

I had botched orthopaedic surgery in 2017 that the hospital would not take responsibility for. I have only just got revision surgery at the different hospital after seeing eight different clinicians.

Good luck.

OP, it doesnt sound like you have asked them for more information.

She has a fracture, theyve checked her xray, has an appointment in 2 weeks...... did you not ask them during this conversation whether she needs a cast, and that she doesnt have one on currently.

I understand that it may not need a cast, but I suspect that the fracture clinic may not realise that she was sent home without one.

If your not happy, ring them again, or as others said. Go to A&E

It's only when you break a bone and go to a fracture clinic that you see how many other people around you have done the same. If she's in really severe pain go back to minor injuries or A and E. They can write a prescription for pain relief.

Ibuprofen and paracetamol didn't touch the sides of my fracture pain wise. . The only thing that did was codeine when in hospital and dihydrocodeine (not sure if that's the correct spelling) when I came out

Of course I asked them for information. I got told today it was a radial head fracture and that she did not need a cast. So because I had no idea what kind of fracture it was, because it was missed when minor injuries looked at the xray, I didn’t know what to even google.