My dd nearly died waiting for an emergency ambulance... the nhs is broken!

[finallyahappygirl]

Last Saturday my dd 8 woke up extremely poorly. She had a temperature of 39c and was complaining of a sore throat, I rang nhs 111 at 7:30am and was told I would be called by a nurse and I should not take her to a walk in centre or A&E due to the risk of her being infected with covid-19. Fast forward 12 hours my dd tried to get out of bed but collapses straight on the floor, she could not bear bright lights she couldn't not move her neck and everytime she spoke or cried she was screaming in total agony with the pain in her head. Her temperature had risen to 41c and she began losing consciousness.... I rang 999 and was advised that it sounded like meningitis and I was to strip her clothes off and try and cool her down. 5 minutes later I was rang back by a first responder who talked me through what to do and how to keep her safe, he then told me she was top priority and they were coming blues and twos but.... there were no available ambulances and he didn't know when one would become available. I totally lost it at this point sobbing down the phone that my baby is dying I don't know how to save her. He apologised profusely but said she is top priority and they will be with us when they can.... 5 minutes later she lost consciousness completely and we couldn't wake her at all even nipping her ear she didn't come round. I frantically dialed 999 only to be told very rudely there was still no ambulances and what were they meant to do. I said I would take her in my own car and they said that was too dangerous due to the state I was in and the likely medical treatment she needed immediately. 1hour and 20 minutes later the ambulance turned up my daughter still unconscious my eldest dd in hysterics thinking her baby sister had died. My partner in complete shock!!! My daughter has meningitis and thankfully is now on the mend but the outcome could have been so different it does bear thinking about really.
I totally appreciate we're in a pandemic but surely the nhs shouldn't be this broken where children's lives are being put at risk!!! Wtf has happened to this countries priorities?? Why have the government let things get to this point??

Chloemol, can you explain who is responsible then for the fact we have only 4000 ICU beds, that we have only 5000 ventilators, that we have a massive shortage of doctors and nurses?

This is going to be fascinating.

What a terrible experience OP! I hope you and your little girl are ok.

The NHS is severely under invested and has only scraped along so far by the efforts of its staff. The virus has just defeated them.
In Germany they have 27 intensive care beds with staff for every 100,000 population. In the UK we have just 6. And that's just one example.

Is there not a vaccine for meningitis?

Depends on the strain of meningitis.

That's horrific..I can't see who could have been prioritised above a child who had meningitis

Is there not a vaccine for meningitis?

There are vaccines against the most common causes of meningitis. We've got causes left.

Thank you, AnotherEmma and SirChing. I'm glad to say he's fine now, and fingers crossed it will never happen again.

Sorry, I thought there was a vaccine for Men B. I assumed this is the one OPs daughter had with her being so poorly

In Germany they have 27 intensive care beds with staff for every 100,000 population. In the UK we have just 6. And that's just one example.

That's not the Govt's fault apparently. It's time-wasters getting ill.

I can't believe people still don't think it has anything to do with the government!!
A lot of ambulance services have been sold off to private companies, and what do those companies do once they are in control? Cut medics and ambulances to save money.
www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/west-midlands-ambulance-service-staff-16754259

Oh your poor little girl. What an utterly terrifying experience. Poor you too!

Ignore all the spineless twats who think they know what they’d do in a crisis. They’re probably not medics. You listened to the professionals who knew your daughter’s current medical state. Nobody online knows this. Block them all out.

I’m glad your daughter is improving and I hope she continues to do so. I hope she makes a full recovery. Take care of yourself too.

How frightening for you OP. I would have waited too I think. Who knows what they would have done in the circumstances. You were told to wait and weren't sure what to expect if you did take her to the hospital given the current circumstances.
So pleased your dd is on the mend

I’m glad your child is improving but I literally cannot imagine why you stayed at home with an unconscious child rather than getting her in a car and driving to hospital yourself

Because she was told not to by a trained professional. Are you also berating the people in Grenfell tower who burned to death because they did what they were told when they called 999? You and many other posters on this thread are incredibly thick.

I'm not a medic, but as I understand it, from when the vaccinations were first being introduced and long-ago biology lessons, meningitis is the catch-all term for infection of the brain membranes (which are called meninges).

Obviously that's very bad place to have an infection. Unfortunately, there are a lot of viruses and bacteria that can cause that, including diseases that are also on the NHS vaccine schedule. So far, we've got vaccines for the most common causes, which has decreased the number of cases each year.

In fact- ignore me, I’m biased because of grief- thanks again for the .

OP, I hope your daughter makes a full and speedy recovery.

So pleased to read your daughter is ok. I cannot begin to imagine how distressing the experience must have been. You must still be in shock.
I hope you all recover soon....

I work on the ambulances and I’m so sorry this happened. Sadly this is the reality for a lot of people now. It is now normal that we can have up to 250 calls waiting with no ambulance to send, just in my area alone.

Every single job I’m going to is Covid 19 and it means a lot of people are not getting ambulances. The main problem we have is that once you attend a covid 19, you need to wait to find out where you can take them and then the vehicle needs cleaning, which means each call can easily take 3 hours. We were already at breaking point before and now I don’t know how we can cope. I would advise anyone to drive themselves because sadly we can not guarantee an ambulance. Sadly most of the calls we get to, don’t actually need an ambulance. People are being pathetic and calling because they have a sore throat but they tell the call taker they are struggling to breathe or unconscious so they get one faster.

I’m glad your daughter is doing better now xxx

@pjmask
She was told not to because she was obvisouly in a state and they thought it would be dangerous for her to drive. Her partner could have driven.

I'm sorry but you dont sit there for an hour and a half when you have a car and a hospital within a short drive.

I was admitted for an emergency op just over 3 weeks ago before the grip of CV took place. My GP said I can call you an ambulance but it could take 4 hours. My DH came straight home and took me instead. You should have taken her straight away OP.

Glad she’s getting better though

Here is how it works in Germany. Insurance or private. We have to move away from despising these ideas and grow up. It is important to see how we can fund a better system and deliver what we want to those that need it. Being wedded to one system based on political ideologies is just stupid. Surely we need to review funding and that means difficult choices. The Germans pay! Directly. It’s ring fenced money and I bet they get value for money!

Glad your daughter is on the mend, yes it is terifying. I worked in an ED dept, busy general hospital for 5 years, and people come in by ambulance with a cut finger, drunks New Years Eve scooped off the pavement, thats why its so difficult to get an ambulance, when you need one

That's false nanny because a cut finger wouldn't be prioritised over an unconscious child, or heart attack, or anything other scenario which actually warrants an ambulance.

@Russianslice

I would advise anyone to drive themselves because sadly we can not guarantee an ambulance

Can I clarify that you are advocating that people ignore the recommendations of the call handler, irrespective of circumstance? Because that it exactly as your comments read.

Are you a paramedic or ambulance technician? Which region if you don't mind me asking? I am just concerned that one of their employees is advising the public to ignore medical advice.

Leave the OP alone. If you are very, very low priority for an ambulance because you don't need paramedics to monitor you during travel, or you're not injured in a way that will mean you need paramedics to move you, drive.

But not all ambulance calls are the same, and if the patient gets worse and gets moved up the priority list, paramedics do not want to be looking for your vehicle "somewhere on the road from the ring road" in the dark.

Leave the OP alone. If you are very, very low priority for an ambulance because you don't need paramedics to monitor you during travel, or you're not injured in a way that will mean you need paramedics to move you, drive

But not all ambulance calls are the same, and if the patient gets worse and gets moved up the priority list, paramedics do not want to be looking for your vehicle "somewhere on the road from the ring road" in the dark

THIS ^

Anyone who genuinely works "on the ambulances" who advises, carte blanche, that all people drive their ill loved ones to hospital, is at best both dim unprofessional and, at worst, a fucking liability.