waiting on ambulance for 17 month old. Handhold please.

[whiskersonkittenss]

baby woke screaming and red hot, wouldn't settle or take a drink. Doesn't like the light being on. Called 111 and they went through the symptoms and have requested an ambulance attend but it could take another hour from now
Currently keeping him cool with the electric fan. I'm shitting myself so scared.

@MrsIsobelCrawley well said.

@whiskersonkittenss ignore the nasty comments on here, you did the right thing in calling 111 and it's never worth chancing it with children. I always think better safe than sorry with my DC.

I had tonsillitis as a teenager and it was so bad the dr thought it was glandular fever to start with, most ill I've ever felt! I hope your little one is better

Thank you everyone for the well wishes. I hope no one in the same position reads this thread and decides not to get help for their children because of PP!

I'm very sorry I phoned 111 for an appointment at a walk in clinic as my gp surgery is closed on a bank holiday, for them to send an ambulance and insist on taking us to A&E.

Hope your little one is feeling better soon OP. My son has also been diagnosed with tonsillitis this week and became ill very suddenly too.

You did the right thing. If the GP surgery is closed you're supposed to ring 111. If 111 send an ambulance that's not your fault! People can be such facetious dicks.

I hope you’re little one is recovering well now.

111 is the service for when you are not sure out of hours. I’ve called them a few times over the years. Once they sent an ambulance for breathing difficulties in a 2 year old, we have had a few out of hours gp appointments and on a couple of occasions it’s been a telephone consultation with a doctor and advice what to do next.
In our area it’s a great service

@whiskersonkittenss sorry to see you’ve had some horrible responses to your posts. I’m glad you got treatment for your toddler and hopefully he’s on the mend soon.
Health care professionals will, more often than not, want an unwell child to be seen because they can deteriorate so so quickly (especially with the description that you’ve given of how your child was). You definitely did the right thing and should always trust your instincts.

@Ritasueandbobtoo9

Sorry, I might have missed this but was there any reason why you couldn’t drive or get a lift to the hospital? How near was it and do you have a car? Ambulances are for emergencies not minor childhood illnesses.

111 told her an ambulance would be faster due to waiting times at A&E

Once 111 have deemed it ambulance worthy you really don't have a choice ive been there they told me should I cancel or not answer the door they will call the police my son had tonsillitis all I needed was an out of hours appointment at the hospital down the road the ambulance crew were very good fortunately and got us an appointment down the road this was after waiting four hours so if it had been meningitis it could have been life threatening

Yes it was a bank holiday weekend

Sorry, I might have missed this but was there any reason why you couldn’t drive or get a lift to the hospital? How near was it and do you have a car? Ambulances are for emergencies not minor childhood illnesses

With a 17 month old who cannot communicate their symptoms fully, there is no way of ascertaining whether its a minor childhood illness without the appropriate checks. Both as parents and as 111 staff, you go by the physical symptoms only which is usually not enough. If anyone is reading comments like those above, please seek help if you feel it's needed.

Hope your little one is on the mend now op. Just wanted to say that at 18m one of my twins was exactly the same as you describe, from having tea as normal and going to bed he deteriorated quite quickly and we decided to ring 111 for advice as GP surgery was closed . They determined an ambulance was warranted and sent one, they took him in for further observation and turns out he had tonsillitis too. I didn't think twice about the ambulance tbh, they wouldn't have sent one if they didn't think he needed one. You absolutely did the right thing!

@Ritasueandbobtoo9

Oh sorry checked. Your partner has a car though and you have a sister so I think you could have actually not called an emergency ambulance.

OP rang for advice, she didn't call for an ambulance.

I cannot understand the reason behind your lecturing posts, I'm guessing it's anonymity.

@Bubble77bee

Hope your little one is feeling better soon OP. My son has also been diagnosed with tonsillitis this week and became ill very suddenly too.

Most of the kids in a&e had the same thing, must be going around now we are out of lockdown

I’m really pleased you have got your child sorted.

We have all been there with our children. Had it not been bank holiday, you would normally have seen your GP and they would have diagnosed this early on. I’ve lost count of the number of times my children decide to be ill when GP surgery is closed or on holiday abroad with my DS with tonsillitis. Do not hesitate in taking children to A&E, in ours it’s a separate unit, no where near the adult A&E, with completely different staff, so you are not taking up anybody else’s place. They would rather check out a sick child early than let them be in pain.

Do not justify your actions on here! You did the right thing and no one on here gets to decide who receives medical treatment and who doesn’t! I’m glad your little one is on the mend! X

I’ve been hospitalised with tonsillitis. Some get ill very quickly. The symptoms don’t always present immediately and they have to rule out serious infections.

For my niece it became quinsy and she was hospitalised for over a week and having to have her tonsils drained under general anaesthetic. Some of these posters should be ashamed of themselves. When the ambulance attended my baby last week (before she was admitted and diagnosed in hospital with tonsillitis!) they said to me many times I’d done the right thing by phoning 111.

The guilt tripping on this thread is despicable. I hope the responses on here don’t put a parent off seeking help for ‘minor’ illnesses (fuck off!) and end up in a child becoming seriously unwell.

People are so rude on here! Never take chances with your baby! They can’t tell you what’s wrong so always expect the worse until you’re proved otherwise. OP done the right thing phoning 111 for advice & not just attending A&E, they thought it appropriate to send an ambulance. As for the 97 year old with the broken hip I suggest you blame her wait time for an ambulance on the lack of money in the NHS, drunk people abusing services, the regular time wasters that phone an ambulance every week just for some company.. not a poor first time mum with a sick baby!

& fwiw, tonsillitis or any infection for that matter, can very quickly turn to sepsis in children if left untreated

[quote l2b2]@VanGoghsDog
That's all very well but why would you ring 111 on a Monday morning for a same day walk-in appointment? Why was the registered GP not the first port of call?
The OP says in her latest update that her child was irritable, running a temperature and had a chesty cough. I'm pretty confident that the child's GP could have diagnosed tonsillitis and prescribed appropriately. [/quote]
A) it was a bank holiday
B) I don't know about where you live but my GP doesn't do walk in appointments. Never has. We do have a walk in centre but that only opened a year ago, so before that you had to go to hospital.

You ring 111 for advice, they then tell you your next steps. That is entirely the point of it. I'm sorry you don't understand the service they provide, I'm sure the NHS website will fill you in if you have a look.

Coming late to this thread: as a new parent, we once phoned 111 with concerns about our son. (He must have been a few months old, no more.)
Eventually we settled him and he dropped off to sleep, and about 4 in the morning we had a knock on the door from a paramedic crew. 111 had called back about 2am to see how he was getting on and got no response - what with us being asleep in bed - so they'd sent a crew out.

Not sure whether we were less impressed than they were to be honest....

Only on MN can someone say they rang 111 (usual Mn response is call 111 or 101) and what 111 decided and someone else decide they absolutely shouldn't have called an ambulance as someone else may have needed it.

They ignore the fact the medical team called an ambulance when the OP asked for an OOH appointment and the medical team decided to send baby to a and e.

@MrsRussell

Coming late to this thread: as a new parent, we once phoned 111 with concerns about our son. (He must have been a few months old, no more.) Eventually we settled him and he dropped off to sleep, and about 4 in the morning we had a knock on the door from a paramedic crew. 111 had called back about 2am to see how he was getting on and got no response - what with us being asleep in bed - so they'd sent a crew out.

Not sure whether we were less impressed than they were to be honest....

Well, it was rude of you to be "less impressed", and to ignore the phone after you've called them.
You most definitely were wasting NHS resources.

Well said @Newmama29 why is the 97 year old with a broken hip more important than a potentially seriously sick baby showing signs of infection. It is awful the elderly patient had to wait for an ambulance of course, but in all honesty, which of the two is at more risk of dying in those two scenarios? We have a health service that is for all of us, old and young. And only a quick Google is needed to see how many awful preventable cases of babies dying of sepsis have occurred when the parents were not taken seriously and the signs were not spotted in time. Thankfully awareness has massively increased so most HCPs are extra careful and thorough when certain infection markers are raised.

Really hope your LO is ok soon. Just to say you did absolutely the right thing by calling for advice - tbh I might have just gone for the ambulance straight off!

I hope OP and anyone reading is not put off by the responses.

We’re always told on our first aid courses to call an ambulance in these circumstances, the reason being that you cannot drive and monitor the patient.
Children can deteriorate very quickly and breathing difficulties in a child is classed as an emergency. The ambulance has the necessary equipment and oxygen; a family car does not.

@VanGoghsDog
Bank holiday Monday aside, I'd forgotten about the BH, first port of call Mon-Fri within 9-5 is and should always be, to your registered GP.
I'm sorry you don't seem to understand that.
You do realise that your GP is a doctor, you know an actual HCP, whereas 111 is staffed by non-medically trained personnel?
If an urgent situation arises, note the emphasis on urgent v emergency, ring the GP on a normal working day.
I don't know where you live @VanGoghsDog, but my GP always sees urgent cases on the day of the phonecall.