Anyone else have issues with health visitors? WHINGE ALERT!!!

[Joash]

I need to let off steam by saying that I am developing major problems with HV's in general. I am convinced that if GS's HV's had acknowledged his dramatic weight loss over a month, his lack of growth, his parents refusal to let any medical staff or even the HV's see him - or spoken to me instead of constantly refusing when I made numerous attempts to speak to them about my concerns - then he would not have ended up in hospital at five months old covered in bruises, with a chest fracture from the beating his father had given him.
We moved 350 miles away (when GS was two) - and asked for a HV, and were told he didnt need one and wouldnt get one as he was not a baby.

Recently asked the GP for a hearing test for GS, only to be passed to the local HV to arrange a date. She called me and said she would be back in touch within two days with a date and time - that was three weeks ago - she does not return my calls, in the meantime I have a child who is struggling to hear and we can't get anyone to see him as it has to be done through the HV's.

It's alright David Bloody Cameron prattling on about the number of hours a HV should spend with 'clients' - but what about training them to do their job right in the first place?

UPDATE - called the HV again this morning (at 9.30), left a message stating that if I hadn't had some form of response by 11.00 I would contact the audiology unit myself. Within five minutes she called me, to say she was about to make a telephone call and would get back to me within the hour.Still waiting at 12 - so called the audiology unit who put me straight through to the hearing assessment office. Gave all the relvant information and was told that the woman would personally call me back with some information. She called back within about 20 minutes, only to tell me that she could find no trace whatsoever of GS in her office/dept, nor in the section connected to schools, nor in any records covering any town in Cornwall!!!!

SO now - she needs a referral from the GP, who will they pass me onto the HV again - aaarrggghhhh!!!!!!!!!!!

I can understand your frustration, but I think you are expecting too much of your health visitor. They are only senior nurses who know a bit about everything.

You can legally insist that your GP refers your three year old to audiology. It does not require a health visitor. You might have to stand your ground and tell your GP "That you are exercising your legal right to get your son refered to an audiologist."

Health visitors do not have the training to do hearing tests on small children.

I think that if you are that worried about your GS then you should go direct to social services. It sounds like he needs a child protection social worker rather than a health visitor.

Reallytired - THREE THINGS (and yes - I am bloody angry at this moment);

1. please read the thread before answering, then you might be unlikely to make annoying, unsubstantiated comments;

2)I am not expecting too much from a HV, your comment ... "Health visitors do not have the training to do hearing tests on small children"... has nothing to do with what I have said on here. I have NOT requested that the HV do any hearing tests My current issues is that whichever way I attempt to get a hearing test for my grandson, they (the HV office) are the ones whom the test bookings have to go through, and they have not only lost his details and at least four requests for a test, but they cannot be bothered to return a call, write or even respond to my request for information - I do expect HV's to do their job or simply have a bit of common courtesy and at least respond to my calls, or even call when they say they will, even if it is to simply say that nothign is happening at the moment.

3. But what has really pissed me off (and it takes a lot) is your comment " ... go direct to social services. It sounds like he needs a child protection social worker rather than a health visitor...". HOW DARE YOU. For your information, my grandson has no need of social services whatsoever. Additionally, if you consider a child to be in need of child protection due to his guardian banging her head against a brick wall in trying to get him a hearing assessment - then I pity the children of people around you. Tell me, would you consider him in need of child protection if I asked him to blow his nose too hard?

Considering GS's history - your unwarranted comment is a vile, insensitive thing to say!

Contacted the PCT about 30 minutes ago. It seems that I am not the only one having problems with this particular HV.

Just had a very grovelling telephone conversation from the HV's 'boss. Apparently, the HV in question has admitted that she had lost all GS's information, this is currently being rectified and a consent form is being sent out to me in the mail today, although it generally has to be received before they being the process, she is setting things in motion immediately and considering his seven month wait, GS will go straight to the top of the list and get his hearing assessment within the next few days ... so,(yes I am sceptical) we will see what happens.

reallytired - at my old GP practice, the GP would routinely go through the HV to make any referrals for DS. Irritating as it just added to the delay IMHO.

joash- I strongly suspect that RT had skim read your OP and not picked up on the history, and that was why she suggested child protection, as she assumed GS was still with his parents.

back to the main point of thread - hope that assessment gets sorted out soon - would have hoped that with HV's boss on the case it would do. Sounds like the HV really is very incompetent, doesn't it?

Is GS's speech OK Joash - just given the likely wait for SALT if you aren't happy with it, probably worth getting on the list now whilst you are sorting out the hearing referral.

My old HV thought DS should be on 3 meals a day and finger food at six months [hmmm]. A very "liverpool" style of weaning, are I say it.

total chaos - it has started affecting his speech. Although, his speech has been a lot better, over the past few months he seems to have started mising the beginnings and endings off some words. Even his teacher has commented that she is noticing a deterioration in certain words that he says.

What's SALT? (apologies if I am being a bit dim, I have no experience in this area).

I am just hoping that any hearing problems he has might be something as simple as 'glue-ear' - I am terrified (and angry) at the possibility that it might be a result of the beating he got from his father when he was a baby.

Totalchaos - sorry, bu I laughed at your old HV. It reminded me of the way things have changed since I had DD1. She's 27 this year and the 'fashion' then was to feed every hour, on the hour, if they slept throguh the night from around 6 weeks old - leave them until they were hungry, wean at 3 months old, and your favourite - 3 meals a day by 6 months lol.

By the time GS came to live with us, it was feed every 4 to five hours, don't wean until at least 6 months, do not let them go more than 6 hours without a feed (even at night) up to being around 10 months old, etc, etc.

Although it was different for GS as he was 5 months old when he came to us and didn't know how to take a bottle as he hadn't had one for a couple of months (his wonderful father thought he should be of baby food by three months old). We literally had to wean him onto baby milk and consequently had to teach him to have a bottle a few drops every 10-15 minutes until he learned how to suck.

Thanks Fio. I will look into that. Trying to get information down here is like attempting to get stuff from the official secrets act.

You might be able to self-refer to SALT, it varies from area to area.

90% of HVs fall into one of two categories imo: dreadful or brilliant, with the latter being the much smaller category.

nhs site

You're having rotten luck there, Joash. I think it's one of those things where you just have to phone twice a day until they're so sick of you they take some action.

Could you complain to someone? PCT? Surgery manager?

Health professionals up here are fully aware of the 6 month NHS/WHO guidance but think they know better

Joash sorry, I hope you GS is okay now?

My Health visitor was appalling, to the point where I wrote a letter of complaint. I took DD to be weighed and she accused me of being drunk. She said she could clearly smell alcohol on my breath and if it happened again she would 'escalate'. This was in our clinic which was open to all the other parents waiting, I could feel them watching me and judging.
I had been out the night before and felt a little worse for wear, which I admit isn't brilliant as a parent but I was mortified.

She then started to randomly drop in to our house 'to see how we are' which was a thinly disguised excuse for her to nose around. She seemed to be leaping on problems that weren't there, yet was useless when we actually had concerns.

I understand they are damned if they do and damned if they don't but it was a terribly imposition for me and it appalled me that someone whose job is to provide parental support could so massively demoralise me.

I think ReallyTired doesn't know your history and was assuming that your GS was still with his parents (including father), rather than living permanently with you, and you were trying to get him help as a non-resident grandparent based several hundred miles away (to be fair, I went back and read your OP imagining I didn't know your history and I can see how that interpretation could have been placed on it).

Yes, I realise that now - but even if reallytired didn't know the background, I can't imagine how she would assume that I would have even considered leaving a child with parents who did that to him.

Anyway, I apologise to reallytired, as I did respond in anger, partly due to the HV/ earing assessment situation and partially because GS's parents are due for one of their 3 yearly visits tomorrow (although his father has only turned up once in since Sept 2005 - there is always the possibility of him arriving and I have to get everything out of my system before he might arrive).

So apologies again - sorry.

TheDevilEatsNestle - yes, apart from the hearing thing, GS is fine now, really good actually. Sorry to hear about your experience. Part of my 'issues' are that they seem to pay more attention to those who don't really need extra support whilst those who do, get ignored or brushed aside. As I said initially, had they listened to me in the first place, GS probably would not have gotten so badly hurt, or have been so ill due to neglect by the time I managed to get someone to listen to me

Why don't ask for an appointment with the community paediatrian. If your GS was under a child development centre then it is quicker to get things like audiology, SLT or any other service. Once you have a community paediatrian, then the health visitor becomes irrelevent.

No real advice, but sounds like you are doing a great job for that little boy Joash. There was ever such a sad case of a little baby girl in Sussex recently- if only there had been someone like you around in that case.

reallytired - varies from area to area. In Liverpool DS had a 3 month wait for audiology, and a 13 month wait for paediatrician and joint clinic.

Reallytired - where do you live becasue your version of the 'system' sounds brilliant, so many routes into whatever is needed.

GS is already under a paediatrician and will be until he is no longer classed as a child and transfers to a consultant (he only has one kidney, so has yearly scans, monthly blood pressure checks, twice weekly urine testing (at home), etc, etc). I cannot seem to get it through to you that there is no other way of doing this down here. Every single child audiology appointments has to go through the bloody HV's!!!!! If anyone attempts to go through the system by any other route - they are immediately referred to the HV's.

Joash,
Have you contacted the national deaf children's society? I am sure they have representatives in your part of the country. In my experience the National deaf children's society have a brilliant help line.

I live in Hertfordshire and my son has been under the Pat Lewis Child Development Centre. It is truely fanastic. Between the ages of 20 months until he was five and half year olds he had 6 monthly development reviews with the community paediatrian. Our paediatrian arranged help as needed. For example he had physio, orthorics, SLT, audiology, ENT as needed. Our CDC treats the whole child rather than treating them as a pair of ear or very tight tendon.

TotalChaos, 3 months for audiology is better than Hertfordshire. My son had to wait 6 months for audiology, however I think its disgusting that you have to wait 13 months for a community paediatrian.

I didn't reaslise that different areas of the country did things differently. I thought it would be same acrosss England. In my area health visitors have very little to do with assessing the development of children with special needs.