Waited over 90 mins with no triage at Plymouth a&e with swollen lip from allergy

[HeBeaverandSheBeaver]

All the advise online is this is a real Emergancy and 111 was to get seen asap. This isn’t good enough. Lucky I had the foresight to stuff 3 antihistamine down my neck before I got there but they didn’t know that. Know one asked. The system is truly broken.
is it unreasonable to call a ambulance next time. I carry an EpiPen

Did you try the Cumberland? Or even Tavistock?

It should be triage based on who needs seeing first now. If someone IS on the floor uncurious, or someone is quietly having a stroke, they most definately need seeing more than someone who is having a allergic reaction which right now isn't affecting their airways.

Okay then. In my experience of using it for over 35 years (and delivering my child there), it's shit. Better?

Ok to be clear

lips started swelling
got worse took 3 antihistamines at once 2 types
comtined to swell over time approx hour while talking to 111. Waiting for a call back etc.
used EpiPen
111 call back advise hospital A&e was told they will be expecting
me
45im drive to get there
arrived told reception. They told
me triage in waiting room etc.

sign in waiting room says triage 1 hours 40
mins approx.

no one called me at all in that time. After 90 mins in waiting room, I didn’t leave or go to loo

i told
reception 111 sent me. Lip swelling allergy EpiPen etc

by that time over 3 hours roughly had passed and finally the antihistamine kicked in. However that isn’t a given Allergies are unpredictable. How do you think they do kill
people ?

And thanks to those that understand allergies particularly those that affect the mouth.

Sorry but that is not good. Allergic reactions are so dangerous- you should’ve had better care OP.

You're fine though. When you arrived they would have been able to see you had no trouble breathing and were fine. That's all the triage that you needed, if further questions were needed in order to establish the urgency level you would have been asked but that wasn't needed. Other people's needs were greater and you were in no danger.

Cumberland Centre will not treat anaphylaxis. They don't have doctors there. You'll be sent to A&E

But how do they know if they don't triage for 90 minutes? Whenever I've been to A&E I've been seen by a nurse straight away to triage to understand what is wrong and where I need to be in the priority queue to see someone else. They don't treat you then but they understand enough about what is wrong to see if you can wait.

This is why you can’t trust advice online. You’re fine. They’ll get to you when they’ve finished with the emergencies

DS fainted at the top of a flight of brick steps, fell flat onto stone paving below, lay there unconscious, bleeding. This was at 6am. Taken to A&E by ambulance. Got seen 7 hours later, and only because I very politely pestered them over and over. People who got frustrated, or people who waited passively, or people who didn't speak English were still waiting when we finally discharged ourselves after a half-assed assessment at 9pm that night. All this time in an overcrowded internal room with no natural daylight, no air, no reception or any staff present (you had to barge into the Do Not Enter treatment room to find a medic) No healthy food, just chocolates and crisps in a vending machine Patients got a free sandwich. People caring for them got nothing. In 14 hours. I couldn;t leave him alone.

The NHS is a joke. And I am not blaming the medical staff.

if it was a swollen lip only, then yabvu.
if you had breathing issues, yanbu

There is a lot of misunderstanding on this thread.

Unless you have had a formal recorded triage with a set of observations, then there is no way of justifying the order in which patients are seen. It is not until you are triaged that that can be said.

Anyone who has received adrenaline from an epipen - regardless of whether they even accidentally did it, needs cardiac monitoring for a period afterwards..(They certainly shouldn't drive and this was silly and dangerous and risked others.). If you have received adrenaline via epicentre for a potentially severe allergic reaction, then you have to be seen in hospital and monitored for a 'bounce back' reaction down the line. The epipen needs replacing and the risk to the airway managing.

Antihistamines are v much second line in anaphylaxis. It is repeat adrenaline that will save your life first.

The irony

FML. There's another thread running where op is questioning a same-day GP appointment for a rash she's had for 3 weeks and hasn't even thought of speaking to a pharmacist in that time.

On this thread op has had an allergic reaction to something she may or may not have a known anaphylactic reaction to, has managed to treat with antihistamines and THEN driven herself for 45 minutes to A&E and is questioning why she's not been seen as an urgent case.

A&E is for Accidents and Emergencies. If OP felt well enough to drive to A&E for 45 minutes she is not in a critical state. Op you perhaps need to do some more research as to what you should/shouldn't do if you're having a reaction and used your pen (hint, not drive yourself 45 minutes...)

Op was it a known allergen you were exposed to today?

If you think it's anaphylaxis you need to use your EpiPen? Once you have used your EpiPen you call 999.

It is sad to read all the posts berating the OP.

It is not unreasonable in an economically developed country with a National Health Service to expect to be triage on arrival and then treated in line with that triage in a timely and competent manner.

No NHS emergency care staff would think the situation the OP has survived is ok. No one is trained to disregard people's health and wellbeing like this. No textbook or guidelines would suggest this course of action for a patient with severe allergy and risk of anaphylaxis who has recieved IM adrenaline.

Just because it has got this bad and dangerous and inhumane, doesn't mean we have to shout down anyone who suffers as a result.

If you use an Epipen - you go to A&E. It is literally written on the Epipen. Your meant to go in ambulance;

I think she is - quite rightly - questioning how they have decided she isn't an urgent case without a formal triage process in place.

That’s me.

I’m glad I didn’t go to the pharmacy as she confirmed they’d not have been able to prescribe what I needed, and that the GP was the right port of call. If I’d gone to see her tomorrow, I’d have had to wait to see a GP until Monday.

I agree with that and I have been v shocked in a and e about how long the wait to be triaged can be. It feels like they use receptionist's as their first line of triage now which is deeply flawed

When she used the epipen - the two might only have been two minutes apart.

The treatment of people in A&E is terrible. Their processes are so slow. This is not the same for other countries where they will order tests needed immediately and actually resolve the issue rather than leaving people for over 8 hours with no treatment and no pain relief when needed. It needs a total overhaul.

Exactly. How is a receptionist able to decide. No actual member of staff would see me considering every chair and walls and outside of the place was full. Ok if my throat swelled etc I’d be grabbing the nearest medic but with allergies the situation can change rapidly
anyway I’m calling an ambulance next time if I’m every unfortunately in that position again

I don’t know what triggered it as I have mcas and could
be a variety of things.

I drove myself to a&e with cauda equina
I mean it’s not recommended but just because you can drive doesn’t mean you don’t need urgent treatment
it was still an emergency