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Original poster

A&e waiting times a joke??

173 replies

Moniq123 · 18/06/2022 01:58

Hi everyone,

DS (2.5) had a bad accident in nursery today where he fell down a few stairs and hit his head on the corner of the wall just above his eyebrow. His cut was quite deep and wouldnt stop bleeding, he clearly needed stitches or glue. We were sat in a&e foe 6 and a half hours and when we were seen from the moment we entered the room until we left was a grand total of 3 minutes exactly. Dr just disinfected it and glued it and stuck plasters over it. To think that this is just ridiculous?? I know there are other people with emergencies waiting to be seen but he was just causing havoc in the waiting room (understandably so considering hes only 2.5 and gets bored quickly!). I feel like ive been ran over by a truck, at the end of it had to get my in laws and my brothers in hospital to help my DH and I. Honestly can say I've never had a more exhausting day, never going back to a&e again i'd rather spend £200 going private for my own sanity! Didnt even check for a concussion, told me if he vomited or fell ill to come back in, i asked whether we would have to wait again and dr said yes. In my head i was thinking absolutely no way am i ever coming back here😂

OP posts:
bloodyunicorns · 18/06/2022 09:21

Jesus... at the end of it had to get my in laws and my brothers in hospital to help my DH and I.

If your dc was running around like that I'd have taken them home and treated the cut myself. He clearly didn't need A&E.

and YABVVVU for taking EXTRA people to help two adults deal with a child!!

GreenLunchBox · 18/06/2022 09:24

heartchakra · 18/06/2022 08:00

@cervinia I'm a uk national and say script

Yes, loads of people say script in this country (short for prescription) but I do think that PP was American because they said 'shot' and had amazing service from their GP 🤣

Flopisfatteningbingforchristmas · 18/06/2022 09:25

5 adults to look after a toddler! It’s tough keeping kids entertained while waiting at hospital but not that tough.

Do you not have minor injury units where you are?

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GreenLunchBox · 18/06/2022 09:25

bloodyunicorns · 18/06/2022 09:21

Jesus... at the end of it had to get my in laws and my brothers in hospital to help my DH and I.

If your dc was running around like that I'd have taken them home and treated the cut myself. He clearly didn't need A&E.

and YABVVVU for taking EXTRA people to help two adults deal with a child!!

Yeah I think she's heard this now 🙄

Mischance · 18/06/2022 09:28

12 hours on a trolley for me a few weeks ago. Condition not life-threatening, so bottom of queue - I was in dreadful pain, that was not going to kill me, but was so hard to bear. 12 hours before any pain relief.

Justkeeppedaling · 18/06/2022 09:39

He fell down "a few stairs", not "the stairs".
The OP said herself that he was running around and that all he needed was stitches or glue. The hospital clearly thought the same, so why is that such awful advice?

FixitJesus · 18/06/2022 09:40

In my head i was thinking absolutely no way am i ever coming back here😂

Don't then.

pushingpoppies · 18/06/2022 09:42

So this is what another A&E visitor would have said: 'i was sitting in A&E in agony with shooting pains in X part of body and about to pass out. It was incredibly busy I was sat next to a group of adults all there on behalf of a single child, with a superficial cut to the head, who was screaming and running around and kept banging into my legs for 6 hours, the noise going straight through me. I wish I had space for one person with me to support me, I couldnt see straight and needed assistance to walk to the triage room, turned out to need emergency admission'... For example.

GreenLunchBox · 18/06/2022 09:44

Mischance · 18/06/2022 09:28

12 hours on a trolley for me a few weeks ago. Condition not life-threatening, so bottom of queue - I was in dreadful pain, that was not going to kill me, but was so hard to bear. 12 hours before any pain relief.

Why are we not taking to the streets about this? Or a general strike? Why are we just accepting what the Tories are doing? This is a political choice.

It's like Joe Public doesn't care if things are shit as long as they're shit for everyone. The thing is Boris will never wait for 12 hours on a trolley will he? I think the next time some important political bod is in hospital they should let them have the crap care we all have. Maybe things will only start to change then?

GreenLunchBox · 18/06/2022 09:45

Justkeeppedaling · 18/06/2022 09:39

He fell down "a few stairs", not "the stairs".
The OP said herself that he was running around and that all he needed was stitches or glue. The hospital clearly thought the same, so why is that such awful advice?

How's she going to glue his head herself?

Luidaeg · 18/06/2022 09:46

SD1978 · 18/06/2022 04:16

And sorry- four adults for one toddler? That is flipping nuts.

At least 5, possibly more
'to get my in laws and my brothers in hospital to help my DH and I.'

How many brothers op?

Honestly can say I've never had a more exhausting day, never going back to a&e again i'd rather spend £200 going private for my own sanity!

Poor you.... Hmm

Luidaeg · 18/06/2022 09:47

GreenLunchBox · 18/06/2022 09:45

How's she going to glue his head herself?

Show quote history

You can get steri straps from the chemist (I think)

LIZS · 18/06/2022 09:48

Presumably in those six hours you were triaged by a nurse, so not just a wait for 3 minutes treatment ( which itself seems unlikely to clean and glue a wound on a toddler.). Did it really need so many of you to deal with the wait, and staff allowed so many to attend? It sounds like a drama perhaps of your own making. There will be more such incidents in his lifetime , maybe in time reflect on what to do differently next time. There are very few private a and e paediatric clinics btw.

LilyPotter22 · 18/06/2022 09:53

Just what you need after a long stint in a&e with an injured toddler....the good people of MN telling you what a pathetic, useless parent you are.

Yes the number of 'helpers' she had does seem excessive but I'm guessing they needed a bit of relief to go to the loo, grab a sandwich or silently scream into a wall after so long in a&e. She never said that they were all in there at the same time. Maybe people just popped in to watch the child for 5 minutes while they had a break. If you've got support why is it such a crime to use it? Either way, no need for the bashing at all. Some of you are just mean.

MumbleAlwaysMumble · 18/06/2022 09:54

pushingpoppies · 18/06/2022 09:42

So this is what another A&E visitor would have said: 'i was sitting in A&E in agony with shooting pains in X part of body and about to pass out. It was incredibly busy I was sat next to a group of adults all there on behalf of a single child, with a superficial cut to the head, who was screaming and running around and kept banging into my legs for 6 hours, the noise going straight through me. I wish I had space for one person with me to support me, I couldnt see straight and needed assistance to walk to the triage room, turned out to need emergency admission'... For example.

Well that child needed care and got it. It doesn’t matter if it was only 3 mins. Or that he was running around everywhere.

Because a child with head trauma might well be running around (and get unwell very very quickly) . That child took only 3 mins of a doctors time. Would you really have an issue waiting 3 mins more for an 18months old?!?

The issue isn’t a toddler needed to have his head glued.

The issue is the total underfunding of the NHS that means people are waiting 6 or 12 hours before been seen.
The issue is the government saying that not only the NHS doesn’t need more money but actually they want to give less.
The issue is HCP being ill (hello covid! And no mask etc…) and the awful working conditions (why is why doctors and nurses are leaving in droves)

THE ISSUE IS THE CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT THAT HAS RUN DOWN THE NHS FOR THE 12 YEARS THEY HAVE BEEN IN POWER.

And the same givernment who is allowed private companies to take over surgeries, hospitals etc… and are running down services too (Have you ee the Panorama program about that?)

MumbleAlwaysMumble · 18/06/2022 10:00

@LilyPotter22 that’s just MN.

there is a big part of the posters that just cannot fantom that whatever the government has told them is wrong and that they have been groomed into attacking the victims rather than the people at the heart if the problem

For years we’ve had the A&E is too busy because people go there for no reasons. Or because doctors/nurses /system isn’t good enough/lazy/don’t work enough hours whatever.
And people are still stuck in that even when people are dying in ambulances because they can’t b seen in A&E. Even when the waiting time for urgent care (that’s heart attack and strokes) has doubled.

But no the issue is a toddler who has opened their head falling over. Hmm

The level of cognitive dissonance is astonishing.

Blanketpolicy · 18/06/2022 10:04

I know there are other people with emergencies waiting to be seen but he was just causing havoc in the waiting room (understandably so considering hes only 2.5 and gets bored quickly!).

But? Really? You think a bored child in the waiting room is more important than an emergency? I read a story just yesterday about a man who died at home as they couldnt get an ambulance to him for hours because they were all stuck at A+E. That is why you need to wait.

It is heartbreaking how broken A+E service is, but you do need to accept they did the right thing in not prioritising a small cut on a child. I hope after a good nights sleep you feel embarrassed writing that sentence.

Having multiple adults in the waiting room was unnecessary. You and your dh could have taken time out to give each other a rest/get a drink/something to eat /have a walk in fresh air. One parent is more than enough for to wait with a child for a minor injury.

Justkeeppedaling · 18/06/2022 10:05

How's she going to glue his head herself?

He probably didn't need glue - the wound would have healed itself anyway.
I expect the nurse/doctor thought they ought do do something to justify the wait, and because people complain of poor treatment if they don't.

SquirrelSoShiny · 18/06/2022 10:05

Honestly some of these posts really show the hard of thinking are amongst us. Of course it's a ridiculous system. I had a very similar situation to the OP years ago and was disgusted that the 'nurse' at the GP surgery couldn't do the 2 minute clean and glue job required but instead sent us to A and E. Same thing. Sat for an hour (we got lucky) sorted in 5 mins flat.

The system is wasteful and chaotic beyond belief and this was pre-covid.

WinnieTheWinsomeWitch · 18/06/2022 10:10

Isaidnoalready · 18/06/2022 04:32

You almost have a point I would personally have a system where there are nurses and medical staff to deal with the easy stuff glueing and stitching the quick turnarounds to keep things moving but we don't have the staff

Many places have a Minor Injuries unit for just this sort of thing - I live in a small market town and we have one, it’s not 24/7 but would be open after nursery pickup time. Last time I had to go I waited 11 minutes to be seen, home within half an hour of arriving.

RudsyFarmer · 18/06/2022 10:13

So if you have a child with a deep and bleeding head wound what is the advice? Walk in clinic? I’ve had this with my youngest twice and both times the wound needed gluing so we had to go to A&E for that.

Are people saying the OP shouldn’t have attended or just that she shouldn’t be bitching about the wait time?

HSKAT · 18/06/2022 10:21

RudsyFarmer · 18/06/2022 10:13

So if you have a child with a deep and bleeding head wound what is the advice? Walk in clinic? I’ve had this with my youngest twice and both times the wound needed gluing so we had to go to A&E for that.

Are people saying the OP shouldn’t have attended or just that she shouldn’t be bitching about the wait time?

The waiting time and bringing the family in 🤣🙈

I would have took my son, but I think it's expected to wait hours in A&E atm tbh

Angrymum22 · 18/06/2022 10:21

A& E is there for life threatening conditions. Minor injuries for cuts, prawns and possible fractures. I wouldn’t dream of taking DS to A&E for a small cut. And when DH cut his head seriously I rang the MIU to see if they could handle it and they did. They were worried about his blood loss but eventually discharged him ( he didn’t want to be transferred for blood transfusion).
However DH had a stroke recently, he was blue lighted to A&E within an hour and had received life saving treatment within 4 hours, after 2 Ct scans and lots of blood tests.
The system is absolutely fantastic if you are an emergency and treatment is time sensitive.
In future op, don’t use a visit to A&E as an opportunity for a family outing.
Our A&E have a children’s waiting room which is used to observe the children ( particularly with head injuries) to monitor the child with cctv. As many have said an active child suggests head injury is not a problem. After six hours they would have been happy to discharge. Waiting in a treatment bay takes up valuable space which is why you don’t appear to have been seen but in actual fact someone will be keeping an eye on you.

Angrymum22 · 18/06/2022 10:22

Prawns - sprains

SherbertLemonDrop · 18/06/2022 10:23

Our hospital have the adults a&e then the kids a&e and they are great. My son has been numerous times with broken arm / big cut near eye/ appendicitis, and got seen really quickly.