Farcical trip to Worcester A&E

When we had travelled to mum's I had a random cold, which was basically a blocked nose and a coldy feeling, my chest had been fine until Christmas Eve when I suddenly couldn't breathe. We joined up as temporary members of my Grandma's surgery and saw a very nice doctor who gave me anti biotics and steroids. I felt a bit crappy on Christmas day, but by boxing day although I had a cough my chest felt fine and I thought I was going to have the quickest and easiest chest infection I have had for years.

Well on Saturday we travelled to Chris's parents for New Year. We were planning on having a second Christmas with his parents and grandparents which I was really looking forward to, I love my family in law to bits!  I had felt slightly poorly on the way up, but a few puffs of my inhaler and things had settled again. We'd had a nice take away for dinner and spent the evening watching tv and chatting. 8 o clock my chest started deteriorating and I started on my inhaler which helped for a bit but quickly my chest got worse again. I got into a cycle of inhaler, breathe, don't breathe, inhaler, breathe...etc. by 11:30 I was getting no respite despite the inhaler so Chris called 111 to try and get me an emergency doctor appointment. It's funny when you look back on something and realise how silly you have been! Luckily 111 called an ambulance for me which we really should have done at about 10! The ambulance came out, attached me to lots of wires and a nebuliser and decided I needed to go to hospital. This is where the fun starts. Most of us in this group have had cheap service from the NHS at sometime...but I think this is at least worthy of a bronze medal, at least!

When the hospital arrived at the ambulance they wheeled me in, and left me in the corridor, in a queue of people on trolleys. What made it even worse was the fact they had laminated letters on the wall marking out positions of trolleys showing that queues in the corridor are a regular occurrence. When I first arrived somebody did my obs and seeing that I was struggling moved me to the front of the queue. A good while later (about 90 minutes), having had nobody check how I was doing my chest was getting worse and worse. I told a nurse I was getting worse and she said she'd tell my nurse. 20 minutes later my nurse was talking to a patient behind me, and then walked straight past me. She did then halt and say "so and so says you are getting worse" I gasped out "yes" and she carried on walking. After a further 15-20 minutes later the doctor came. He introduced himself to me, and completely ignored Chris. He gave me a nebuliser, then pulled a flimsy curtain on wheels around me,though I could still be seen from front and back, and gave me an examination right there in the corridor, he was asking me questions and I was really struggling to answer as I still could not breathe. I looked at Chris to answer fully and as he started the doctor really snapped at him "let her answer" which is a fair enough point but the attitude with which he said it was completely out of order. I struggled through for what seemed like forever but was probably around 5 minutes until he asked me what medication I was on at which stage I gave up and luckily he accepted Chris telling him. He then started to walk off, stepped back and said to Chris "who are you?" Chris answered and doctor walked off again without saying a word leaving us with no idea what was going on. To give him his due though he was back within a minute and whisked me into rehab where he took a blood gas sample to begin with. I find them really painful and the last time I had one done I had a lovely female doctor who gave me a local anaesthetic first and told me I should always ask for one as they make it so much easier. I asked, he refused. He said if he didn't get it in first time he would give me one. To give him his due he DID get it first time and it was nowhere near as painful as they normally are. He then, however, tried putting a cannula in to the same wrist and a similar position to where he had taken blood. My God that hurt, I nearly hit the roof. He kept it in for a minute or two while I was squeezing the heck out of Chris's hand (though he barely felt anything!), I honestly think he hit my bone, or a nerve etc. I don't like needles cos my veins are so hard to find, so they tend to hurt as they dig around, but I can honestly say I have never before had one that has caused such excruciating pain. He couldn't find a vein so took it out and tried again. Luckily this one was a lot less painful and hit a vein almost immediately. I was then pumped full of IV steroids, antibiotics and Magnesium. Again not realising until afterwards quite how poorly I was I thought I was in resus as it was the only bed. I soon realised it was because I was so poorly when the doctor stood at the bottom of my bed watching me and writing notes for the next hour+. Then I freaked out slightly. Never been poorly enough for resus before!

After a while my breathing began to improve so they moved me out of resus which was a relief. They put me in a storeroom, still in a and e and on that bloody trolley! There was no way of observing me without someone coming into the room...and unless I pressed my buzzer they didn't come in! Did not make sense to me considering I was just out of resistance! My chest did deteriorate again and a different doctor gave me a neb and stood with me until it had calmed. By this time I had been on the trolley for about 5 hours, and my God I was in pain with the Fibro getting agitated! I managed to get about an hour's interrupted sleep. Eventually I needed a wee. I pressed my buzzer and told the nurse who asked me if I could walk to the loo. I asked her how far it was and she made it sound quite a distance away. (I found out later it was about 7 steps from my door.) Anyway I was in a lot of pain from being on the trolley so long, and really shaky from all the inhaler and nebs, so asked if I could have a commode. She looked at me and said if you can't walk to the loo you have to use a bedpan. I said I was fine to manage a commode and after reassuring her she went off to get one, or so I thought. A few minutes later she returned with another nurse who was adamant I used a bedpan. By this time I was so desperate and the nurse showed no signs of giving up I finally agreed. They took my clothes off/down and put this bloody thing under me. Not only was it really painful to use, but I felt so undignified and downgraded. I could have cried. Because they had both been so adamant I assumed it was a hospital policy. I pressed my buzzer to get someone to take it away and a different nurse came. She came in smiling and then got all patronizing "oh, you needed a bedpan, couldn't you get to the commode?" "Yes I could have, I asked to but they made me use this" "they made you" "yep" "well that was nice of them" said sarcastically towards the nurses before she left the room not smiling. I felt even more undignified I should have refused.

At about 12 o clock they offered me Lunch. I asked for a sandwich and was told I could Have cheese, cheese and tomato, cheese and pickle all on white or Tuna on brown. I asked for cheese or cheese with tomato as I am not a huge fan of brown bread, and I can't stand pickle. She came back with cheese and pickle, which I really could not face,even though I was starving. I had been in for 12 hours and it was the first food/drink I'd been offered! Anyway she gave me a really dirty look and walked off. A couple of minutes later she brought me in a tuna roll. My heart dropped and I was ready to force it down as its best to eat while I had the chance. I was pleasantly surprised therefore to discover it was in white bread! :) :)

Between 2 and 3 o clock that afternoon while I was waiting to see the doctor as I wanted to get out and my chest was manageable a nurse came and said "Good news" at which my heart lifted until she added on that they were moving me to a ward. I said I was waiting for the doctor and she said I would be seen quicker if I was on the ward. By this time I was just relieved to be getting off the trolley (15 hours on an a and e trolley is not the most comfortable!) So off we trundled to the ward.

When we got up there we passed yet another queue of trolleys in the corridor but this felt even worse as they were queuing to get onto a ward (MAU) so not 'unexpected' people as they are in A and E.

Nobody came to do anything with me like check ins. I asked to see a doctor and was told one would be along shortly. There was not even a bed in my cubicle and I lost track of the amount of nurses who commented on it. I eventually got one after about 90 minutes. I didn't go on it as I was ok in my chair, but even so!

An hour later I asked to see doctor again and was told they would talk to one and get them to come see me. I was then told they would do a round ward at 5 and it was a made clear that nobody had asked one to come see me yet (although I heard a nurse on the phone asking a doctor to come and look at another girl who had come in after me with an exasperation of her Asthma. They wanted a doctor to come and see her as she really wanted to go home. That stung!

By the time Chris got there at 6 o clock I was so fed up and still had not seen a doctor I told him I needed to get out of there and I was going to discharge myself. I expected him to disagree with me so was shocked when he just said "yes alright". He was as annoyed with the hospital as I was, and he could tell my chest had improved dramatically. So, I discharged myself. On the way out of the ward we again walked past the queue of people, and several of them had been there when I had been wheeled onto the ward!

I waited for Chris to bring the car round and he took me back to his parents who are literally a two minute drive away. As I was getting out of the car I noticed something sticky on my hand. I looked down to see where my cannula had been removed was still bleeding and had already soaked through the cotton wool, and a large amount of my t-shirt! We got that sorted without me making too much of a mess of his parents house! Where the painful cannula had not gone in was sore for days and still hurts if I touch it, and I was left with a bruise going from my thumb, down the side of my hand and round to the other side of my wrist! I still have remnants of it now! However as I would have told a doctor had I been able too my chest although I was/am still coughing was fine as far as the asthma goes, I was able to keep on top of it when it started to go by using my inhalers. I have had asthma attacks so often now I KNOW when it is ok and when it isn't! I understand they have a duty of care and could be in trouble were anything to happen, and had a doctor been and told me that I could not go home until the next st, it would be a different matter. It is the fact the nurses kept placating me whilst not contacting one for several hours that really angered me! Especially as I was taking up a cubicle unnecessarily whilst people were queuing in the corridor!!!

Rant over!