Mumstown Chat

by **Sabbi** » Wed Dec 14, 2016 8:30 pm

Sabbi: Posts: 7950

My little sister had to go to hospital last night at 3am and despite there being only 2 other people in A&E waiting room (literally, 2 other people) she was left sitting in a draughty waiting area for 4 hours. She was almost on the floor by the time they brought her in.

She had been to the doc with tonnsalitis Monday but it had got so bad that she couldn't swallow her own saliva and she was having trouble breathing in the middle of the night, so my parents took her in straight away. Once the nurse properly looked at her in A&E, they admitted her immediately. Turns out, she has a bad flu and blood infection, as well as the tonnsalitis. She is on a penicillin drip and fluids has to stay in hospital for a few days.

I feel so bad for her, she has been in A&E for almost 20 hours and is still in an open area, without so much as a curtain around her. The drip has come out of her arm a few times due to people walking past and brushing past her trolley!

She has been awake now for 40 hours and I don't know how they can expect her to rest in that area with so much traffic and noise.

I know she is a young, strong and usually healthy woman and it would be far worse if it was an elderly person being treated like this but even young people deserve to be treated with respect and care and it makes me sad and agitated that she is being treated in such an environment.

This is a new A&E - how can our health service be so bad??

Fingers crossed she will get into a ward tonight. The poor lamb is exhausted.

by **mammycool** » Thu Dec 15, 2016 11:17 am

mammycool: Posts: 833

Unfortunately, this is the state of our Health system. If she had gone to the Doctor on Call and then in with a letter or by ambulance, she would most likely have been seen to immediately.

We really need a proper Triage system, where every patient is seen to fairly quickly, there need assessed and then they join the queue.

There is just not enough beds in Drogheda to cope with the population.

Thankfully, the kids end is excellent. Possibly, because everyone brings their kids to Temple street instead. We had to bring our dd a few years back, with a broken arm. There was a sign up that if you were not seen to, within 20 minutes, to come back up to them. There was a queue in front of us. She was through triage in 15 minutes and on painkillers immediately.

by **munchin** » Thu Dec 15, 2016 8:54 pm

munchin: Posts: 5445

oh your poor sister - i found it hard to sleep the 2 times i was in hospital and i was in my own room - never mind being stuck on a trolley - it's an awful situation. My parents are in their 60's and both of them have a fear of having to go to an A & E- my mam was really ill about 2 years ago and no amount of persuasion would get her to go to a & e - eventually got her to a vhi clinic who rang her own consultant and we got her into the bons that way and turns out another day or so and she would have been in big big trouble.

wishing your sister a speedy recovery

mammycool - i only ever had to go to kids a & e in ambulance and because we were in an ambulance with suspected head injury we were seen immediately.
Had to take other dd to children A & E for infection (suspected apendisitis) and our GP recommend we go to Temple street over OLOL

by **mammycool** » Fri Dec 16, 2016 4:04 pm

mammycool: Posts: 833

Sabbi - hope your sister is back out again!!

Munchkin - thankfully, I have not had much experience with A&E, and hope to keep it that way. I suppose it really depends on what is wrong with your child. Breaks, and the like - it would be perfectly fine. Serious illness - I would be looking for the experts. Though I have heard Temple Street can have a 12 hour queue for A&E.

by **Sabbi** » Sun Dec 18, 2016 11:35 am

Sabbi: Posts: 7950

shes home and resting and already, looking and sounding a lot better. She had to stay in for 2 days and then they sent her home with more anti-biotics. God love her, she came home and was into a bath within 5 mins to get rid of the hospital smell. The poor love.

I seen her yesterday and she is looking way better, still pale and not back to herself, but getting there.

Thank goodness she is home for Christmas and will be ok.