Table of Contents
It is all very well that Health Secretary Wes Streeting is giving orders to overwhelmed emergency departments at a time when flu, norovirus, Covid and respiratory viruses are ravaging the population.
You don’t want to see desperately sick patients dying in the hallways of your hospitals because they don’t get the care they need. Very good.
He wants A&E to ignore the target which suggests no one should wait in A&E for more than four hours. Instead, he says doctors should take on urgent cases and let those who are not at risk of instant death simply wait – and wait and wait – their turn.
It makes perfect sense in an NHS supposedly dedicated to saving lives.
But has it ever occurred to you to wonder why emergency departments are so ridiculously oversubscribed? Why is the ambulance service so in demand that it can’t keep up? Why do people rush to the emergency room with problems that would previously have been solved at their local doctor’s office?
I can tell you, Mr Streeting. The GP service is in tatters and, faced with the choice between making endless phone calls or being told there is no way to book an appointment for weeks, a trip to A&E makes a lot of sense.
Here is my most recent tale of woe. About a month ago I caught my big toenail on a sharp surface. He bent over backwards and bled profusely. I had already been treating him for a fungal infection. I managed to get on the phone with an associate doctor who arranged a prescription for antibiotics. I took them and then left for my planned Saga cruise to the Canary Islands.
My plans to use hydrotherapy and pools were somewhat restricted because I had an open wound. I thought antibiotics would cure the infection. They didn’t do it.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting during a visit to the London Ambulance Service headquarters.
One morning I woke up with agonizing swelling and red skin on my lower right leg. The finger didn’t look healthy. I suspected cellulitis, a potentially dangerous infection under the skin probably caused by the toe injury. I called the ship’s medical center. They told me to come immediately.
I saw the doctor immediately. He confirmed the cellulitis and said it was undoubtedly caused by the infected big toe.
“That nail needs to be removed,” he said. “Come on, let’s do it.”
They injected a lot of local anesthetic into my toe and removed the nail. The wound was cleaned, disinfected and beautifully bandaged. They gave me intravenous antibiotics and told me to come back tomorrow for more.
Two days later, they gave me three batches of antibiotics intravenously, changed my dressing, and sent me off with a week’s supply of powerful oral antibiotics and instructions on what to do at home.
‘Consult your GP immediately. Change the bandage every two days. Get enough antibiotics to last at least six weeks. The treatment couldn’t have been better, as it used to be at the GP.
Once home I called the family doctor. No, they couldn’t offer him a bandage change. They didn’t have nurses. I have to go to the walk-in center at Finchley Memorial Hospital.
As for the doctor’s appointment, nothing was available until December 31st.
I pointed out to the receptionist that cellulite can be a dangerous condition that can lead to sepsis. There is no appointment available yet.
“I’ll text you a form,” he said. “Fill it out and a doctor will see you and maybe get you an appointment.”
The form was long and detailed. First I would tell you to contact 111 or 999 if the problem was serious: heart attack, stroke, confusion, difficulty breathing, heavy bleeding, signs of a serious infection, etc.
This is how GPs send people to emergency departments. Make your own decision, maybe take yourself to the hospital.
I filled out the form. I was warned that he may not be seen by a doctor for 72 hours.
I had spoken quite strongly in the “what worried me” section about the risk of sepsis. I suspect that was the reason I received a call offering me an appointment two days later.
Meanwhile, I headed to the outpatient center of the small local hospital and waited five hours to see a nurse who changed my bandage. What nonsense.
Throughout the process I was thinking about older people or those for whom English is not their first language, who may not be as tech-savvy as me and would have been stunned by the idea of completing the online form. How many would have gone to the ER for treatment?
So, Wes Streeting, your most urgent port of call must be GPs. It’s absolutely admirable to care about people who shouldn’t be left to die in hospital corridors, but with a decent GP service perhaps they won’t be competing with less desperately ill patients who would never have been in A&E to begin with.
A good family doctor relieves a person’s pain and fear and sends them for specialized care if necessary.
No rush, no panic, just sensible use of resources.
Coleen is my jungle queen
Coleen Rooney leaves the jungle after I’m a celebrity… Get me out of here!
What a shame the lovely Coleen Rooney was pipped to the position by a rather faded pop star, Danny Jones.
She was charming, brave and fun. She should have been the jungle queen of I’m A Celebrity. I was very touched by what he said about his children.
Finally, she thought, they had the chance to be proud of her and not just her father.
No stars needed for the Booker!
Actress Sarah Jessica Parker is a Booker Prize judge
Sarah Jessica Parker has been named one of the judges for the prestigious Booker Prize. Why does everything have to have a superstar these days? Surely there are enough analytical and highly educated readers who would fit the bill.
A visit to the reborn Notre Dame Cathedral has moved to the top of my bucket list. In 1961 my parents took me to Paris to pass the 11+. Dad felt that his coworkers would be surprised if he hadn’t seen the Folies Bergère. He asked at the cabaret if it was okay to bring an 11-year-old child. The answer? ‘Of course, if she ‘likes a ticket.’ Then I saw the seedier side of the city and then the opposite: the exquisite cathedral. I cried when the flames engulfed her in 2019. I am determined to see her again.
I will vote strictly for Chris.
Chris McCausland with his professional partner Dianne Buswell
I’ll be glued to the Strictly final on Saturday night.
I love actress and mother of one Sarah Hadland and her partner Vito Coppola, but I’m rooting for my favorite from day one. Blind comedian Chris McCausland’s achievement is unparalleled. He must take the trophy.
I was relieved when Bill’s assisted dying project moved beyond its early stages and am delighted that the conversations have had a welcome side effect. Attention is now focused on the dire state of palliative care. It is time for the wonderful palliative care movement to receive proper funding. Too many are closing due to lack of funds.