# NHS Direct would not talk to me



## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

My 17 years old niece has just called me in a panic.
She live 10 miles away and her mum is at work .

She is on a course of Penicilin and has taken ibruprofen.
Suffering severe stomach cramps and diahorea.

She asked for my advice.

I phoned nhs direct and explained the situation and was told that they could not give me advice as i am not the person who needs it.

Happy days.

Dave p


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## Briarose (Oct 9, 2007)

Try again you might get a different person. Can't you say that you are looking after her and that she feel she can't come to the phone due to being sat on the loo ?


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## Briarose (Oct 9, 2007)

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080214081515AA1nANc

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=221174


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## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

Did better than that telephoned local Dr who advised me to take her for a check up.

Phoned her mum who was nearer home than me. 

Niece now in hospital on a drip.

Human rights Data protection act wheres common sense gone.

Thanks

dave p


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## Briarose (Oct 9, 2007)

Glad you got it sorted.............I guess this happened earlier this morning or have they rushed her in to hospital in the last half hour since you posted ? hope she is OK, I am not knocking anyone here but when my Husband was really ill in bed with his ulcerated colitis the helpline wasn't really much use to me either at the time.


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## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

Yes it was earlier this morning.

Thanks
Dave p


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## rowley (May 14, 2005)

Hope that she is feeling better now.
I had a problem yesterday when I tried to sort out Mother in Law's Insurance. I answered all of the security questions but they insisted that she would have to speak with them to agree for me to continue on her behalf. I told them that she could not hear on the phone so they would not let me proceed any further. I could have spoken with a high pitched voice and they would not have known any different. :roll:


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## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

This same sister in laws husband died 3 years ago, and she received a monthly pension. Not much as he was only 45.
Last week they telephoned and informed her that if she could not provide two referees to prove that she was alive they would stop the pension.

Blooming heck they are paying into her bank account and had spoken to her.


Dave p


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## motorhomer2 (May 9, 2005)

Hi


I remember something similar happened to George when given penicillin many years ago. Turned out he was severely allergic to penicillin & was told never to have it again. 

Hope your niece is soon feeling well again.

Motorhomer


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## camper69 (Aug 30, 2007)

I needed to cancel a car breakdown policy a few months ago for my wife. She was not in at the time so when they asked to speak to her I handed the phone to my bemused 14 year old daughter and told her to just answer the questions then give the phone back to me. Worked a treat but I don't know what the insurance company achieved.

As my wife saved some money she was well pleased.

Derek


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## 129723 (Nov 24, 2009)

Is common sence gone wrong....but would have got her to phone her self.


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## chopper (May 22, 2005)

My mother was taken ill middle of last year and i was promised by a qualified member of staff that a doctor would ring back in 15 minutes, i am still waiting. (mum was ok in the end by the way) rang local doctor in the end

and i used to work for the NHS

keith


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## MrsW (Feb 8, 2009)

As a Nurse Advisor for NHS Direct can I explain the action, and what should have been said. The policy is that if you are not with the patient you cannot accurately answer the questions on which an assessment is based. You should have been told that you could be given general but not specific advice. Let me give an example... Do you know exactly what medication she is currently taking, and what her breathing sounds like, and when she was last checked for a possible menningococcal rash, and , and , and. (I hope you get the idea!) 

If you had been her and the reason for your symptoms had been for example termination of a pregnancy which had been disclosed to no-one would you be pleased if your relative found out about it? (Not implying this was the case, just using it as an example to illustrate the need for confidentiality) 

It should have been explained to you why they would not talk specifics with you, and you should have been offered a consultation with a Nurse Advisor who would give you generalised advice, including worsening advice and depending on the symptoms you explained might well have advised you to see the GP or even to go direct to A & E. 

On behalf of the organisation I can only apologise that you were not happy with your experience. They have a complaints procedure if you are not happy - all calls are recorded and if there is a complaint they are listened to in great detail and analysed and I can tell you there is no brush - off. I got hauled over the coals for being sarcastic to a 16 year old who called 999 for an ambulance because he had a 1 cm wound on his back! (This was the day after I tried unsuccessfully to resuscitate a 92 year old lady run over by a huge low loader. I could not get that image out of my mind when I berated the lad for his irresponsible behaviour!)


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Be careful about going to the phone when you you are sick and phone for a doctor. 
I was haemoraging and collapsed on the floor. My husband called the doctor and he asked if he could speak to me. I crawled across the floor and spoke on the phone, He told me to go to bed and take aspirin (yes aspirin!) and he would call round in the morning. Luckily I did not have aspirin in the house (I am asthmatic and we shouldn't take it!)

It was 4am and I think it was his standard test to see how sick you were.


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## Tinyk (Mar 18, 2009)

I've only had one experience of the NHS line.

My mum called me on a Sunday night to say dad was struggling, (4 weeks previous diagnosed with lung cancer) when i got there I told her to ring NHS right away, after some messing about a female doctor finally came out about 10pm. She did everything I expected, tests, questions more tests and concluded that he was just under the weather and a good nights sleep would suffice.

I told the doctor my dad had got worse in the last 48 hours and no way could mum manage with him, it took both of us 15 minutes to walk him the 5 yards to the toilet, mum could never do this on my own. The doctor replied that I should stay the night if I was concerned. i took the doctor outside and after a few straight talking words explaining that I shouldnt have to stay because he needed help and that he was a lot worse than she was making out, I also explained my mum was also recovering from a major opp to save her life from the cancer she had.

The doctor spent an hour in the car finding a bed for dad and two hours later an ambulance arrived. My dads 74 and HATES hospital, but within 2 seconds of telling him what was happening he was trying to pack a bag, they always say when someone is ill enough they never worry about going in.

Me and my mum spent the next couple days questioning ourselves if we had done the right thing or not and why did we have to strong arm the doctor into taking action. I'm not aiming this at the doctor im sure she had done her best and just wanted to take the easy solution, none the less my dad died 3 days later in hospital. 

It was a sudden loss for which I'm very pleased, I watched both my grans die from cancer slowly and painfully and always preyed neither my mum or dad would suffer which he obviously didn't but I truly feel if I hadn't pushed the doctor into a corner she would have left dad at home with mum and he would have probably died at home. Without the very strong antibiotics given to him in hospital he would never have made it another 3 days and we would have been kicking ourselves for not doing more.

Its such a shame we have to take action for ourselves


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## Chris_s (Jun 5, 2008)

My advice is always to use your common sense. NHS Direct and even the local GP service may not be the right people to make a decision. We have an out of hours service called Shrop Doc, where the (usually foreign) doctor is more likely to give an asprin or paracetamol than to really look at underlying causes and consider correct treatment. If common sense tells you that you (or your family) may need hospital help then don't be afraid of getting the patient there. Obviously if you can use private transport it may be quicker and better than sending for an ambulance (and perhaps even quicker!). NHS Direct have kept us waiting HOURS for a response in the past and it was only common sense that suggested that it was right to wait. If I had been in doubt I would have travelled the 20 miles to our small local hospital or even 40-55 miles to a larger hospital if I felt the patient needed that sort of care. I have little faith in out of hours services! Powys ambulances cannot meet their targets on arrival times etc., etc. Do what you think best in the given circumstances. Well this is my humble opinion and I very rarely use any of these services...


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## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*NHS*

My friend has just phoned NHS direct and THEY have booked him an emergency appointment at some drop in place. I did not know the NHS direct could do that.

Russell


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