Thursday, March 14, 2013

When did I become the least qualified person to treat my kid?

It's been a while since the Cranky Pants have been worn around here. Actually that's not true, I wear them around the house constantly, it's just I don't share it all that often.

But the other night something so infuriating happened that I've been walking around with the proverbial steam coming out of my ears since. Unable to let it go. What, me? Hold a grudge? Never!

If you've been playing along at home you'd know that The Trickster is asthmatic. He doesn't get it very often, but when he does, it's quite bad. Last year he had one ambulance ride and three hospitalizations in four weeks which was a lovely baptism of fire in to what it's like to be an asthma parent.

A fortnight ago we had another ambulance ride because he went downhill insanely fast. I'm talking making it to two hours between Ventolins and then all of a sudden needing another dose after only ten minutes. That's when they send out the quick response ambulance car because it can get there four minutes faster. It's also where you absolutely should be wearing brown underwear.

On Sunday morning Tricky started showing the first signs of a cold followed really quickly by asthma. Here we go again. We're getting quite used to it all so we followed our 'Action Plan' to the letter. By early afternoon he was already struggling and requiring six puffs of Ventolin every three hours so to try and prevent a late night trip to the emergency room we called the GP locum service.

The GP got there after 7pm and examined Tricks (who had just had more Ventolin 15 minutes prior). Despite being told his history of ambulance rides, despite the raging temperature, despite the face streaming with snot and despite the fact that he was now on two hourly Ventolins he was declared "not sick enough" for Prednisone.

(If you've never had anything to do with asthma, Prednisone is a steroid and Tricky responds really well to it. He'll go from needing to be on oxygen and in hospital to discharge within 24 hours of his first dose.)

Gee thanks Dr Fuckwit. All I was asking for was a script for a readily available drug. I wasn't asking for morphine, I wasn't even asking for you to supply the drugs, merely scribble on a piece of paper with your atrocious writing so that I could then go and get some, give it to my kid and avoid the stress of another night wondering if it was time to call the ambulance yet. You know, it's YOUR JOB as a locum to get us to avoid the hospital... so WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING?!

I might not have a fancy framed degree hanging on the wall, but I know my own kid and I know his asthma. Hell, I've had it for 30 years so I've got a bit of experience with it, too. I know how he responds and I know what makes him better. But what would I know? I'm only the mother *grumble grumble*.

I am so tired of being treated like a moron just because I don't have a medical degree. You?

21 comments:

  1. Be very careful with prednisone. I have had asthma since 6 months of age and due to the amount of prednisone I have had throughout my life I have developed a severe allergy to it and can no longer take it. I now have to be admitted to hospital and have intravenous steroids (have no idea what it is called) to get my asthma under control. Wouldn't want Tricky to end up like me it sucks during winter time when there is nothing the doc can do to help and the puffers aren't working. :)

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  2. Seems quite ridiculous. Tricky clearly needed what has worked for him every other freaking time. I would think the Doctor would want to get him well so as not to use an ambulance later. dumbarse. But, you are just a mum y'know. Go and bake some cookies and leave the doctoring to the profeshnils.

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  3. Are you serious???
    Our action plan is to 'start pred at the first sign of a chest cold' ... at the first sign! I am pretty sure your plan would say 'start pred when...' How can a GP not follow your asthma plan???

    And look I do understand that pred is not a great drug to be giving little kids all the time, but Tricky is not on it constantly is he? I am pretty sure he is just like my kids, he pretty much only gets asthma when he gets sick, so he only needs pred for a few days every now and then. Of course the locum doesn't know his history which is why they are supposed to listen to the parents and follow the damn asthma plan which was written by someone who does!

    Wow I'd be livid... actually I am livid and it's not even my kid!

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  4. You poor thing. It must be a terrifying thing to have to manage particularly when he seems to get sick so quickly. Be a rude bully if you have to. Ask for a second opinion. Better safe than sorry.

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  5. hearing you. Hearing you. Doctors who don't listen are one of my pet hates. Also; doctors who don't introduce themselves. Pred in our house is a wonder drug. I hope Tricky stays well enough to not need that ambulance ride but if he does - how about asking the hospital paed to revise his asthma plan to include prednisone and then hit him up for a script. After you tell him this story, of course.

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  6. Going just by what I've read here, I wouldn't be bothering to call a locum or avoid going to the hospital. I'd be in a taxi and on my way to the nearest hospital where help is quickly available and they can write you a script for the Prednisone. Then visit your GP at a more convenient time and get a script with several repeats on it so you always have it handy.

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  7. We won't bother next time, which is a shame because the hospital system is under so much pressure that these locums are meant to be helping with. The locum actually had the nerve to say "ring back if he gets worse" - it takes hours for them to get there, if he gets worse, it's an automatic ambulance call. FFS!

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  8. I HATE that so many people can relate to this. HATE.

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  9. We got to see our own GP today, who is quite nice (don't tell anyone, he'll quit or get fired). He rolled his eyes, sighed and wrote us a script to keep on hand.

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  10. Totally, Bree! I've made a formal complaint about the locum too. He should know enough about asthma and taking a history to realize that it needed to be treated ASAP.

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  11. I'm still fuming, Kate. He is exactly like your kids, perfectly fine until he gets a cold then it goes straight to his chest super fast. Our action plan is to see our GP as soon as he's showing signs of a chest cold (who then starts pred immediately) - it was a Sunday, we couldn't, so we thought we'd do the next best thing. FUMING!!!

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  12. Well I am bare foot and pregnant, I can hear the kitchen calling...

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  13. Thanks Peta, he only has it short term when he has a virus. I've had pred all my life too, was in and out of PMH constantly as a kid. Pred is the synthetic version of the naturally occurring cortisone isn't it? I didn't think it was possible to have an allergy to it, just the other binders etc in the drug itself? The things you learn, hey?! :)

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  14. Um, that is insane. My son has very mild asthma (he has only had two bad attacks in 2.5 years and neither required a trip to hospital....close, but not quite) and our GP gave us Prednisone to keep in the fridge, with repeat scripts for when it goes past its use by date. So odd that the GP you dealt with went all funny about perscribing it. I am with you - it solves the problem super fast. What a prick!!!

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  15. I remember when Boo was first diagnosed and becoming my own OT and speechie. I would speak to professionals at conferences and they would ask me where I went to school, when they found out I was 'just a mum' all of a sudden I wasn't that knowledgeable anymore.

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  16. Having a son with complex medical issues I like to remind myself that they are the experts on the condition and I am the expert on my son.

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  17. Our GP has given us some now to keep in the fridge over winter - as long as I swore I understood it wasn't a wonder drug and still had to call the ambulance if he got bad. Um yeah, I'm not a complete idiot!

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  18. Glow, I can feel and understand (to a degree) your outrage. However, the delivery leaves me cold. And you certainly have a history of being a doctor-basher (naming and shaming a certain Paediatrician on your facebook wall, with no right-of-reply - slander right there). Defensive, sarcastic, know-it-all patients are a total heartsink. If only doctors could dump patients as easily as patients can shop around. Ask any doctor to read your blog and then ask them if they would avoid taking you on as a patient if they could. You never know who reads your blog so I suggest you show a little restraint. If that doesn't work, how about thinking about Tricky reading your (and some of your readers' vile) words in the future. Pissed at me for lecturing you? I don't care. I'm pissed at you for behaving like a nut-job towards my profession.

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