Had A Hypo At Hospital

[pavmas]

I live in Birmingham and I want to tell you what happened to me at Heartlands Hospital Yesterday. On Sat I got a swelling in my gum which went larger on Sunday and got an emergency appointment on Monday for the Doctor an got Antibiotics. Later that day after a sleep I awoke with my face swollen in my mouth and outside that much it distorted my face and the pain was amazing, It said in the Antibiotics leaflet that if your face swells seek immediate help so went to Emergency at Heartlands Hospital. I am a Type1 diabetic and had not ate for two days because of this and was using glucose tabs to keep my blood sugars up. After an hour or so waiting my blood sugars dropped and I was having a hypo, I felt dizzy and lay on the floor trying to get my Glucose tabs out my pocket. I was approached by a security guard who says "Get Up" I said I cant I'm a diabetic and I'm having a hypo I need this glucose tab to kick in, well he kept going on and on for me to stand up and then he walked a way, A policeman approached and says get up you can't lie there an I repeated I was a diabetic and having a hypo just give me a few minutes' you need to move as you are blocking the way, at this time the security guard came back with a chair ( they were wanting me up off the floor and to stand as there were no chairs) anyway they forced me up and after 10 mins in the chair I came back to normal, I stood up and went over to the policeman who would not look at me and I said " I know what happened there you heard me talk and because i had a Scottish accent you decided I was drunk when I was having a medical emergency " He said well you could not have been that bad because you are alright now. That's the first time that has happened to me in England but I am under no illusion because I am Scottish i was treated like dirt. I usually attend the Diabetic clinic at Heartlands but i won't be back, I will die first before I come near that place.

This security guard went through a door and walked past nurses and doctors to get a chair so him and the policeman just assumed I was drunk and my Scottish accent was what convinced them.
This is not the first time this has happened a few years ago my wife was getting her liver checked and they told her you have to stop drinking, my wife does not drink at all and when she told them they said " are you sure you have an Irish surname"

 

[jack412]

it might just be ignorance and apathy, they probably get 1000 drunks for every hypo in the main area, most hypo's would arrive by ambulance
even so, I would make a report/send an email, to the hospital and the gov controlling body about your ill-treatment

 

[mo53]

Hello pavmas. I agree with Jack you must make formal complaint about this as your treatment was absokutely disgraceful. No wonder you do not want to return to the ospital.

 

[noblehead]

Very surprised given where you had the hypo that no medical staff came to help you. All the A & E waiting areas have camera surveillance so any complaint you make will be backed-up by video evidence.

Don't be put off by this experience as this isn't the norm, plus the diabetes clinics are far removed from your typical A & E departments.

 

[dancer]

As a fellow Scot I know where you're coming from, but for heaven's sake don't tar everyone at the hospital with the same brush. There are many competent, caring people there who would have dealt with you properly, had they been on the scene.

I know it's difficult to trust people after what you and your wife have experienced but the hospital isn't full of idiots. Attend your next diabetic appointment with as open a mind as you can and I'm sure everything will be fine.

Hope your infection clears up soon!

 

[Robinredbreast]

Hi so sorry to hear of your awful hospital experience. I would definitely write a letter of compliant to the hospital, highlighting what happened and how you were treated. it does sound appalling that you were seen with apathy from some of the staff. I hope you are feeling better now and recovering well.
don't let this put you off as others have said. Take care and all the best. ps I am Scottish, with two traditional Scottish names, but not the beautiful Scottish accent

 

[Loobles]

Can I just ask, how do you know it's because you are Scottish? I'm just asing because it's easy to feel like the cause is your nationality, when it's not always about that. My sister lives in Scotland and I've thought sometimes tha the poor service I've had in some places is because I'm English, when in reality, it's probably some other reason.

Nothing though excuses their behaviour and I do think you should put in a formal complaint as nobody should be treated like that. It's all very worrying and they need educating.

 

[Scardoc]

As a fellow Scot I'm disappointed that you have joined in perpetuating the drunken Scot stereotype by accusing the policeman of being racist. By all means have a go at him for not getting you medical attention or acting quicker.

 

[Heathenlass]

Please understand that I am in no way excusing what happened to you, as it was unacceptable and broke so many protocols that should be in place to protect patients and ensure their well being . I'm sorry to hear this happened to you, and can only imagine how angry you must feel

I think it is possible that because your mouth was swollen your speech was also affected ? So when the security guard came to ask you to move from the floor, your speech was possibly slurred from the swelling irregardless of your accent, and also may have been affected by the hypo ?

It's unfortunately true that in A&E there is a fair amount of people incapacitated by alcohol, yet it's unacceptable to make an assumption, every case where someone is behaving out of the ordinary needs investigation as to why. In your case it was a hypo, in another it could be a stroke or any number of reasons. The security guard would have been instructed to investigate anyone lying on the floor as obviously this presents a hazard and obstruction, but this is as far as his remit goes .

He is not medically qualified , and once having ensured the safety of you and others, should have alerted a member of the medical team, not a policeman. Incidentally, the policeman's comment that " you seem to be alright now " is due to his lack of medical training, but also negates the assumption that you were drunk, as you were by then, clearly not so as you were functioning well and speaking coherently.

What I am struggling to understand is the absence of medical staff at the point you needed to lie on the floor. When you first presented to A&E reception, you would have been asked about other medical conditions and medication, so the fact that you were Type 1 would have been known. I'm assuming that in Heartlands as with most other A&E departments, you would have been in view of reception at least. An apparent collapse of a person in the waiting area is always a concern, and should be dealt with appropriately . It's a sad reflection of our times that security and police are needed in A&E for the safety of staff and other patients, and this brings us round again to the security guards remit where he was remiss is notifying the medical team . He is the front line of ensuring there is no threat to anyone, but by the fact of him being employed in A&E where there is a possibility of patient collapse for other reasons apart from drugs and alcohol, there are guidelines in place.

I would complain, certainly. Discrimination and assumptions for whatever reason have no place in our hospitals. I hope you have an approximate time when the incident took place, and ideally names. Keep your complain clear, concise and unemotive as possible, which I understand will be difficult

But bear in mind this is one individual and one department when making a decision regarding your diabetes care. Because you have had bad experiences outside of this department , it doesn't mean you will necessarily have the same with the diabetes clinic. In fact, I would also let them know what occurred ,as they will be keen to ensure something like this doesn't happen again. Get them on your side, and it's possible that they will influence change of procedure within A&E.

I hope that the original reason you were in A&E was dealt with satisfactorily , and you are now feeling much better It sounded horrendous.


Signy

 

[Indiana91]

I've used heartlands hospital for all my diabetes life. I was diagnosed at 5 years of age and have been getting care there ever since. Never had a bad experience and don't have anything bad to say about that hospital at all.

Sorry you had a bad experience but I've been using the diabetes clinic for 18 years and have never had a problem. From what I understand it wasn't the diabetes clinic that you had the issue with so why would you stop using them?
If I was you I'd tell the diabetes clinic exactly what happened to you. Dr Clarke is the head of the diabetes clinic and is very understanding. I'm sure she would have something to say about this!

Hope your mouth is feeling better.

Indiana x


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[pavmas]

I've used heartlands hospital for all my diabetes life. I was diagnosed at 5 years of age and have been getting care there ever since. Never had a bad experience and don't have anything bad to say about that hospital at all.

Sorry you had a bad experience but I've been using the diabetes clinic for 18 years and have never had a problem. From what I understand it wasn't the diabetes clinic that you had the issue with so why would you stop using them?
If I was you I'd tell the diabetes clinic exactly what happened to you. Dr Clarke is the head of the diabetes clinic and is very understanding. I'm sure she would have something to say about this!

Hope your mouth is feeling better.

Indiana x


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[JTL]

Report the security guard and the copper.
CCTV will back you up.
Walking away doesn't do you any favours .... in fact I'll be blunt and say it makes you look a bit silly.
Walking doesn't help you or the next guy that has a hypo and ends up on the floor.
This is a support forum but guess what .... the support shouldn't just be at arms length sitting at a computer terminal.
I might end up in that hospital one day and be treated really well because you stopped chucking your dummy out the pram and did something about it .... in the real world.
Love and peace to you and yours.

 

[pavmas]

Hi sorry it took me so long to get back, someone asked how I knew the policeman was going on my accent alone, well he never reacted to me till I spoke and they were only interested in getting me to my feet, my son explained I was having a hypo, after the tabs started working I approached the policeman and explained I was having a hypo why would you not listen to me,, he admitted he made the judgement on my accent and said well you are ok now so whats your problem, I was at hospital because I had an abcess and the antibiotics were not working and my face was swelling more and more. I was a type 1 diabetic who had a tooth abcess and could not eat, so what do you think would happen, I was booked in and they knew myblood was low and I was keeping up with what tabs I could eat, still I was made to wait 4 hours and made to wait an hour after that hypo. From what I wittnessed I would just shut the whole nhs down as I was only there to get stronger antibiotics, if they did not control. Medicines the way they do I would have got the antibiotics in hours rather than days and the infection would not have took hold. I now if I get an infection go toasda and pay for the doctor there and pay £33 for antibiotics, the nhs is a joke. To tell you the truth I dont think half of their doctors are qualified. So I have decided if I get serious ill I have perhaps more chance going to bed than hospital, please Don,t just read this and think im some kind of idiot, I get cheaper and cheaper meters every time I need them, I buy my lancets from amazon as they wont give me the ones I need being blind in one eye and background retinopathy in the other eye and sick of stabbing myself trying to take the nedles out, I have been type 1 since 2008 and still despite asking all the time have never had my feet checked, I got a whole in my ankle which started as a soar and got worse and worse and the diabetic unit gave me an appointment for another hospital 3 month from then, I healed it myself by using sudocrem which I use every second day on my feet which are now perfect. If you are getting god treatment then good luck to you but I cant say tthe same for myself, I honestly cannot see the benefit of a diabetic unit that knowe nothing can never answer any questions and offers no treatment, I would shut it down, oh and before I go I was supposed to see adietician2 weeks wfter getting type1 and I stoped asking after 5 years as it was a waste of Breath as they have no intentionn of arranging that. Sorry about the typing mistakes here and some spelling but my hands frozen and its like typing with a block of ice

 

[JTL]

Someone else has posted and said they receive top treatment from that very place.
Maybe your attitude gets in the way of your treatment yes?

 

[pavmas]

Hi sorry it took me so long to get back, someone asked how I knew the policeman was going on my accent alone, well he never reacted to me till I spoke and they were only interested in getting me to my feet, my son explained I was having a hypo, after the tabs started working I approached the policeman and explained I was having a hypo why would you not listen to me,, he admitted he made the judgement on my accent and said well you are ok now so whats your problem, I was at hospital because I had an abcess and the antibiotics were not working and my face was swelling more and more. I was a type 1 diabetic who had a tooth abcess and could not eat, so what do you think would happen, I was booked in and they knew myblood was low and I was keeping up with what tabs I could eat, still I was made to wait 4 hours and made to wait an hour after that hypo. From what I wittnessed I would just shut the whole nhs down as I was only there to get stronger antibiotics, if they did not control. Medicines the way they do I would have got the antibiotics in hours rather than days and the infection would not have took hold. I now if I get an infection go toasda and pay for the doctor there and pay £33 for antibiotics, the nhs is a joke. To tell you the truth I dont think half of their doctors are qualified. So I have decided if I get serious ill I have perhaps more chance going to bed than hospital, please Don,t just read this and think im some kind of idiot, I get cheaper and cheaper meters every time I need them, I buy my lancets from amazon as they wont give me the ones I need being blind in one eye and background retinopathy in the other eye and sick of stabbing myself trying to take the nedles out, I have been type 1 since 2008 and still despite asking all the time have never had my feet checked, I got a whole in my ankle which started as a soar and got worse and worse and the diabetic unit gave me an appointment for another hospital 3 month from then, I healed it myself by using sudocrem which I use every second day on my feet which are now perfect. If you are getting god treatment then good luck to you but I cant say tthe same for myself, I honestly cannot see the benefit of a diabetic unit that knowe nothing can never answer any questions and offers no treatment, I would shut it down, oh and before I go I was supposed to see adietician2 weeks wfter getting type1 and I stoped asking after 5 years as it was a waste of Breath as they have no intentionn of arranging that.

Sorry about some of the spelling or typing mistakes above b

Please understand that I am in no way excusing what happened to you, as it was unacceptable and broke so many protocols that should be in place to protect patients and ensure their well being . I'm sorry to hear this happened to you, and can only imagine how angry you must feel

I think it is possible that because your mouth was swollen your speech was also affected ? So when the security guard came to ask you to move from the floor, your speech was possibly slurred from the swelling irregardless of your accent, and also may have been affected by the hypo ?

It's unfortunately true that in A&E there is a fair amount of people incapacitated by alcohol, yet it's unacceptable to make an assumption, every case where someone is behaving out of the ordinary needs investigation as to why. In your case it was a hypo, in another it could be a stroke or any number of reasons. The security guard would have been instructed to investigate anyone lying on the floor as obviously this presents a hazard and obstruction, but this is as far as his remit goes .

He is not medically qualified , and once having ensured the safety of you and others, should have alerted a member of the medical team, not a policeman. Incidentally, the policeman's comment that " you seem to be alright now " is due to his lack of medical training, but also negates the assumption that you were drunk, as you were by then, clearly not so as you were functioning well and speaking coherently.

What I am struggling to understand is the absence of medical staff at the point you needed to lie on the floor. When you first presented to A&E reception, you would have been asked about other medical conditions and medication, so the fact that you were Type 1 would have been known. I'm assuming that in Heartlands as with most other A&E departments, you would have been in view of reception at least. An apparent collapse of a person in the waiting area is always a concern, and should be dealt with appropriately . It's a sad reflection of our times that security and police are needed in A&E for the safety of staff and other patients, and this brings us round again to the security guards remit where he was remiss is notifying the medical team . He is the front line of ensuring there is no threat to anyone, but by the fact of him being employed in A&E where there is a possibility of patient collapse for other reasons apart from drugs and alcohol, there are guidelines in place.

I would complain, certainly. Discrimination and assumptions for whatever reason have no place in our hospitals. I hope you have an approximate time when the incident took place, and ideally names. Keep your complain clear, concise and unemotive as possible, which I understand will be difficult

But bear in mind this is one individual and one department when making a decision regarding your diabetes care. Because you have had bad experiences outside of this department , it doesn't mean you will necessarily have the same with the diabetes clinic. In fact, I would also let them know what occurred ,as they will be keen to ensure something like this doesn't happen again. Get them on your side, and it's possible that they will influence change of procedure within A&E.

I hope that the original reason you were in A&E was dealt with satisfactorily , and you are now feeling much better It sounded horrendous.


Signy

of couse my speech was affected thats why I had my 32 year old son with me explaing things, what made things worse was their was a Yong girl wbout 16 or 17 who could see what was happening she saw me collapse and tried to explain but was ignored as was my son, the only 2out of a crowd of people that had not a clue was the security guard and policeman

 

[JTL]

So do something about it or run away choice is yours.

 

[pavmas]

Someone else has posted and said they receive top treatment from that very place.
Maybe your attitude gets in the way of your treatment yes?

Jack I am the most pleasent guy in the world to get on with, I Don,t know how you behave in a hypo and I cant remember how I behave, I was through the book in procedure and through the doors to stage 2, they had the notes that said type 1 not been able to eat in 3days and all the time in there I sat with my head burried in my hands not making a sound then my blood sugar dropped, so what could I have done, im telling you what happened and you think somehow its my fault, so now type 1 hypos are an attitude problem

 

[pavmas]

So do something about it or run away choice is yours.

I agree thats why I took the decision not to go back to the place,

 

[JTL]

I agree thats why I took the decision not to go back to the place,

Sorry mate but if you go back and put in a complaint you not only help yourself but me and endless others too.
You even help the hospital.
What are you going to do move house?
Sorry if I've offended you but I don't see how an adult can behave the way you're determined to regarding this issue.

 

[pavmas]

Hi India,
Can you tell me what treatment you get, they never answer questions, Don,t check feet. Every time I have went in the last 8 years I get drop you lantus to 12 the next time they put it up to 14 the next time put it down to 12 again, I have very ggod control so Don,t see the point of it, I ask for my blood results and told they are sent to my gp, my gp says he never gets them, honestly if I was not concerned about my eyesight and only having one eye I would not go near the place but its vital to me to get my eyes. Checked which is a different department.