I didn’t write this yesterday because I was just a little bit too tired and a little bit too annoyed to fire up the blog.
Eve and I took a little trip to A&E (ER to any Americans reading this) yesterday. Eve had hurt her elbow playing in the garden on Thursday evening and it was hurting her yesterday morning so we wanted to get it checked out just to make sure there wasn’t anything worse than a sprain. I don’t drive very much, I don’t actually have a full license yet (I’ve been on the waiting list for a test for about 15 months now but that’s another story), so we had to take public transport.
We left the house at about 9am and were able to get a lift to the DART station, from there we were on our own. I decided to bring her to St Vincent’s Hospital close to Dublin city centre because it’s about an hour away from us if we take the DART. Sure enough we got there easily and were seen almost immediately. The nurse and the doctor who had a look at Eve were lovely and were able to tell me that she had a pulled elbow. Something quite common in little children with their extremely flexible bones sometimes flexing a little too much and going out of place. He was able to tell me exactly how this very common ailment is fixed…a simple turn of the arm and it would click back in place. Great! I thought, but then he told me that he was sorry but he couldn’t do it. St. Vincent’s is not a children’s hospital and they’re not insured to treat children in any way. I’d have to go to Crumlin Hospital or Tallaght.
I went outside to reception and asked the lovely ladies behind the desk if they could tell me how I could make my way to either of those hospitals. They weren’t sure other than to suggest a taxi, they didn’t think there was a bus or if there was where I would catch it. Neither option was really good for me…I don’t like to take Eve in a car without a kid’s car seat (it’s not legal for a start let alone safe) and I know from previous experience that Eve’s buggy won’t fit on most Dublin Buses. The ladies then suggested I go to Temple St hospital, they weren’t sure where it was but they knew it was close to Connolly station and I could get there by DART.
So that’s where I headed. We got off at Connolly at about 11:30am, Eve was loving all the train trips although her arm was giving her some pain, she’s a trouper and wasn’t too grumpy. As long as I supplied constant snacks and distractions she was happy enough. We got some vague directions from a lady at the station and started walking. Unfortunately it’s a lot further than the receptionists at St. Vincent’s thought and I took a few wrong turns. It’s not a part of town I know very well and there are no sign posts to tell you where the hospital is. I got directions about 4 or 5 times and finally found the little alleyway that is the entrance to the hospital. By that time we’d been walking for 45 minutes and Eve was fast asleep. I had to wake her so she could be seen which was thankfully quite quickly. I was worried we were in for a long wait when I saw the amount of people crammed into the little wards and waiting rooms. Everyone is in on top of each other, listening in on everyone else’s consultations. At one point a little girl was having her x-rays examined in the middle of the ward and we were all in on the discussion. The doctors and nurses must be masters of organisation to be able to remember who’s who and what needs to be done in the middle of all that.
Eve was seen and treated sitting on a waiting area seat by a door with people barrelling past. The doctor was lovely and although she was upset because it was quite a painful thing to have her bones popped back in place, Eve was great. She impressed the nurses by drinking her Baby Nurofen herself from the little cup they gave her, but she was starting to get very tired and so was I. With X-Rays and waiting time, we were there for about an hour and a half, so not really all that bad.
So now I just had to make my way back to the DART station…but I managed to get myself turned around somehow and ended up down at Croke Park. Don’t ask me how…I thought I was heading for Gardiner Street. Eve wasn’t happy at all by now but she fell asleep again while we walked….and walked. Finally I found my way back to Tara Street DART station almost an hour and a half after leaving the hospital. After that it was just a matter of getting a DART back to Greystones.
We walked back through the front door at 4:30pm. 8 hours after leaving the house. I’d spent about 3 to 4 hours of that time walking the streets of Dublin pushing a heavy buggy and was pretty worn out. I was also a little bit shocked at just how difficult it is for a person with no car to get their child seen in an emergency.
Now, I don’t blame anyone but myself for getting lost coming out of the hospital, I would have saved myself about 45 minutes without that little detour, but I just can’t understand why the first hospital we went to couldn’t treat Eve. I mean, sure, have children’s hospitals for serious illnesses and in-patient care, but surely not A&E? I got a little taste of what it must be like to be a parent of a child who has an emergency and doesn’t live even as close as we do.
Can anyone tell me…(because I’ve spent some time on the internet trying to find out and can’t find any clear information about it), when the plans to merge all the children’s hospitals into one national children’s hospital go through…will that mean even fewer places where young children can be seen on an emergency basis?
16 replies on “My “Local” Hospital”
Dear Claire,
This is shocking. I am shocked. By two things:
(1) that a doctor who knew how to do something would not do it for a child in pain. “then he told me that he was sorry but he couldn’t do it. St. Vincent’s is not a children’s hospital and they’re not insured to treat children in any way. I’d have to go to Crumlin Hospital or Tallaght…”
– I simply don’t believe the explanation about insurance. I suspect it is an example of medical profession boundary management. That doctor and that doctor’s supervisor should be ashamed of themselves, I say.
(2) It looks as if you didn’t have too long to wait in A&E in two hospitals. This surprises me and pleases me. The conditions of being seen in a public space, without proper privacy is disgraceful. I bet something could be done about that. I bet it would be possible to alter the space, so that at least a modicum of privacy was available. I suspect this isn’t simply a cost issue but also a mindset one. But you’d know better.
Your writing about this is wonderful. We, the public, need such insider reports about the experience of health in Ireland. I hope you sent a copy to the HSE, Mary Harney and all the others who should know about individual experience.
Thank you very much for writing it so soon after the event – it reads so well. This could have happened to any of us. And I say this out of self-interest. I too have a child to mind and she might well twist her arm. I wouldn’t respond well to being told by a doctor that he or she wouldn’t treat her because of ‘insurance’.
Hi Claire,
How terrible for you and Eve. She a real trouper! I hope she doing well now.
I remember when my youngest sister was playing with another sister, stopping each other from opening an adjoining door which had glass in it. My sister pushed against the glass and it broke and a shard of glass stuck into the skin beneath my sisters eye. My father wrapped her in a blanket and drove her up to The Mater Hospital. He carried her into the hospital and was met by a nun who looked at my sister, blood and all, and told my dad that she was sorry but they couldn’t treat her as she was a child. My father told her to do something before my sister lost her eye or something but she refused to let my sister be seen by a Doctor. I’ve never forgotten that It’s inhumane isn’t it?
I spent 11 hours, me in St Vincents Hospital Accident and Emergency Department 2 months.
The health service is in a mess and Transport too.
Hope you get your driving license soon.
That sounds like an awful ordeal. Our little James has had two pulled elbows and cried a lot with the pain. We were very lucky though, as we live 2 minutes away from Temple street hospital. The last time it happened the we were seen straight away, the doctor popped it back into place and James got relief instantly. Very simple procedure. Seems like a crime that any doctor wouldn’t/couldn’t provide the same relief instantly. You’d think the hypocratic oath would come before insurance policy. We’re moving out of town soon, so I guess that’s another factor to consider. Hard enough trying to find somewhere with a decent school to get into.
Oh and thanks for my first blogroll link Claire. I feel like a proper blogger now 🙂
Hi Claire
Hope Eve is feeling better soon. The waiting area treatment is just dreadful isn’t it, just like people on trolleys with their personal belongings and everything open to the public. Things will only get worse for kids if Tallaght children’s hospital goes.
Sounds like she’s such a great kid and coped really brilliantly with the trauma!
Claire sorry to hear about that ordeal – but I’m still shocked that any A and E doctor could say “we don’t do children” what on earth is going on?
Thanks for the comments, I wasn’t sure if anyone would even read my long rant.
Omani, I didn’t even think to question whether the Doctor was being honest about the reasons why he wouldn’t treat Eve. He seemed genuinely apologetic but his answer was obviously one he had given many times before. I hadn’t thought to send a copy of this to anyone but I think you’re right and I will.
Ellen, that’s horrible, I wonder at what age we become eligible to be seen in regular A&E’s. I’m glad this time was nothing so serious and at least I will know for next time where to go.
John, 2 minutes away! Haha, I should have called you for directions. I would definitely get a list of the hospitals close to your new house that will see children. Although I haven’t been able to find a list of hospitals on the internet. (I’m your first blogroll link! I’m sure that will change soon, I love your writing.)
Aquaasho, I was hoping her arm would be better by now but she still seems to be having some pain with it. If it’s not getting better by tomorrow we may have to go through it all again.
that girl, yes, I just cannot comprehend how they must send little children in a lot of pain away on a regular basis.
Glad the pain & distress are behind you and Eve,
For a list of hospitals try the old fashioned way: The Telephone Book under Hospitals.
Send a copy of your post to the papers, the Health Minister, ALL hospitals you attended and someone like Joe Duffy. Whether you like him or not it is the kind of thing he thrives on and gives air space to.
God you poor thing, i didn’t have a car until i had my second little one (I’ve three now) and had a few experiences like that, even though the city of Dublin is small enough it’s not made for (carless)people in wheelchairs, or people with little ones in buggys. The luas and dart are great but only if you are going somewhere close to a stop. buses are crap, no room at all, the numbers of times i nearly let the little one fall down the stairs cos there were no seats downstairs and i had to carry babe and bags up stairs alone. My little girl is three, she was two when we went to disney paris last year and the same thing happened to her arm. It was terrifing she is usually not a cryer but she was hysterical (your eve was so brave), they have their own emergency room in the theme park so we got it sorted there and then but for you to have to cart yourself and eve all over town is inhumane. Whatever happened to human kindness! It’s only getting worse, when hospitals are all rolled into one it’s gonna be a nightmare! If you’ve a car you’ll be grand cos there’s loads of parking but what about if you don’t
Hope that the wee lass is fully recovered from her ordeal. This is a brilliant well told example of how twisted our health & transport service is.
No major hospital should turn any case away. We should have a free shuttle bus service between hospitals and the main train & bus stations.
By all means write to Joe or Mary Harney but when you are at it, copy the IHCA, IMO and INO and ask them why they are blocking all reasonable reform of the health system for their own profit.
Paige
Good post Claire – told in an honest open minded way. It sounds like the system would have worked reasonably well if they could just be more open on who they treat. As often the case, the state can sometimes let our children down. I recall us bringing our children once or twice to A&E when they were about Eve’s in St. Micahels Dun Laoghaire without any silly insurance issues.
I guess in a practical way your post has helped to highlight that it would be useful to parents to have a list of where they can bring their kids. Do these small injuries clinics they talk about cover kids too I wonder? Do they open 24/7?
You also noted well another issue – signposting in Dublin is inconsistent and very poor – foreigners comment on this a lot. Furthermore, as you have discovered – getting around Dublin with a small child without a car is very frustrating. You had quite an adventure.
Claire:
That is sooo lame you had to go through all of that! Although in the US, Hospitals cannot turn anyone away, it’s not uncommon to wait 3-5 hours with out being seen. I had a Kidnesy stone (insanely painful) and I had to wait 3 hours before I got a bed, and another hour before I saw a Dr. and they wouldn’t give me anything for the pain until that point. The good news is that it was me and not my children. There is nothing worse than your child being in pain and not being able to fix it.
I hope Eve feels better and you won’t have to repeat all that again.
Thanks for all the comments!
Grannymar: I had to laugh…I hadn’t even thought of the phone book. I’m become a slave to the internet!
Keara: Sorry you had to deal with this too. I really need to get my license sorted out so I don’t have to worry about public transport anymore.
Paige: A shuttle bus is a brilliant idea. I’d only thought as far as the different hospitals having the information and perhaps a map to show where the other hospitals are. Your idea is much better 😀
John: Yes, a list would be great, I might have to make one myself. My mum mentioned the clinics to me too but I’d never heard of them, I’ll have to look into that.
Marci: I’m surprised at that, my experience of the couple of American hospitals I saw in Lubbock was that they were light years ahead of ours. I remember visiting a teenager in Lubbock and her room was more like a hotel suite! Sorry you were left in pain like that, but I agree, I’d much rather it be me going through it than Eve.
and daaaa-daaaaah the good news is … we’ve voted them all back on for another 5 years !
Unfortunately, it is not only children who are affected by these ‘specialisation’ limits. My son attended the A & E at Loughlinstown Hospital, as an emergency patient from Wicklow, with a sliced open arm and shrapnel in his eye (don’t ask). They stitched his arm but refused to deal with his eye, which also required stitching.
They insisted he go to the Royal Victoria but declined to let him use an ambulance. It was now the middle of the night so he had no option but to get a taxi. He is 20, but if he had no money available from the cash machine, how could he have managed? He did not want to wake me as I was in the middle of exams, and anyway, we have no car.
When he enquired at Loughlinstown whether he could leave it to the next day, they suggested that if he valued his sight, he should not delay, which made him think he might go blind. He said they did nothing to reassure him and refused to answer his questions.
Welcome to the world of Irish medicine!
There’s a VHI Swift Care clinic in Dundrum – right at the Balally Luas stop. They can do minor emergencies – like simple cuts that need stiches, sprains, illnesses that a GP could treat (like severe tonsilities) but the office is closed. I am 99% certain that they treat children. I know it’s not that convenient to where you live, but it’s at least reachable on public transport without touring half of Dublin.
Sorry to hear of Eve’s recent illnesses and distresses. Hope she’s well now.
[…] all and it was pretty hectic. Not many chances to relax…ie take photos. We may have another trip to the emergency room looming so this photo is my little calm before the […]