I WAS LOSING MY BABY, BUT SENT HOME AND TOLD TO TAKE A PAINKILLER
MUM SUFFERING A MISCARRIAGE WAS SENT HOME FROM LRI WITHOUT BEING ALLOWED TO ACCESS A&E
A MUM going through a miscarriage claims she was turned away from A&E at Leicester Royal Infirmary and told to go home and take paracetamol, writes Amy Orton.
The 26-year-old woman was 10 weeks pregnant when she began bleeding and experiencing stomach pain.
On arrival at the LRI, she was seen by a clinician from a private firm, DHU Health Care, which assesses patients before they can gain access the A&E department.
The mum, from Braunstone, said she was in and out in five minutes, with no checks carried out, and was told she would not be admitted to A&E and advised to go home.
After her miscarriage, she complained to DHU Health Care about the “appalling” way she had been treated.
A MUM going through a miscarriage says she was let down by the NHS when she visited a hospital in search of help - and was told to go home and take a painkiller.
The 26-year-old woman was 10 weeks pregnant when she began bleeding and to experience stomach pain.
After consulting the NHS website for guidance, she headed to the A&E department at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
On arrival, she was seen by a clinician from a healthcare firm as part of the NHS 111 First initiative, which assesses - or triages - patients before they can gain access the emergency department.
The clinician, from DHU Health Care, told her she would not be admitted to A&E and advised her to go home.
The mum, who lives in the Braunstone area and has a two-year-old son, said: “I was scared and in pain. I was so worried about losing my baby.”
Her ordeal happened in September last year and she spoke to the Mercury this week after receiving a response to her complaint over the private firm’s handling of her case.
She said: “I went to A&E and was seen in a room outside. I was in and out in five minutes with no checks, no blood pressure, no scan offered.
“I just wanted to know what was happening and if my baby was okay.
“I was just told there was nothing they could do and that I should call my midwife the next day.”
After her miscarriage, the mum complained to DHU Health Care about the care she had received.
“I was appalled at the way I’d been treated. I was losing my unborn child and was told that I should go home and take paracetamol.
“I wasn’t offered any kind of checks or a scan and, at that time, I didn’t even realise I’d not been seen by a hospital doctor and was instead seen before I got to proper A&E.
“All I wanted to know was what was happening and instead was told there’d be nothing that could be done.”
After making her complaint, the woman says she is not satisfied with DHU Health Care’s response.
“They’ve admitted they should have referred me but not apologised and, in the same letter, said I wasn’t in pain or bleeding heavily, which I was and I told them that I was,” she said.
“It worries me that other people might have had similar experiences and I don’t really feel confident going back again,” she said.
NHS 111 First is a national initiative designed to reduce waiting times and ensure patients are treated by the most appropriate area of the NHS for their condition.
A spokesman for DHU Health Care said: “DHU Health Care takes all complaints very seriously.
“We are sorry that the patient was not happy with our initial response and the complaint has been reviewed by our medical director and further response provided.
“We do want to make sure that the patient is satisfied and are happy to meet with her, if that would help.
“If she prefers not to pursue the matter with DHU, we have provided details of how she can take her complaint further through the Health Service Ombudsman.”