I am 70 years old, I have Parkinson’s & live alone. I also have Atrial Fibrillation that comes & goes.
Over the weekend my nose started to run, I had a slight headache & a troublesome cough. I took a couple of Paracetamol & went to bed.
So I get out of bed & it is like I am paralysed & my legs no longer work. I fall face forward into a pile of clothes. I lie there for a few hours. I decide I am very ill & need to get to my mobile phone which is by my flat’s sitting room window [the only place it works - no mobile reception elsewhere]. I walk like a drunk staggering from chair to chair, ending up on the floor. I grabbed my phone & I phoned for an ambulance. I am lying on my back unable to move an inch.
The ambulance receptionist annoyingly reads questions from a sheet. Hardly any of which are relevant. I end up phoning 3 times as no ambulance arrives, my A Fib has kicked in & is pounding away. I wonder if I might die.
I am left lying on the floor for 4-5 hours when the ambulance finally arrives. The excellent medics do some tests & find my heart beat rapid & I have a high temperature. So I am taken to hospital & put in a cubicle on a bed in A&E.
I told them I thought I might have covid as I feel so ill. They do a test & yes I do have covid & I am given 2 paracetamol.
I check out on my own volition later that day as I need to sleep & the hospital bed was so uncomfortable & other patients keep crying for help.
They were reluctant to let me go as I could hardly stand up as the covid had impacted my Parkinson’s.
In hindsight I needed a covid test given by the ambulance medics & put in my bed. It was a waist of time taking me to hospital.
Obviously if there had been no ambulance men call I could have died on my cold sitting room floor. I would still be lying there now.
There should be a two tear service … 1. An ambulance to take people to hospital & 2. a one man medic driving a car that would see people like me. Get me off the floor & into bed.
Who remembers the good old days when you called out your doctor ? That worked didn’t it.
I’m so sorry to hear that Steve2, it really is unacceptable.
I’m glad you are ok now.
Is there any way you can set something up, so that if it happens again, you can tended to straight away?
Oh the good old days. When a family gp actually new your family, nowadays we can barely get to talk to the trainees. Its usually a receptionist or the practice nurse. There are many different personal alarms and falls systems out there, local authorities have all the details. They are around £25 to £30 a month to have 24hour monitoring, however i think its just an alert system, they can call out a family member or ambulance. Its definately not easy for those who live alone. Very few people have neighbours who check in on each other. Im equally nostalgic for aspects of the 60s and 70s. Hope you continue to recover well steve
In hindsight the ambulance medics should have had a Covid test onboard. The first
thing I said when they asked what was wrong was “I might have Covid”, They put on masks & took my temperature which was high.
The hospital did a Covid test immediately which was positive. I wasn’t segregated just given 2 Paracetamol. They did do BP tests & an ECG.
It was now around 7am … 8 hours after I first called the ambulance. I now felt ill but a lot better than I did. But I could barely stand up {Parkinsons} & certainly could not move at all.
It was obvious nothing else much was going to happen on the Covid front. They did get a lad from their physiotherapy unit to come & see me & suggested zimmers & walkers etc & 4 pronged walking sticks. But I declined. I had my own walking stick.
I said I wanted to go home & they got me a taxi which I did not have to pay for.
I have certainly recovered a lot but not up to doing anything.
These alarms are only going to call an ambulance so I’m no better off. Plus the cost that I can’t really afford.
It is a shame the NHS don’t operate a one medic in a car service. In hindsight I did not need to go to hospital but I clearly could not get off the floor on my own.
Normally I have no problem getting off the floor, I am not heavy & I am fairly strong for my age.
What amused me was that the medics told me I was either classified as a C1 or C2
patient. Clearly down the list urgency wise. After my 3rd 999 phone call I did get ugraded a slot to C1 or C2.
Clearly the 999 receptionist was reading from a script & scoring my answers. Then I got my low risk rating.
I was somewhere between twisted ankle & bad sunburn.
