Topic: Follow up treatment after op
Follow up treatment after op
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 01:13PM
dave
My girlfriend had a LD with recon recently and was released from hosptital two weeks ago.
Since leaving hospital she is convalesing with her mother who stays in a different town. This is causing major problems with getting doctor app etc.
She has recieved no after care at all, no appointments, no nurse visits and is feeling a bit out on a limb.
The hospital have been good in offering advice however it is round trip of 50 miles and she is not really in the best of condition for sitting in a car.
My question is "is this normal?" It seems strange that after such major surgery there is nothing in place to assit in post op care.
If anyone has any advice or info it would gratefully recieved.
Thank you
Dave
aftercare
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 06:27PM
phoebe
Probably the system has failed because she is not back at home. The hospital should have contacted her GP surgery who would then institute after-care. I suggest her mother goes to her GP and asks him/her to contact her daughter's GP. Also to ask for a district nurse to visit and see her daughter.They must be persistent and insistent. Communication is one of the NHS's worst aspects.
Follow-up treatment
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 07:32PM
cazw
Hi Dave,
I agree with Phoebe. My after care seemed to happen automatically. The day after I got home from hospital, the district nurse (who is based at my local GP's practice) rang to say that she was coming to visit me! She only visited twice, just to check the dressings were OK. But she did say that she would willingly call round again if ever I felt the need.
I guess that your partner hasn't received the same treatment because she's not living where they thought she was. There must be systems in place with the NHS to deal with this scenario, it must be fairly common - when I was in hospital I met two other young women who were going away to convalesce at their parents homes (also many miles away).
I do hope that you or her mother are able to organise something for her. However, as time goes by, she will need less and less formal aftercare. Once the dressings are removed, there's not an awful lot that they need to do for you.
Regards,
Carol.
Hi Dave
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 07:42PM
JC
I found my aftercare very poor too. Please do as the ladies above say and contact her mother's surgery. Were you given a Breast Nurse telephone number to contact? If so, please phone her and tell her your problem. I am sure she will be able to help you. She may contact a breast cancer nurse in the correct district for you.
Joy x
(No Subject)
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 08:02PM
SEM
I too had an immediate LD recon.
I didn't receive any aftercare from my GP. I had to return to the hospital at pretty frequent intervals for the first few weeks and popped in a few extra times for my seroma draining after ringing the breast nurse.
The hospital is 25 miles away from where I live so about the same as for your girlfriend.
My breast nurse had also given me the number of the breast nurse at a more local hospital in case of emergencies. There isn't really anything a GP can do - apart from providing any necessary drugs.
I found car journeys more comfortable if I put the diagonal strap behind my back and only kept the lap part working. This way I managed 2 or 3 50 mile round trips a week for the first couple of weeks.
I got no after care
posted Tue, 08 Nov 2005 09:59PM
Molennium
even though my mother went down my doctor's surgery to get a district nurse to visit, no-one turned up. within five days I had an infection and was admitted back into hospital. After that I went daily for around 4 weeks to have my wound dressed at the hospital. Couldn't trust the local GP to sort anything out. They suggested I go to an ulcer clinic for old ladies but it was closed over christmas when I needed my wound dressed anyway.
Never again as far as I am concerned but I do live in an area with bad health care (inner city London).
Mole
Macmillan Cancer Relief
posted Wed, 09 Nov 2005 02:17PM
jp
have a system of local "branches" with their well-known and wonderful Macmillan nurses. The first thing that my GP did when I went to tell him I had been diagnosed by the local breast screening service (I knew it would take them about 3 weeks to send him the notification letter) was to refer me to the local outfit so, even before I started on chemotherapy, which was virtually forthwith, I was allocated a domiciliary Macmillan nurse. The system is very good; the allocated nurse has been able to advise about dressings and pain relief, etc. and seems to have a hot-line to the doctor, getting him to prescribe neeeded items while I was on chemotherapy so avoiding the need for me to haul into the surgery, etc. The team social worker has also been an excellent support. This connection network continues beyond treatment and is therefore far more helpful than the district nurse system.
The Macmillan helpline (0808 8082020) can tell you where they are established and how to get referred.