My Dad is 96 and has had progressive lung disease for many years. He's a non-smoker and I always wondered about the cause. On 16 October this year he was referred to a respiratory consultant for the first time. She took a detailed work history (again, the first one to do so) and we realised just how much he had worked closely with asbestos. His scans are consistent with asbestosis.
Any advice please on what, if anything, I can do about what I see as negligence in GP care? I am trying not to be too angry.😔
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tchouli
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Hi, I do understand your upset and anger that your father hasn't had decent care & referral. You could try PALS for starters, it's the only thing I can think of. Ì'll try to remember the name of a wonderful member we had years ago who had a legal case going on for contracting mesothelioma from asbestos in the work place. If you have LPA - Lasting Power of Attorney - you should be able to access his medical notes.I'll check , if I find him I shall add his name so you can look at his old posts (if they're still here under his name) and add it to my reply. Good luck to your father with the consultant.
Whilst looking for the member I mentioned (after putting ' asbestos ' in the search bar) I came across a reminder of how toxic talcum powder used to be. In the past talc was used liberally by everyone including on babies ! I also recall the worn insert of asbestos on mums ironing board, it was flaking so ideal for picking at. Asbestos was just everywhere. I know that doesn't take away the negligence of not referring your father years ago. I'm still looking ..... P
Plumbob ! Thats the member who had his legal battle - and won! Took years but as he said then, he was doing it for his family. Best, P
I have recently lost my closest friend to mesothelioma. The asbestos support group gave her a lot of help. They will advise on dealing with the doctors getting a proper diagnosis benefits and compensation. Unfortunately nobody was able to pin down where my friend was exposed to asbestos but it sounds as though your father will be able to identify the source. Good luck
Hello Littlepom. I am so sorry you have lost your friend. Thank you for reassuring me about the help we might get from the asbestos support group. I am already in touch with them and the signs are positive. There is no doubt about the main source of exposure for Dad and it is a large corporation. You must miss your friend. It is good that you remember her. 🤗
Thankyou. She died in July on the day that I left hospital after 12 wks and not being expected to survive myself. Thank goodness for whats app. We talked on it until a couple of days before she died - she in the hospice, me in hospital. I do miss her so much.
My friend who was 64 had worked with asbestos for a week aged 18 and was diagnosed with mesothelioma 4yrs ago after all that elapsed time so it had lain dormant for years before it surfaced and was picked up .I do hope you get a resolution for your dad.
Hi, I have asbestosis,pleural thickening. I worked with it for an hour in 1979, developing storage heaters, and was found to have asbestosis in 2000. I got pneumonia and didn’t respond to treatment; a camera check, on my lungs confirmed the disease. A government doctor in Bangor watched my development and confirmed the diagnosis and the outcome. I had bused a development material, using a mask, but the new processed material was fine powder rather than fibres. The manufacturer accepted liability and paid money to the government to be issued to me as a monthly benefit , via the Industrial Injuries Scheme. I still receive it, 20 years later, and has proved a godsend. I did not have to take the case to court.
I receive regular supplies of oxygen delivered at home, have machines when I am indoors and portable cylinders when out. I lead a pretty normal life for an 82 year old! I would investigate whether this might be an alternative approach, via the benefits system rather than the courts.
Let me know if there is any other way I can help you.
I don't blame you being angry at all. This should already have been discovered by asking his past history of work and what he used to do. GPs and NHS are hard to complain about (believe me I know) but surely there could be something they could do to put your mind at rest nothing was missed. You could put it in writing to the surgery to see if they offer you a meeting with them. I am really sorry it was missed and hope you get some answers for him 👍
I think you need to sue your dad's company for negligence. By 1987 they must have known that working with asbestos required protective clothing. Best wishes to you and your dad.
Hi, at 96 years of age I think he must have had good care from his GP. My brother-in-law was diagnosed with mesothelioma, i.e. cancer caused by asbestos. You do not say if this is the case with your dad. Unless I`m mistaken it requires an x-ray to show this up. If that is the case, i.e. cancer, then the GP should refer you to the relevant people in Social Services to put a full care package in place. Solicitors, to make claims for industrial injuries, Mcmillan nurses for ongoing care. In my brother-in-law`s case, all these initial appointments were made within a week. Claims against former employer went ahead with little involvement by him and payment for damages made within a year. Best of luck, Chris.
bless you, you can make a claim if you check online. It’s a horrible disease, my father worked with it and I was exposed to it by washing his overalls but I have pleural effusion and they won’t do biopsy’s because samples of the fluid they removed was clear of malignancy but it still makes you worry.
Contact the solicitors who deal with this disease and fight
I sympathise with your dad's situation and think if making a claim doesn't upset him or involve him really then go ahead. If the latter - well he is 96 and probably, based on my own parents, wouldn't want these hassles anyway at his age.
Thank you Hypercat. I will claim Industrial Injuries Benefit for him as this will help offset the cost of his care (he still lives at home). I was really looking to see whether anyone here had had similar issues with a GP not even taking a work history from someone who has been suffering from breathlessness for so long. Not to make any claim on them, just to see whether raising it has done any good, perhaps for future patients.
I am so sorry to hear about your Father. I have added a link below you may find helpful. The support groups can offer advice on pursuing a legal claim for his asbestosis, and as always if you would like to speak to one of our Clinical Team for advice on his condition, you can call us at the helpline
As someone who worked with asbestos for many years and as a result i have asbestosis and pleural plaques. Fortunately it has not resulted in mesothelioma. I would strongly suggest that you contact a firm of solicitors who have experience in asbestos claims with a view to claiming compensation, to aid this claim it would be helpful if you could document a list of the employers that he worked for, along with dates, and nature of work he carried out
Thank you. I am very sorry you are unwell. The respiratory consultant Dad saw last week took a very detailed history from Dad that uncovered a level of contact with asbestos that shocked me. He also does not have mesothelioma but is now very affected by asbestosis. The Asbestos Victim Support Group are being very helpful regarding compensation claims.
I’m not sure how your GP can diagnose asbestosis unless you told him your father was exposed to asbestos in his working life and as far as I am aware there is not a lot that can be done for someone who has that condition.
I must say your father has lived a very long life despite his health condition…I certainly don’t think I will live anywhere near as long.
I work in the legal field and you should be suing the company he worked for, for negligence. I once worked in the legal department of a plc which had a class action law suit against them from employees from years back who had been exposed to asbestos …the company would normally settle with each claimant after putting up some resistance for a reasonable sum. Perhaps you should consider that route. If you don’t have the know how to sue yourself you can contact a firm of solicitors who will be able to help on a no win no fee basis.
Thank you JulyAugust. I am sorry you are unwell. Yes, my father has lived a long life, but it can take up to 40 years for asbestosis symptoms to arise and this would fit with Dad's health over the past 18 years. He began to experience breathlessness in 2005. The NICE guidelines are that where patients present with breathlessness with no obvious cause (not a smoker) a detailed history should be taken to rule out causes like exposure to asbestos. This was never done. I am in touch with Asbestosis Victim Support and they are advising me on compensation. They are very helpful.
Hi I’m 86 and have I asbestos plaques I didn’t find out until I was 78 after I had a triple heart bypass when I had a scan. My very first day at work as an apprentice I passed a tub of asbestos being mixed with water by pipe laggers at a new bakery site . Asbestos was used everywhere even in Artex used for ceiling decoration. The authorities knew it was a killer by the number of African miners who died because of it., but there was no alternative to asbestos then.
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