Thanks everyone for your advice yesterday. It’s been a learning curve & I will be able to navigate better next time.
I went to A & E first thing & in triage the nurse said it’s sounds like you have flu. So she did a nasal swab. She asked me to wear a mask & I said oh I’ve done a Covid test. She said there were other immuno suppressed patients & if I didn’t want to wear a mask I could go & wait outside. She said my temperature had come down a bit but didn’t say what too but said that she couldn’t understand why my GP hadn’t arranged admission with a temp of 38.6. She called a bed manager then said your GP hasn’t even done a referral. I had bloods taken. After about an hour I was called back in to see her. She said right the results back & it’s Flu so you don’t need to be here. She said my CRP was 30 something. She said I’m sending you to see a GP who may give you anti virals. End of. So I was taken along a few corridors to a waiting room to see this GP. She looked through my notes & said if you had come here yesterday I would have admitted you immediately with a temp of 38.6. She read more than I asked about the anti virals the nurse mentioned. She said which nurse? I didn’t know just the last one I saw. She said it wasn’t something they would give & couldn’t see who had suggested it on the screen. She said she now felt under pressure to give me Tami flu tablets otherwise she could be accused of withholding treatment She then asked about my X Ray. I said oh I have a form from my GP to get one done this morning. She looked confused & said. Havnt A & E just done one. I said no. She said well it’s written on your care plan, they must have forgotten!! She then listened to my chest which was when I realised that no one in A & E had!! She said there was Pneumonia in both lower lobes mostly at the right & told me to get the XRay at Outpatients before I went home.
I actually can’t believe what a shambles it’s been. I think as I had Flu there just wanted me out of there with little thought for me. I’m now concerned I may end up back there in the next day or 2.
Once home I looked on my NHS App. The form from 111 is very concerning non of it my symptoms but explains why the GP’s first word’s yesterday were so you’re struggling keeping food down. I will attempt to add a photo.
Yesterday my GP told me not to go to A & E as there was a 14 hour queue but it’s not what she’s written on the app.
Anyway home tucked up in bed keep your fingers crossed for me please. Thanks again.
Written by
Otto11
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
What a terrible ordeal you have been through. I would put in a complaint about that doctor yesterday, sending you home with a temperature of 38.6 you could have developed sepsis.
It’s probably not on the app because she is covering her mistake. It’s worrying that your symptoms were not even correct.
Thankfully you have been seen today, and got the right diagnosis and treatment.
Iam sorry to say but I think your right if you didn’t have flu you would probably of been admitted to a ward. I hope you still got the tami flu tablets.
If you don’t feel any better in a few days , just call an ambulance don’t even bother with your Gp.
Drink plenty of fluids, hot lemon & ginger and rest. Read a good book. 📘
Hope you start feeling better soon. Take care of yourself.
Thanks. I havnt got the tami flu tablets as the GP at hospital sent the prescription electronically to Boots who don’t have any stock. They are ordering some in. I’m still trying to get my head round the mess of it all.
You’re right, a total shambles. I don’t get how they can say you’ve got flu, which is viral (and how have they diagnosed flu anyway?) and at the same time tell you you’ve got double pneumonia! The GP said last night she’d have admitted you - so what’s changed???
CRP levels of 30+ indicate a significant infection. Did they take a sputum sample?
The rubbish written on the nhs app doesn’t surprise me. When I went to my local hospital, I was told I should be admitted but there were no beds, so I was sent home on oral antibiotics until a bed was free. But on the nhs app they’d written “patient refused admission”, a complete lie!
I’m hoping it’s strep pneumonia, then amoxicillin should work 🤞🤞🤞If you feel any worse though, please please dial 999
Thanks. I’ve had a day in bed yesterday sleeping mostly. They did a nasal swab in A & E ( bit like Covid one) which came back positive for flu. I didn’t know there was a swab test for flu. What had changed from the day before was that my temperature had come down by the time I was seen in A & E. my fault I would have been admitted had I gone sooner. No they didn’t take a sputum sample. They just wanted me gone. The GP in A & E is a new post apparently.
A discharge letter from A & E has been put on my GP record on nhs app. It just says. No need for this patient to be in A & E. Discharged. I feel so let down tbh.
I think you GP was quite wrong telling you not to go to AE "as there was a 14 hour queue.
I have been to busy A&E and the reception nurse admitted me after initial assessment at once on more than one occasion - Angina, Heart VT problems.
Point being had you been in any danger - You def would not have waited 14 hors, you would have been seen.
Another avenue - Urgent Care at hospital - They are really for none 'life threatening' but if he/she believed you to be in any danger, He/she would have sorted it.
As Issy22 said - It's important to drink lots of fluids - to make sure you stay hydrated.
Take care and do what is right for you, if you remain unwell or get worse.
Thanks Ern I understand what you mean now having been to A & E. but my GP should have explained that to me. She just said it’s a 24 hour wait they have asked if you are not critical then not to attend. Which is why she gave me blood from & X Ray form to go next day once they were open. It’s just a mess.
Hope you feel better soon Otto11 and the antibiotics help.
Sounds like absolute chaos, especially with the GP. I needed oral steroids when I had flu a few years ago. Go back to GP or A and E, or ring 999 if you need to.
It's quite incredible that you weren't admitted with the double pneumonia. Please keep an eye on your temperature and look after your stomach- especially if you have acid reflux - you definitely don't need the return of nausea because you most definitely need to keep up the fluids to avoid dehydration. Take your meds with a little food if you can to protect your tum.
Nutritious broths if there's someone to make them for you or quality the ready made ones. Chicken broth, the old fashioned way.
I do feel for you, very scary to have been mis-treated in this way whilst immunosupressed with double pneumonia. Your story has brought back a similar one of mine which has left me with a great fear of A&E. It's traumatic.
If you think that you're not much improved 2 days before the amoxicillin runs out then please contact gp for more, be sure to remind each person you speak to that youre immunosupressed with double pneumonia as they won'tautomatically look at your previous notes.
Thanks. I have been well & truly put off calling 111 or going to A & E in future. I just wish I had gone sooner then I would have had the I’ve anti biopics I needed. My GP should have sorted that but chose not to. 111 were useless writing down I had a sore throat & difficulty keeping food down. Nothing else. I told them I had a high temp & was immunosuppressed. She didn’t write that in her report.
I’m totally confused. Where did the flu diagnosis come from? In my experience pneumonia is diagnosed from an X-ray which they had forgotten to do 🤷🏻♀️. BTW I’m always sick when my temperature goes that high. It’s the body’s way of coping. It doesn’t want to waste energy on digesting food when there’s other more pressing issues. There’s a lot for you to process here. For the time being just concentrate on getting well. Plenty of fluid and rest. 💐
Thank you. I had a day in bed yesterday. I’m sleeping a lot. They did a nasal swab in A & E ( but like a Covid test) & when it came back it was positive for flu. It was the GP at A & E who listened to my chest after noticing I had not had an x Ray. She said she could tell I had Pneumonia from listening to my chest.
I just wish I had gone to A & E sooner. That’s hubby’s fault plus mine for not insisting.
Oh what a mess! Glad you finally got a diagnosis and hopefully you will slowly start to feel a bit better🤞. I have been so lucky when I've attended A&E in my local hospital. I can't imagine how hard that all must have been for you. ❤️xxx
It has been an absolute mess by everyone concerned. I feel very let down by my GP 111 & A & E who were not at all pleasant. The GP in A & E seemed pleasant but only seemed interested in showing me flow charts ( which I couldn’t read). The last 2 times I have had Pneumonia A & E were good & I was admitted from there. I had expected the same.
Just goes to show. Guess that's why there are so many differing views on everything. Maybe just down to who's on shift? I was very lucky each time. Everyone was efficient and kind including the consultant, the nurses, the man who took my Xrays and the lady who brought round sandwiches. Take care xxx
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
So....... how do you provide a sputum sample when you've nothing to cough up?
Follow up GP surgery 
Fun and games
Don't let your day go on without reading this first,no matter how busy you may be.
