Quaggie, so sorry to hear of your continued problems in getting professional help. Good luck when you see the GP; I think that will be very wise as they can't ignore a problem! All GPs' practices must have access to a team of district nurses as so many patients will not be able to get out of their own homes for medical treatments such as dressings changes.
I think part of the problem is the demarcation between different medical units, as a consequence of trying to run the NHS like a commercial business.
This was my recent experience. After the district nurse took off my dressing (including the steri strips), I had such an outpouring of fluid that I don't think the strips would have stayed on anyway. Outpourings occurred periodically. It was very difficult to make an appointment to go to the wound clinic at the hospital, as I kept getting an answer phone which asked me to leave a message so they could get back to me the following day. Breast cancer patients are all given the ward number too, and asked to contact the ward outside the wound clinic times, which are 9.00am - 4.00pm.
On more than one occasion I ended up going down to the ward. Junior doctors on duty all looked nervous, even although the ward deals mainly with breast cancer patients from far and wide. On one occasion after the ward sister had applied steri strips and a small dressing, I got home 30 mins later to find the whole lot had dislodged itself on account of the fluid still leaking!
Eventually the wound started smelling a bit nasty, although still apparently healthy. At first I blamed the builders working on a house roof up the road, although noticing that the aroma followed me around except when I went outside.
In desperation I phoned the ward, the clinic being apparently asleep. A reluctant sister agreed to see me. On arrival, I was greeted by a nervous junior doctor who very cheerfully recognised me, and a trainee doctor who announced immediately that he would be fully qualified in a couple of days time. I just managed not to pat him on the head and tell him that was fine.
The junior doctor phoned the surgeon on duty who happened to be the chief breast consultant and who gave me an appointment to attend his clinic the following day (a Wednesday). At the clinic, he called in another consultant surgeon, who gave me a place on his surgical list for the Friday. By the Saturday I was out again, having had the wound revised under general anaesthetic, pumped full of antibiotics, and having enjoyed more hospital toast.
Dealing with it within three days was pretty good. The surgeons seemed to be concerned that I had been left with no proper appointments to have the original wound checked. This time, the surgeon referred me to the wound clinic himself, so they had to give me an appointment.
The junior surgeon who discharged me on the Saturday repeated several time, 'Your wound has now be completely stitched up.' Previously there had been a little gap at one end through which tissue was trying to grow and couldn't heal, and through which the seroma had been draining itself.
Everything has been fine since then.
Subsequently, I've discovered that originally, the breast ward mentioned was intended to deal with seroma problems 24 hours, 7 days a week. All staff nurses were going to be trained in the procedures. Then Someone on High decreed that out patients should go to the wound clinic during clinic hours, and go to the ward only at evenings and week ends. Consequently, very few ward nurses have been trained to deal with seromas. The poor old patient is left being batted from one to the other like a ping pong ball.
And this hospital is a centre of excellence for cancer care!
The poor old crumbling NHS. I admire everyone who keeps working in her.
