"Poor treatment in A&E"

I had been sick, my heart was racing. I had coughed up something small and black with the sick on a detol wipe. I thought may have been an insect from the confirmed insect infestation by pest control services in my home, and the paramedics said it had legs. I recall that I didn't see any legs. They did an ECG on me and I noted my cardiac obs were okay and said to them that I did not want to waste their time but they insisted I went to A&E. They advised I should still go to A&E and get a cardiac work-up with troponin check. None of that happened apart from an ECG.

On arrival a doctor examined me. They pressed on my lower abdomen and I said ouch as they hurt me doing that action and they laughed. They did this another 4 times and laughed each time. I asked if they knew that I have 4 ovarian cysts? This is documented in my past medical history. They did not reply and walked off.

Thereafter they took me in a side room to see a nurse. The nurse and her  colleague insisted my arms were not blotchy, and said to me that my arms looked normal and I just thought they were blotchy, as if I was imagining it, which was not the case.  I told them that I have an insect infestation at home and because of this I had the insect bites on my arms. I told them that the red marks left were from bed bugs (as I had recalled seeing a programme on bed bugs in the past). The nurse squirmed. Pest control have confirmed evidence of bed bugs, carpet beetles and midges in my home.  The pharmacist advised me unfortunately the insect bite marks on my arms will probably not go away when I asked about this.

The nurse referred me to the mental health team and when they arrived at my flat I showed them the pest control report and the antihistamines and calamine lotion that the pharmacy had given me to stop the itching from the insect bites.

In retrospect, I felt the paramedics wasted my time when my obs were normal. The doctor behaved in a way which was the opposite to which they should have done with no duty of care and along with the nurse and their colleague have make me feel that I would not feel confident in using NHS 24 again after that experience.

I had a complete nervous breakdown last year and the nurses and staff were very good to me at Wishaw Hospital. I felt I had been labelled and stereotyped due to this admission at A&E and that the staff whom I met believed they could do anything they wanted to me and make the excuse for their inappropriate behaviour by suggesting that it was all in my head.

I would recommend that CCTV be used in the examination cubicles and examination rooms and think this would deter behaviour as above-mentioned and would save any other patients being treated in an inappropriate way with no duty of care.