Kerrianne Springford

Review of SA health

Teenage Daughter was badly sunburned on shoulders ...

Teenage Daughter was badly sunburned on shoulders on Australia Day, which didn t emerge until late at night. All indications - blistering, intense pain - showed this was 2nd degree and requiring Dr or ED - presented to Noarlunga around midnight to be told the wait was 3-4 hours. Around 2am nurse applied lidocaine gel to manage the pain. Finally seen 4:30am by dr who said it didn t look too bad or blistered - but the lidocaine gel was masking the mass of blistering on both shoulders! Sent us home with a bag of liquid paraffin samples to keep it moist - no dressing, no referral. Decided to take it to our family GP next day and had to wait til 3:30 appointment as surgeries are always very busy these days - which is why we turn to ED s if situation is after hours and serious! Nurse at GP clinic consults with Dr, who immediately refers us to burns unit at Flinders, texting images and referral and burns unit want to see her first thing next day - and admit her as soon as they examine. Had she been referred by the Noarlunga ED Dr when first seen, she would have been in time for a skin like dressing that would have remained on burn until the skin healed. Regardless, she required debridement under sedation and a silver dressing and a night in hospital.
This is not the first time we have been sent home from this ED - last time, a suspected fracture was sent home which ended up being diagnosed elsewhere as a fracture of the 5th metatarsal. Will not enrust this ED with my family again!