"Swift action from Health Visitor"

Our son was admitted to Ninewells Hospital on in mid Feb, aged 17 weeks.

I had taken him to our GP and NHS 24 out of hours (approx 11pm) a week before as I knew something wasn't quite right with him - he was unsettled, withdrawn and wasn't breastfeeding or sleeping as usual. 

When visually checked over by the GP and out of hours Dr, all my sons vital signs were normal. The GP thought the unsettled feeding could be due to trapped wind/reflux and prescribed infacol.  The out of hours Dr didn't add anything different to this diagnosis. At the GP and out of hours no further treatment took place - his weight wasn't checked and no blood tests or urine samples were taken. My son's condition didn't improve or deteriorate over the weekend. 

I called our health visitor team on the afternoon of a Monday mid Feb as I was now very concerned about my son, in particular him becoming dehydrated from not breastfeeding as usual. I got a call back from Irene quickly and a visit was arranged for 9.30 the following morning. 

Overnight my son's condition deteriorated - he was lethargic, crying, his skin was pale, he had cold feet and had dark circles under his eyes. 

Irene came and saw my son and I (she hadn't met us before). She calmly listened to the symptoms I described, asked relevant questions, visually checked my son over, watched him try to breastfeed and weighed him. my son had lost weight.

Before leaving our home Irene said she would contact our gp to see if my son could be seen asap then would call me back. Irene called me back quickly to confirm she had instead gone straight to the paediatric team at Ninewells. After hearing my son's symptoms paediatrics wanted me to bring him in asap. I headed straight down to Ninewells. 

Thanks to Irene's swift actions on that morning we arrived at Ninewells by 12. It turned out that time was of the essence in getting my son treated. Having never met us before Irene trusted my mothering instinct, and her own instincts, that something was wrong with my son and acted quickly to help us. We will be forever grateful to her. 

My son was triaged and admitted to the High Dependency Unit (HDU) for further monitoring and treatment. My son spent the next few days in HDU at Ninewells. 

My son was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection and low sodium levels and treated accordingly. 

Being able to stay in accommodation on site (in the Poppi Suite at Ninewells) was a massive help. This meant I could be with my son any time day or night, but also had a phone in my room with direct dial down to HDU to check in on his condition whilst getting some rest myself.

I cannot thank or praise the staff in HDU and on Ward 29 highly enough. The medical care my son received on day and nightshift was first class, but the staff also went above and beyond to comfort and assist me, my husband and family members through a stressful situation. 

Throughout his treatment the doctors and nurses calmly explained what was being done to help my son now, as well as next steps, in an ever changing scenario in HDU. They also took the time to repeat or discuss further any aspects we were unsure about. 

Irene kept in touch with me whilst my son was in hospital to check in on his progress, which was much appreciated. 

My son was moved from HDU to Ward 29 on a Friday, and was discharged on the following Monday. 

He will have follow up appointments at the end of March with paediatrics. My son is recovering well at home, thankfully bouncing back quickly to the cheery cheeky chappy we love.