"BCU treatment for cellulitis"

My husband and I returned from a coach holiday in Germany on Saturday Oct 12th 2013. On the following Monday and Tuesday he felt he might be starting flu. On the Wednesday evening as he went to bed at 11pm he noticed his left leg was bright red and swollen from the knee downwards. I took him straight to A&E where he was diagnosed with cellulitis given IV antibiotics and an anticoagulant in case he also had a deep veined thrombosis. It was decided that he could be treated in the Community Unit (BCU) with twice daily IV antibiotics rather than be admitted, so he was discharged home at 3am to come back at 11am to have a Doppler test for a DVT. This was inconclusive so he also needed daily anticoagulant injections .We returned at 9 pm to BCU which is staffed by a doctor and nurses for his evening antibiotics. There he was seen and assessed by another doctor who was the first one to ask if he had had a recent insect sting or bite. He had had one on his hand the previous Friday in Germany. He attended BCU twice a day for more IV antibiotic treatment and dressings to his leg for another 3 days then daily for another ? 8. At each attendance the same doctor reviewed and checked the slow but steady progress of the treatment,.and we felt all the staff and his management were brilliant. We got to know them and they knew us and we were made to feel welcome and that our treatment was important. We were offered home treatment but declined, valuing the chance for the expert hospital care without having to be admitted. It also gave my husband the chance to get out of the house each day despite his poor mobility due to his sore leg, and it was fortunate that I could manage the transport. He was eventually allowed to go on to oral antibiotics and discharged to our GP. His leg still is nt completely right but we are very grateful for the initial care received in A&E and BCU and would like to reassure others who may also need their care in this way. It was so much better than being admitted, but we felt he received the same standard of care as if he had been with the extra medical monitoring.