"Driving whilst in pain and vomiting - concerned daughter"

My mother was vomiting and had bad stomach cramps. Normally she likes to deal with things herself and will not call for a doctor unless things are extreme. She contacted the hospital to see if a doctor could come to her and was told to drive herself in. As she is 76, due for a knee replacement operation, was vomiting violently and bent over to nearly fainting point, I feel this sort of suggestion from a qualified doctor very upsetting and quite possibly very dangerous. Should she have taken this seriously and tried to drive herself in, the result would probably have been her fainting in the driving seat. I would like to suggest patients notes be consulted before doctors suggest they drive, and their age/condition be taken into account.