"Treatment at hospital after presenting at ED"

I presented at Paraburdoo ED on Saturday recently after being bitten on my Rt hand by a large dog. 

Nurse on duty Anastasia did my obs, checked the wound and expressed that she thought it would need a plastics review and that I should be sent to Perth. 

She photographed the wound and sent it to Tom Price to Dr on duty who advised her to treat it as a skin tear clean with saline give a tetanus, start on antibiotics and come back in 3 days   

I managed to get to Perth Sunday night and presented at St John’s Midland who x-rayed to make sure no bones broken and no teeth fragments were in the wound and dressed it and referred to the plastics team at RPH the following morning. 

I was seen by the plastics surgeon who was concerned about the wound and indicated that it may need ? a possible skin graft. but praised the work that Anastasia did with steri strips pulling it together. 

Currently I am having daily dressings, repeat scripts for antibiotics, numbness across my middle finger and knuckle and only yesterday was told that they felt it was finally starting to look better but still daily dressings and reviews. 

I believe Anastasia was correct in the treatment that should have happened but it seemed she was shut down by the Dr. I believe I should have been taken to Tom Price and reviewed correctly and referred to a plastics team. As I also have type II diabetes this should have been taken in to more consideration. 

I am so thankful that she was on duty that afternoon she was amazing and I’m sure the outcome would have been different if she was able to have her professional opinion acknowledged. 

We live and work in these remote places so we need to have professional people who can make better decisions about our health and care   

If a person is attending the patient and has their view of treatment then I believe that should be given greater consideration than a doctor looking at a photograph in another town.

When I relayed the treatment information to the doctor at both Perth Hospitals I believe they were surprised by the lack of referrals and the follow up advice from the TP doctor but they also praised Anastasia.