"Intraabdominal bleed"

My child was brought in by ambulance following a syncope episode at home post laparoscopic surgery 2 weeks prior. The emergency department provided the initial assessment and then my child got transferred to the surgical ward for monitoring prior to another surgery as it was discovered my child had a significant intraabdominal bleed of over 1.2 litres, with a drop in their haemoglobin which was causing them to be lightheaded, dizzy and in significant pain and distress.

On warding the nurse asked my child if they could stand up to transfer to their bed on which the ED nurse said yes. I interjected and said no as my child has had 3x syncope episodes and was a falls risk. They then asked if my child could "shuffle" to their bed from the ED trolley, to which i said no as my child was in a large amount of pain and advised transferring with a PATS slide which they did with nil issues. 

During the admission process over the next hour, my child was very distressed and struggling with the increasing pain in their abdomen and chest due to large amount of blood in their abdomen pressing their diaphragm. I asked the nursing staff for more analgesia and to escalate our concerns regarding my child's increasing pain and noticeable rigid, distended abdomen and inability to pass urine despite having a full bladder that was palpable.  I recall I was met with eye rolls by some of the nursing staff who were sat in the office on their phones but eventually they came to administer analgesia and reassure myself and my child that they had called the Dr for a review of their analgesia and their clinical condition.  My child looked at me and said I'm not making this up; it's not cause I'm anxious something is wrong. I reassured them that I agreed with them and that i would ensure that we were listened to. I spoke to the nurse coordinating the shift and relayed my concerns who appeared to understand my concerns.

The nurses handed over to the next shift and thankfully we had a very competent and diligent nurse who provided my child with compassionate nursing care and advocated for them. The Dr then reviewed my child and spoke with their Senior and explained why my child was experiencing such increased pain and reviewed their analgesia which settled their pain to an acceptable level. I then was told visiting times are over and had to leave but my child was worried that they wouldn't be listened to. The night nurse was wonderful with my child overnight providing reassuring and comprehensive care which both my child and I were thankful for. 

My child finished up with over a litre of blood removed from their abdomen, a drain, a catheter and also a blood transfusion when i returned in the morning after having a fretful night's sleep and calling the ward twice to check on my child's condition. The morning nurse in charge of my child's care was also wonderful and supportive and clearly very competent also. 

Overall, the care provided was good in both the ED and ward setting. However, I wanted to remind those staff members that everyone's pain is different, and we shouldn't judge patients for their perception of pain. That as nurses we should provide compassionate care and listen to patients or their families when they raise concerns without making them feel they are just overreacting or making a fuss. Every patient and their families should feel reassured and that their loved ones are in safe hands. We shouldn't assume that the patient or their families understand what is happening in regard to their care and they should always be involved in their plan of care and decision-making process. 

Thankyou .

Please pass on my thanks to the wonderful ED nurse who cared for my child and the 2 staff on the surgical ward.