Scots cancer patient in excruciating pain told to 'sip water' by NHS24

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A Dumbarton cancer sufferer who called NHS24 in excruciating pain, with what was discovered to be a strangulated hernia, was told to sip water and call her doctor in the morning.

Theresa Toward, 56, who had surgery for colon cancer two years ago, opened up to the Lennox Herald about her ordeal last month - which she says left her unwilling to call NHS24 again.

Her situation quickly turned serious after she experienced crippling stomach pains at her Dumbarton waterfront home on December 21.

Theresa told the Lennox: “After my surgery I felt that something wasn’t right. I kept thinking I had hernias, but I was sent away and they’d tell me I didn’t have anything. “I had quite a big incisional hernia, and I went to the surgeon who examined it and said it felt quite lumpy. “He told me I had multiple holes in my abdomen from the surgery.“I went to him on December 21 to see how the hernia was going as it was causing me a lot of bother and pain.“He had a look and told me not to worry about it, and that I could come back and see him in six months.“That night however I started to get excruciating pains in my stomach that wouldn’t go away.”Theresa felt she needed to be seen by a doctor and phoned NHS24 - as per the current advice.However she was left shocked when a call-handler advised her to phone back the following morning.She continued: “I phoned up NHS24 and the woman kept me on the phone for about 25 minutes, questioning me.“I told her about the cancer, the hernia, the surgery.