On Saturday, December 13, I called the on-call doctor to see my 15-month-old daughter, who had woken up with conjunctivitis, to ask their advice, as to whether she needed to see a doctor or would I be able to buy over-the-counter goods.
I also informed them that my daughter had a sickness and diarrhoea bug that meant I wasn't comfortable taking her to Tenby Cottage, but would if deemed necessary. The on-call nurse said they would get a doctor to call me; as my daughter was under the age of two, I was unable to obtain eye medication over the counter, and I may have to wait an hour.
Not 20 minutes later, the on-call doctor was at my door. As he'd been in the area, he felt he'd rather look at her and as close, would call before going back to Tenby.
Before examining her, he told us that we were fortunate to see him because as from January 4 there would be no on-call doctor based at Tenby; that it would be South Pembs, or Withybush. That patients would, therefore, need to travel further to see a doctor or wait for longer times as on-call doctors would be required to cover larger areas.
Now, as a mum of two young children, I find this extremely worrying, and God forbid us requiring the services of an on-call doctor throughout the summer when the area's population swells immensely.
There is also the thought about how rural parts of our Pembrokeshire are, and how long would it take doctors to get from call to call if a South Pembs. doctor was required in Amroth for instance?
Is it down to costs, because I think the removal of the Tenby doctor will cost them a lot more, over time, than it will be to keep them.
Surely the stress involved for the doctor on-call will be greater as well, and in their job when it can sometimes mean their observations are the difference between life and death, do they need extra stress? Would there be the pressure to perform quicker examinations as there are more patients waiting to be seen, and over further afield than before?
I seriously feel that we will not be reading the last of this, and it won't be the last we read of serious error of judgements made by such professionals due to the pressure under which they are asked to work as a result of such cut-backs.
A very concerned parent.