Do you need to carry a epipen.

[For want of a better word]

Just spoke to a good friend who is a paramedic with Devon NHS Ambulance service... he rides a BMW motorbike quick responce.......................
He said
YES AND YES and said that anaphalatic shock was not a common medical problem and had only seen one case in 20 years of service


Said you lot have been watching too many Bee Horror Moovies.... JAWS syndrome!!

 

[For want of a better word]

You've made a good start

Nothing like a bit of humour.......................................................................................
and that was nothing like a bit of humour!!!

 

[Hivemaker.]

MrMicawber.

It is very serious stuff and is strictly for the treatment of anaphylactic shock, NOT anaphylaxsis on it's own.

What utter crap

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anaphylaxis

 

[MODNOD]

http://www.anaphylaxis.org.uk/information/basic-facts.aspx

 

[drstitson]

epipen

The key thing is that the prescribing doctor believes that the patient needs the epipen AND that BY DEFINITION said patient is aware of the symptoms that indicate use is required.

If patient doesn't know what anaphylaxis (or as near as dammit ie a severe allergic reaction) feels like then there is no indication to prescribe.

BTW here is an info sheet that one doctor has made up for his patients - seems sensible apart from the line about advising A&E staff against iv administration - adrenaline IS given iv in resus/arrest/hopsital setting.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

I carry one as insurance !

John - did you get yours from a GP or hospital?

 

[victor meldrew]

John - did you get yours from a GP or hospital?

GP after explaining my well above average exposure to stings and the reported sudden onset of anaphylaxis amongst presumed immune beekeepers.

Unless I've missed it , nothing's been mentioned on this thread about the effects of ibuferin and other medications on peoples immunity systems !

John Wilkinson

 

[drex]

"it may take for ever explaining to the civilian 999 call centre that the emergency is real!!!! "BeeSting? Er! this is an emergency number ,here's the address of the nearest walk in centre Etc, etc, etc."


It takes me back 30 years when I was working in casualty. At 3 in the morning a lady walks in, in her ball gown and a man in his DJ. She saw my mate on duty with me with her bee sting, he walked her to the front of the department and said "read the sign". The lady read the sign " accident and Emergency " out loud, to which my mate replied "exactly- accident and emergency, this is neither, it is an act of god now b****r off"

Would that be allowed now?

Anaphylaxis is rare. In 35 years in medicine I have seen one true case. The lady was literally carried in, vital signs horrendous. I gave her one shot of adrenaline ( no epipens in those days) and 30 mins later she was virtually OK and able to walk out.

Thanks for the fun, allowing an old man to reminisce.

If you feel happier having an epipen with you, ask your GP if they will prescribe ( it is up to them). It is then up to you, if and when you use it. I have one in my bee shed.

 

[drstitson]

"after explaining my well above average exposure to stings and the reported sudden onset of anaphylaxis amongst presumed immune beekeepers."

number of exposures has no relation to developing anaphylaxis if not allergic. Think about it - how does desensitisation work (NB they have resus and adrenaline available).

if allergic however, the more often you exposure yourself to risk the more likely it is to occur.

if allergic to nuts don't eat nuts.
if allergic to bees don't keep bees

 

[victor meldrew]

"after explaining my well above average exposure to stings and the reported sudden onset of anaphylaxis amongst presumed immune beekeepers."

number of exposures has no relation to developing anaphylaxis if not allergic. Think about it - how does desensitisation work (NB they have resus and adrenaline available).

if allergic however, the more often you exposure yourself to risk the more likely it is to occur.

if allergic to nuts don't eat nuts.
if allergic to bees don't keep bees

I know full well that number of exposures has little to do with increase of allergy !!.
You've entirely missed the point ,which was being in a position where the odds on being stung were elevated above the likelyhood of Johnny public being so !.
I have driven vehicles for over 50 years , half of the time seatbelts weren't even fitted to vehicles. I have had my kids bouncing about the car as kids will .
I once had a series 3 landrover , which often had a pile of my grandkids in the back , being pitched all over the place (accompanied by squeals and giggles!).
None of them came to any harm whatsoever !.
Now there are strict laws regarding seat belts and kids in particular (airbag deployment).
Are you suggesting that carrying an epipen is somehow less 'macho' than wearing a seat belt ?
Don't forget ,there are fatalities caused by the fact that the victim was wearing such a belt .
The point again is all about reducing the risk, plain and simple !.

John Wilkinson

 

[Erichalfbee]

My grandson was stung by jellyfish while he was on hols with his other GPs.
He had an anaphylactic reaction and is alive only for the immediate action of a medic on scene. He is 7 years old and has "helped" me with the bees this year.
I have organised tests to see if he is allergic to bee stings (NHS is being very slow). Till then he is banned from the apiary ( I know it's winter but the same would apply in the summer).
If he IS allergic he will be banned permanently.
Allergic to bees........... no beekeeping. EVER.

 

[hedgerow pete]

over the years i have meet and worked with several people with epi pens and bee hives, both wore full bee suit and leather gloves not plastic's.

that was many years ago just becausde you should not does not mean that you have to. if doctors were any good they would have cured pestalance by now so , sorry but i dont hold doctors in high regard, a vet does severn years training and doctors do five, so it does make you wonder!!


as several other have said , i personaly have the four day saint john first aid i have also done the childs first aid course and the one day epi pen course to .

one of the main and biggest questions i ask all my new bees if they have been stung by a bee for the exact reason as i want to know if they know if they are reactive to bee stings,( bit confusing that sorry bad grammer) .

I am lucky enough to be strong enough and slightly trained so when we do the bee sting test , yes i do . do a bee sting test to all my newbees, i can at least get them away from the hives and get them into the shock position whilst awaiting the ambalance to arrrive to cart them off.

 

[user 2776]

I think you'll find that a doctor does a lot more training than the 5 years for basic medical degree! They even do a couple of days of first aid too sometimes.

Vets - well they have to deal with many different types of dumb animals - doctors have only one type to deal with ....

 

[fredbloggs]

I have experienced an excruciatingly bad shock today. I have bought 40 litres of petrol and paid £1.23 per litre . Would it help if my GP gave me an Epi pen?

 

[Dishmop]

I have experienced an excruciatingly bad shock today. I have bought 40 litres of petrol and paid £1.23 per litre . Would it help if my GP gave me an Epi pen?

Too small for syphoning petrol....

 

[Gardenbees]

This Forum always has quite a few threads concentrating on picky semantics, but there really is a difference between describing something as anaphylaxis, a term which encompasses all the symptoms of a whole-body allergic reaction, and "anaphylactic shock", which is simply the medical term for shock - i.e. severe drop in blood pressure, collapse in blood circulation, and associated dangers - which has anaphylaxis as its cause. It is this which responds to Epipen injections, without which someone can literally suffocate within minutes. It's very rare, but I don't think we should criticise people for not wanting to take the risk.

What would be helpful is more education about exactly what to expect from a bee sting - including the symptoms of a bad reaction, which can be VERY alarming even when not technically anaphylaxis or shock. Beekeeping literature is often a bit coy on the subject. I've always been rather careless about stings, because I've had quite a few over the years and they don't really affect me much. Even so, I've had the occasional "bad sting" which had a lot more effect than most, and I've seen a fellow beek have an incredibly fast swelling reaction which was quite unexpected and made them feel ill for a while. They had a cold at the time, which may explain their body's excessive reaction. It wasn't anaphylaxis and they weren't suffering from shock, but they now carry an Epipen and I'm not blaming them for that decision. However, in their place I probably wouldn't get one as the likelihood of truly needing one is so low and there are risks involved. Each to their own choice I suppose...

PS - fredbloggs you need to ask your GP for either antidepressants or painkillers I reckon! Or a length of siphon tubing and a large funnel (every good surgery has one I'm sure!)

 

[Dishmop]

I think a main point of recognition of what might be happening to somebody is knowing if they had been stung by a bee or wasp......

If I saw somebody writhing on the floor near my house would I know if they had gone into shock because of a bee sting or having an epileptic fit, or a heart attack? NO.
however, if I had been in their presence when they shouted out "oh f***!" and grasped a part of their anatomy I think I would be correct in assuming they'd been stung... or shot....

 

[fredbloggs]

I wouldn't want to seem picky - but why are the previous two posts timed at being around the 4.30 mark when the actual time i am viewing them is just after 4

just had the question answered. screen refreshed when i renewed the login and the times changed ? honest they did??

regards Fred

must take more water with it!

 

[Black Comb]

My computer shows them at 3.28 and 3.38.

Your computer is getting ahead of itself.

 

[Dishmop]

My computer shows them at 3.28 and 3.38.

Your computer is getting ahead of itself.

Snap...


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