Navigating A&E with a Chronic Illness

When you have a chronic illness like Crohn’s disease, you get to know your body in a different way. You learn to read the subtle signals and recognize when something is seriously wrong.

My recent trip to A&E was a reminder of the unique challenges this presents to patients with Crohnic illness – The people who want to be there less than the staff do!

I’m not asking for special treatment, but I do believe the current system for people with known chronic conditions needs to change.

The long waits are not just inconvenient—they can be dangerous and erode the very trust we place in our healthcare system.

The episode started with quick on set of chest and back pain so severe I was struggling to breathe.

Having dealt with bowel blockages before, I recognise the signs, but this was different. The pain was unusually high up and accompanied by a feeling of low blood pressure—something I’ve learned to sense through years of experience.

Following medical advice, I headed to A&E.
Upon arrival, I tried to give the staff all the critical information they needed:

• My diagnosis: Crohn’s disease.
• My suspected issue: A bowel blockage.
• My history: A previous perforation and sepsis
• My current symptoms: Severe chest pain, back pain, a temperature, and difficulty breathing.

I hoped that by providing this context, I would be fast-tracked to the right person. I didn’t need to be asked if I had a cold or a sprained ankle. I needed someone who understood the gravity of my medical history to assess my situation.

Instead, I sit and wait. For over an hour, I sat writhing in pain, fighting off a panic attack that only intensified the chest pains, all while waiting for triage.

My frustration grew with every minute. Triage felt unnecessary; I had already given them my diagnosis and the suspected cause of my pain. What I needed was to see a gastroenterologist or a surgeon—someone who could quickly determine the severity of my condition and act on it or tell me what to do!

I still haven’t actually spoken to a person. No one has looked at/listened to or showed any concern to my chest.

Thankfully, the nurse I had left a message for earlier called with a bed on the ward, effectively “skipping” the triage process that still hadnt started.

I finally had the blood tests, ECG, and CT scans I desperately needed. But by then, four and a half hours had passed since I walked through the door.

Four and a half hours that felt like a lifetime.

This experience highlights a serious flaw in the system.

As someone with a chronic illness and a history of serious complications, I’m often a “worst-case scenario” patient. The standard A&E protocol—designed to handle everything from broken bones to minor cuts—isn’t equipped to deal with the nuance of chronic conditions.

We need a system that recognises a diagnosis on arrival and connects patients with the right specialists immediately. This isn’t about getting to the front of the line; it’s about getting the right care at the right time.

This was yesterday, I’m home now after my blockage cleared and with antibiotics for an infection.

Have you had a similar experience navigating the healthcare system with a chronic illness?