I need to set up a GoFundMe page for my lad on Turkish holiday.

Well, I dont (hopefully!) but read on.

Son, partner and his 2 boys are in Turkey for 10 days. His smallest is only a few months old.

Particularly after that recent thread I made sure my lad got insurance and emphasised the young kids element of it to him.

Over here in the UK, their baby has been to A&E for suspected “reflux”. Suspected but not diagnosed. Last night he started having breathing issues and coughing, same symptoms as he’s had over here on his A&E visits.

So…Ambulance to (private) hospital in turkey. Baby’s passport taken as soon as they arrive and £1,100 paid. Nice.

He’s had some minor treatment (thankfully) and he’s on saline now and should be discharged tomorrow morning. He’s back to normal now. Phew!😁

I’ve read online reviews of hospital, lots of tourist ones, and they aren’t great, motor about financial issue but you know, people mostly only bother reviewing after a bad experiences

My son has only just read the small print (😐) and he should have declared any treatment his baby has had, however minor, diagnosed condition or not. Oops…

So, they have been told he should be discharged tomorrow and the £1,100 covers them till then. I’m cynical at a genetic level so I suspect they’re still be money added on, or something will “come up” and they will want the baby in for longer. We shall see.

My conclusions? My lad should have read the small print and declared the reflux.

But… It might not have helped anyway as apparently, many insurance companies wont cover you if you end up in a private hospital in Turkey so the reflux declaration might have been moot anyway.

Lastly, God bless the NHS. Seriously, we are so goddamned lucky in the UK.

(A fly in the ointment of all this is after booking this holiday with my financial assistance… They were hit with a no fault eviction so if they are hit with much more, financially, it’s going to be problematic moving into the new place they’ve just about managed to get. The rental market is mad down here. )

Ah well. Check the small print guys. Hopefully my lad has learnt an important lesson anyway. 😉

Yikes that sounds worrying. Glad it sounds like the little one has settled.

We are very lucky to have the NHS in the UK.

It doesn’t cover Turkey but it’s always worth having the Global Health Insurance Card (replaces the European Health Insurance Card) too: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/get-healthcare-cover-travelling-abroad/where-you-can-use-your-card

Don’t suppose the holiday was paid for with a credit card that automatically chucks in travel insurance, was it? Some of them do, some of them don’t.

The wife sorts out all the insurance stuff when we go on holiday. She likes to be thorough when declaring pre existing conditions , from ileal atresia ( eldest child when he was born 17 years ago) , right up to tooth abscess last year ( hers) and everything in between. Pushes it up a bit , but any excuse not to pay out and they’ll find  it .

Thanks mate. Still coughing well this evening. 👍Yeah, it’s a sod that the GHIC doesn’t cover turkey.

Not credit card, PayPal. Hmmm… I’ll do some googling but I’m guessing there won’t be any cover unfortunately.

revs1972
Free Member
The wife sorts out all the insurance stuff when we go on holiday. She likes to be thorough when declaring pre existing conditions , from ileal atresia ( eldest child when he was born 17 years ago) , right up to tooth abscess last year ( hers) and everything in between. Pushes it up a bit , but any excuse not to pay out and they’ll find it .

Yeah, an expensive but important lesson. Your wife has a good strategy there. 👍

*shakes head and breathes out slowly*

I’ve just been to Turkey and it was hot.

Round the pool I saw a few family’s with very young kids, sub 1 year. It was pretty hard for me to sit in the direct sun but very easy for me to avoid it by walking off to the shade and even in the shade it was hot.

The parasols I sat under didn’t have much UV protection either.

I’m not a doctor, holiday advisor or clever person but I imagine it is very easy to get heat stroke and dehydration? Especially with air conditioning units running all night in the rooms and the heat outside?

Hope recovery is swift and the rest of the holiday goes to plan.

^^ The doc there seems to think the pool water brought in the reflux. Not something I knew for sure. Mind you, the NHS still aren’t 100% sure it is reflux but I’m guessing the Turkish hospital are going on the same assumption.

Ironically my lad and his partner are sweating in a room with the little fella as the doc says having the aircon on isn’t good for him right now.

Edukator
Free Member
*shakes head and breathes out slowly*

You’re an odd one to figure it sometimes Educator.

I agree with the negative sentiment, I’m not happy about the self inflicted insurance situation either but if I’d posted your comment, I’d have put something like, “but glad the little guy is doing ok.”

Hey, that’s just me though and we are all wired differently.👍

Sorry, I can’t tell from the OP but have they tried to make a claim from their travel insurance? Has the claim been declined?

Glad the little guy’s OK – really.

My view of holidays is tainted by having tried to keep hundreds of holiday makers happy including having accompanied some to hospital to translate. People lead complicated stressful lives and somehow think going to an unfamiliar country with an unfamiliar climate, an unfamiliar culture and doing lots of unfamiliar things will be a “holiday” that will be an exciting relaxing pleasurable experience. So when listening to holiday tales I sometimes find myself gently shaking my head and breathing out slowly rather than saying anything. Sorry, it was the wrong reaction here.

And as I can’t resist making a little bit light of the situation – give them a leaflet for Center Parks or a campsite in Devon when they get home. 😉

Got back this morning from icmeler right at top of valley .. far to hot …hope the little one is good ,

Thanks and it’s ok my friend I’m being way too techy, just a long night and day is all.

Sorry, didn’t mean to be belligerent and thanks for the kind wishes.

It has occurred to me to steer them towards a UK based holiday next time. 😁

The weather is certainly extreme over there …good luck with it all mate 👍

Rich_s
Full Member
Sorry, I can’t tell from the OP but have they tried to make a claim from their travel insurance? Has the claim been declined?

Apparently the hospital have contacted the insurance. I don’t think my lad has as he read the clause about any pre-existing treatment carried out on insured parties “within the last 2 years”… So we’ve just assumed they are not going to help frankly. That said, I’ve told him to get the relevant paper work and attempt a claim when back but to expect a knock back.

I don’t wish to sound harsh, but the first and most urgent port of call is to the insurance to start a claim. Nipper has been to A&E about *something* non diagnosed. As a newborn. Not admitted, from what you are saying. Treatment? May have been gaviscon for example?

Now he’s somewhere else having similar symptoms and you’re already seemingly discounting whether they’ll help?

Insurers can be bastards but at least give them a chance!

Hope the little fella is fine and no more needs to be spent.

Insurance is normally based around pre diagnosed conditions . It doesn’t sound like the kid had a diagnosed condition?

Whether he took out insurance that covered them in Turkey may be a different matter

I have a bit of sympathy on the ‘need to declare everything’ front. I changed employment a couple of years ago, and for the private health care had to list out previous treatments, illness and injury. It gets aVERY long   list  Very quickly if you’ve been active all your life and had a few bumps along the way.And I don’t even consider myself as someone who has had a particularly injury or illness filled life.  Certainly nothing major like a heart surgery or dialysis or cancer etc.

One holiday I’d had a single bout of SVT maybe 6 or 7 years prior. Suddenly the 1st insurer wouldn’t  cover me for any heart related illness- even though SVTs have sod all relationship to anything else.  Asthma… nothing respiratory related. Etc etc etc.

(Went to a better insurer who weren’t such arses).

Rich_sFull Member
I don’t wish to sound harsh, but the first and most urgent port of call is to the insurance to start a claim. Nipper has been to A&E about *something* non diagnosed. As a newborn. Not admitted, from what you are saying. Treatment? May have been gaviscon for example?

Now he’s somewhere else having similar symptoms and you’re already seemingly discounting whether they’ll help?

Insurers can be bastards but at least give them a chance!

Hope the little fella is fine and no more needs to be spent.

Sorry, I’ll try and summarise better. 👍

A month or 2 back baby taken to A&E twice over here in UK. No diagnosis as such just possible reflux so son/partner adviced to get a different formula milk I believe.

In Turkey, the “reflux” symptoms came on again, son told them of possible cause based on NHS info and Turkish hospital went with it/agreed. Unlike in the UK, they have put him on saline drip… (Mind you, it’s hotter over there so fear of dehydration is a possibility…)

Son checked small print today and he should have advised them of *any* treatment *at all* that anyone on the trip has had in the last 2 years, diagnosed or not. He unfortunately hadn’t adviced them of these 2 trips to hospital in the UK.

I think I’ll message him and ask him to call them in the morning. Like you said, can’t do any harm.👍

FunkyDunc
Free Member
Insurance is normally based around pre diagnosed conditions . It doesn’t sound like the kid had a diagnosed condition?

Whether he took out insurance that covered them in Turkey may be a different matter

Last read me the wording earlier and I can’t remember it exactly but basically *any* treatment at all has to be declared, the diagnosis part seems to be irrelevant.. ☹️

Burn these bridges when you get to them. What has the insurance company said so far? Presumably your son didn’t start the call with “I should have declared this but…”

Well, obviously I hope everyone’s well and happy.

People lead complicated stressful lives and somehow think going to an unfamiliar country with an unfamiliar climate, an unfamiliar culture and doing lots of unfamiliar things will be a “holiday” that will be an exciting relaxing pleasurable experience.

…but every word of this.

presumably, if the baby is a few months old the insurance will have factored that in as many things can happen suddenly at that age, and Türkiye is a different culture., with a user pays system

Sorry, a rushed and slightly chaotic update as all the information is third hand and changing it fast as it were.

They want my grandson to stay in another day till tomorrow morning.l though that are happy with his progress. They have changed diagnosis to bronchiolitis possibly linked to asthma. I have no idea if that’s a “thing”.

Son called insurance, they are heavily inferring they will pay, I’m hopeful but sceptical.

Hospital tourist department have told son there will be no more money to pay. Im hopeful but sceptical.

They are due to come home midnight Thursday so they need to decide whether to leave early or stay till then. Likely he will have to cover cost of early return (£500+) if they go with that option I would think but I’ve told him to clarify that with insurance.

All a bit up in the air but a lady in the ward had a still both both last night. As my lad rightly said, things could be so, so much worse. The poor parents. ☹️

we all make mistakes
All that matters is that the baby is OK

@Educator

So when listening to holiday tales I sometimes find myself gently shaking my head and breathing out slowly rather than saying anything.

What you forgot was that typing exactly that WAS saying something.  I share some of your sentiments about travel/holidays, but lots of people do find those things relaxing.  I mean lots of people here would enjoy riding bikes for a week as a holiday, which others would say is not a holiday.

@poopscoop

“Last read me the wording earlier and I can’t remember it exactly but basically *any* treatment at all has to be declared, the diagnosis part seems to be irrelevant.. ☹️”

I’d say that in the UK your grandson didn’t get any treatment.  He was examined (not treated) and advised to try a different formula.  There was no clinical treatment as such, no medication was provided, etc.

I’d certainly not recommend defrauding an insurer, but I’d be surprised if they asked for his UK medical records for what is a relatively low cost claim.  IANAD but having had kids with reflux I’ve never known them be treated with a drip.  Assuming that’s not just inflating the cost or a bit of a placebo to make mum and dad feel the docs are doing something, then I’d also expect the insurers are seeing that as classic “heat stroke” / “dehydration” type stuff which will be a fairly routine claim for them.

They want my grandson to stay in another day till tomorrow morning.l though that are happy with his progress. They have changed diagnosis to bronchiolitis possibly linked to asthma. I have no idea if that’s a “thing”

I can’t speak for the asthma component, but my oldest was in hospital for a few days when she was 11 months old or so for bronchiolitis. Not a good time, and we were at least able to go home easily and could let the NHS handle it. A couple of days of oxygen (no drip or anything I don’t think but I might just be blanking that as it was a few years ago now) and she got over it just fine.

I know that £1000 isn’t a small sum of money and this is easy for me to say on the other end of a computer screen, but if that’s all they end up paying for this then I’d call that a win and chalk it up to life experience/lessons learned.

I wish the best for your grandson, and that your son is doing ok as well. It’s a horrible feeling of helplessness mixed with expensive and complex admin.

Sounds like he’s in good hands.

Bronchiolitis makes the news every year in France as there’s usually an epidemic at some point in the year. It’s the fisrt cause of babies being hospitalised in France in the Winter months. Symptoms are similar to asthma in babies. So yes it’s a “thing”.

@poopscoop If you do need any money to help your lad then I’ll happily contribute. I can PayPal direct to yours or his account, one less worry for them…..

Thanks for the further comments guys, fingers still crossed for tomorrow’s release.

@wheelsonfire1

Monumentally kind of of you fella but we’ll figure this out I’m sure, just one of life’s little pot holes is all.

Again, huge thanks for the offer of help though. My son and his fiancée told me to send you a huge “heart felt” thanks from them too.😁

How’s your grandson?

I am late to this thread, but surely reflux isn’t a ‘condition’? Isn’t it just a thing lots of babies have at some point? Surely an insurance company couldn’t refuse to pay up for that (and from what I have read, the hospital doesn’t think it is reflux anyway)?

Travelling to Turkey with a several month old baby seems risky to me from the get go but each to their own. Goes without saying that babies especially under 6 months are are highly vulnerable to infections especially in a foreign country, they haven’t even developed a proper immune system to the country they’re from at that stage. I can’t personally understand the thought process that leads one to think this is sensible.

Hope all works out for them.

wheelsonfire1
Full Member
How’s your grandson?

Hey. Discharged this morning but my lad is stressing (that’s putting it mildly) as they need to go back to hospital in the morning for check up and a fit to fly document. Grandson started wheezing a little for half an hour earlier but they were given a nebuliser and that helped. He’s just really worried that little guy wont be well during the check up and he’ll be admitted again.

 Lad and I had a bit of a heart to heart as he’s really not coping at the moment. He’s not an emotional wreck, my  lad handles stress in a very internalised, almost numb way, that’s what worries me. 

airvent
Free Member
Travelling to Turkey with a several month old baby seems risky to me from the get go but each to their own.

Didn’t really wish to mention this and it’s hardly your fault that you dont know the following info. A large part of the reason they went is that they are also with my lads mum (we parted an eon ago) and her husband. They are at a hospital literally across the road but are leaving tomorrow to come home. He’s been given a diagnosis regarding his prostrate that means he’s coming back to the UK for some pretty worrying and debilitating treatment. It seems it’s been caught rather late. My lad and his fiancée had to their this Friday at shortish notice, Jens staying at different hotel and his mum and step dad leaving a day earlier.

He’s a decent guy and they all wanted to go on this holiday as the rest of this year is likely to be a bit harsh.

Id have been happy for them to go to Cornwall personally but I also competitor understand why they wanted to join family that were really intent on going abroad.

ohndoh
Free Member
I am late to this thread, but surely reflux isn’t a ‘condition’? Isn’t it just a thing lots of babies have at some point? Surely an insurance company couldn’t refuse to pay up for that (and from what I have read, the hospital doesn’t think it is reflux anyway)?

I don’t think they will know till the money either does it doesn’t go into their account really. That said, the insurance company have been making all the right noises so fingers crossed.

They want my grandson to stay in another day till tomorrow morning.l though that are happy with his progress. They have changed diagnosis to bronchiolitis possibly linked to asthma. I have no idea if that’s a “thing”.

I spent a frankly terrifying night in A&E with our youngest when she was still very small, with what turned out to be croup, and had been brushed off as a minor cold/throat infection by a GP (with the inference that my missus was being a bit OTT) a few hours earlier, later became a blue light job.

The docs were talking about the possibility of a tracheotomy if she didn’t respond to steroids at one point, she spent the rest of the week on an acute children’s ward after that. She was later diagnosed with ‘seasonal asthma‘ which may have exacerbated things at the time. A bit over a decade later that’s all completely vanished, she’s fit as a fiddle with epic lung capacity 🤷‍♂️

Anyway, whatever the potential financial costs, you’d rather they were in a hospital and being treated/observed for such things, kids without much ability to communicate beyond crying, really don’t do well with respiratory issues.

Healing vibes to the nipper, hope your son is coping with the stress of it all.

^^ Thanks mate,  appreciated. Horrible, horrible experience you went through with your girl when she was young. Bloody hell.

Bronchiolitis is scary for the few percent of kids that it hits bad.  It’s a super common ‘no more then a cold ‘ for most but….

My youngest has been admitted with it twice. Once a blue light rush from the GP….tbh young GP likely over reacting after one of the senior partners was rubbish a few months earlier and sent my wife packing only for me to rush my son in to a and e barely breathing a few hrs later and poor kid admitted for a few nights.

Sick kids are awful.  Hope the little one improves.

Id have been happy for them to go to Cornwall personally but I also competitor understand why they wanted to join family that were really intent on going abroad.

In fairness – had your lad gone to Cornwall instead he could still have ended up sick – in which case he might have been sitting in A+E waiting for a diagnosis/bed after all this time!

in which case he might have been sitting in A+E waiting for a diagnosis/bed after all this time!

The NHS has many faults, and I’m not going I say it’s perfect having waited the best part of 6 weeks just for an x ray. However in my personal experience, if you turn up to a paediatric A&E with a small baby having difficulty breathing, the sense of urgency and service on display is reassuringly rapid.