A York grandfather says an emergency doctor refused to come out to see his four-month-old granddaughter who was struggling to breathe.

Baby Jessica Nichols

Baby Jessica Nichols' mum, Yvonne Smith, called the North Yorkshire Emergency Doctors service but was told they would only respond to emergency cases or the bedridden - and that she had to bring the tot in to the Monkgate Clinic herself.

Jessica's dad, Andy Nichols, who works shifts for a recovery company, was out on a job.

Luckily Andy's boss was able to take Jessica and her mum to the clinic and then on to York District Hospital, where the tiny baby was put straight in an oxygen tent.

Andy and Yvonne stayed with her over the weekend. They were too upset to talk about the incident.

But furious grandad Mike Smith, of Middlethorpe Grove, Dringhouses, stormed: "I find the whole policy disgusting. I am determined to find out what has gone wrong with the system.

"I realise they must sometimes get called out for trivial things but I think when there is concern over a child the doctor should be there."

Mr Smith, whose own six-year-old child was in bed, preventing him from taking Jessica to the surgery, said he was convinced there was no longer an effective emergency call-out system in the city.

He said: "Jessica is teething at the moment and has been very unwell with the flu.

"Yvonne is staying with us until their house is sorted out. She had taken Jessica to the doctors a few days before and been told to call out a doctor if she got any worse.

"By 8.30pm on Saturday her breathing was so bad it was as if someone was sitting on her chest - she was wheezing and couldn't draw a full breath.

"So Yvonne called the emergency doctor, as she had been advised to do early in the week."

But he said she was told they would only come out to the terminally ill or bedridden and told her she would have to bring the baby in to the Monkgate Clinic.

Mr Smith said he had contacted York MP Hugh Bayley and Health Secretary Frank Dobson to get them to investigate.

David Archer, operations manager of the Emergency Doctors service, said today he had only just received the letter of complaint from Mr Smith, but it would be investigated within 14 days.

He said: "It is the doctor's decision on whether they think the person is fit enough to make the journey to the clinic."

Mr Smith said Jessica would hopefully be discharged from hospital some time today.

Catalogue of complaints

The latest criticism follows complaints from other York families who believe emergency doctors are putting lives at risk by refusing to make home visits, including:

Ann Thomas, who wrote to complain after NYED refused to come out to her 15-week-old son, who was suffering from the killer bug meningitis. She took her son to the hospital instead.

Leanne Daniels, who was advised by NYED to beg a taxi fare from neighbours to get her 10-month-old daughter to the Monkgate Clinic when she contracted meningitis.

Moya Wyatt, who complained to NYED after they refused to send out an emergency doctor to her 13 -year-old son, who had a severe ear infection and the bacterial form of meningitis.

Gwen Barnacle, who complained to NYED after emergency doctors refused to come out to her husband, David, who had contracted the 'flesh-eating bug' condition necrotizing fasciitis.

Nicola Kinglsey, who needed emergency attention for her two-year-old daughter when her temperature hit 105 degrees.

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