Post by @dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk

Yet another appointment.

I now understand those signs on cars.

"Not all disabilities can be seen."

@dick_turpin Nice quiet waiting room you've got there.

@penguin42 The #NHS is in crisis, I'll have you know.

(I deliberately took a picture with no patients in the shot)

@dick_turpin Given the way a cousin was treated in the last couple of weeks, I'd say fine surgeons, pity the organisation couldn't handle a pissup in a brewery.

@penguin42 So before I open my gob, I have first-hand experience of working in the #NHS (7 Years), and as everyone knows, one of my daughters is a grade 7 Nurse, so I speak with a certain amount of insight.

Be careful what you see on the news and read in the papers about hospitals. While there are some very dedicated people, there is an overwhelming amount of, umm? flotsam and jetsam.

I would say there were around eight patients across 3 departments: 104, 105 & 107 (Not sure why no 106?)

@dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk @penguin42 Firstly, I hope everything turns out well for you.

I'm not sure if you're aware, but my Mom passed recently, and in the lead up to that, I spent 2 months visiting her in hospital. As you say, there definitely are some absolute angels working within the NHS, but a lot of the time I felt the best descriptor for the "care" my Mom received was shoddy.

My sister spent many years working in the NHS as a nursing assistant, and she was shocked at how basic standards of care had slipped. It's honestly quite scary, and as relatives of an elderly and very vulnerable patient, it was an extremely stressful two months.

@jac I'll tell you how they can improve care overnight, but they'll never do it:

1. The College of Nursing is too strong a union.
2. There would be uproar and mass walkouts.

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳 𝗥𝗼𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.
Move nusres to different wards and departments every 3 months. You know the old saying: 𝘍𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵

Staff get used to workplaces whereby they become not only complacent but adopt the 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 attitude whereby they get away with blue murder because 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺'𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴.

@dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk I won't pretend to know the answers, but it's quite obvious that something needs to change. The NHS has never been perfect, but I couldn't help but draw comparisons between when my grandparents died in the 90's. The care they received and the rapport with the family was markedly better back then.

We had to constantly chase people for even the most basic information about what was going on with Mom, and even then we frequently got conflicting reports. It was exhausting, frustrating, and at times outright horrifying. I was seriously contemplating putting in a formal complaint, and probably would have done if I'd had the emotional energy.

@jac@404brain.boo @dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk After my recent experiences with my wife and mother-in-law at different hospitals, I noticed that staff are very task oriented and narrow in focus (almost tunnel vision). No-one seems to be overseeing, marshalling and organised with a cohesive view of the big picture. Plus, the doctors and consultants are still the kings and queens and everyone defers to them. I swear some staff curtsy when the morning doctor's round get underway.

@andyc @jac

When a Deer decided it was going to jump out in front of the wife's car, writing it off and putting her in A&E, the cubicle she was in had blood on the floor (my daughter would have had a fit, given she leads infection control). I pointed it out to the nurse and her response was: "𝘐'𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘶𝘱, 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘫𝘰𝘣!"

Stunned I told her in no uncertain terms she'd best get whoever's job it was then to clean it up.

@dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk @jac@404brain.boo Similar story. My wife was on a trolley in a corridor (admittedly a cramped, difficult environment) but when the nurse (or HA ?) came to take blood, she placed the tray on the floor. My wife (former ICU, district and practice nurse) was not impressed.

@andyc @jac I think the words you are looking for are horrified, appalled, and disgusted by the blasé attitude toward her safety. There's no "𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦" when it comes to hospitals. These places are a haven for disease and infection.

@dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk @jac@404brain.boo My wife helpfully told me that lodging feedback (not necessarily a complaint) with the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) was always the best way to provide feedback and get a formal response.

I assumed it would take months and they'd endlessly stall. However, I tried it once chasing the results of a CT scan that were promised and never appeared despite multiple, polite phone calls and emails.

Within minutes of me submitting the online PALS form, the radiology department called me directly, sincerely apologising, sent me an email with the consultant's report and sent me CD of the imagery in the post. They then checked I was happy with the outcome - no doubt petrified I was going to escalate to a higher level.

@andyc@yakshaving.social @dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk I was about to contact PALS with a list of concerns, but then Mom developed pneumonia and not long after that, she died. It hit me very hard, so I didn't go through with it in the end, but I probably should have. I did keep reasonably detailed notes (mostly as a memory aid) during the time she was in hospital, and I was going to compile a list from those and send it to them.

It's good to hear that you had good results from PALS. Shouldn't be necessary of course, but it's better than nothing.