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Elderly people in CAU on hard chairs

Posted By Relly123

"Elderly people in CAU on hard chairs"

About: Crosshouse Hospital / Combined Assessment Unit (CAU)

(as a relative),

I'm sad writing this because I could see how busy CAU was when we attended. My 75-yr-old relative was a patient in CAU. She had x-rays, bloods, etc, then was asked to sit on a hard chair at the entrance. She was in CAU for 7 hours, and was asked to sit on a hard chair for most of that time.  Surely someone could have offered her a more comfortable place to sit. She's 75 and would never complain as she doesn't want to be a nuisance even though she was tired.  All she had to eat in that time was a sandwich.  Nobody thought about her skin or dietary intake. The staff are lovely but far too busy, and patient care is suffering because of the number of patients v the number of staff. 

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Responses

Response from Nancy Wallace, Clinical Nurse Manager, Combined Assessment Unit, Crosshouse Hospital, NHS Ayrshire and Arran 2 years ago
Nancy Wallace
Clinical Nurse Manager, Combined Assessment Unit, Crosshouse Hospital,
NHS Ayrshire and Arran

Submitted on 24/11/2022 at 12:19
Published on Care Opinion at 12:19

Dear Relly123,

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to share your recent experience at the CAU within Crosshouse Hospital

I was really sad to read about your experience as this is not the person centered care our staff would like to deliver however it’s reassuring to note your relative had prompt interventions despite being in the waiting area.

Unfortunately we are functioning at such high activity level currently that we have utilised all beds, chairs etc in every area of the ED and CAU, we do however have more on order. If we are made aware of any discomfort or concerns our staff will do their utmost to find a solution to improve what they can.

We have employed additional domestic staff to provide hot drinks and can offer soup and sandwiches to patients within the waiting areas at mealtimes. We are also reviewing available pressure relieving equipment that may be suitable for use with our current seating in the waiting areas.

If any patient or relative has a concern at any time there is always a senior nurse in charge within CAU that would be available to highlight any issues to and who would be more than happy to help.

Kind Regards

Nancy

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