"Unprofessional staff - disappointing experience "

I visited The Heart Centre with my father on 3 January 2024 and it was a very disappointing experience. To start with, the reminder we had received regarding my father’s appointment which was at 8am on 3 January 2024 contained no clarity as to which department/floor we had to go to which resulted in a delay in us reaching The Heart Centre, we did not reach the correct department until 8:30am. The main reception desk was also unmanned until 8:30am

too so there was no one to ask for clarification. This is not acceptable. Hospital visits are distressing enough for patients without the added stress of not knowing where to go. Upon our eventual arrival at The Heart Centre at 8:30am the person on the reception desk was very rude and abrupt, not to mention very very loud. And this person continued being loud while engaging in other duties while in the department. This is not the conduct I expect from hospital staff. It is simply not acceptable to be so rude, loud and tactless when you work in a caring profession. Especially when there are distressed patients right in front of you in the waiting area who can hear every word. I appreciate that we are in a time of austerity and it is a very stressful time for NHS staff but manners and tact cost nothing. My father was taken for an ECG by one of the nurses and I was accompanying him as he is hard of hearing but I wasn’t even given the chance to explain this to the nurse as she looked down her nose at me and said abruptly, “can I just see the patient?” My father is a human being, not just a patient. The consultation with the doctor following the ECG was massively delayed as apparently it seems that some of the staff in that department are more interested in having loud personal conversations rather than actually dealing with patients which, correct me if I’m wrong, is what they are paid to do. The only saving grace was the wonderful practitioner who conducted an ultrasound scan on my father shortly after our arrival at The Heart Centre who was patient, kind and extremely helpful and professional. It is a shame other members of staff in that department are not so professional. I am beyond disappointed with our experience in The Heart Centre and would strongly suggest that you exercise far more professionalism in that department please. I would also suggest better signage in the hospital generally and clearer information be given to patients and their families. Thank you.