"Mastectomy Experience"

I had breast cancer detected following a routine mammogram and subsequent biopsies. I knew it was cancer before I was told as shortly after my biopsy and before I got my results, my sister received a letter on a Saturday to be at the hospital on the Tuesday for a mammogram- these appointments are usually provided with 3-4 weeks notice, not 3 days, so I was expecting bad news.

Although I had my initial surgery date provided, I had an inkling that this date wouldn't go ahead as it was the date of strikes and I hadn't been provided with any pre-surgery advice, so it was no surprise that it was put back a week.

My consultant, Mr McFall, is amazing. Very open, very mindful of my inquisitive understanding of the fact that I have a lot of knowledge in this space - very patient when I arrived with pages of questions and listened intently to existing health issues - which he passed on to the Anaesthetists. The anaesthetists were also amazing on the day of my op- it was clear that they had been passed on the information and took time to provide anaesthetic in a manner that minimised the chances of past adverse reactions occurring. 

The recovery unit staff - especially a nurse called Maggie -  were a delight to waken to. Helpful, funny, chatty and Maggie certainly raised spirits on that ward. I was taken to ward C1 in Antrim, where unfortunately midway through day one a suspected case of covid closed the ward (although this was later discovered to be flu). The nurses were lovely, however clearly stressed and under-resourced. There seemed to be one F1 doctor covering 3-4 wards and the nursing staff clearly had difficulty getting access to doctors and pharmacists. There seemed to be a high level of stress with some staff at times clearly despondent or exasperated.

My consultant visited me at 7.30am the day after my surgery and was happy that I go home. Around 11am I got up to get washed and felt dizzy and lightheaded in the bathroom and pulled the alarm cord before I passed out. I managed to slump into a commode chair. The nursing staff managed to get me wheeled back to bed - it was a very low blood pressure. This persisted and a nurse said I needed IV Fluids to bring the blood pressure back up so I could go home.

At 5.15pm (approx) a different nurse came over and asked if I wanted to go home. Of course I said I did, but when the nurse started to take the dressings from my cannula,  I stopped them and told them that I'd need that for the IV Fluids that I was told I was getting as I'd not had them yet and my blood pressure was still low - I was dizzy and light-headed when I stood up. 

I felt like I'd been told off, as they told me they can't let me home. They'll have to go and see if they can get a doctor that can prescribe that, so I might not get home today now. I understand that the staff were very stressed as it was busy and they were clearly under resourced, but I had persistently low blood pressure from before midday that I was advised needed IV fluids which I hadn't been given and it hadn't been resolved. They thankfully were able to get the Doctor, who happened to be on the ward to prescribe the IV fluid, and I got it in very quickly. 

Often I heard nurses asked - where are bed x's notes? I was also aware of a doctor being called back to the ward as a result of requested meds being overlooked or missed. Another patient was being discharged and a pharmacist had come onto the ward around 6pm to give them their meds- I wasn't visited by the pharmacist when they were on the ward and assumed that they had left my meds with the nursing staff who were doing my discharge notes. 

My blood pressure returned to more normal levels, I was good to go home. I was given a spare drain and a bag to carry it in, but at 6.30 a nurse asked if I'd had my meds- I had nothing aside from a drain, a bag to put it in and 2 pages of advice notes. The nurse tried paging the pharmacist, couldn't get one so I was prescribed from the ward and discharged with what I had (advice notes, a spare drain, a bag to put the drain in).

I felt frustrated for the nursing staff on the ward. It was clear that they were under-resourced and that this was causing them to become frustrated that they were unable to provide the level of care that they wanted to provide. I feel for them and I hope that money soon becomes available to help address staffing levels, as our nursing staff have just had the stuffing beat out of them. This is affecting care levels.

The district nurse came to visit me the day after to remove the drain as there was very little fluid in it. She asked me for the pack that the hospital had given me. I explained I didn't have one. She said I should have had stitch cutters, dressings etc, but I wasn't given this. The nurse found stitch cutters in her car but she had no dressings, so the drain had to be left in place until the following day, when a different district nurse called and removed it on the Sunday.

I had another district nurse visit on the Monday, which surprised me as I'd had the drain removed so I wasn't expecting her, but it seems that there was crossed wires and she hadn't been updated that the drain had been removed the day before.