Care Opinion

Text size

Theme

Language

Videos in BSL or ISL
Help with language translation
Help with reading or listening

Unneccesary anxiety caused

Posted By avocetsp44

"Unneccesary anxiety caused"

About: Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital (Wonford) / Gynaecology

(as the patient),

My experience relates to the Gynaecology Department at the RD & E.

After discovering a cyst in a rather delicate area my GP referred me to the emergency gynaecology clinic but when I arrived the consultant was rather bemused as to why I had been sent as the cyst seemed to be healing itself.

However, before I saw the consultant I met with two people first and this is where my anxiety started;

First person  - very sweet and informed me that they needed to ask a few questions to build my patient profile.  Asked me my medical history, what medication I was taking etc which was fine but then it got rather bizarre.  I was asked what contraception I was currently using, I'm 69 years of age and thought a very peculiar question to ask, I replied that I wasn't to which they further asked  if I could remember what I used to use. They continued with further questions: what are your hobbies, do you have pets, who do you live with?  I asked the relevance to these questions but did not get a reply instead I was asked what were my expectations from this appointment.  I answered with 'resolution' to which they asked me to explain further.  I would have thought it would be pretty obvious.  I was feeling very stressed at this point.

Second person - after asking routine medical questions which I was happy to answer, They then went into the worst possible scenarios of what the problem could be.  For example it may be cancerous.  The nurse then went into acute, horrific details of the procedures and possible operation.  I was ready to run out of the door, I was anxious, scared and worried out of my mind.  

When i finally got to see the doctor as I said they were rather bemused as to why i had been sent as there was nothing at all to worry about, just a cyst that was drying up on it own accord.

Three and half hours I endured ridiculous and irrelevant and insensitive questioning, was put through the horror of listening to what may have to occur all for nothing.  I am aghast at the reasoning behind both the purpose of those questions, the relevance and as to why you would tell someone the horrific nature of procedures that pre-empt the diagnosis.

More about:
Do you have a similar story to tell? Tell your story & make a difference ››

Responses

Response from Kate Saddler-Irvine, Clinical Matron & Advanced Clinical Practitioner (Eastern Services), Women’s Health (Eastern Services), Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 3 months ago
Kate Saddler-Irvine
Clinical Matron & Advanced Clinical Practitioner (Eastern Services), Women’s Health (Eastern Services),
Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Submitted on 20/02/2025 at 12:00
Published on Care Opinion at 12:26

picture of Kate Saddler-Irvine

Dear avocetsp44,

Thank you for taking the time to leave feedback. I can only apologise for your experience and am sorry for any distress it caused for you. Care Opinion is anonymous, therefore if you would like to send an email to us here at Royal Devon and University Healthcare, I would welcome the opportunity to take a closer look into this for you. If this is something you would like to explore then please email rduh.complaints@nhs.net directly.

I can comment from a more broad perspective to help explain some of the issues you have raised. Often in the Emergency Gynaecology Unit we have medical students who will take a very thorough history from the patient before they are seen by a doctor. This history taking involves a lot of questions, some of which may seem irrelevant, like a full social history, but taking a good history from a patient is the cornerstone of a clinician being able to make a diagnosis. Part of this history taking involves using the 'ICE' model which is asking a patient their Ideas, Concerns and Expectations for the appointment. This is a recognised model used across healthcare which aims to provide more insight into the reasons for a patient attending for a medical appointment and it influences the process of shared decision making and may also be a clue to establishing the right diagnosis.

Following on from taking a history, a differential diagnosis is generated - these are all possible conditions that share the same symptoms that were described to the clinician. This list is not the final diagnosis, but a theory as to what is potentially causing the symptoms. Quite often with vaginal cysts, these can require an incision and drainage procedure which is performed under local or general anaesthetic.

I am pleased to hear that your presenting problem to the unit turned out to be a resolved cyst which did not require any further treatment and hope your recovery from this continues to go well.

Please be assured that your feedback has been seen and disseminated to the relevant staff involved and again I am very sorry for your poor experience of our service and feedback such as yours is crucial for us to improve the patient experience so thank you once again for taking the time to share your story.

Yours sincerely, Kate

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful

Update posted by avocetsp44 (the patient)

Thank you for your reply but I still stand by the comments I made, especially relating to the "gloom and doom" scenario suggested by the nurse, such things are likely to create stress, especially if the patient is of a nervous disposition!

I have an absolute horror of all things medical, such a dramatic potential outcome did me no good at all, upon taking my blood pressure (sky high) they seemed alarmed, was it any wonder it was raised!

However, the NHS is a fabulous organisation, doing great work in difficult circumstances, I just feel a certain amount of unecessary information was requested and given, all time consuming.

Opinions
Next Response j
Previous Response k