"By far the highest standard of care I have received"

I stayed overnight in the Branston ward at Lincoln hospital following the removal of a large ovarian cyst. I cannot praise the department enough for the standard of care I was provided. 

I was admitted into the department by Mirabel, who was friendly and efficient and got me settled in quickly. She was a calm and reassuring presence when I was nervous before surgery.

Dr Oliver introduced himself to me before my surgery and made a point of coming to see me several times after to explain and re-explain what happened during the surgery to me several times to ensure I understood. He was kind and reassuring, and more than happy to answer any and all questions I had. Even later on the next day, when I went to find him in the department with yet more questions, he made himself available to me straight away and continued to reassure me.

Diane looked after me in the recovery suite after surgery and she was fantastic. I was understandably confused and emotional coming around from surgery and Diane was kind enough to hold my hand and offer a lot of reassurance. She kept me calm and made me feel safe at a very vulnerable time.

I was cared for by nurses Paula and Jess overnight and the next day, who were both wonderful. Paula looked after me overnight when I couldn’t sleep and made sure to check on me regularly to make sure I was comfortable and had any pain relief I needed. She also kept me in a steady supply of tea and biscuits, despite being ran off her feet on a busy night shift with less staff than usual. Jess took over in the morning and helped get me ready for discharge, I was struggling with urination and had needed a catheter in and Jess was very encouraging and supportive, helping me so that I could leave without a catheter. She was busy as expected on a hospital ward but nothing was too much trouble for her - even when I hung around longer than expected due to some trouble with my ride home!

Lots of other staff whose names I unfortunately didn’t get also helped me during my stay and I witnessed them being just as kind and caring with other patients too. I have stayed overnight in other hospitals and Branston ward at Lincoln is by far the highest standard of care I have received. Having this standard of care when going through something as difficult and painful as this surgery has made the whole experience so much easier on me emotionally. Thank you.