"Lack of equipment"

I attended the Respiratory Clinic at the Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, as a follow up to a chest infection earlier this year that resulted in me being hospitalised.

When I arrived for the appointment, a staff member took me into a Treatment Room to record my oxygen saturation (SPO2) prior to being seen further. They searched the cupboards in the room to locate a pulse oximeter but the meter was missing and they had to go and borrow one from another Treatment Room. When a meter had been located they connected the sensor to my finger and then began to read the measurements out loud. The readings seemed to swing rapidly between 93 and 97. I asked why my oxygen saturation was so low and varying so quickly. They showed me the display and I pointed out it was actually reading my heart rate, not my oxygen saturation in percent. At first glance, the oxygen saturation reading did not seem to be working. It turned out, the reading was working but the display was defective and so faint the staff member had to cup their hands around the display to be able to read it at all.

Thankfully this was noticed so I could get a correct reading recorded.

The remainder of the appointment with another staff member was exemplary. They were patient and professional and took time to go over what had happened using x-rays and a CT scan to show the initial damage to my lungs from the infection. They then showed more x-rays and another CT scan with the improvements following treatment and then explained the risks of what could happen in the future.

While the appointment went really well it is disappointing that something a simple as a pulse oximeter was missing from a Respiratory Ward Treatment Room and that the borrowed meter was defective resulting in my heart rate almost accidentally being recorded instead of my oxygen saturation.