"Giving their patients the best possible experience"

Our NHS seems to continually receive criticism and bad press but my recent experience couldn’t be more different. I am now safely back at home after a week as a cardiac patient in C bay on Avon Ward at the Royal Devon University Healthcare (formerly RD&E) having suffered a heart attack. I was initially seen at Exmouth Minor Injuries Unit where I was immediately impressed with the speed, professionalism and care of the nursing staff on duty. Despatched to Exeter A&E for further tests and triage it was both a bit unnerving and reassuring to be summoned into Majors personally by the consultant, seemingly jumping the queue of walk-ins.

A frightening and life changing time for both my wife and I then ensued but throughout the experience all the staff in A&E could not have been better. From reception, through triage, blood tests and admission, staff professionalism in a busy department shone through. Everything was explained, the need for urgency was calmly communicated, and the sense of overwhelming care was both enveloping and comforting.

A restless night on AMU followed, where the hugely impressive Nurse in Charge wrestles with seemingly never ending demands and admission pressure. A reassuring night time visit from one of the doctors from the cardiac team explained what lay ahead. I witnessed Dr George being amazingly calm being a brilliant communicator.

Moved to Avon ward 24 hours later I discovered the very best of the NHS. Over 6 nights as an in-patient I met weekend, weekday, day and night staff. From the ward cleaners and the breakfast and tea trolley staff, nursing staff, phlebotomists, junior doctors, registrars, consultants and the Cardiac Catheter Lab team - too many to name but every single person I met was simply fabulous. Probably my best example of your staff going that extra mile unthinkingly is that one of us in the C bay of Avon ward joked that there were not any marshmallows to have with our hot chocolate that evening; the following evening she reappeared offering marshmallows she had bought herself. A fantastic gesture.

In my working life I served in the U.K. military and have taken pride in being part of successful, well led, well motivated teams all over the world, sometimes operating in difficult and challenging conditions. The teams I saw at first hand over the past week were multi discipline, multi national but that was not what struck me. It was the fact that they were ALL part of the same team, with the same goal. And that goal seemed to be to give their patients the best possible experience at what was probably one of the most stressful times of their lives.

Thank you.