"Exceptionally poor nightshift Nursing care"

My partner was recently in the ENT department. He rushed to a&e following a tonsillectomy bleed. A&E were prompt & sent him straight to ENT ward 11b. I want to start by saying that all the day time staff in this ward were absolutely incredible. They were absolutely outstanding and listened to patients' needs and made them feel safe on the ward.

However, something drastically needs to change on the nightshift. My partner advised his pain scale has reached a 10 and he was crying out for pain medication, scarlet red & visibly shaking and fainted. He couldn’t eat or drink and was dehydrating because no IV drip was put in despite being advised he would get one soon. His pain relief was delayed for over 3 hours and IV fluids were not given until 4:30am which resulted in a further bleed.

My partner has Crohns and was advised by a staff member that if he did not drink his medication (despite being unable to swallow) then he would get a suppository, my partner has experienced trauma through rectal surgeries and this caused him significant distress.

A doctor continued to advise my partner to drink despite him advising he was struggling to swallow due to excessive pain & was choking when drinking. They then also proceeded to offer my partner a suppository.

Day shift arrived back and there were several  Drs & consultants in the room apologising for the issues. They left clear notes about medication changes for the nightshift to follow and we were assured there would be no medication changes. Throughout the day my partner thrived due to having excellent care.

But again, on day two of being on the ward, when the shift changed into nightshift, everything became difficult instantly. The same staff member as the previous day refused my partner his subcut meds despite them being prescribed, advising he will get oramorph instead which has already proved to be ineffective in his care plan. We advised numerous times his prescription has not to be changed but they dismissed this and continued to press that he takes oramorph. We started to become concerned that my partner's pain would become out of control again and he would experience another bleed.

I complained to a charge nurse who looked at my partner's prescription and advised they would speak with the staff member as it was clear he was to get subcut and not oramorph. Subsequently my partner was given his correct medication (but the staff member continued to dispute this medication as they were administering it).

This staff member didn't seem to have bothered to read my partner's notes or listen to what we said to them. It felt like they went out of their way to intimidate and delay medication to my partner who was  a bleeding and significant pain risk & who also has an auto immune disease. His medication was given 45 minutes late and he was experiencing pain again and difficulty swallowing as a result.

We then approached the doctor and advised we would not be tolerating the level of care we received the previous night and we would not be risking another bleed and inappropriate pain management. They advised oramorph is preferred due to the depressive effects of subcut morphine, however my partner advised he wanted to jump out the window due to the pain as it was a 10 - surely being in this much pain outweighs a depressive side effect, especially if the treatment has worked successfully throughout the full dayshift with no issues. My partner was advised by dayshift that he could get his pain meds via IV due to pain when swallowing to allow him to successfully eat and drink but this was disregarded.

My concern is that many patients on this ward cannot speak due to tracky’s & other medical procedures- are they also completely unheard at night?

The only good thing about the night staff was a Snr Nurse & a staff member who provided the tea & coffee, he kept all the patients in good spirits - what a wonderful person.

I want this complaint to be taken seriously and used as a learning opportunity ie: the nightshift need to learn from the dayshift. They should listen to the patient and read their notes before approaching the patient and stop being controversial towards patients and causing them distress by delaying prescribed treatment. I believe the care of nightshift has caused my partner another bleed and caused him to become dehydrated to a point of collapsing. It needs to improve urgently.