"Different teams providing consistently high care"

I wanted to thank the Royal Surrey County Hospital for the outstanding care I have received in recent weeks. I was referred as an out-of-county patient to the expertise of Professor Karanjia and his HPB team in Guildford. I was seen very quickly in clinic after my referral for suspected cancer and an immediate plan for surgery was made within 2 weeks. The support from the specialist HPB nurses Helen and Graham, and HPB navigator Niki, were very much needed and appreciated in the lead up to the surgery late September.

I was admitted and looked after by the Short Stay Surgical Unit the night before my surgery who were kind and caring whilst I was so anxious about the next day. I want to sincerely thank Professor Karanjia and all of his team who performed the surgery and kept me safe and well throughout. I am sorry that in my anxious state I did not take on board all of the names of the anaesthetic team and theatre team who I met that day but they were all lovely and helpful in a very difficult moment.

I spent two nights on the ICU after the surgery. I was very scared about how many lines and machines I was hooked up to, and I was not dealing well with the post-operative pain, and so I may not have been able to show it at the time but the dedicated care and attention I received from the ICU nurses was kind and consistent and very much appreciated. Watching their handovers between each shift made me realise how much care and detail they were going into for each patient in their care. The levels of activity and noise in the unit, the frequent need to administer more pain relief or meds to me or a fellow patient, plus some difficulties and frustration that the staff were experiencing with their IT systems (which are so critical for them being able to care for their patient) were all very difficult at times - but I especially remember ICU nurse Kathie who was very caring and empathetic when I was having some of my worst moments.

I was moved on to Frensham Ward (now Ewhurst Ward) for three further nights of recovery. Again I received wonderful care and attention. I was looked after by lots of different nurses and HCA’s during the period and all certainly have their own style, but it was clear to see the consistency in delivering the care needed for all of the patients on the ward. I remember Jondi, Johvir, Wilden, Keith, Jamie and Manju all doing a wonderful job looking after me or one of my fellow patients, but I must highlight HCA Sarah as being absolutely exceptional at her job. Her compassion, her calm and caring manner and her ability to make us all feel a little bit better at that moment in time were just beautiful to see. I hope she is recognised within the team for her natural ability and high level of skill in delivering care.

I very much appreciated the visit from the ICU outreach worker Charlene who came to see me the day after I had moved from ICU on to the surgical ward. Although I didn’t know I needed that discussion, it really helped me to talk about how I was feeling after moving from a high dependency environment.

I was also very grateful for all the support staff throughout the hospital, the domestic staff, the porters, the catering staff. Although I never learnt their names, I did notice all the cogs that were turning to make my stay and my recovery as comfortable, safe and easy as possible. I also wanted to say that the communication before, during and after my care has always been swift and accurate.

I cannot really say strongly enough how grateful I am for the care I have received from the NHS overall during this part of my journey. In deep contrast to all the publicity and bad news you hear in the outside world, my personal experience is one where I have been treated quickly and with great care by lots of different teams within a 4 month period. I feel very very lucky and will endeavour to repay that by getting better and fully appreciating my life and my health going forward.