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Care received from clinic staff and doctor was outstanding b...

Posted By waterloo

"Care received from clinic staff and doctor was outstanding but reception staff need to have better patient care"

About: Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General / Ophthalmology

(as the patient),

I attended Gartnaval Royal Hospital in Glasgow on the request of my GP today as an emergency to the Ophthalmology Department as I have had problems with my eye for a week. I just want to say that the nursing staff of this department including the doctor who I seen went out of there way to help me from the time I went to the waiting area to the time I left the hospital in the afternoon.

However when I approached the reception desk I was taken a-back by the attitude of the reception staff at this clinic especially when most of the clinic patients were elderly I would just like to say that the staff in this reception should be considerate when dealing with elderly patients and not having an attitude as if it was outside of the hospital! !

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Responses

Response from Lorna Fairlie, Patient Experience, Public Involvement Project Manager, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 8 years ago
Lorna Fairlie
Patient Experience, Public Involvement Project Manager,
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

I work in a small team in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde which seeks to involve patients and carers in the work of the NHS. The biggest part of my role is in managing feedback projects across the Board area, one of which is Patient Opinion. It is my job to give our patients and carers the opportunity to give us feedback, and to make sure that this is passed to the right people to help us improve the services we provide.

Submitted on 16/07/2015 at 16:41
Published on Care Opinion on 17/07/2015 at 09:03

Dear waterloo,

Thank you for letting me know about your recent experience at Gartnavel - first of all, I am glad that the nursing and medical staff that looked after you did so to such a high standard and that you were happy with your treatment in that regard.

You have however highlighted an extremely important point about the ways that other patient-facing members of staff interact with our patients and their role in the patient experience. We would expect that all members of staff, whatever their role in the organisation, will treat patients, relatives and carers with the same high level of respect and courtesy. So often, it is reception staff who are the first point of contact for our patients, and as such, they have an important role to play in the way a patient feels when they come into a hospital environment. As we all know, first impressions are very important and so if it isn't a positive one it can leave a bad taste overall, even if the rest is good, as you have experienced.

I will pass on your comments to the Ophthalmology Department you visited to allow them to reflect on the experience you had and the feedback you have given. I also hope that this story will be used to encourage others to reflect on the welcome they provide and the atmosphere they create for patients.

With best wishes,

Lorna

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