"My splenectomy"

In September I underwent a splenectomy in the Kent and Canterbury hospital. I was in Kent ward. The surgical, medical and nursing care were excellent, as were all the tests, scans etc I had had prior to surgery. Various people in the NHS went to a great deal of trouble for me and really cared. For all of this I am deeply grateful.

What a pity I found that cleaning in my room and some administration were so poor.

The duplicated sheet I was given before admission, welcoming me to the ward, was hopelessly out of date - I was told there would be Patientline facilities by my bed, but I arrived to find these had been removed when the ward was re-furbished, so I had no radio, TV or telephone as I had brought none with me.

I was given a side room when I asked for one (thank you!) but there was a blood stain on the floor and I did not see a cleaner until my fourth day there. She flitted around, cleaned the floor when I pointed it out, but did not touch any of the table or locker tops.

Prior to admission I received a letter from the post-graduate medical centre asking me to take part in medical examinations. Technical abbreviations in the letter were not explained and the leaflet and stamped addressed envelope which should have been enclosed were not there. I wrote and telephoned several times with no result. Eventually, when I wrote to the head of department, the missing leaflet arrived, but with no explanation or apology.

It is such a pity that the wonderful medical service provided by our NHS is let down by these ancilliary services such as administration and cleaning.