"The High Level of Care I received from Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville Hospitals"

I collapsed at home and an Ambulance from South Central Ambulance Service attended me at my residence. The level of investigation into what had caused my collapse was excellent. I have never been in an ambulance before and the care was Gold Standard. I was admitted to A&E at Stoke Mandeville. The difference in my experience compared, to my wife’s, was the constant updating me as to what was happening. I was then transferred during the evening to a ward within A&E where I was examined by a first year attendant who spent a lot of time trying to find out what was wrong with me (several hours). Eventually, I brought up blood (large quantity) and was sent for an endoscopy examination which identified the problem. Subsequently, I was transferred to Ward 17 and a day later discharged. What surprised me was the high level of care provided to me during may stay at Stoke Mandeville. I do believe this is down to the excellent management of the nursing staff. In this regard I would like to mention Staff Nurse Sally  and Nurse Liz . I thought the performance of all nursing staff was very good. It would be nice if you could identify the first year attendee who diagnosed my condition. Her bedside manner and level of professionalism was over and beyond what I expected. She should be recognised for her level of care.

A few week later I visited Wycombe Hospital for a scan and prostate biopsy. The next day I collapsed and was taken to Stoke Mandeville Hospital as a result of being infected during the biopsy and then transferred the next day to Wycombe Hospital (Urology). Once again the Ambulance team and the A&E were excellent. Having had an excellent level of care on my previous visit to Stoke Mandeville, I did not believe the care could be any better. I was wrong, this was nursing at its very best, and with the ward management was brilliant which resulted in a high level of care. Without exception every member of the ward team performed as a team providing seamless care. I really believe each member was focused on making sure I got better, from identifying how poorly I was lying in the bed, to getting me sitting in a chair and then walking with a frame. At times the infection resulted in me being depressed but the compassion shown by the nursing team motivated me to get better. It is my belief that the leadership of the ward by Ward Sister, Beverley , Deputy Sister, Vicky and Staff Nurse Lynn , has created the positive environment for the ward team to perform at such a high level. The use of students to monitor patients adds a dimension to the level of care. Paramount to the improvement appears to be the high level of communication between staff and patients.