"Disrespectful patient care at the front-line"

My young son has severe haemophilia, which requires home infusions three times every week. As a result, we have to use a sharps bin to dispose of syringes and other materials, which potentially are a biohazard.

Every month or so, I drop off a full sharps bin at the Minor Injuries Unit at Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline. This has been arranged through communication with the specialist Nurse in Charge at the Haemophilia and Thrombosis Centre at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and the Charge Nurse at the Minor Injuries Unit at DQM.

Whenever I turn up at the reception at the Minor Injuries Unit, I am met with snippy, curt and unhelpful staff on reception. Nine times out of ten as soon as soon as I walk into the reception area, I’m met with a snippy “Have you got an appointment?” It’s got to the point that this has become a standing joke with my sons and I.

The staff are almost unfailing cold, curt and unfriendly. They don’t seem to realise that they are there to help people – not to be rude and obstructive.

Whenever I attend with my full sharps bin, I show them a letter which I have from the Haemophilia Centre at ERI and more often than not, this results in an even surlier and unhelpful attitude from staff on reception. I’m almost always treated with suspicion and disrespect – like I’m creating work for them – work they aren’t in the least interested in doing.

The staff at DQM need trained up in customer care and inter-personal skills. They give a very poor impression of the NHS locally. Instead of instantly snapping “Have you got an appointment?!” in an unfriendly way, they should at least start off with a friendly: “Good evening, can I help you?”

 Senior managers from NHS Fife need to do some ‘mystery shopping’ here and attend the Minor Injuries Unit undercover, so they can see this appalling ‘customer care’ for themselves.