"On Monday 20 th September 2010 our 86yr..."

What I liked

On Monday 20 th September 2010 our 86yr old mother broke her wrist. She processed through the A & E dept. of Leicester Royal Infirmary well and both fracture clinic / X-Ray procedures went smoothly. We were at the Royal for 6 hours in total which took in a long wait for mother to see the orthopaedic Doctor/Consultant who informed us that she would need to be admitted on Saturday 25th September for an operation to pin her wrist. We duly went home.

What could be improved

On Saturday 26th we arrived at Balmoral ward 17 at 8:00am. To be brief, it is now Monday 28th just after noon and she is still waiting for her operation. For an 86 year old to have these days of frustration...days of nil by mouth..promises of "you are on the list today"...having to sit in an operating gown waiting, waiting, waiting ...all of this is having a toll on her stress levels and ours of course.

Yesterday she was put on a drip to rehydrate her,After we left evening visiting she was told that her operation had been cancelled again and she was offered a very welcome cup of tea. Having consoled herself with her first drink since the evening before she was sent for to have her operation which of course she could not have due to the drinking of the tea. Can you imagine the frustration and upset? Where is the communication..how could this farcical situation be allowed to happen?

We now have an elderly lady who is desperate to discharge herself ...we are thinking that we may be better off getting the funds together somehow to have her treated privately. Everyone is angry, fed up and frustrated.

I doubt that mother is now in the right frame of mind to have a good recovery when and if she has the procedure.

Having just spoken to a trauma co ordinator we have been told that Mother may not have her operation today as she has "not hit her window of opportunity"...what a phrase to use!!

Anything else?

We are aware that emegencies will always take priority but surely she has waited long enough. On enquiring about the possiblity of going privately we have been told that "most of our surgeons do not like to operate on trauma cases privately"..so..all in all we are in the system amd that's where Mother will stay regardless until her particular window opens, which we hope will be later today but we are not taking bets on it!!