"! Oh What a Night !"

My initial experience of NHS services started of pretty well with excellent efficient and caring treatment from the ambulance crew who responded to a respiratory emergency midmorning on Monday 23rd April and this trend of excellency continued in the A&E department at Stafford County Hospital.

Although diagnosis took some time, the process was meticulous and various pain relief treatments were administered.

Late that evening Hospital admission was decided upon but the initial suggestion of spending the night on a trolley in A&E did not appeal to me. Luckily a vacant bed was found on Ward 12, the respiratory ward. I was really impressed to find myself allocated an immaculate private room with spotlessly clean en-suite facilities and the excellent care regime continued until Wednesday 26th April when, on returning from an early evening X-ray I was told without explanation that I had to move and was taken to a multi occupancy bay within the same ward.

In that bay was a confused gentleman in the habit of vocalizing unintelligible sounds at regular intervals (not his fault but this was not an appropriate place for him). The other two gentlemen occupying the room were perfectly agreeable and friendly until lights out when a cacophony of sound reminiscent of a farmyard filled the room, add to this the chattering and giggling of staff in the corridor and sleep evaded me for most of the night whilst counting the minutes till morning.

Furthermore, the shared bathroom was neither clean nor hygienic with urine stained toilet seat and floor, no toilet paper and an horrendous smell emanating from the drains.

I determined not to stay and after some negotiation with the doctor on his morning rounds I was allowed to leave with his approval after discharge procedures had been observed.

The trauma of this event has left me fearful of ever having to return as an inpatient and I cannot believe that there was any justifiable clinical need for the shambolic latter part of this episode.