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Care Opinion

My autistic and anxious son

Posted By weejac

"My autistic and anxious son"

About: Crosshouse Hospital / Accident & Emergency

(as a parent/guardian),

My autistic teenage son suffers from extreme anxiety and had fallen off his bike at speed. He is unable to travel by car but managed after a few days to cycle to A&E for an X-ray.

Upon arrival his anxiety peaked and he was unable to enter the hospital. My husband went in and explained the situation and he was triaged outside where he felt more comfortable. The radiographer even came outside to talk to him and reassure him that the X-ray would be quick and that he could return outside as soon as possible if that was easier for him.

He began to panic when walking to the X-ray department but the radiographer chatted to him about computers, his favourite topic, and he was able to relax enough to be x-rayed.

We feel that the care received was excellent and that the staff went above and beyond for our son. Autism and anxiety are very challenging but the staff were so understanding and patient and it made all the difference. Please thank the staff for how wonderful they are.

Fortunately the chipped radius did not require a cast so my son was able to cycle home again.

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Responses

Response from Claire Gilroy, Specialty Doctor, Emergency Department, University Hospital Crosshouse, NHS Ayrshire and Arran 5 years ago
Claire Gilroy
Specialty Doctor, Emergency Department, University Hospital Crosshouse,
NHS Ayrshire and Arran

Emergency

Submitted on 08/10/2018 at 21:38
Published on Care Opinion at 21:54

picture of Claire Gilroy

Dear weejac,

Thank you for sharing this feedback on Care Opinion. Attending the Emergency Department can be frightening for many of our patients and sometimes we have to adapt the way we work to ensure they receive the care they need. I agree that our staff are wonderful. Our triage nurses, in particular,do a very difficult but important job and I am pleased that they were able to do this where your son felt most comfortable.

Our radiographers are amazing. It does not surprise me to hear that they came outside to speak with your son. By the sound of it your husband was also a key member of the team. It just goes to show that when we work as a team and include patients and their families anything is possible.

I will share this story with our whole team including our radiographers at our morning huddle on Wednesday. If you would like this to go directly to those who looked after your son please email me your son's name and date of birth to Claire.gilroy@nhs.net.

I wish your son a speedy recovery and hope he gets to enjoy riding his bike during the predicted hot weather coming our way!

Claire

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