"Lack of empathy "

My sister is a stage 4 lung cancer patient who has been on chemotherapy for a full year. During this period of time she has had to go to the Blackurn Royal hospital for various appointments. Frequently there are excessive waiting times despite having a fixed appointment. People don't seem to realise that they are dealing with extremely ill patients who are quite often experiencing severe pain. There doesn't seem to be any compassion or concern at all. The effects of the chemotherapy are terrible. My sister has had numerous painful infections and yet the requests for additional medication to ease pain and prevent further escalation is again another point for serious concern. My sister tells me that she feels like she is always having to beg for assistance. Again I feel the need to emphasise that she is extremely ill and needs to feel understood and cared for. She now has painful looking infections on both feet, making it difficult to wear shoes. She was told that she needs Betadine and yet for some inexplicable reason she is not receiving this medication. Again another example of being ignored.

Someone needs to take responsibility for the care of patients who are officially registered at this hospital in Blackburn. I fail to understand why this can be blamed on cut backs. I always believed that doctors and nurses entered their respective professions because of their genuine desire to care for people. I guess I must be more naive than I thought.

Something needs to drastically change in improving the quality of life of seriously ill cancer patients.