"My husband's kidney stone treatment"

My husband had a delayed diagnosis for renal colic, which began in Sept 2011. An urgent referral was sent to the vol urology in early Oct 2011 but my husband never heard from them and carried on suffering pain on and off until August 2012, when the pain became moderate to severe and sometimes debilitating.

Another urgent referral was sent. This time he did hear from the urology dept but it has since taken 6 months to have the kidney stone diagnosed and treated.

He has been sent to EIGHT hospitals all over Glasgow, some on more than one occasion and feel that a much simpler method of referral/diagnosis and treatment needs to be adopted.

This condition is extremely painful and I feel to put someone through this process is bordering on criminal.

Why was my husband put through tests (taking 2 months) when a ct scan in the first instance would have confirmed the diagnosis?

Why wasn't he referred straight to urology at Glasgow Royal, who ultimately arrange for the treatment of kidney stones, straight away?

The staff who we came into contact with have my high regards doing a difficult job as best they can but I felt some thought I was over-reacting about my husbands treatment (I was very stressed by the whole process as was my husband who also had to endure varying degrees of pain on a daily basis usually between 5-10 on the pain scale even with strong pain relief including morphine).

This whole event has taken a year and 4 months to resolve, the past six months my husbands life has been on hold - we have had no life as a couple and financially life has been very difficult.

There has been nothing positive about all of this and from our experience, I can see why the NHS gets such bad press.

I would never treat an animal the way my husband has been treated by an institute that is meant to care. I am now ashamed to say I work for the NHS, it is not front line staff who are to blame yet they are the ones who have to take the frustrations of patients and relatives.

I know that in the Greater Glasgow & Clyde catchment area patients are being sent all over the place when a hospital is 5 mins from their home. I know this is to achieve less waiting time but my husband's case supports the alternative view that this has just led to delay upon delay.

I am at present truly appalled by my husbands treatment - no one deserves that, and for me it does put the question of public or private health care to the fore.