"No advancement in my care after a week"

I was referred by my GP and told to urgently go to A&E due to heart problems. I am male aged 56.  I already had an acute heart attack a few weeks before.  I did as my GP instructed.

Waited 5 hours in A&E and was told I had to be admitted on Monday. I went to Emergency Access Unit with heart rate of 30bpm on their machines and very low BP.  On the Tuesday was told I needed a Holter monitor for 24 hours asap.  Each subsequent day was promised this.  The unit felt like torture as no sleep due to being very busy and 24 hour noise. Even a prisoner was in bed opposite with police.

Anyway Friday arrived. Consultant profusely apologised that they had not advanced my care since they were last in , on Tuesday and stated unlikely now until next Monday. This Dr told me to complain to PALS for their benefit to improve the system.  Other patients agreed with me that PALS would get me no where, so not bothering. Really should not be delaying heart issues. Then spoke with the unit doctor to ask if it is best to do this as an outpatient. They said they could not authorise this as a 90% risk of cardiac arrest due to the irregularity of my heart during the week.

Was so pleased on the Saturday to be admitted into cardiology short stay. Lovely unit and was quiet. Wow I actually had first sleep since Monday. 

On the Sunday had a cardiologist with a really bad bedside manner and made me feel like I wasting their time in stark contrast to the one I had on the Monday.   Another problem is that the diagnosis and opinion differed between each cardiologist.  One stating that remodelling only occurs in the first week and other saying it is still remodelling. So really confused information.

On the Monday they still could not find a Holter monitor and agreed it would be best to continue as outpatient as my symptoms had eased off during the week.  More likely due to bed rest than anything that was done, that amounted to nothing.  My symptoms are now recurring and just wonder what would happen if something more serious happens while I wait for care that Lincoln Hospital could not provide. 

In the emergency access unit due to lack of sleep and lack of progress I had tears most days that I had to try and hide.  I do not like complaining and a very patient person. I had one of the worst experiences of my life in that unit. night and day in a bed is a very long day when no sleep. Conversations with other patients is the only thing that kept me from falling into depression. 

I must also give a very positive view of the good side at Lincoln.  I found the nursing staff to be faultless, caring, sympathetic and top notch. Except one that gave me the wrong tablet until I checked. The food I also found excellent. Breakfasts not so good as I cannot have dairy milk no thats my issue. Tea trolley people were amazing and cleaners did an incredible job. 

Doctors and consultants vary from being excellent to poor.  

Communication seemed lacking at times with departmental processes severely flawed.  They raised a request only to be ignored without proper explanation. They admitted this themselves. Shame really. I mean why no holter device after a week as inpatient when it should be urgent and why stuck on the EAU for 5 nights? Waste of resources.  Apparently, Cardio was not that busy, I was told. No idea what was going on.   Incredibly poor.  Who is in charge of this?  

It has left me very frustrated and now thinking of getting the Holter privately. It is madness that anyone has to do this. In March , it was my first ever hospital stay and rarely been ill.   I have had no explanation why a commonly available device was not available. Why?