"Children's ward stay"

I recently had a 9 day stay on the childrens ward at Forth Valley Royal hospital with my 6 week old son who contracted RSV which developed to bronchiolitis and badly effected his breathing. All of the staff from the domestics, nurses and doctors showed such empathy, kindness and support and made a terrifying experience as a parent, so much easier to process. I could see how busy the ward was during our stay but I never once felt that my son was not a priority and any buzzer calls were answered with a smile (even my multiple calls for trips to the stereliser!).

All of the nurses involved in my sons care were fantastic and I can't fault any of the staff, however there were a few that I feel deserve particular recognition including Sharon, Jackie and Alison. Sharon was an absolute hero during our time in the hospital and really made sure my husband and I knew what was going on and why and showed such care to our son that we always felt in safe hands. Sharon has a lovely nature and you can tell she loves her job. I've never seen someone juggle as much as she did and never made us feel like a burden. We will forever be grateful for Sharon. Jackie similarly was our night shift star and was so on the ball and gentle with our son but also to a sleep deprived and worried parent, bringing tea and checking I had everything I needed. Jackie kept me going through the tough nights and she really does prove that nursing is a calling and she is so great at it. Alison again showed such care to our family and reguarly popped her head in to check how we were doing and offer words of reasurrance, even though she was not directly in charge of our care.  The paediatric doctors, Sophie and Dr Watson, were also very thorough in their care and Sophie particularly had such a kind, caring and gentle mannerism when assessing our son and was very patient with any questions we had.

The NHS has been a tough place to work, particularly over the last few years, but the childrens ward staff are an excellent example of how great our NHS staff are and I can't thank the ward and all the staff enough.