"Slapdash!"

Anything else?

My wife, a dementia sufferer, after having regular bloodtests, was called by her GP to tell her she must immediately go to BRI for a transfusion. My wife, in her paradigmatic reasoning, couldn't understand why she had been chosen to be punished. It took all our skill and guile of myself, my two daughters and the GP finally convinced her to go.When we arrived, despite handing in a letter from her GP, we found that she was treated as an ordinary casualty outpatient who may have walked in off the street, ( her GP had told us they would be expecting her, and she would be given the transfusion straight away ). I had an idea of what the scenario might be, and plus the tea-time traffic situation on a Friday, gave her her tea before taking her. A good thing I did; we arrived about 6.15 pm, and had to go through the usual 'triage' routine, and she lay on a bed in the outpatients with the drunks ( to whom the staff appeared to have more concern ) etc, with assurances ( when we asked ) that a bed on a ward would soon be forthcoming. It was 1.00 am before she was admitted to a ward, by which time, she understandably,had decided she had had enough, and was going home. After more assurances from us, she reluctantly agreed to stay. The transfusion began at about noon the following day, some 23 hours since she the nurse and her GP had tried to contact her; so much for 'immediatel' concept. When the transfusion finished, which had involved her twice flooding her immediate vicinity with blood, having pulled out the needle, Ward 4 was glad to see the back of her, and her, on Sunday, transferred her to to Ward 18, where she spent the next 5 days. Whether over the telephone or in person, we could never get a straight answer to any questions we put to the staff, and apart from the carers she was given 24 hours a day, we found the staff obstructive and uncaring. One day she would be in Staff Nurse's 'A' charge, the next day Staff Nurse 'B', and so on The unenviable repution of this hospital is entirely justified!