"Thank you to staff at MAU"

Anything else?

I came to the hospital after ringing 111, and being given an out of hours appointment with a G.P. at the hospital. I live in Essex, and was staying with my daughter and her family for two weeks. I had been vomiting all day, and he gave me some anti sickness tablets. The vomiting became worse, until it was clear something was very wrong and I was vomiting "coffee grounds", old blood. I was admitted to MAU in the early hours of the morning. The staff were kind and efficient, and did their best to make me comfortable. The vomiting continued and I began to feel very ill and very scared; I was examined by a doctor who was gentle, sympathetic and tried to be reassuring, and various drips and blood were set up. Patients continued to be admitted, all with different problems and different needs. This was all happening during a heat wave; the vast majority of the patients on MAU were elderly women who, like me, were scared, ill and confused in varying degrees. As it was so hot, many of them had breathing problems and some of them were aggressive towards the staff. In a ward like MAU, privacy is difficult to come by, and I could hear the interactions of the staff with the patients, as well as watch them work. To their eternal credit, they all maintained the utmost professionalism, although they must have been as uncomfortable as us, and those who were working a "long day" must have been exhausted by the time they finished. They never forgot to safeguard their patients' dignity, nor did they fail to treat them with respect, and if they were my staff, or staff at my local hospital, I should be very proud of them all. I was transferred to Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, where I completed my treatment, and eventually returned home to my husband. We will both have the greatest gratitude to the staff of MAU, who work under huge pressure, dealing with people who are at their most vulnerable, with care, kindness and professionalism. We are all very quick to complain and to criticise the NHS, and it is right to do so if it is justified, but it is also important to praise, when praise is due and to value the hard work and dedication of the vast majority of NHS staff.