"Ward D1"

Anything else?

After falling just off Mam Tor , mountain rescue and the ambulance service delivered me to stepping hill - their performance was exemplary and this continued once in stepping hill. A&E was horrendously busy ( one of their busiest weekends of the year apparently) but care was quick and appropriate. Yes there were periods of waiting and yes there were long delays for people with less serious injuries ( frustrating for them I agree ) .I was operated on that evening and moved to ward D1. 12 days on the ward is a good way to assess what it is really like - shorter visits can give different viewpoints and I have experienced this myself when visiting my local hospital for follow up( 180 miles away from the accident) Nothing is ever perfect and visitors to hospital will often be under their own stresses and strains at the time, not to say pain and fear. Staff have to be perfect but families and patients don't ! Perfection is an aspiration of all hospitals and if any of us we reviewed in our day to day lives we would also find a significant ranges of opinions and comments. Suffice to say D1 in particular ( and all I came in contact with in general ) , we as good a s I could have hoped. Camaraderie on a 7 bed ward was excellent and the only reason to have a single bed in in my view is usually as a result of behaviour of othe rpatients. My wife is a deputy Matron t a Community Hospital ( no they did not know that !) and has considered D1 should be an aspiration for her ward.