"A very distressing and traumatic ..."

What I liked

A very distressing and traumatic experience - some staff gave good care many did not. Our whole experience was coloured by the quality of the poorest care

What could be improved

Nearly everything could have been improved. Care was very disjointed. I write with regard to the care of one of a relative, Mrs X. Despite significant on-going health needs her discharge was totally disorganised with no referral to community staff - Several months down the line I have now discovered that yet another specialist member of the community care team had asked to be informed when Mrs X was to be discharged in order that she could follow her up in the community. No-one informed that practitioner of Mrs X's discharge. This was not an isolated occurrence. It was only my involvement, some months later, that Mrs X got the referral that she needed. Care should not be dependent on family involvement.

Anything else?

Poor staffing levels.

Medication charts frequently observed on the top of the clinical waste bin and then returned to the end of patient's beds! A very poor example of infection control.