What I liked
The nursing and auxillary staff were extremely friendly and courteous despite it being the holiday season. All seemed highly professional and well trained and did everything to make my stay as comfortable as possible - thank you!!!
What could be improved
I would have liked more information about what was LIKELY to happen to me. When I entered the hospital the evidence was strong (D-Dimer over 1000 with previous chest pain) that I had experienced a pulmonary embolism. As I was in no physical pain I wrongly believed that I would be in hospital for a few hours. I ended up being there for a week. I would have liked someone to explain that my stay would PROBABLY be quite lengthy. This would have alllowed my family to organise themselves (instead of waiting for me to come out) and provided at least some management of my expectations. Generally, in A&E and the wards, doctors were not willing (or able) to provide sufficient explanation of probable outcome. From what I was told later, it should have been fairly obvious what was going on and would have taken less than a minute to simply say "we're not sure yet, but we think that you have experienced a PE. If this is the case then there is a reasonable chance that you will be with us for a few days while we conduct a scan and provide appropriate blood thinning treatment." No commitment to diagnosis but at least giving me a realistic idea of what was likely.
Anything else?
My biggest concern was hand washing. As I entered the ward, I saw the graphs showing the rates of MRSA. Given the number of patients in a ward this suggests a significant risk to any given patient. I think the current availablity of touch-free sinks and good, clear signage at the entrance/exit to each ward is excellent. However, on a daily basis I saw far too many staff ignoring the sink and wandering past (presumably following a visit to a previous ward). This system needs monitoring and policing. I would recommend disciplinary action for staff who ignore the sink and a fine for visitors and patients. In particular, visitors should have a clear explanation as to why hand washing is so important as they enter the hospital. Staff (particularly the ones with stethoscopes around their necks) should know better! Just before I left the hospital I was informed that there had recently been a case of MRSA and I had to be swabbed. I currently await the results of my swab with fear both for myself and any others I come into contact with.
"The nursing and auxillary staff ..."
About: Macclesfield District General Hospital / Accident and emergency Macclesfield District General Hospital Accident and emergency SK10 3BL Macclesfield District General Hospital / Cardiology Macclesfield District General Hospital Cardiology SK10 3BL
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