"The nursing care in hospital was excellent"

This is dictated by the patient but written by his wife, as his handwriting is not so good after the stroke.

I was admitted to the ward not knowing what my diagnoses was, but I guessed I had a stroke. I coughed when I was given a drink and was promptly told I must have thickened drinks. A notice saying NBM was put on a board was at the back of me.

The next thing I remember was being visited by a speech and language therapist. She examined stethoscope and a liquid thickener appeared on my table, but I wasn’t told what it was at first.

Next day my daughter came down from London and asked if my wife, herself and myself could have an informative talk with the doctor in charge. This was useful.

I was taken down for a scan which was a bit scary because of the noise. I was wheeled back to the ward without any indication of the findings. The next day I was given a bedside scan. At this stage I was worried about what they would find. Eventually a specialist came to explain what the scan had revealed. I found this very helpful (this may sound strange, but even after talking to a number of staff members, I was still mystified, and I still am, about what has happened to me).

In fact, I still don’t know how ill I was and what the outcome is likely to be. For example, should I be looking out for further symptoms? Or am left with overwhelming tiredness and nothing to relieve it.

The team who visited me at home afterward were most helpful and did their best to make me aware of the maths, but I still remain puzzled. I realise that it is all to do with my brain but I remain unsure what I can actually do about it. For example, is there any ongoing treatment I could involve myself in?

The nursing care in hospital was excellent. Naturally I was pleased to get home and was pleasantly surprised to find that the aftercare continued at the same high level. I am so grateful to the whole team, especially to Margaret, the speech and language therapist, who still keeps in touch.