"Emergency appendectomy"

I had the unfortunate experience of an emergency admission to Torbay Hospital on 9 December 2014 with what I suspected was appendicitis. While I waited rather longer than I would have cared feeling like death in a rowdy A&E waiting room (why were the people waiting not asked to be quiet?), once I was admitted, the care was very good. A junior doctor needed my encouragement to find a vein but finally deferred to a nurse who got it in one. Thereafter, I was warned several times by different members of the surgical team that appendicitis was a younger person's complaint and that they were looking for something 'more sinister'. I'm still not sure about the benefit of this policy - however, following a CT scan, the problem was confirmed as appendicitis and I felt like cheering. Thereafter events were fast and I ended up being operated on in slightly under 24 hours from my original admission. The surgical staff were great, took time to explain the procedure and to talk about the outcome and the staff on McCallum Ward, superb - particularly care assistant whose sense of humour provided welcome relief. Since than, the doctor has worked under a clearly restricted budget to do their very best for me in follow-up. At the sharp end - what a wonderful institution the NHS is - at least at Torbay Hospital. Thank you, all.