"A&E and CCU"

I was recently diagnosed with angina with two quite severely blocked coronary arteries. I had an appointment booked a week after being diagnosed for stents to be inserted at The Priory in order to fix it. However, a few days after being diagnosed I had quite bad chest pain at rest that would not go away over several hours and so I had to call an ambulance.

The West Midlands Ambulance service were there in minutes and they were superb.

When I got to A&E I do not think it would have been possible to get a better service. The nurses were fantastic and the doctors I saw were thorough and efficient (and quick) and told me that I needed to stay in hospital to be checked over further and stabilised. A couple of hours later I was admitted to AMU and then shortly after that went to the Coronary Care Unit because the chest pain was not controlled.

I was absolutely staggered by the level of care and the facilities in Ward 23/CCU. The ward was as impressive as any I have sign in any private hospital. The nursing staff were both friendly and efficient, caring and compassionate but, more importantly, unbelievably professional and giving of a very personal service. On arrival I was met by the Ward Sister and I have to say that their team throughout the four days I was there were absolutely fantastic. The facilities on the ward were first class; the ward was spotless and the care was beyond compare.

Regrettably the demand for cath lab services across the three hospital forming part of the Heart of England Trust was high and because of that demand I was unlikely to be treated inside a week even though I had been kept in hospital because of the risks. Luckily, and because I had already arranged for the treatment to be carried out at The Priory, I transferred across on the fourth day and was treated a few days later.

I have to be honest and say that the standard of response at Good Hope, on the CCU particularly, and the quality and professionalism and friendliness of the nursing team at Good Hope was far better than the quality of nursing care I experienced at The Priory. I have to say that had I not had a pre-arranged appointment and had there not been so much pressure on the demand for the cath lab I would have been totally happy (and probably would have preferred) to have been treated completely at Good Hope/Heartlands. Everyone I came into contact with, and every part of the interaction I had on the CCU, was top rate. I know those things do not happen by accident and so I can imagine the dedication and commitment of the staff (nurses and consultants) that deliver such a high quality service under such extreme pressure.