"100% Excellent."

I accompanied my 81 yr old Mother who has alzheimers during her stay at Ward 3 of Hexham hospital from the 6th of October ( day of op.) to the 9th October 2016.

She was in hospital to have a mastectomy which was potentially a most daunting prospect with extreme concerns for Mum in so many ways.

However,from the moment we arrived on ward 3 we were immediately made to feel welcome and comfortable by all staff.They always had time to discuss any of our queries and they had such patience with Mum ,who, due to her Alzheimer's can take a long time to understand directions/instructions. We both appreciated this very much and it all contributed to keeping Mum calm and more relaxed.I would also like to thank the Anaesthetist who came to meet Mum before the op. They were so pleasant ,kind and thoughtful with Mum and after meeting her and discussing her personal needs was able to make the process of having the Anaesthetic much smoother and more comfortable than if they hadn't prepared the situation well. I am particularly grateful for that.They also took time out to visit Mum after her operation to see how she was. I would also like to thank the extremely professional surgeon who we first met before the operation and who,after discussing what they were going to do and answering questions very clearly made us feel completely confident and reassured that we were very lucky to have this person as our surgeon.One last observation I'd like to mention was most important to us.That was the way that every single member of staff treated Mum with such dignity every single time.This was maintained by all staff at all levels throughout our stay and I cannot emphasise how much this meant to all of us.Thank you all.What an excellent team.The people of Northumbria are extremely lucky to have you.Kind Regards, Kay.