"A23 Outpatient"

I recently attended the early pregnancy unit following some abdominal pain at 8 weeks gestation.

I was initially seen by a nurse who was very kind and considerate and took their time to identify what had been happening in the pregnancy so far. I was taken through for a scan and met the sonographer, they were very thorough and explained what they had found on the scan in much detail. The scan showed that the embryo was measuring 5 weeks gestation and I would require a rescan in 1 week.

On returning 1 week later I met a nurse who took my through for my second scan. The scan showed that there had been no growth and the embryo still had no heartbeat. It was bad news, I was experiencing a missed miscarriage. The nurse took me into a room, in such a difficult circumstance I cannot thank them enough, the nurse was kind, compassionate and very sensitive. The nurse discussed my options in great depth and gave me and my partner plenty of time to make an informed decision. The nurse even went out of their way to arrange for me to have an outpatient medical management that day. Thank you!.

Following this, I felt my experience was let down by the care of staff. I was called back to A23 outpatients to undergo my treatment. I was taken into a room where the nurse did not introduce themselves and finished eating their skittles before talking. The nurse did not sympathise with what was one of the hardest things I have ever gone through, and stated that it was unusual for someone to have outpatient treatment. The nurse went on to say that no one would be there to check if 'it' had come out and was generally really dismissive at answering most of my questions, told me to take my trousers off and go under the sheet, where they left. Within the space of 40 minutes I met a further 4 people, two performing my observations, a doctor who unnecessarily entered to prescribe already prescribed pain relief and a nurse that finally administered my treatment. Throughout this process, the curtain was regularly left open, leaving me feeling very exposed. I felt my care was very task orientated and I was not able to build a rapport with one individual in such a sensitive situation. Overnight and the next morning I spoke over the phone with two separate nurses, who both gave me reassurance and advice, sensitively answering questions I asked. Thank you.

I understand it can be a very difficult job working within what can be such an emotionally draining clinical area (I work in one myself). I do however feel that it is possible that potentially individuals who I came in contact with have become de-sensitised to their working environment. It is easy to lose sight of the reasons you entered into such a privileged job. Going through such a horrible time in my life was not made easier with the thought of having to reattend A23 to undergo a D&C having such a negative days before.