"I am indebted to each and every one of you"

I had a spinal decompression in July at QEUH, and commented here about the excellent care.

I have now had a further, more serious surgery (2 level extreme lateral interbody fusion) and wanted to take some time to share my experience and thanks.

Upon arriving at the Same Day Admission Unit I was delighted to find that the same nurse from last time (D - Diane? Sorry I've forgot! ) was going to be admitting me. We had a great catch up and again I was roaring with laughter. She is an asset to SDSU and a very smiley face to see on surgery day.

Next, the anaesthetist arrived, and it was the same one who anaesthetised me previously - Dr McCreath. I was really happy to see him as I had as good an anaesthetic experience as possible last time. This was true this time too - he is an excellent anaesthetist and knows how to make the patient relax and feel calm in the anaesthetic room. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for looking after me so well.

My surgeon, Mr Reece, has been nothing short of incredible from the start of my journey 2 years ago to now. He has always been honest, direct and completely upfront about expectations of surgery so I was very well informed prior to both surgeries. My husband and I are very grateful to him for getting me this far.

Special mention must go to Mr Reece's secretary, Sharyn. Over the years we have chatted many times and she has always been professional, cheerful and incredibly helpful. A real star, I don't know what the surgeons would do without her! All the best for your upcoming wedding!

Also, thank you to the theatre and recovery staff, who work tirelessly to look after us when at our most vulnerable, but are seldom singled out for praise. So a huge thank you to you all, you are appreciated hugely.

Last time I stayed in Ward 10B, this time I was through the way in Ward 10A. Again, fantastic care from everyone - I can't remember their names but the wee lady who came in every morning with fresh water, the lady who cleaned so thoroughly and the staff who brought the meals were lovely and I looked forward to their cheery faces every morning.

The nurses and auxiliaries were incredible. The buzzers never stopped going, yet they remained cheerful and always had time for a chat if I was feeling a bit low. I ended up in hospital for ten days due to a complication during surgery which left me in torturous pain, but the nurses and auxiliaries kept me going all the way through.

A special thank you must go to Liz, who looked after me through the worst days (the bedpan ones! ) - she listened to me howl, swear and rage without complaint and still had a smile at the end of it. I'm sorry for my potty mouth, but I do wish now that I'd soaked you in the shower :-D

Of course Liz wasn't the only one who had to put up with me, there was a whole team of fantastic staff but my dreadful memory has failed me. For that I'm sorry, I wish I could name check all of you, because you were all brilliant and I'm indebted to each and every one of you. This ten days were probably the worst I've ever been through, particularly the five days I was totally bedbound for. You all kept my spirits up, all the way through. So Ward 10A, Thank you!

Physios - you knew before I did what was best for me, and how to get me to do my best. Well done on that! And huge thanks.

This is now reading like an Oscars acceptance speech, so I'll bring it to a close now.

Suffice to say that I'm very very grateful to everyone who was involved in my care.

The bad: What in the world is going on with the windows? They don't open, and the air conditioning doesn't work! It was very warm during my stay, and I was melting - you couldn't catch a breath it was so stuffy. The poor staff were drenched in sweat having to run around in air which is more like that of a rainforest than a hospital. It really was uncomfortable, and I can't imagine what it will be like come summer. There will be a lot of miserable patients, and a lot of annoyed uncomfortable staff.

I was told the staff have been reporting the problem for ages now but nothing has been done. For the sake of the patients and the poor staff, please fix that air con!