"Hospitals just don't come better than this!"

The care I have received at the Horton Treatment centre was nothing short of outstanding.

From the moment I was admitted I was made to feel that I was being treated as an individual and everything I said and every question I asked was listened to.

It had been a long time since I had had been admitted to hospital for major surgery and to put it mildly, I was terrified!

All of the duty staff that I saw that morning were very astute, saw my apprehension and did everything to put me at ease.

In Recovery after the procedure, the attention was amazing and the dry sense of humour was just the ticket.

Back on the ward the team were wonderful and just couldn’t do enough.

The care and attention remained top notch for the rest of my time there.

It was more akin to staying in a five star hotel than a hospital except that you had to stay in bed longer and it hurt a bit!

I was particularly impressed by the way all the staff displayed their passion of their chosen profession and were always ready with a smile and some good humoured banter.

Much appreciated by my fellow patient Arthur and I.

When the nurse came into the room and said, “They’re here!” a la the film ‘Poltergeist’, to announce the arrival of the Physio team, we were pretty sure it was their sense of humour.

It was!

All the physio’s we met were fantastic and did an outstanding job in getting us up and about and encouraging our recovery.

Catering and Housekeeping are also more than worthy of a mention, especially as I expect that they may be part of the background teams that get overlooked. The whole of the Treatment Centre is spotless and always looks as if the cleaning team have just left. But you never see them! Fantastic job.

And the food! Well, it is hardly surprising that the catering team have won Gold for the past five years.

Not only are the meals delicious, they are well presented as well. Other hospitals please take note.

There are two very minor points I would like to raise; the mid-morning and mid-afternoon tea and coffee service seems to be a bit sporadic. Some days it was there and others it wasn’t. We were very aware that the staff were very busy with their primary duties and we got the impression that it was an extra if time were available, but would have been nice to be told.

Also, it wasn’t until the Sunday morning (I was admitted on the Thursday) that I was given a towel. The duty nurse popped their head into the room and announced, “Clean towel! The old one in the bathroom?” They looked quite surprised that I’d only had the one I had brought from home.

As I said very minor points and I hope you don’t mind me mentioning them.

They must not detract from the unforgettable experience I had whilst under the care of the Horton.

I don’t intend on planning for any future surgery, but I know where I’ll opt for if I do.

Thank you.

Nigel Watling, Right Total Knee Replacement, 5-9 October 2017, Bed 26B