"Treatment of my mother"

In my experience of (fortunately) limited contact with NHS services they never learn from poor communication feedback. 

My mother was called into Wycombe hospital because of severe anemia and the need to have a blood transfusion.  Her GP arranged for a district nurse to take a blood sample some days before the appointment. 

This happened as planned but when we arrived at the hospital no one was aware of the appointment and she had to wait 3 hours before the staff at the hospital were able to sort it out with the GP surgery. 

Treatment was completed but a further appointment was necessary and again the district nurse was to visit to take another blood sample.  This time the nurse did not arrive and when we range them we were told that a 'communication error' within their team meant that a nurse would not be turning up. 

When we asked what would happen to her appointment we were told that it couldn't go ahead - no alternatives, plan B just "she can'r have it".  Unable to accept this (the doctor at Wycombe Hospital, had previously told her that she was in danger of becoming seriously ill unless this treatment cycle was completed without delay) we rang the hospital and fortunately a member of staff there was willing to take the sample if we could immediately take her to hospital which we did). 

Apparently, due to the delay the blood sample was then to be sent that night by taxi to Bristol for matching with the blood supply required next day for the treatment.  The appointment at the hospital next day was completed without further incident. 

A third attendance (follow up) was required at the hospital a week later.  This time the only delay was caused by a machine failure which meant that the doctor did not have full access to her blood test results.  Technical failures happen but the waiting room (this time in the oncology ward) was full of patients (presumably many seriously ill) wondering why they were left waiting. It surely requires only common courtesy (and empathy) for staff to simply inform patients that a delay would occur.  

I have encountered many NHS staff who are helpful, kind and efficient, who put themselves in the place of the patient and who don't speak NHS techno-babble.

Unfortunately, in my experiance there are really rather a lot of staff who are quite the opposite.   It further appears in my view, that clinical staff and administrative staff have little respect for each other and hence have no common interest in maintaining a smoothly operating service. 

Are these unfortunate but rare service blips, listening (as I sit for hours waiting) to staff speaking by phone to other patients and sorting our administrative errors (all the time peppering their conversation with NHS acronyms)  I fear not !t