"The staff were on the whole friendly and..."

What I liked

The staff were on the whole friendly and helpful and explained the procedure very well and came and saw me after surgery in the evening to check all was well.

What could be improved

Saturday Discharge Day

The change of shift arrived at 7-00 for hazel elective, and for over an hour all I could hear was one of the staff nurses moaning about one thing and then another. Neither of the two nurses showed their faces for all of this time.

This was then the start of a poor discharge experience. The physiotherapist came at 9-30 and had me walking around, they informed the staff nurses that I could be discharged. I asked a nurse a little later when I would be able to go home and the nurse said the doctor had to come and write up the prescription, I asked for a doctor note at that time. The doctor came and went and when asked about leaving I was told that they had to get medication from the pharmacy which closed at 12-00 noon it was now 11-15. At 12-45 I again asked another nurse if I could call and make arrangements to be collected. I was then informed that medication had not come back and no one had noticed as no one was managing my discharge except me. The next 30 minutes was then spent trying to find medication as pharmacy was closed, they turned up on Hazel Trauma at about 1-30 I was then given the medication and discharge note and when I asked for the doctors note it had not been done (forgot to ask I expect) I was then told I would have to now wait for a doctor to come out of surgery.

At this point 1-45 with a change of shift coming up I explained that I would go home without the note, as if handed over to someone else I would be there until tea time, as was my experience last year. I called my wife and before she arrived, the nurse had gone and got the doctors note herself.

I left the ward 4½ hours after being told I could go home. I explained to the staff nurse how disappointed I was in this process, as once told you can go home you want to be at home not delayed which causes unnecessary elevated levels of stress.