"The doctor & his team basically saved my life."

I’d been having bowel problems for years & in April my doctor had to get an ambulance for me as I was so ill. I think my bowel had ruptured & I had sepsis, so was in a bad way.

In A&E I was seen by a junior doctor who brought another doctor to see me & was told I would need an operation ASAP. The next thing I knew was when I woke up in ICU & hadn’t a clue what was happening. I’d had 3 blood transfusions, a colostomy bag fitted & at one point was on kidney dialysis & put into an induced coma. I thought that when I arrived at hospital I might need an operation & be home in a week or so but ended up staying until August. I was in ICU for about 4weeks, not really sure as I was so ill. Dr. Angus & his team basically saved my life & all the staff in ICU, apart from one nurse, were absolutely great.

After leaving ICU I was sent to Ward 4 as they didn’t have a room available in Ward 7 where I’d to go originally. I was really apprehensive going to a new ward with new staff & didn’t feel comfortable at all in the beginning. What I didn’t realise was that I had another infection & wasn’t myself & ended up back in ICU seemingly ranting like a mad woman, I have no memory of it.

When I returned to Ward 4 I started to relax & fit in with the staff. Instead of dreading every day the staff made me feel that eventually everything would get better & they made me feel comfortable & looked after. The staff, if asked, would tell you how much hard work I can be at times but without the majority of staff in Ward 4 I would have lost the plot! At the end of my stay I’d began to look on them as friends & could confide in them but also have a laugh at times when all I wanted to do was cry. When I’m talking about the staff of Ward 4, I mean from Karen the ward manager to Annmarie who brought breakfast to Amanda who cleaned my room & everyone who helped me along the way... too many to mention ! Thank you I appreciate everything you did for me.