"An awful experience."

What I liked

The staff on A and E were fantastic, they treated me as fast as possible, and were quick and efficient.

I was initially given a bed in Zebra ward, a ward opened up as I understand it when there are too many patients and too few beds, the care and attention I was given on this ward was outstanding.

What could be improved

I visited A and E with severe abdominal pain, the staff I saw initially were excellent, i was then moved to a small ward and the care I received there was great and I was told that i had been referred to the surgical team. The next morning a woman came in and started ordering everyone about, she wanted the ward emptied as soon as possible, and she didn't care who heard or how this came about, there was an old lady in a bed near mine who had had a fall and broken her shoulder, she was very confused, she had been moved to several wards, this lady who wanted the ward emptied was determined that she should go back to her nursing home, and we all heard her on the phone trying to bully them into taking her back, they said they would not unless, she could get herself out of bed and into a chair by herself, so then we had to listen to the poor woman being bullied into trying to do this all morning, when it became apparent that she could not, the women just took her bed and wheeled her into another ward! AAU, where I had the misfortune to end up myself.

Eventually I was sent for a scan, I was not allowed to walk but was pulled along by a porter dragging my wheelchair behind him!

The scan showed nothing, but they did not want me back on Zebra ward as it was now to be closed, so I was sent to aau.

On AAU, i could not get a drink or anything to eat as the staff could not find out if I was allowed anything. I arrived there after my scan at about 3 pm, at 9.30 pm I was still waiting to see a doctor, I had not had anything to eat or drink all day, no one had taken my obs, I was not on a drip, and I was desperate! I said I wanted to discharge myself and suddenly a doctor appeared who was very, rude and aggressive towards me.

During this time I had heard a conversation between nursing staff about how the surgical team did not want to look after me now as the scan showed nothing, and how they didn't fancy my chances of being seen by the medical team any time soon.

Anything else?

I decided that after all I would discharge myself, because at least when I was a home I could get a drink of water!

AAU is used as a holding pen for people who have not got a place on a ward, as well as the place people receive treatment when first entering the hospital if they are an emergency, so of course the staff there are dealing with people who are severely hurt before they deal with the needs of patients, shunted there from other wards.

However whilst I was there they were very quite, and the staff were in no way under any stress they spent a lot of the time chatting by the front desk, they did not seem to feel as if they had any responsibility towards me, and I was mainly ignored. The old lady that was also moved into AAU was treated with rudeness, and like she was a nuisance, she became increasingly more and more upset and confused, and staff did not want to be bothered with her. She was allergic to wheat and dairy, so went without anything to eat as the hospital could only provide sandwiches and yoghurt for dinner.

It is well known that using AAU as a holding pen like this does not work, it is done purely to

save money and patient care goes out of the window. I believe that the management of this hospital leaves a lot to be desired, it is all about saving money and not at all about looking after people.DrinksEmergencyReceptionReferralsAttentiveFoodPatient careProfessionalismBedsSurgery teamOpening hoursTelephoneWheelchairsPortersAggressiveRudeDoctorsNursing staff