"Lack of a patient friendly waiting area"

Story posted on behalf of a caller to Healthwatch Liverpool. 

My experience in the waiting area at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital was horrific.  After I arrived by ambulance, I was dumped in the middle of the waiting area by a porter. The waiting area is for a lot of different services within the hospital, so alot of different staff came out and shouted for patients, which I found confusing and overwhelming. I'm registered blind so found this really difficult.

I wasn't sure where to go for my appointment, and there weren't any staff on hand to help direct me. In the end, I was helped by another patient who helped me to find where I needed to go.  

I didn't find the waiting area patient friendly, and it's not great for blind people. I think that there could be an accident due to the lack of clarity over where to go and number of people in the waiting area. The waiting area should be divided into spaces for the different services. I think it is designed like this but patients don't seem to follow this. I think this should be enforced.