"Horrible."

What I liked

Nursing staff.

What could be improved

The toilet in the A&E department was filthy and stank. Also there was no lock on the door which did not close. I was admitted with chest pains and kept waiting for six hours before being seen by anyone. I was given an ECG and then told I would have to wait in the waiting room to be seen by a doctor. I was then examined by a doctor who told me I would have to have tests including blood, urine, a chest Xray and a further ECG. I was moved to a cubicle where I waited a further two hours without being seen. Eventually another doctor came to see me and told me he would have to check the results of my blood tests and Xray. He came back when he realised I had not had any blood taken or an Xray. He took blood from my right wrist and a nurse took blood from my left hand. After a while I was taken for an Xray and returned to A&E. At no point did anyone ask for a urine sample or give me another ECG. I was told I would have to stay overnight and was moved to Bailey ward at 3am. A short while later a nurse woke me to tell me I had a Pulmonary Embolism (Blood clot on my lung) and gave me an injection in my stomach. I was told I would have stay in hospital for 5 days. A while later I was woken again and told I did not have a Pulmonary Embolism and would have to have another blood test at 5am to test for Trop T. Why did they tell me I had PE and give me an unnecessary injection and then change they're mind without explanation. The blood test result was ok and at 9am I was told I could go home. When I asked what caused the pain, I was told it could be caused by gastric problems, possibly a hernia or problems with my Asophygus. I was told to manage the pain with painkillers and discharged.

Anything else?

Whilst in hospital I asked for something to eat as I had not eaten since lunchtime. I am vegan but on my previous visits I have realised that they do not cater for vegans at all. I asked several people several times for something vegetarian to eat and was eventually given a snack box. This contained a tuna sandwich(not vegetarian), a piece of cake, yoghurt and an apple. I managed to get an egg sandwich at 3am after being transferred to the ward.

On my discharge form under "Clinical Narrative" it states: "Admitted with chest pain-different to previous angina pain- no recurrence since last stenting procedure." This is completely wrong as my last stent was fitted in November 2010 and I was admitted to hospital with what I was told was unstable angina in December 2010. I was also admitted to hospital in Lanzarote with chest pain on Christmas day 2010. I told the doctors this and when asked when I last had to use my GTN Spray for angina pain I told them it was about three weeks ago. I have been suffering with Angina on and off since my MI last May and know the difference between the pains I am suffering with at the moment and Angina. I don't see the point in asking me questions if they ignore the answers given.

My GP and some staff at the hospital have suggested I may be suffering from Perardcitis or Pericardial Effusion as my symptoms match. I understand there are several tests they can do to check this including an Echocardiagarm but for some reason they are loath to do them. They seem obsessed with Angiograms. I have recently seen a member of the cardiac team as an outpatient and he tried to book me in for an Angiogram but I refused unless they did an Echocardiagram first. It seems to make sense to do the simpler test first which is non-invasive and can be done by one person rather than a test that involves a surgical team.