"Drs and Nurses chose to do this job because..."

My elderly mum was seen within 30 minutes of arriving in A&E despite the waiting area being crowded. It always looks bad the amount of people waiting, but some are friends and family of the patient. Plus Central Middlesex A&E has been closed and it is Urgent Care aswell as A&E at NPH.

Mum had blood tests and a CT scan all done within 3 hours which was much quicker than we thought it would be. The part that took the longest was waiting for a decision and a bed in my mum's particular case.

She was left in limbo in Clinical Decision Unit for THREE days before being moved in the middle of the night to a medical ward. She felt very vulnerable there because the rooms only have curtains as doors. There's a room for mental health patients nearby with police or a security guard outside. At one point there were 4 police officers outside guarding the room. The patient was regularly shouting/screaming at their imaginary friend who lived in the wall. It was quite frightening for my mum for the 3 nights she stayed in CDU. Have to say the nurses were extremely friendly and caring there.

Nurses and doctors were doing there best but they are so incredibly busy and are constantly battling with the shortage of beds at NPH. As a patient its frightening, because you feel that the Drs and nurses are having to make decisions they don't want to make because they just don't have the space available to accommodate all the patients.

In one consultation the Dr was interrupted 6-7 times by her mobile because she was on call. How are they supposed to retain all the information! They must live off burnt out energy by the end of their shift.

My mum had so many different doctors speak to her, with conflicting opinions about medication that it just became overwhelming for her.

It does feel like the Drs do not read the notes beforehand. My mum was left repeating herself many many times and due to her age she kept forgetting to mention facts relevant to her condition due to this. I really felt for the patients who didn't have someone with them because you do need someone with you, to ether help you remember everything that's been said or fight your corner if you feel as it your being pushed out prematurely.