"Very pleased with my stay and treatment and would..."

What I liked

From the pre-assessment clinic visits to the day of discharge, the treatment I received was second to none. All of the staff from the Domestic to the Consultants were so friendly, respectful and professional that it is a credit to them all and your hospital. I'm sure there is also staff working in the background that make our stay in the infirmary so smooth and stress free, accelerating our treatment and recovery.

I would ask that you pass on my special thanks to the nursing staff on duty over the bank holiday weekend and make sure that it is logged so they are credited on their compliments statistics board by the nursing station. When I was there it was empty and couldn't understand why after the treatment I was receiving.

What could be improved

Your PALS website should also have a space for compliments rather than just complaints catagories. This would help your statistics if patients don not send thank you cards and give a more balanced view.

Might I draw your attention to the A&E ambulance entrance which is at the side of Maple Ward. This is a cul de sac area surrounded on three sides by high walls. Consequently on arrival the ambulances have to reverse from the access road to the entrance. When reverse gear is selected they activate a voice on a loudspeaker warning that the vehicle is reversing and a bleeper sounds until the vehicle stops. The enclosed space reverberates the sounds. This continues throughout the day and night making for disturbed sleep. Not just for Maple ward but the adjoining wards.

The reversing noises are probably a Health & Safety requirement, but I thought it should be brought to your attention if not already done so.

In most cases when the ambulances have reached the doors and unloaded their patients, they leave the engines running until they depart. This can be up to twenty minutes in some cases. This causes pollution in the immediate area and obviously wastes fuel.