"When you think things have been sorted theres..."

My son has been a patient of the orthodontics dept for about a year. I have already been in touch separately with the Patient liaison service because I find it so hard to communicate with the department - there is no number to call and I have been passed from pillar to post. For that reason I won't bore you with the details of why I needed to have contact.

Interestingly when I did write to PALs a surgical appointment arrived in the post about a week later. Thank goodness, we thought.

However the admission falls on the day my son will start 6th form. I have called the Admissions number given in the letter 16 times and counting, at various times of day, over the past 2 weeks to try to speak to someone about shifting it - the number simply rings and rings until it cuts off.

I fully understand how busy hospitals are and the staffing issues you face, but it makes patients feel completely helpless and disrespected to have no way of making contact.