"Experience in Eye Outpatients/Ophthalmology..."

I went for an eye outpatient appointment on Mon 30 July, with visual field test scheduled for 10:35 and the appointment at 10:50. My husband was with me for support as it was something I was incredibly anxious about – he had taken the morning off to be there for me but had a 1:30pm train to make, which we assumed would be fine, even with a bit of (expected) wait.

Somehow, even though the waiting room was more empty than I’d ever seen it, esp. since it’s usually rammed, I didn’t end up coming out of my visual field test until about 11:10. We then moved to the smaller waiting room to await the consultant, where there were even fewer people.

We sat patiently until 12:15, when my husband understandably started to get concerned about getting to the station on time. During that hour, hardly anyone was called, with a deafeningly loud television blaring at us to boot (a screen that would be better put to use as a digital appointment update screen so that patients can at least know where they are in the queue/be informed of any delays). At 12:30, he got up and asked the nurse for information, citing his train– she was very nice, but she seemed surprised/unaware of what was happening.

It was only then that the wheels were put in motion to get me seen, although by that time, it was 12:45. He of course had to perform the initial examination, place dilating drops in my eyes, and send me for retinal photography. My husband had to leave me on my own in the waiting room for the retinal photography, with my eyes dilated (which I don’t do very well at all with as it always makes me even more anxious/unable to see) and so anxious that I was shaking and dizzy with my chest tight (to the point where I nearly stopped the consultant mid-consultation because I thought I was going to pass out), leaving me to finish the appointment by myself and make my way home by public transit barely able to see, as he was also my ride home.

Although the individual people that I saw during the course of my visit were lovely, the whole process seems completely unorganised, with zero communication to patients who are left to sit and wait, watching loads of staff walking around a near-empty waiting room toting folders while nobody is being called in for their appointment. It would make an absolute world of difference if, if there was a delay, a staff member could just take a few seconds to say what was happening and give a ballpark estimate of the additional time. I understand that most of the people there are pensioners and thus not under time pressure, but us who are taking time off work, we would appreciate more organisation/communication please.

Delays happen. I get it – I work for the NHS and I am the first to defend it. But even showing patience as I always try to do, this was an unorganised mess. The addition of something simple, such as a screen that shows the queue or someone explaining what was happening, would save a massive amount of stress/anxiety/upset.