"Very disappointing"

What I liked

Unfortunately I had the misfortune of being admitted as an emergency on a saturday to Glenfield following a collapse due to a bad chest infection which exacerbated an asthma attack. The staff on CDU were excellent and I couldnt have asked for better care despite them being extremely busy.

I wish I could say the same for the ward that I was transferred to (ward 20).

After having a few hours of oxygen and nebulisers on CDU I was then dumped in a side room on the ward, had one set of observations taken and didnt see anyone again for several hours. I was struggling to breathe and when I eventually did get to see someone I was told I "just needed to stop coughing and I would be fine!" How does an asthmatic with a chest infection stop coughing?

The only time I then saw anyone was to give me a nebuliser....

The next day I was told by a registrar that I could go home even though I still couldnt breathe and my antibiotics had been stopped the day before. He examined me straight after a nebuliser so of course my chest sounded better. I hate to say this but I do work in the hospital and a consultant colleague felt the need to intervene and I was kept in.

The following day (a monday) I was reviewed by a respiratory consultant who said I couldnt even go home that day, I was far too poorly and why was I not an antibiotics or my usual asthma meds.......nobody had bothered to get it up from pharmacy over the weekend and nothing had been written in my notes about any reviews about my condition........that will be because I wasnt really reviewed. I was very disappointed in my care and at times was worried that I was getting sicker in that side room and nobody gave a damn. Thank god for my colleages who came to see me regularly to check on me.

What could be improved

The biggest thing is always communication. I dont think anyone talked to anyone else.

Also just because I was a member of staff at the end of the day I was still a sick patient and still needed to be cared for. And yes I do have some knowledge so I didnt need patronising by some junior doctor who clearly didnt know what she was talking about. I should not have been ignored when I had just been admotted from cdu. I may well have been stable when I was brought round but surely it was obvious that my condition could and probably would deteriorate in the ensuing hours.

I really dont know why the weekend registrar wanted to send me home the day after I was admitted. The nursing staff did try to tell him that I was still struggling but I live alone (he didnt even bother to find that out) so incredibly vulnerable and if my condition had deteriorated at home I would not have been able to call an ambulance. As it happened I did deteriorate in hospital again....

I am now under the care of the wonderful respiratory/asthma team who are doing their best to get my asthma under control so I hope I dont get admitted again and if I do I really hope my experience will be better than the last.