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"Disappointing Experience and No Referral as..."

About: St Mary's Hospital (HQ) / Accident and emergency

I was referred to St Mary's A&E by my GP as I had a serious infection and I was in a lot of pain. I was in the A&E for close to four hours. While I understand that the staff were busy, they were extremely disorganised and the way they handled patients did not make any sense at all. I had to make a nice but confused Nurse aware that my blood tests had not been taken since the time she admitted me (I do not know why she presumed they had - maybe she had instructed another Nurse to do so) and also request after waiting an unreasonable amount of time that she administer the painkillers she said she would give to me (as I was in a lot of pain and could not sit still in the uncomfortable waiting room chairs.) She said they did not have any beds available but eventually moved me to a nearby waiting area where she administered the painkillers. I was also required to provide a urine sample and the toilet I had to use was absolutely filthy. Thankfully, the Doctor saw me not too long after this and again carried out on me the same tests that had been carried out by the admitting Nurse and my own GP. I found this Doctor to be professional and kind. However, after receiving the results of my blood tests and prescribing me with antibiotics, he advised that I had been referred to a clinic at the hospital who would contact me the following week (after the bank holiday) for further tests and/or treatment. It has been 10 days since my A&E visit, and I have heard nothing from this clinic. I called A&E early last week. They advised that they did not know anything about the referral. I called the clinic in question - it appears they never answer their phones. In the end, I went back to my own GP to get another referral. When I spoke with the clinic booking line, they checked their records and stated that they had received no referral from the A&E dept. This period of waiting for the referral has been difficult, as I have been left in limbo in terms of knowing whether my health issue is benign or malignant. In the meantime, my own GP has had to prescribe me a further treatment of antibiotics as the infection has not cleared up. She has also had to refer me for another set of tests for a different (but possibly related issue) that the A&E Doctor advised me did not show up on their set of tests. I do not understand why further tests/treatment was not carried out on the day I was admitted to A&E. It feels like this has just prolonged my health issues, instead of determining exactly what they are and then treating them promptly and accordingly. I can not in good conscience recommend this A&E dept. The obvious organisation, communication and effectiveness issues here really need to be addressed in order for the patient experience to be at a truly acceptable standard.

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Responses

Response from St Mary's Hospital (HQ) 4 years ago
St Mary's Hospital (HQ)
Submitted on 14/05/2019 at 17:12
Published on nhs.uk at 18:07


Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust is very concerned about your feedback posted on NHS Choices and wishes to sincerely apologise to you for the experience you have had with the Accident and Emergency Service at St Mary's Hosptial. The Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) would like to be able to look into this matter on your behalf.

We would like to encourage you to contact PALS on either 0203 313 3322 or email Imperial.pals@nhs.net

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