"A clean efficient ward staffed by pleasant, caring..."

What I liked

I went into the day care ward and everything ran smoothly and efficiently, with no problems at all. All the staff were friendly and helpful and could answer all my queries. The environment was clean and tidy, and although the nurses were obviously busy they were efficient.

What could be improved

I was initially called through to the ward by a consultant but after his visit I then sat in my cubicle not knowing quite what to do.No-one said if I should get undressed or just sit there. It wasn't a problem as I just listened to music on my phone and I suppose if I had asked I would have been told, but it was almost an hour and a half before I was approached again.

I think it would be a good idea to have 1 or 2 lifts dedicated specifically to patients going to and from theatre. Although I was accompanied by a porter and a nurse on both occasions it isn't very nice having to wait in lobbies with the general public or people being asked to leave the lift so that I could use it.

Anything else?

I was happy with my visit, the care I received, the operation I had and the amount of time that I stayed in the hospital. However I did notice other people seemed to be there for a lot longer than they wanted to be. The discharge system did seem to take more time than was necessary and it did seem that once the procedure was over patients were just left unattended. Here there may have been a slight lack of communication; in other words if patients are told that they have to stay for a couple of hours after there op' whilst drugs are prepared, there post op' mobility assessed and that they can't go until they've urinated and the nurses are sure every thing is working ok, then I think most people would accept that fact and make appropriate arrangements. Personally I didn't have a problem with this, I was having an operation and I didn't expect to be in and out within a few hours. I trust the professionals to know what's best for me, it's a busy hospital, it didn't matter to me if it took all day. I honestly don't understand why people have to be in such a rush but I suppose if they are fore warned, they would be more prepared to accept any delays.