Disgusting hospital

I dread having to go into my local hospital, it is awful. My husband was in and out over a six month period. He had terminal cancer and periodically needed care. In one stay he was in a ward with dementia patients though he was lucid. He couldn’t sleep because the man in the next bed shouted all night and was completely ignored. I visited every day and on one occasion he had what looked like cottage cheese in his mouth. It was thrush. Said he wanted a drink but nurse put it too far away for him to reach. Yet whenever I needed to speak to a nurse, I found them all huddled around the nurses station chatting. Overworked. Yes in A&E. There are people nursing that should never be in the job. They have no empathy at all. Beats me why they chose the profession in the first place.
I fought tooth and nail to get my dying husband into a hospice as he pleaded with me not to let him die in the hospital.
His last weeks in the hospice were wonderful. Nurses were so caring and the volunteers always went the extra mile.
That is how it should be. When did it all go wrong.

Yeah because they cherry pick and take the nuts and bolts good stuff
when it all goes drastically wrong In theatre your transferred back to the nhs

The NHS isn't free.

I am just grateful we have a free NHS service, who are extremely understaffed. My 5 year old son has been hospitalised probably about 15 times in the last 18 months with stays that vary from 2 -5 days . All I care about is that they get him better and give him the medication he needs, I couldn’t care less about the food, if it smells like poo or there’s noise through the night! They make you better that’s all that matters, they all do a great job. If you want a 3 course meal, your own room and the smell of roses wafting through the air pay and go private

Recently, after phoning NHS111 early hours of the morning and being told a Dr would phone me back within 4 hours, an ambulance turned up at my door in under an hour. I was pretty shocked.

Straight to A&E for bloods and X Rays. Then up to AAU until the evening when I was taken to a ward. I only have the best words for the paramedics, nurses, doctors, porters, HCAs, cleaners, receptionists, radiologists and everyone else involved in my care. Apart from the A&E Dr (who got a bit sniffy when he realised it was my own fault I was there) everyone was kind, personable, called you by your name and caring and more importantly, not judgmental (something I was expecting to happen.)

I do have to say that night staff were quite loud (day volume voices) and lights left on, bins clanging so sleeping was erratic but I was on 4 hourly obs anyway. I have no problem with them having a chat about stuff, they are all human, too.

Once one of the loos needed cleaning so I informed the staff. It was fine when I re-visited 2 hours later. They can't know everything and be everywhere.

My first nurse on the ward held my hand and was so kind, made me cry. She brought me a booklet on asking Jesus for help. A friend said "Oh! That's not right, did you complain?" I said no, of course I didn't, she was trying to help me and I appreciated that kindness."

The next morning (breakfast) I did get the food ordered by the previous patient and I respectfully asked if I could have a cereal instead (as I don't eat porridge) if they had a spare one - they did. Similar with lunch as it was something I didn't eat and, again, they checked for me and I was given an egg mayo sandwich which was fine.

So sorry for all the awful things people have been put through on here.

Was pleased to get home after 3 weeks but..........

................Big up for West Suffolk Hospital! Thank you!

JFC. Is there no protocol to address this?

Sorry you had this terrible experience. I can only say it isn't like this everywhere. During my last hospital stay my father, who had recently been in a private hospital, felt the nurses were much better on the NHS ward. I had nothing to complain about. But this doesn't help if you realistically have no choice about where you go, and your local hospital is in a poor state.

Well no but it might make it more of an appealing career and help with retention. I agree that rude, negligent nurses exist and there's zero excuse for it - but when hospitals are so desperate for staff unfortunately often someone is seen as better than nothing. If more people staying in nursing/wanted to train there'd be more scope for maintaining standards. Not saying its right of course, but sadly its the current reality.

Takes the piss nurses striked for extra money, if we pay them more they’ll be nice to patients eh?

No, I don't think it is all about funding.

Its about many things - including some poor quality staff. Not all, by any means.

I do understand that pressures that A&E staff are under. It was chaos, beds in corridors, ambulances in the car park, when DH had to go there - but the staff were doing their level best. It was sheer weight of numbers of people waiting to be seen that was causing the chaos.

It was Easter Sunday, and many people were there because they hadn't managed to see a GP the previous week, so they went to A&E.

Obviously, they all had to be seen.

But, up on that first ward, it wasn't understaffed, no one was rushing around, and, to start with, I was impressed with how calm it all was. Every patient had their own room, as it was for contagious patients (my DH had Covid).

But, it turned into distressing chaos. Patients ignored, left to lay in soiled beds, and medication not given properly.

The second ward was wonderful.

Something needs to sorted out with the NHS. It gets worse every week, and winter is coming.🙁

It has been poor for a long time but not always. I trained as a nurse in the late seventies. The nursing care was totally different to now. We trained on the job, we’re salaried and woe betide us if we didn’t look after the patients with utmost care.
i have witnessed appalling care in the last 15 years when relatives have been in hospital and have had to go in to give the care myself. It’s truly awful, and wrong.

@Emmalin

It's always been poor ime. I genuinely got diagnosed with and treated for PTSD after a hospital stay in 2017. And both me and ds1 were dangerously ill when he was born due to multiple errors and lack of accountability. And that was during a time when Labour was pouring money into the NHS.

I think you'll find that in 2017, we were under the tories, not Labour.

OP, I too have been discharged within the last week after an emergency, major procedure, which kept me as an inpatient for a week in my local NHS hospital.
I only have one bad thing to say about the staff on my ward, and that is that one of my regular medications has to be taken at least 60mins BEFORE any other medication and/or food, and I made them aware of this on my first evening on the ward. I also told them each evening and morning of my stay, but on absolutely NO single occasion did they bring me this medication before breakfast was served, but an hour AFTER breakfast, along with my other morning meds.
This meant that my (already cold) toast had to sit around for a minimum of 2hrs every day until I'd been able to take this medication and give it the necessary time lapse before I could have anything else,
So I've learned, from hereon, I will always keep at least a week's supply of all my medications in my handbag, and will NOT hand any of them over to hospital staff if I ever have to go in again, and will take my meds like the 50-something adult I am at home, and not allow nurses to treat me like a 10yr old who has to beg or be patient and wait until they see fit to give them to me.
Other than this one thing, I cannot fault the treatment I received, and would recommend this hospital to anyone needing to choose one to go to for any treatment.

It depends on the hospital!
When I had my 1st, my waters didn’t break properly, they were kind of doing a slow trickle. The hospital sent me home and booked me in for induction, bearing in mind this left my waters broken for over 24hours. I got induced the next day, gave birth, went relatively okay, except for the midwife sitting on the bed all the time so whenever I went to change my leg position, I accidentally kicked her!! Anyway, once on the ward, I was in soooo much pain, I couldn’t walk to the toilet without blacking out. I didn’t know what to expect so didn’t know if it was normal!
I got discharged even with feeling like this, my mum came to pick me up (single mama at the time) and I asked her to ask them for a wheelchair cause I couldn’t even think about walking. They came over and tried to take my pulse but couldn’t count it. I’d gotten a bad infection and was losing a lot of blood.
I got rushed to intensive care and whilst in a private room there, they said I was low on magnesium. They accidentally injected into my muscle which swelled like crazy. They’d placed the call button out of reach and I was hooked up to a few things so couldn’t move. I had to just keep waving at a window until someone saw me and it was agony!
Once back on the labour ward, I had a private room and was left alone a hell of a lot which was hard when I was hooked up to a few things. And considering I was bleeding so heavily, my sheets weren’t changed in 5 days. I said to one of the midwives, when do they clean the rooms and she went umm, you have to ask. Like I was stupid.
The whole experience was very traumatising and I was poorly for a while. I changed the hospital for the second one and felt like I was in a movie, it went that smoothly 😂

Mum died in the most sad little hospital room, filthy windows with no light coming in, peeling paint on the walls, no life in it at all. A sad way to go. One in, one out. Nobody told me what to expect or to look for when a person is dying - the whole thing was so bleak. But there was a nurse who was quite wonderful. And she was like a guardian angel that night.

When a government wishes to end a national health scheme its not difficult. Reduce the number of nurses training, the same for doctors, give contracts for cleaning, food, laundry to private companies whose only aim is to make a profit. Reduce the number of beds, reduce the number of staff. Leave the EU ensuring we have difficulty procuring drugs and you have the perfect storm. If you want an NHS that works then expect to pay higher taxes for a decent service and dont vote for a party that spends all its time trying to cut taxes.

Well, I'll step up and put an experience of mine here (I have posted it before in greater detail). I had a flexi-sig and was told there was no sedation available in the leaflet that was sent to me before the procedure. I told the doctor doing it that I had multiple abdominal surgeries before - he didn't ask for any further detail than the broad outline I gave him. In fact, I have had active endometriosis (never removed) a hysterectomy and other prolapse repairs, plus I have fibromyalgia which makes me more sensitive to pain. All in all, it's highly likely that I have a lot of adhesions.
The whole procedure was a nightmare, compounded by the fact the bowel prep hadn't worked and I was ignored when I told the staff. The doctor seemed very brisk and eager to get the procedure done as soon as possible. Meanwhile, I was in agony and was told to take deep breaths and that was the sole 'help' that I received. I was passed the gas and air eventually which did nothing. When I had the debrief afterwards with a nurse, I told her how awful it was and she advised me to have sedation the next time round, which was inevitable.
The notes I was given afterwards stated that I had tolerated the procedure well and that my pain score was a 2. My experience was that it was a 10+, among with feeling that I was anally raped (sorry if that is triggering for anyone).
I wrote a letter outlining what I felt had gone wrong - the one and only time I have ever complained. I got a reply, using the wrong title, reiterating that the doctor and nurse agreed my pain was a 2. At that point it was clear they were covering each other's backs and there was no point in contesting it, so I gave up.

@Mercedesferrari, you mentioned that skills like admin of IV medication and cannulation were unnecessary. The degrees and additional skills (cannulating, catheterising, admin of IV meds, managing tracheostomies, managing central lines, managing critically ill patients etc etc etc) that I've got over the past 25yrs have been invaluable in the care of the patients I look after. As a Sister, I will also clean things, and feed, wash and assist patients with toileting etc. I will talk to patients and their families, I stay past the time my shift ends on most days I work. I teach junior staff (including doctors), I will manage the ward in my boss's absence, and I will bloody well argue the toss to ensure my patients (and my colleagues) get the support and care they need.

The knowledge, and technical and specialist skills I've got (and other nurses have) saves lives. I can recognise a deteriorating patient and escalate/act fast to help that patient. In my previous post, from the other day, I mentioned that my ward has some of the sickest patients outside of ITU. So I would say that these skills are vital to the role. And just because I do have these additional qualifications and skills, it does not mean that I don't care, and that I'm trying to be something that I'm not. I am a nurse, I feel bloody privileged to be a nurse, and I will do what I can and learn what I can to make damned sure that I give the best possible care to my patients.

I was also in the John Radcliffe, Oxford. They saved my life and had multiple stays over a 4 month period. Amazing hospital with the best staff.

The thing is the nurses in private hospitals are no different are they ? They are in such short supply anyone can get and retain a job, be it NHS or Bupa. I think this is what posters on here don’t realise. Drop out and retention is so incredibly poor in the profession that the shortfall never gets filled. I mean, really, would any of the posters on here want to do it ?
I’d like to say that private hospitals will be better staffed thus ensuring superior standards of care but as they are money making businesses I think things will be pared to the bone. The only difference is that patients will be more vocal in calling out poor care because they are paying for it…

I don't think any patient would object to hearing personal conversations between smiling nurses while they were looking after patients on the ward.
I think you know that the complaints are about LOUD conversations around the nursing station, while buzzers are going off and being ignored.
I stayed with DS in a children's ward overnight years ago, and the noise was horrendous all night. Screeching conversations, laughing, ordering take aways.

Go straight to CQC with your complaint medication errors are an act of abuse.

PinkSparklyPussyCat

Littlemouseing claims to ‘have experience in this area’.

Let us hope that if ill, neither we, nor our loved ones, fall into her clutches.

My DM has just been in hospital for two weeks after having to go through surgery and out of the many staff I saw and my DM encountered there was only 2 who seemed as though they were there for something other than a paycheck . My DM was left in vomit covered nightclothes and her surgical stockings had to be cut off her legs as they had got covered in vomit and urine as they had left my dm to wet herself when she rang her buzzer for help to get out of her bed . My dm is nearly 70 and it's the first time I've seen her cry in a long time

Labour hasn’t been in power since 2010. By 2017 the NHS was seriously underfunded, but that is no excuse for errors and lack of accountability. I am sorry for your experience. I hope you complained to PALs.