I'll never forget an apt with ds when he was 9 months old and not turning the corner after bronchiolitis. Arrived at clinic, baby weighed and measured. Other nurse doing that raised her voice at a child for not standing square against the measuring thingy. I remember being really shocked by how rough the attitude was. Sat down and called into see registrar, a surly young woman. She didn't bother looking up, she didn't introduce herself, just spat out "you all turn up late and now you all turn up at once, now get him undressed". I remonstrated that I had not turned up late and didn't expect to be spoken to like that. She looked at me and told me to get on with it.
I walked out with baby and asked to see the consultant because I did not expect to be subjected to that level of rudeness. Consultant had gone home and they refused to make an apt with her without a chit from piggy knickers.
I refused to leave the hospital without a full copy of my son's notes because I knew I would have him referred privately elsewhere.
I did get a letter from the consultant apologising because she had just left the hospital when this happened and wishing us well. As for piggy knickers evidently she hadn't intended to be rude and had merely been observing a lot of patients were late.
Happily a private appointment was informative and reassuring. We were given (£25) a small turbohaler (not avail on NHS due to cost - they give out nebulisers worth £100 when the spacer isn't effective) more efficient than a spacer and a session with an asthma nurse who explained when one puffed it wasn't a matter of counting to 10 as instructed by the NHS paed asthma nurse, but trying to ensure the baby took 10 breaths rather than was holding his breath as many do. Also that 50% went in on breath 1, 20% on breath two, so it was permissible to puff again to get the full dose in. After six months of hell baby turned the corner in a couple of days and never needed the nebuliser again and never had another admission. All we had needed wS some good advice yet this had not been forthcoming from 1 consultant, 3 registrars, countless ward nurses or the nurses in the community paed team who came with a big dollop of "right on"attitude. And the comment about NHS staff being arsy to middle class patients is interesting from morbidly obese above because the number of times I've had snide comments at the house or at appointments is ludicrous. Including an orthopaedic consultant who looked us up and down and announced he had a visit from the Aryan master race (big boned and blonde children - my antecedents are Jewish), asked ds's school and raised an eyebrow, noted our address as somewhere hospital consultants couldn't afford and asked what my husband did. On hearing the word barrister promptly said "we can't afford to take any chances with this young man then, we'll manipulate that break back into place, get it in a full cast and I'll guarantee no lumps or bumps on that arm. The nurses on the ward were vile - it was an unexpected admission overnight, my period started and I asked for assistance. Was just looked at and told we don't provide those services - maternity might have a spare towel. Maternity is 15 mins there and 15 back leaving an anxious child in a noisy ward at 3am. There were half a dozen women. Seriously, not one had a tampon in her locker or at the bottom of her bag? And no, they weren't busy, they'd kept people awake with their giggling and bant about blokes and Ibeefa for a couple of hours
We aren't dim or vulnerable parents so one can only imagine the impact of this shambles on vulnerable families. But the waste of time and low level incompetence was jaw dropping. London and my DC are grown up so the problems aren't new.