To think ward visiting hours should be stuck to

[Flude]

Spent the entire afternoon and all last night in resus. Was moved to a ward at 6:30 this morning when I became stable. The lights were turned on at 6:30 which is fair enough as they have to medicine etc.

The first visitors arrived at 7am. I’ve had a quieter lady on one side and three visitors who are loud, obnoxious and demanding on the other side. Literally every time a nurses or doctors is doing something with me they are interrupting them.

But mostly they are loud and have been all day and I’m very tired and would have preferred not to have visitors on the ward before the specified times of 14:00.

Slightly added to as I’m in a bit with no curtains so their is zero privacy from these visitors.

WIBU to ask the nurses not to let visitors in before 2pm tomorrow?

It's not unreasonable to ask and I completely understand why you feel the way you do. Whether or not the nurses can keep them out is something else though.

What is the point of visiting hours if they're not stuck to? Why not just make it a free for all? I would ask to speak to the ward manager and find out why they're allowed in so far outside of the stated visiting hours.

This is very timely! I am on reception and our wards are soon to change the visiting times. Que mass hysteria! Visitors will not be happy. Trouble is, someone will cause a great stink, then will be allowed in "just this once" then every time they come in , will go into meltdown if not allowed when they think they should.

Really looking forward to it. Yes indeedy. Surely there is a time for handover when visitors are not to go on the ward?

Thankfully, I haven't been in hospital recently but I agree that, as a patient, you need quiet time to sleep, doze, read or just stare into space quietly. I don't even want visitors with me all the time never mind other people's. Visitors shouldn't be allowed in all the time unless someone's condition has deteriorated badly.

The one good reason I experienced to ignore visiting was when my dad was dying in hospital. The staff knew us and let us come and go at all hours (even at night as he sometimes became distressed and I'd have to rush in) because of the circumstances.

Course, we were totally respectful and quiet types (with a one off bolshy time when I insisted they do his meds first as he was in tremendous pain).

It was miserable him dying on a ward where everyone else was getting better and the staff did their best and were lovely but were always rushed off their feet.

Just sayin', there are always exceptions!

Definitely nbu to say something. Hospitals are supposed to be places you go to rest!

YANBU. There's no reason for visitors to be there all day unless someone's coming to the end, in which case I think they should be in a private room.

Totally agree with you. Visitors should not be there except under exceptional circumstances. My stay in hospital after having my DS was made horrendous by the next to me bringing in whole families to see them out of visiting hours when all I wanted to do was sleep!

*women next to me

It's like the wild West if you have open visitors yanbu.

I think it also depends on the TYPE of ward you are on. I have been on medical assessment, surgical assessment, a gynae ward and also labour/birthing centre. All pretty much had an open door policy due to the nature of the wards. The only stipulation by the staff was for visitors to avoid tea time as the Drs usually did their rounds at that time.

It is very hard. I used to visit my parents in hospital and had to fly in to see them (separately, they weren't in together!) I would only have a day and then had to fly out again. To have to stick to only visiting hours would have been very upsetting. However, I was a model visitor and neither loud nor got in anyone else's way.

I think it depends on the type of ward, my ward - kids we have parents all day and grandparents/aunts etc if they are taking parents place and all other visitors at visiting time one hour in the afternoon and an hour in evening. Of course our ward is usually quite lively and busy but if we were to have open visiting it would be chaos. Also important to adhere to 2/3 visitors per bed as it is a hospital, children/people are sick and trying to rest and recover.

Of course exceptions are made in exceptional circumstances but we are quite strict, we do bedside handovers so no visitors then, and never at meal times.

I accept exceptional circumstances (the quiet woman has just found out her relative has a brain tumour obviously I’m cool with her being there). I just made them a cuppa.

The loud family are kicking off a stink that there relative hasn’t been seen today yet now. If they stopped interrupting the doctors they would have probably got them by now.

I hope they go soon.

And yes if people
Have had to travel that seems fair too.
I just would prefer they were quiet. I am very tired.

Just sayin', there are always exceptions!
Yes, exceptions can be made for patients nearing the end or visitors who have come from far away.

I am sorry OP. Being around inconsiderate strangers when you are unwell is awful. I hope you do not have to stay in for a long time.

I do agree with you OP and it must be very annoying.

However everyone always feels that their circumstances are the exception. And when it's your loved one who is in hospital you just want to be there.

It's loud, obnoxious people who are the issue really.