Surgery cancelled again. WIBU to turn up to the hospital regardless?

[Wndof]

I've been waiting over a year for life saving surgery. I was finally given a date for 31st August then they changed the date twice, switching my appointment with somebody else and then telling me they'd made a mistake with dates. Finally, 14th September (so tomorrow) was confirmed and I've undergone all of the pre operative tests and assessments, made arrangements for the children, XP secured the time off work.. only for them to text me just now and say the surgery has been cancelled due to a bed issue.

I called the admissions coordinator who has been absolutely terrible throughout and told him that I plan on turning up tomorrow morning and won't be leaving.

I read on here thats what somebody's father did in the same situation and he got his operation.

WIBU to give it a go?

Sorry if I seem dramatic, I just cannot endure this utter shit any longer 😭

It is frustrating but I’m a nurse and when there is no bed there is no bed. On two separate occasions I have experienced patient’s relatives being super super pushy and their relatives were admitted despite it being unsafe. This is my warning to you, one patient died and one needed an ITU admission which was delayed as there were no ITU beds. I’m just saying that in my experience pushing for something rather than waiting for the right time ends in disaster.

My DM had 8 cancellations actually on the day each time. Usually having sat there from 7am to 4pm. Don't turn up and waste everyone's time.

My DM had 8 cancellations actually on the day each time. Usually having sat there from 7am to 4pm. Don't turn up and waste everyone's time

Oh the irony!!!

It's the consultants cancelling it.

I asked the admissions coordinator over the telephone who the instruction to cancel this time had come from as I wanted to relay it to PALS. He told me it was the bed manager and gave me her name (which I instantly forgot, typically)

I believe my consultant is off today so unlikely it came from him. He wanted me in on Thursday specifically as he's in that day.

Knowing what I know now about what is considered "short notice" I would not have called them, pretended I didn't receive the text, and turned up anyway. Cancellation on the day is considered short notice and they are obliged to give you another date within 28 days, or pay another hospital to do so if they don't have capacity.

I guess you could try your luck but it depends why it was cancelled. They didn't have the staff for my op so the whole list was cancelled.

Good luck with PALS. They replied to me on my new surgery date and were absolutely hopeless.

Turning up is only going to add to an already overloaded workforce . Someone will have to attend to you who probably needs to be doing something else.

If there’s an emergency brain bleed/aneurysm rupture the hospital tries to find another hospital with an available bed. If none available they do the surgery and transfers out as soon as possible, keeping the patient in recovery until then (ventilated.) That means the nexts days routine patients are often cancelled as they can’t have too many patients in recovery.

A lot of the time there will be patients that can move from ICU to the ward but no ward bed as social care in the community is in crisis/bed blocking elderly with nowhere to go. It’s really sad as those patients would much rather be at home but no one to look after them.

I hope you get your op soon, KCL neurosurgery is fantastic. I had a close relative with a ruptured aneurysm there and the treatment was textbook. Really good experience.

2 Ops here.

Same issue 1st op. Got in touch with MP and it got sorted fairly quickly.

2nd Op sent to a private hospital via NHS. Luxury BUT. Had a post op 'episode' no emergency care / ICU etc. Everyone and his dog around my bed panicking. Luckily I came round.

Sending love x

Because whilst it’s an utterly terrible situation she would then take up a ward bed for X amount of days prior to a critical care bed being available. In turn blocking beds for patients who need surgery but that can return to a ward bed.

OP the situation you are in is awful, it’s a daily Occurance and one you are right to be Angry at. However turning up tomorrow will not change anything, it isn’t going to make a critical care bed available. Others have already explained operational management of critical care and how it works for emergencies so I won’t repeat.

The admissions unit will not allow you to sit in there and ask you to leave on the premise that you know you have been cancelled and it is literally out of their hands.

Complain to PALs and whoever else you feel you need to. However this also doesn’t change the fact that your MP, the newspaper or PALS cannot create the bed you need no matter how many complaints you lodge. I can guarantee you now your consultant will be just as angry and frustrated- they fight on a daily basis for ward beds and critical care beds to treat their patients. Bed managers do try to prioritise patients who have been cancelled multiple times - but it remains that if there’s no bed there is no bed. It’s a terrible situation.

Lack of investment in healthcare has lead to this crisis and the frontline staff firefight everyday to try and provide a service.

No offence, but if it was massively urgent they would have admitted you as an emergency and your surgery would be the one delaying others, not vice versa.

Allegedly it did @Wndof
do you believe everything you read?

I voted YABU simply because you won't get your operation tomorrow. But I am ever so sorry about the shitty position you fine yourself in and I understand why you want to attend. Perhaps going along and making your point will help give you a little agency back in a situation where I'm sure you feel otherwise cut adrift. I'm sure you're not planning behaving any otherwise but remaining calm and being polite is likely to play much better than anger and protest. The former might get you a sit down and a chat with someone, the latter definitely won't.

What's the name of your surgeon op is it DW?

I honestly can't even think where to suggest as it's so unlikely to be an option. Your surgeon/anaesthetist will have had a different pt added to their list that doesn't need icu so the theatre time isn't wasted, so even if an icu bed becomes free there won't be there space jnless someone on the day also cancels. You'll have to be food fasted for 6 hrs before arrival and clear fluids for 2h.

Possibly admissions lounge or secretaries office (if not wfh)

OP, I work at the very place you're talking about for theatres. Front desk (hence my new username) and honestly turning up tomorrow will not get you your surgery at all.

It is absolute carnage at the minute and the Consultants are fighting for beds and having to decide which emergencies take priority despite all being urgent emergencies. Which unfortunately for you it does mean that the elective surgeries get pushed back to accommodate these urgent emergency cases.

Yes to emailing PALS and the Consultant. The Admissions Officer doesn't have much power as they would be the messenger from someone higher who has decided clinically who can be cancelled and who can't.

You have my sympathy but keep on at PALS and you're Consultant definitely. Hopefully you get your surgery soon!!

YANBU to want to do this. It's an absolute disgrace people,are treated Like this. But realistically the chances of them doing the operation are almost nil. Hope it gets sorted soon.

Sorry if you're quoting me I typed its not the consultants but my phone deleted the not when I pressed submit and I can't find the edit button

The bed decisions are made by the icu matron and icu consultant in charge. Your surgeon will be fighting your corner in the decision but there's often multiple consultants also begging for a bed for their patient so it becomes a team discussion as to who is most needing

Op, could you try crowdfunding to raise money to go private? I realise that sounds desperate but needs must....

I am so sorry this is happening, but yes. It's not going to help.

@stayclosetoyourself D.W is my neurosurgeon yes. I paid to see him privately for a consultant and he kindly transferred me to his NHS list. We decided that the best treatment for me was endovascular coiling so he made arrangements for me to see Dr T.B who is an interventional radiologist.

I think(?) I'd still be considered to be a patient of D.W in these circumstances dispite him not performing the surgery, but can't be sure. I'd welcome any correction. I'm thinking of contacting his P.A tomorrow too.

That’s awful OP. Tempting as it is, all they will do is either leave youbsat their. Or get security to escort you out of the building. The NHS is utterly shit atm. I wouldn’t trust any of them to look after my goldfish. The entire system is broken.

I'm so sorry I had my surgery cancelled 5 times before they did it and its honestly devastating, I really hope you get it done soon. Not only for your physical health but your mental health to.

I work in a hospital and am very surprised you would wait that long for life-saving surgery. I would not advise you to just turn up if you have been cancelled as there will be a reason for your op to be cancelled … shortage of beds or trained nursing staff. Also the strikes are causing mayhem with lists. You would definitely not get your surgery and would just be wasting everyone’s time.
I would suggest you appeal to your surgeon (through his secretary) and also contact PALS.

I had this in a similar situation. Day 1 cancelled, told to phone at 8am day 2. Got told they would phone me but no beds yet, they would reassess etc. I repeatedly called, no one phoned. I turned up at 3pm. There were actually 3 empty beds but not enough staff with the right level of training. After speaking with ward manager, she got permission to pay staff who weren't on shift extra money to come in early I.e. bring back overtime / extra shift money. So we did get a bed later that day, although had to stay in for procedure early the next day. I was glad I'd gone in to actually see for myself what was going on. I also did FOI request for staffing levels on the ward, sent details to my MP, raised an informal concern etc. But it won't change until mugs stop voting tory.