Eating Takeaway In A Hospital Waiting Room Do You See It As Unreasonable

[Warrior96]

So long story short I ended up with an infected ear piercing and had to see an out of hours doctor at the hospital. My life medical problems always seem to happen on a Saturday or Sunday! Due to it is known to be a nasty infection I was admitted onto the ears nose and throat ward, it was average time 5-6 hours to see a doctor it took me 5 hours. In the meantime in the waiting room a couple sat next to me bought a KFC into the waiting room. I can understand people can get hungry with the long wait but there were a number of nauseous people in that waiting room. I feel they were being a bit selfish and could have bought something more appropriate.

AIBU?

Are people honestly so offended by the smell of fried chicken? A packet of monster munch reeks to high heaven and is likely freely available in the vending machine - get yourself something if it bothers you!

Exactly. There is no one single suitable, affordable, universally available meal. Sandwiches certainly aren't it, and the people constantly insisting people in A and E ought to be eating them should be mindful of that, rather than lecturing others.

I think it's inconsiderate, the same as eating it on a bus or a train or anywhere in close quarters with other people who can't get away from the smell.

People do need to eat but if you can get to a KFC then you can get to somewhere that sells less smelly food - the KFC was a choice.

It’s thoughtless. If you’re well enough to eat, you don’t belong in a&e. If you’re there with someone sick and waiting with them- go outside, eat and come back.
many of the people in a&e are sick enough to be at least nauseous so it’s very selfish to bring in smelly food.
earlier this year I was in a&e with my throwing up kid (I first called our dr and she advised we go to urgent care; urgent care sent us to a&e so didn’t just bring them on a whim). There was a group of people waiting with a man next to us (and taking up a lot of a&e seats while sick people were standing, another selfish a&e feature) who ordered a pizza delivery and ate it. Don’t know how they even had appetite eating right next to a kid throwing up every 2 mins. The pizza stink didn’t improve the puking situation either

KFC stinks out the entire room. It's not the same as a packet of monster munch. At all.

Like where? I had to take my son to A&E a few years ago, hospital cafe shuts at 4pm, as did the shop as it was a sunday, neither opened until 10am on the monday.

I’m a type one diabetic and I can’t have meat, dairy, nuts, strawberry or kiwi. Care to tell me where I could have sourced safe food to eat at 4am when I desperately needed some due to having very low blood sugar and my emergency kit was out. The options that were available at my location via deliveroo were mcdonalds and kfc, I can’t have kfc, but I can safely eat mcdonalds chips.

You realise people go to A&E for things other than vomiting, right?

I don't see a issue with eating hot food in a waiting room but yes if it stinks then it's not the best none the less it is what it is and people are their for a reason and do need to eat

And that some will be there when there's nothing wrong with them personally, but they need to provide care to someone else.

I can't imagine wanting to eat anything in and A&E department. Revolting place to dine.
I did once witness a crack addict get a blanket out, sit on the floor and count out all his blocks of crack cocaine. That was the same night that I was sat opposite a man who had trapped his penis in his zipper. It just kept my head down and didn't dare look at either of them.

Sandwich vending machine, a banana or take a snack with you?

Absolutely. I’ve been to a&e w various conditions and infections etc and was never well enough to even think about food after hours and hours of not eating. If you’re really really sick you rarely are in a condition to eat, left alone something greasy and smelly. If you can tolerate kfc etc ask yourself are you sick enough to be in a&e; most likely not

OK sweetie. I will be sure to let my consultant know I didn't need to be there and really shouldn't have been hungry after 18 hours in A&E.

They can take their butts out the waiting area and scarf something down quickly. Not sit and indulge in a 3 course stinky meal among people many of which are barely holding on.

@JusteanBiscuits you do that sweetie

I think you’re being unreasonable for taking up A&E space for an infected ear piercing more than people eating kfc.

@yukikata i completely disagree? I cannot abide the stench of smelly crisps and yes I CAN smell them from across the room. There are certain crisps I don’t even allow in my house because DH stinks so badly when he eats them.

This is my opinion and something I am sensitive to. It obviously does not mean that no one should be able to eat a packet of wotsits on a train, just because I think it is gross.

Id say the week in hospital, and a further 2 weeks on a virtual ward, kind of showed I needed to be there. Funnily enough, strokes don't cause appetite suppression.

Nope, not when they're solely looking after a person who requires care they can't. Last time I was in A and E was with a loved one who has dementia and would be in danger in that environment without supervision. As luck would have it, I actually had food in my bag. But if I hadn't, your smell preferences rank well below my relative's welfare.

This is almost identical to a recent thread, including the KFC in hospital waiting room! As I recall, the family who brought in KFC were called CF’s on that thread.

It’s a night out for a lot of people.

I don’t think so. Skin infections need treating and can quickly become cellulitis.
The OP has been referred for urgent care by her GP.

Got news for you…become an inpatient after the A+Ev visit and you will be greeted with stinky hospital food at 5pm and lunch everyday. Especially when it’s fish. People need to eat.

Wait times in hospitals can be hours or even days. People need to eat. If KFC was the closest place, it makes sense that's what they'd eat.

Arrived at a &e as advised with adult son, his infection markers going up n up, kept saying needs a bed for iv antibiotics...but there's no beds.

At 2 am (10 hours after arriving) his sister brought us some chicken strips from McDonald's. Nothing had been offered to him up to this point and machine for choc/crisps was broken. It wasn't until he was given a trolley in a corridor after 24 hours of sitting in a metal chair was he offered food. We were desperately hungry, tried to eat it discreetly. It was 28 hours in total and no bed available so we took risk of just going home with tablets instead of the recommended iv.

Nothing is ideal in those waiting rooms, just trying to get through it really .