It's not A&E that's the problem - it's people!!!

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Was in A&E last night. Busy east London Hospital...
3 hours in and out. Staff amazing. Tests done etc... Facilities (not pretty) but fine. Had a seat. Seen in privacy and treated with respect and care...

However the people waiting were awful.. one woman kept coming in a racially abusing the reception staff... security kept taking her out. Stopping the staff from getting on with their jobs.

Entire family (6 of them) eating a curry and having very loud family time up the back of the waiting room - so loud that the Dr.s calling people's names were not being heard... causing delay.

2 homeless people sleeping across multiple chairs (not begrudging them a warm spot to sleep.. but they should not have to be there.)

2 woman came in just to charge their phones up!

It's not the NHS that is on its knees it's society. And A&E is the harsh reflection of society!

Same here (just dislocated, not broken) Got there at 7pm, out by 9.

A couple of months ago you would have seen us in A&E eating pizza at 8pm whilst DS2 was on his phone. What you wouldn’t have seen was that we had been shuttling between different bits of the hospital since 9am trying to get DS2’s unusual and deteriorating symptoms taken seriously. By the time we were eating pizza they had agreed he needed an urgent neurology admission so we were waiting for a bed. He was finally given a bed after midnight and spent over 3 weeks in hospital.

I imagine that people may have judged us, a family eating pizza with a teenager charging his phone but DS2 was in the midst of an acute deterioration of an invisible condition.

This. People are abusive and rude and take the absolute mick with public services. If half of those people had to pay £10 to be seen they wouldn’t be there .
anything seen as free gets abused.

Personally I think it was a failing of other services, as all the nurses knew her and seemed to know her well, asked about her cat etc. Maybe they need to signpost people who attend A and E alot for some other support

Last time I went to a&e, I walked out crying after being there for six hours. I only went because my neighbour was waving his walking stick at his dog, and as I bent down he smacked me really hard across my temple.
I felt sick and dizzy and my daughter took me there because I was crying - probably shock- but I realised after six hours that if there was a problem I'd have felt worse by then, so we went home unseen.

In my hospital, hospital shop that shuts at 7pm and isnt accessible from A&E, if you want to risk your carparking spot then its a few minutes drive, or a 15 minute walk away. Theres a coffee shop in the front of A&E but getting a sandwich is impossible after lunch time. Uber eats delivery is most peoples only option, or if they have been in more that 8 hours, staff can provide food to the patient only, drinks only for relatives.

We sat in a corridor to eat the pizza and we had had crisps and sandwiches for lunch whilst waiting in another bit of the hospital. We were already 11 hours into waiting by then (and had been out of the house for 12 hours) and was 15 hours by the time DS was settled on the ward.

You know hospital wards are full of sick, nauseous people and they still serve hot food once or twice a day. Nothing wrong w pizza in a&e.

I wonder if they'd be less anti social if they actually valued healthcare

Glad your medical experience was good...but.in Dec I spent over 2 days in A and E with my teenage son, as there were no beds. He was sitting the whole time, He had a liver infection amongst other things, was on IV antibiotics and morphine screaming in pain .....my experience is that the NHS is on its knees

Sorry you lost me at “3 hours in and out“ huh….what?!? minimum is 8 hours these days 😭

Spot on. I was an A & E nurse and the level of abuse and generally shoddy behaviour of people in the department is shocking. You get some really lovely people but also some that would be at home on Jeremy Kyle.

Other foods are available other than pizza

Vending machines that have a few bars of chocolate in? When theyve been waiting 12 hours? Its far from ideal, and yes its unfortunate for others in the waiting rooms, but people need to eat and have very few options when they stuck waiting for hours on end. With everything wrong in A&Es, people eating a pizza in public areas is way down the list of priorities.

I would never go to A&E or minor injuries on my own if there was someone to go with me, I think if you are ill or in pain you need someone to advocate for you in some cases. I'm usually perfectly able to speak up for myself but last time I went I really wished I hadn't sent DH home.

Try waiting multiple hours with a teenager and then be so sure. We sat in a corridor just outside A&E because A&E was packed including with some rather distressed people. Trust me nausea would be a minor consideration in a busy London A&E department as you got towards evening.

No it really is A&E and hospitals in general. My son had a burst appendix just over a month ago. His wound care (which is still not healed) has been shocking. He has to go to A&E to get treatment for known sepsis and other issues as there is no surgical outpatients at our local hospital in South London. So go to A&E and wait for the surgical team to be free.

Another thing is the waiting over an hour 4 times just in the pharmacy for antibiotics.

There are some issues with people going to A&E. I actually think the way it is run is so slow.

Register at reception
WAIT
Triage
WAIT
See a nurse for observations
WAIT
See another nurse if you need bloods
WAIT
See a doctor. Need further tests
WAIT
Get forms for test walk to new place
WAIT
Have test

Walk back to A&E let reception know your back
WAIT
Eventually see another doctor get the treatment you told then 12 hours ago you needed.
Pay £10 for parking and go home.

Rinse and repeat twice a week for 3 weeks

That is why I said one person if you need someone.Taking several members of your family taking up seats is out of order

This is so upsetting to read- blood transfusions in a corridor. Horrific, and I'm sorry it happened to your poor son.

Same. Some posters are proving the OP's point really.

Most people were considerate and civilised when I was in A&E last week, although there were four men brought in with two police escorts each - wonder how much that cost? One of them kicked off because he wanted his cuffs removed and was taken to sit in the police car. Nobody eating pizza.

Entire family (6 of them)

YES! Not read whole thread but wtf is that all about? Any time I've been to A&E, there are these massive family groups. I'm not talking about a single parent who has to bring their other DC, but one child with an injury or fever plus mum, dad, siblings, grandpa and the kitchen sink! WHY? One adult takes them and the others stay home with the other DC surely? It's not as if it's fun!

“75% of the people they see don’t need to be there; they should be at the GP, the eye hospital etc.”

The problem with what the nurse said, is that it is virtually impossible to get an appointment to see a gp.

-First you phone up first thing in the morning and are told someone will phone you back.
-A couple of hours later you get a phone call, usually from a nurse.
-If she/he thinks it is necessary, they will arrange for a gp to phone you.
-The gp will call you, within 30-120 minutes later.
-If the gp wants to see you face to face, you will either get an appointment later that day or the next day.
-You finally see a gp, who then wants some blood tests done.
-You then have to make an appointment to come back and get those blood tests done, which is now not possible that day, so you have to go back the (hopefully) next morning.
-The blood is taken (5 minute job) but the results will take 2-3 days to come back, even though in most cases the results will be available on the lab results system later that afternoon.

To be honest that 14 hour wait, now doesn’t seem so bad!