Now I know it’s not big or clever, but when my wife and newborn twin babys had been left in a coridor for 8 hours with no changing and feeding facilities whilst they were supposed to be being admitted I got a bit angry.

– not with the nurses or healthcare assistants I might add, but with the pediatric registrar and consultant, they just didn’t seem to give a f***.

I would have been asked to leave. You did well to only get a bit angry.

Tricky not to get angry in the circumstances, having twins in two weeks and our hospital has been great so far but not sure I would be a happy bunny if I felt they were receiving sub standard treatment.

What can you expect from a service which sees such a small percentage of the budget thrown its way. 🙄

If its any consolation, the birthing suite my wife gave birth to my daughter in had all the window blinds hanging in tatters, a pile of dirty hospital scrubs piled in the corner and some unknown brown substance smeared across one of the walls and no, it wasn’t in some 3rd world country, rather it was in Epsom General Hospital.

Now days my family are all covered by private healthcare (free from work). The NHS may patch me up when I crash on my bike but I’m not staying in one of their disgusting wards or waiting forever for further treatment.

Now days my family are all covered by private healthcare (free from work). The NHS may patch me up when I crash on my bike but I’m not staying in one of their disgusting wards or waiting forever for further treatment.

I have them covered private, but BUPA don’t do A&E S&J, GP had sent one of the twins from the surgery straight to A&E.

Borders General is a great hospital BTW.

Ealing Germeral isn’t!

my aunt is one of the top five mid-wives in the UK. her region is the south-east. she deals with every thing mid-wifey that goes on. she said to my GF and not to have our kids in the UK when the time comes.

she says the facilities and care given are not those of a developed country such as briatin.

sorry akira and others that are expecting but it’s kinda how it is. obviously doesn’t mean all UK maternity wards are the same.

Actually, some of the pre and post natal care was very good, pediatric seems to be a whole different matter.

Hmm, and our lovely Government spend HOW MUCH on ‘defence’???

****. Stop being the US’s poodle, and look after people here!

Similar experience. When my wife went into labour, the hospital refused to admit her for 48 hours (three trips to hospital, at their request, and then back home again). When they did admit her, they still left her in a waiting room for 8 hours.

At this stage, she was running a fever and both she and the baby had accelerated heart rates. Cue massive doses of IV antibiotics, infected placenta, and eventual emergency caesarean.

Thanks, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh!

So you raised hell with a service offering some assistance.

Surely you should go and shout at your private health care provider for not doing anything at all.

Also, these private healthcare policies you have, do they cover you for lifelong conditions? I put £3k per week packages in place sometimes for individuals who may live for another 30-40years.

Your private healthcare gonna do that?

Wife used to work for BUPA, elective surgery – no problem.

Difficulty doring post or pre surgery and they’d 999 you to the local NHS hospital.

Private OK for certain things, but please don’t think it will cover you for all eventualities.

Doesn’t sound like a good experience at all djglover

I can honestly say that I have never had a single incident with our local hospitals that I thought was anything other than as I would like/expect
We seem to have been there a lot in the last few years too with births & deaths etc.

[/quote] alpin – Member

my aunt is one of the top five mid-wives in the UK. her region is the south-east. she deals with every thing mid-wifey that goes on. she said to my GF and not to have our kids in the UK when the time comes.

she says the facilities and care given are not those of a developed country such as briatin.

sorry akira and others that are expecting but it’s kinda how it is. obviously doesn’t mean all UK maternity wards are

I bet she’s going to love you for broadcasting her views over the net (if she is in charge of midwifery in the SE, I guess it’s a pretty political job…)

Also, these private healthcare policies you have, do they cover you for lifelong conditions?

Policies from employers usually do – they don’t even ask for any medical details when you become a member.

The joys of under-funding. They probably didn’t put them into a ward because they didn’t have the space.

No point in shouting at the consultants to be honest (though I can understand why you did). Do write to your MP though.

I thank the gods of fate that I ended up living in a sparsely populated part of wales during my ‘maternity ward’ years.
Withybush hospital in Haverfordwest gave my waife fantastic care during the births of both our kids. I can only imagine how awful it must be to get substandard care druing such an emotional and stressful time. Especially twins.
There was a panorama or other such programme on the BBC last year about maternity wards…I think all the bad ones were in major cities and all the good ones in the ‘quieter’ parts of the country…postcode lottery time I guess.
I hope you get some better home treatment from your health visitors etc.
I hope yer kids and wife are as well as can be expected(!)…good luck.

As sc-xc says, this could get her into proper poo with the NMC and employers.

dangerousbeans, what’s your problem? I didn’t raise hell, I raised my voice with the most senior doctors in charge of the ward who had failed to offer any care to 2 premature babys for 8 hours even though they were supposed to be being admitted for observation.

uplink.

I’d still be dubious.

Worked with a 12 y/o kid who fell out of a tree, serious brain damage.

NHS picked up his care package through Continuing Needs and will be around the aforementioned £150,000 per annum plus medical care in acute hospital – probably 1/4 million per year.

Lad could live to a normal adult age – I am not sure that some exclusion could be found by private companies.

alpin – Member

my aunt is one of the top five mid-wives in the UK

as an allied health professional i wasn’t aware of any league tables within the professions, i wonder where i’d come in? certainly i hope within the top 5!!!

and FWIW the NHS has provided me with excellent facilities for both my children’s births, 1st rate, and i’m pretty damn sure my 1st born wouldn’t be sound asleep upstairs now without there dedication and bloody hard work/professionalism.

im guessing everyone has good and bad to say about their own experiences.

djlover,

no problem with you – just get sick of hearing how good the private care is when these threads come up when, for example your case, this is blatently not true.

Both my wife and me are nurses and committed to ensuring all our patients recieve the best care possible -verbal and physical abuse are quite often our reward.

dangerousbeans – my wife has epilepsy & it’s covered her for a couple of things relating to it over the last few years

AXA/PPP from work BTW

Maybe time that NHS provided only basic care and everyone pays for more complex treatments.

DJ, first of all relax, then tomorrow write a letter to
a, the hospital,
b, the local health board,
c, your local mp,

keep copies of them and send recorded mail, so they cant say they havent got them, put in the letter if you dont get a responce in a reasonable time 14 days youre going to the papers and tv, as for shouting at the drs, they have no control, its the management you need to get annoyed with, demand a meeting and take a witness, as theyll come mob handed, , probaly a manager, a complaints manager, , somebody to take notes and a few others, i know because i had 12 people when i made a formal complaint, oh and dont give up, get angry, you would if it was a shop, or resturaunt that gave poor service.

And don’t forget to claim a good whack of compensation – that’ll teach them.

uplink – Member
Doesn’t sound like a good experience at all djglover

I can honestly say that I have never had a single incident with our local hospitals that I thought was anything other than as I would like/expect
We seem to have been there a lot in the last few years too with births & deaths etc.

I’d say pretty much the same at, I’d guess, the same hospital. Maybe you should have stayed in Darlo djglover?

And don’t forget to claim a good whack of compensation – that’ll teach them.

No, I won’t be doing that. Sorry if you are bearing the whole of the NHS’s burdens on your sholders, FWIW all but one of the dozens and dozens of nurses we have dealt with over the last 3 months have been simply amazing. unfortunatley it seems the service is let down by others

Maybe you should have stayed in Darlo djglover?

Mike, yeah, a nice provincial general would have been a boon for this particular incident

And don’t forget to claim a good whack of compensation – that’ll teach them.

Yup less money in the pot.

djglover,

You’re one a the few that don’t then, big part of our local NHS A and E budget is earmarked for compensation every year.

Suppose I get a bit whizzed off at times ( and I can’t let off steam at work!!!!) and shouldn’t really have aimed it at you.

Was assaulted a 5 weeks ago and am currently undergoing the blood tests for hepatitis (poor status) and, if I choose, HIV, (although this will probably mean I will have difficulty getting life assurance so may decline it and take the risk).

Took the Trust 3 days to let me know if they would uphold any defence on my part if he claimed cos my ‘Managing Violence and Aggression’ training was out of date due to all courses being full – its your own responsibility to ensure you stay up to date!

Applied for the traoning again this week and all courses are still full.

My partner’s a nurse on a kids ward in Leeds GI, the other day she was in charge (acting up to sister basically) & the bed manager phones to tell her she’s sending one up from A & E. Sue says ‘that’s pointless cos we don’t have any beds, wer’e full’, bed manager says, ‘I don’t care, I’m sending them anyway’, & Sue’s like, ‘?????!!!!!*****^&%$&&*’ It’s all to keep the ‘waiting list’ numbers down, they get rid out of A & E so the figures look good.

esselgruntfuttock, that is excactly what happened to us, they were moved out of A&E to a coridor after 4 hours.

In my experience of hospitals (premature twins in for 9 weeks plus other various visits with our 5 kids and the other half!) is that sometimes unless you become a massive pain in the arse and/or get angry you will be put to the back of the queue. The staff arent that organised, so much so they seem to take a firefighting mentality. I think 8 hours was incredibly patient (no pun intended) personally I would have given them an hour max. Dont rely on other people to look after your families best interests, thats your job.
Having said all of that, organisation apart the NHS does do a great job in difficult circumstances.

danderousbeans – If the NHS is at fault for something shouldn’t some sort of compensation be available?

I clicked on this thread expecting to hear the usual misguided crap about people slagging off the NHS

Then I saw the magic word

“Ealing’

Its shite

Utter utter shite

Seriously shite

Where do you live?

Everytime I visit West London I have an escape plan in mind in case I am ill – and Im not kidding

I have had terrible experiences at the place

Its awful

Good luck

Several staff have actually said to me that the best thing to do would be to raise it to the ground and start again.

Bit drunck. and cant be aresd to read entire thread! I think the NHS is the most anasing service we have in this counry and it is the envy of most of the western world! If you dont like it …try living somewhere else, and get the same healthcare.
Love colnagokid 😀

Raize it t the ground

Wee on it

Take a nasty dump too

And then go somewhere else would be my advice
(But not the West midd or Northwick Park)

I’m sorry to hear you and your family had a bad experience with the NHS. I often wonder whether privatising these things (hospitals) would make them more efficient / more accountable in the event of an error?

Jonathan