what a mess!!!!!

[BikerMatt]

Matt, a few weeks back we had a frantic call one lunchtime from my son who asked if we'd go to his house and look after the children while he went with my daughter -in-law in the ambulance to hospital because she'd been unresponsive after going back to bed that morning feeling poorly. At that point the paramedics, after assessing her at home, decided it was the best thing because she was very drowsy, almost out of it and they didn't know why.

He called after a couple of hours to say that she was still in the ambulance in a queue outside the hospital, waiting to be admitted for further assessment. She was coming around gradually but he was still worried about her. It turns out it was a combination of some very strong antibiotics she'd taken the day before to treat a water infection and strong painkillers she'd taken that morning and was back recovering at home that night, but I was appalled by the 'queue' of ambulances waiting to have their patients admitted...i'd never heard of that before

Cath

Shocking!

---------- Post added at 23:08 ---------- Previous post was at 22:53 ----------

My hospital has lost many of it's services, including maternity, yep maternity! A town of 100000+ plus people and people are having to travel 25 miles to give birth. In rush hr this could take 90mins, total joke!

Some of my mates are paramedics and because of the service cuts, during their non-stop 12hr shift to much time is taken up with taking patients much further than they once had to, to get them to the hospital that has the service the patient needs. Then there isn't enough staff to hand the patient over to, so they have to spend hrs waiting with the patient. The ambulance service in my area is always criticised for not meeting target times, it's pathetic and no bloody wonder.

[MyNameIsTerry]

I watched the TV programme it was our local hospital Royal Stoke last night.
A lot has changed since 2016.

I had to ring 111 in the middle of the night that summer.
My hubby was having really bad pains and vomiting.
A ambulance came within 15minuets ,third trolly in line ,In cubicle 20mins.
Went to having tests. Kidney stone. Bed soon found for him.
To cut this short. Could not remove the stone. Stent put in.

2018 My sister age 85 waited all night on a trolly with her daughters waiting with her all night for a bed on a ward.. this happed a few times this year. Sadly my sister passed away earlier this year.

Staff shortages. No beds.

Very sorry to hear you lost your sister, Magic. I can't remember hearing about this before

[pulisa]

That's very sad news, Magic. She didn't deserve that indignity at the end of her life. xxx

[BikerMatt]

I watched the TV programme it was our local hospital Royal Stoke last night.
A lot has changed since 2016.

I had to ring 111 in the middle of the night that summer.
My hubby was having really bad pains and vomiting.
A ambulance came within 15minuets ,third trolly in line ,In cubicle 20mins.
Went to having tests. Kidney stone. Bed soon found for him.
To cut this short. Could not remove the stone. Stent put in.

2018 My sister age 85 waited all night on a trolly with her daughters waiting with her all night for a bed on a ward.. this happed a few times this year. Sadly my sister passed away earlier this year.

Staff shortages. No beds.

Magic, Really sorry to read about the loss of your sister. Sorry i missed that part of your post.


Something that really rattled me was when my partners mum passed away in 2015. She had terminal cancer, during her last day an ambulance crew were sent, they were absolutely fantastic, they spent nearly 5hrs keeping her comfortable as they knew the hospital was busy and they kept in contact with the hospital so when space was available she was taken in. When she was admitted she was put on a normal ward of six beds in full view of visitors coming and going .She passed about 7 hrs later.

I often wonder, if the ambulance crew had taken her straigbt to hospital, would she have been on a trolley in a corridor for 5hrs? Probably! Should she have been on a normal ward? No!

[pulisa]

I had no problems with A&E on the last day of my father's life. It probably "helped" that it was in September during fine weather but he was taken straight in and prioritised despite being 93 and in a coma.

He was moved to the medical assessment ward in full view of everyone else so I insisted that the curtains were closed around his bed. I also pleaded with them to find him a private room and this happened eventually. He died 30 minutes later..I always think he hung on to get some privacy and dignity in death. When I left the ward his name had already been erased from the whiteboard showing patients' names and locations..This cut me up more than anything..They hadn't even had the decency to wait until I had left the ward..

[Carnation]

Oh Pulisa xx And Magic xx

[Carys]

When I left the ward his name had already been erased from the whiteboard showing patients' names and locations..This cut me up more than anything..They hadn't even had the decency to wait until I had left the ward..

Magic and Pulisa, thats just so upsetting - I hate to hear of people dying in hospital to be honest. I wish everyone could just peacefully die at home surrounded by family - just better for everyone.

[BikerMatt]

Magic and Pulisa, thats just so upsetting - I hate to hear of people dying in hospital to be honest. I wish everyone could just peacefully die at home surrounded by family - just better for everyone.

Or even a hospice. You can't even get into a one in my area, we only have one, it's absolutely beautiful, set in lovely grounds and is very well supported in my town through fund raising charity events, but hey let's make sure MP's lunches and bar bills, HS2, foreign aid and so on and on and on and on, is subsidised or paid for by the taxpayer 1st eh!!!

[Catherine S]

That's really sad to read guys, sorry for your loss. A similar thing happened to my step-dad in 2013. He was taken to hospital in the last stages of terminal cancer at age 79 and had to wait on a trolley with my mum who was 81 at that time and has health issues of her own.

They waited a long time before a bed was found and she was exhausted so the staff advised her to go home because it was quite late in the evening by then, and she asked them to call her if they thought she should return to be with him in his final moments. Unfortunately they didn't call her until after he had died and was in the hospital morgue.

It still haunts her 5 years later, that he died totally alone. He died on my birthday too, but I was still living in Germany at that time and felt so bad that I wasn't there for her like I am now.

Cath x

[Magic]

Hi All, Thank you. I did not say on here about my sister. Just could not bring the subject up. It was in April. I am the last one left out of six children.
I would not have said anything, but having seen the TV program I know how things have changed over the years. Love to all from the start of the thread .