No hospital bed

Appalling! The person who’s been give her bed should have been moved to a trolley as soon as the error was spotted. Absolutely shocking. I do hope she’s soon more comfortable.

I presume she was in Recovery first too?
Possibly no bad thing when you are post-op.

They're just overrun with people, I think.
Too many of us, too few beds.

That is totally unacceptable! It would be different if she had been admitted and operated on as an emergency ( although still unacceptable, but in times of bed shortages....) but that they "re-let" her bed in her absence in theatre, I'd be demanding to speak to management at the highest level. The poor nursing staff will not be responsible.

She should not be lying in recovery for 12 hours MawB, she should be back in a comfortable bed.

This is totally unacceptable. Are you at the hospital now?

Well - the nursing staff do have some professional responsibility in this.

This is fairly common, twice I have gone to theatre from a waiting room and they haven't been able to tell DH which ward I would be in because it would depend on which ward had a bed when I left recovery.

Where you ever left for 12 hours on a trolley in recovery though harrigran. Changing wards is not the same as not having a bed

No we are home now suziewoozie. They wouldn't let us go into the recovery area, visitors are not allowed there.

There may be a better staff-patient ratio in Recovery, if it was a big bowel op as you say.
Would you have preferred the op to be postponed because there was no bed available?
Patients generally get wheeled to theatre in their own beds to avoid cross infection so I don’t see how another patient could be tuned out of theirs. I imagine the bed management team were under pressure and juggling as usual until a space in a bay became available

suziewoozie, not quite 12 hours but last op saw me in recovery for 7 hours. Both of my ops were major bowel ops too.

littleannie I’m amazed that anyone thinks this is normal or remotely acceptable. Once you have ‘recovered’ Recovery is NOT the place to be. Apart from the trolley issue, it’s busy, noisy, bright lights etc. I hope when you go in the morning, she’s in a proper bed in a ward and feeling a bit better. And I hope she will want to complain as well.

Obviously sometime has to be spent in recovery, but 7 hours ( let alone 12). How truly awful and unacceptable. Recovery must get very crowded if this is what is happening in some hospitals.

As you say, Maw, patients generally are wheeled in their own bed to theatre. If in the meantime her bay was appropriated, where was her bed? Could she not at least have been returned to her bed while waiting for a bay? Last time I had surgery - in fact every time, now I think of it - I was returned to my bed from the operating table and taken to recovery in my bed.

I have to ask. If you’re not allowed in recovery, how do you know she is lying on a hard trolley?

I've never heard of this happening before, it's dreadful and all I can think about is cross-infection. This shouldn't be happening as her bed should be on the ward prepared for her as she returns from theatre. This is what should happen, or used to do when I was nursing.

Is it not possible that she is in her bed but in Recovery pending an empty bay in an appropriate ward?
The word “trolley” conjures up a spartan image spartan, like A&E although even there Paw was frequently in a bed overnight while they found him a space on a ward.
Try not to let it prey on your mind, her operation has taken place and she will be getting the best care wherever she is. (I still think Recovery is often best placed for post-op patients rather than a “regular” ward, especially at night. )

Recovery is the best place when it is clinically justified. Otherwise, whether trolley or bed, you should be on a ward.

Well that’s us told!

Personal (extensive) experience clearly totally irrelevant.

Have recently had bad experiences with hospital treatment for my husband, including no bed space. Hope your step daughter recovers well care going forward is of a good standard. If you feel like it please see my petition to save NHS funds (to save money and provide additional resources like bed space). Please sign and share if you agree. Here is the link
chng.it/PDLCHdQM

As others have said, the care in Recovery is excellent and I don’t remember finding the ‘beds’ in Recovery uncomfortable, perhaps because I was well sedated, last time after a six hour op. Staff will be anxiously searching for spaces for post op patients. I left one bay and was eventually settled in another bed and bay. I don’t expect staff will be leaving a post op patient in pain. I only had to squeak for a
nurse to ask if I was in pain.
There’s no such thing as ‘my bay’ or even ‘my bed’ as they juggle overcrowded hospitals.

Recently had hip op, and after being in recovery was wheeled in same bed to the ward. From my experience you are put into that bed when you are sedated.

Maw I’m stating a fact- the fact that personal experience demonstrates that some people spend longer in recovery than they should does not negate the fact that this should not happen. Personal experience is always relevant ( and our family has also had plenty) but often shows the system is not working as it should - not that it is the acceptable standard no matter how often experienced.