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NHS A and E experience

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Primrose53 Sun 18-Oct-26 21:55:56

Oh dear! We spent many hours yesterday in our large regional hospital A and E. Husband was ambulanced there with another suspected Stroke. I followed on about half an hour behind.

I got there and went straight to A and E as instructed. It was absolutely heaving. I was then escorted to another area where there must have been easily 150 people waiting filling two corridors and a large waiting room.

They couldn’t locate him at first, then a nurse said he had just been scanned. The two ambulance crew were with him and the very helpful female told me to squeeze through, say hello and her male colleague would take myself and daughter to the ambulance as there was no room to sit or wait. It was like something from the Crimea!

We sat in the ambulance for ages until they stretchered husband out to join us. We were told we were waiting for scan and blood results. We kept saying “just another hour”. The paramedics told me they often spend 6 hours just sitting in the ambulance. They do 12 hr shifts but don’t finish until their patient has left their care.

We counted 20 ambulances with patients parked all with crew hanging about. It seems madness to me. A large vehicle signed Ambulance Commander pulled up and I asked what this was all about. Our crew told me he turns up to see why A and E is super busy and to count ambulances but nothing is ever done! I felt pretty sorry for them because they were both very helpful and good at their jobs. They had already spent about 1.5 hrs at our house.

In the end husband signed the forms and discharged himself because he had signed a Respect form last time he was in hospital to say he does not want to go into hospital again.

After another wait his medication arrived and we were told to contact our surgery on Monday to see if results are back.

The only positive thing about our experience is that they rang ahead from our home so as soon as he got to hospital he was scanned after about 10 minutes. They really have got to sort this out because it’s just not working efficiently and the crew told us it’s pretty much the same all over the country.

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Primrose53 Sun 18-Oct-26 21:59:42

I forgot to say that last week there were 164 patients in hospital beds there just bed blocking as there were no care home places or anywhere else for them to go to.

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Oreo Sun 18-Oct-26 22:03:10

What a day for you! It’s what we hear all the time now isn’t it?
Corridor care, waiting room care because the trolleys and the beds are full.Ambulances queued up as well.
We have now become like a third world country where hospitals are concerned.

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MG55 Sun 18-Oct-26 22:07:05

How awful for you. I hope that your husband recovers 💐

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fancythat Sun 18-Oct-26 22:19:40

Sadly, well in my limited experience, there is no respect of age either.

They go by medical need. Which is fair enough I guess?

A&e, coming in by ambulance. nothing as bad as your experience.
But the same, on a smaller scale, around here.

To be fair, from the corridor point of view, apart from everyone squeezing past everyone else, and some lack of privacy[everyone was staring at the person I was with, even some medical staff], whether it was a corridor or somewhere else, made little difference.
It was at least warm enough.

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JenniRen Sun 18-Oct-26 22:32:45

It's shocking in so many places now, Primrose53, we dread the thought of having to go into hospital. Bed blocking is a big problem. We need convalescent homes.

The staff are coping as best they can, trying to treat patients in corridors; a friend spent three days on a chair in a corridor having been taken in by ambulance after a heart attack.

I hope your husband makes a good recovery.

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Fallingstar Sun 18-Oct-26 22:35:21

So sorry Primrose53. I do know how dreadful A&E departments can be. The last time my DH had a fall and banged his head we waited in a corridor for 8 hours, he had a CT which showed a 3mm subdural bleed but said it was too small a bleed to have him admitted for and sent him home with instructions for me to look out for increased drowsiness, headaches, nausea, and confusion. Two days later he was complaining of headaches and feeling sick so we returned, 9 hours in A&E this time, my DH had a seat in the corridor again, but there were no seats left, people were sitting and lying on the floor, so I sat propped on the edge of a table, another CT, only for them to say the bleeding is stable so he was sent home again.
Is horrible. I just dread another fall.

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