Hi all I need your opinion

[DavidSugg]

Hi all I need your opinion first a brief outline I made an official

Complaint against my local hospital (Basildon Hospital) for the

Way I was treated in their A@E department

I was sent by ambulance to Basildon A@E by my GP he phoned

999 after he said to me he believed I had suffered a subarachnoid

Hemorrhage

I arrived at A@E and was in a wheel chair I was booked in by the

Paramedic from the ambulance service he explained to them I had

A Suspected subarachnoid Hemorrhage (under NICE clinical guide lines

This should have been treated as a medical emergency and should have been

Assed by a doctor on arrival)

I was told to get out of the wheel chair and sit on the chairs in the A@E

Department after about half an hour I was seen by a triage nurse who took

My blood pressure this was 209 and asked me some questions I said I was

In a lot of pain (Headache) I was offered no pain killers just told to wait in

The waiting area until I was called another hour went by and I asked the

Reception staff if I could have some pain killers she sent me back to the triage nurse

Who again took my BP 2010 at this point they gave me two paracetamol and sent

Me back to the waiting room after waiting for another hour I was sent in to see a doctor

He sent me for a CT scan I was taken from A@E on a trolley bed to the scan they

Completed the scan then I was told to find my own way back to A@E this was the other side of a very big hospital now some two and a half hours have gone by and by this time

I was unsteady on my feet and confused some how I found my way back to A@E and sat back down in the waiting room after about 20 minuets I was called by a nurse in to see

A doctor he told me to lie on the bed and said I am sorry to tell you. you have suffered

A major bleed in your brain this is life threatening and we cannot treat you hear we are going to transfer you immediately to a specialized stroke unit at Queens Hospital Romford

My complaint to Basildon Hospital is at no point did they treat my case as an emergency

Their reply to this was I seen in a timely manner over two and a half hours before I was seen by a doctor all this time I was bleeding into my brain

Being told to find my own way back to the A@E department I was a risk of falling

And making my situation worse

And no pain killers because I never asked for them until the pain was unbearable

They are the health professionals and it is a well known fact that the pain from a subarachnoid Hemorrhage is one of the worst that the human body can endure they should known this care 101 in my medical situation I should not have had to ask for pain

Killers they should have been offered

What do you guys think?

And i am not going to make any sort of claim against the hospital all i want is better

care for the next person that ends up at Basildon Hospital

[Kirk5w7]

I think you have a good case here, you should have been treated much quicker, it's frightening to think that the trust we put in our hospitals is so misplaced. Good luck Janet xx

[DavidSugg in reply to Kirk5w7]

Yes the thing that worries me is the basic lack

Of medical knowledge in my local A@E department

This is how people die needlessly

[Tortie14 in reply to DavidSugg]

Complain loudly and forcefully a written formal complaint (and copy your MP in) - this is totally unacceptable and appalling. NICE guidelines are setting a basic level and if they don't follow them then they are failing. When my Mother had several strokes and was in hospital for a long time I saw good, bad and indifferent care. At the worst, I had to make a formal complaint - I was reluctant, because frankly there was enough stress in my life but I did it and got better care for my Mother and I hope for the many other patients who had no advocate. So if you have the ability to argue your case - do it - too late to help you but it might help change things for others. I am not advocating going anywhere near a solictor but don't tell them you won't make a claim - the fear of litigation might focus their mind better. During my various battles for my Mum my local MP's office were very helpful.

[DavidSugg in reply to Tortie14]

Thank you Tortie14 my MP is aware i have been fighting since this happened to me the other thing that i am concern with is like me if it happens to you and you have to fight your own corner you may not be in any physical or mental state to do so

[cat3]

I was blue-lighted to my local hospital after collapsing at home and was seen in A&E immediately by doctors who determined within 30 minutes that I needed to be treated for a SAH at a specialist hospital. I was transferred to Salford Royal hospital by ambulance and admitted straight into ICU and all the appropriate tests were carried out without delay.

I got the impression later, from other patients, that this was their experience also and I feel that what you experienced was negligent ; even life-threatening.

I always said I felt cherished throughout that period and what you've told us here certainly reinforces that opinion.

My sincere sympathies. x

[DavidSugg in reply to cat3]

Yes Cat3 negligent and life-threatening.but it seems they will be no different in their care of the next poor sole that ends up in their A@E department thats what i want to change i was very lucky the next person may not be

[cat3 in reply to DavidSugg]

I agree David. But I've just been discussing this with the person who was with me the night I was admitted and, as I have no memory of the first couple of months post SAH, he had to remind me that I was incoherent, constantly vomiting and unable to stand, so it was easier for the doctors to spot there was a serious problem in my case.

All the same, the fact that your GP had pre-warned the hospital of your suspected SAH and the paramedics had reiterated this should have alerted the staff to a potentially dangerous condition. Despite possibly being inundated with other emergencies, Basildon hospital should have, at the very least, kept you comfortable and carefully monitored until the full diagnosis was possible. And the long walk back from the scanning dept. showed an amazing lack of care for someone in such a vulnerable state.

And you're quite right that bringing this to light can only benefit those people who may be too ill or inadequate to complain.

[DavidSugg]

Yes cat3 i agree i have had time to think about this and have come to a conclusion because

i did not follow the text book after math of a SAH there for it is something else that very nearly killed me and now i find my self waiting for the next stroke or death i am no longer afraid we should not accept this but we do

[TwoCakes]

I am a very effective complainer mainly because I know when to complain and when to put it down to experience. I think your situation was appalling and I also think you have explained it clearly which is important for a good complaint. I support your complaint and do let us know how you get on...this may be one of those complaints that could be good to approach your local MP about for support.

[DavidSugg]

Good idea TwoCakes i emailed Stephen Metcalfe yesterday