Feedback

I've just completed my patient exit survey - that's the second one I've done in a week. One of the things on which I fed back on was the notice behind my bed in the ambulatory care unit where I was looked after following my surgery. I'll tell you the whole story because you couldn't really make it up. This is what happened.

On Monday morning I entered the hospital via a ward in which there were no beds, just chairs. I was seen by a nurse; I was asked all the usual questions; I was seen by an anaesthetist (some of the same questions repeated!) and in that same ward I changed into a gown, dressing gown and slippers. Everything else I'd brought with me was left in my overnight bag to be conveyed to the ward in which I would be recovering.

I walked down to the theatre, was anaesthetised and came round in a special ward for that purpose. I was then transferred (if I remember rightly and I don't remember much about this bit) into the ambulatory care unit to be nursed for the following 24 hours.

I could see that behind my bed in this ward there was a notice. It was headed: "After your operation". I could at least read that much from across the ward. I could see that the same notice was behind all of the beds but I couldn't read any more of it as it was too far away. What important message was this, I wondered? I was sure it was important and that I should know but having had surgery to my neck I wasn't about to turn sideways, hang over the side and crane my sore neck to find out. The only way to have read the notice safely would have been to have got out of the bed to do so. So instead I asked the nurse for the content.

Yup, you've probably guessed. It told me I shouldn't get out of bed until a nurse had given me permission!!