"Emergency admission, amazing team"

I was sent to BGH by David at 111 this Wednesday at about 4: 30 after having acute and unbearable stomach pain for a day. David was incredibly calm and reassuring and let the staff at A& E, Borders General Hospital, know I would be turning up. They phoned me to let me know they were waiting. When I arrived, the receptionist knew I'd be coming and when I started vomiting (from pain? ) came to the bathroom to make sure I was OK then put me in a small room while I recovered. Everyone in A and E was calm and reassured they would be seen soon thanks to this lady. I was then treated by an amazing Dr called Alison, who listened incredibly carefully to my story, wrote down the smallest details and utterly eminated kindness and professionalism. Not only did she reassure Me I would be fine, but when I told her how grateful I was for the amazing help I was getting, she went on to tell me how happy it made her to help people and how glad she was to be able to do it, setting the mood for the rest of this heart-rendingly positive experience. When I was back in reception, she came out with a painkiller and a glass of water for me, and when she welcomed in the next patient, a crying toddler,   it was with the most compassionate and understanding demeanour possible. I was then put in a room to wait for a Dr, and several amazing ones came in to see me, each making careful inquiries and thorough checks with the same calm, sensitive and compassionate approach, and each making it crystal clear that they cared about what happened to me and were on the case. Completely reassuring professionals and not a jaded one among them. When it was decided to admit me to Ward 7, Gavin, who expertly and reassuringly administered my pain meds, and the trainee nurse who accompanied the porter, Jorge, reassured me all would be fine, as the pain was driving me to distraction at this stage, and I would have likely had a panic attack if it were not for them. When I was admitted into Ward 7 it was immediately clear that this was a family who had a place for me. I have been a frequent hospital goer since 1993 when my Crohns was diagnosed, staying in hospitals from Addenbrokes in Cambridge to Leeds general infirmary and have never been on such a welcoming and well run ward. It was immediately clear to me that every person who worked there was doing so with a full heart, an eye for detail and a person centred approach to care which had a wonderful effect on my fellow patients, who were happy despite their suffering and welcomed me in. I was able to get x rays very quickly, and the porter who arrived to take me was as kind hearted as they come, as was the lady who carried them out, who gently encouraged me as I was violently sick in the xray room and, again, stopped me from having a panic attack with her kindness. I wish I had a better memory for names, because every single person involved in my care thereafter was an absolute paragon of professionalism and kindness, from the grey haired chap who brought the tea and made absolutely sure each patient got what they asked for, to his two colleagues who brought hot drinks and cleaned the ward, who each referred to us by name as if they had known us for ages, to the unbelievably lovely nurses at all stages of their careers. Every Dr who spoke to me did so in full awareness of my background, and with full sympathy for my pain, and made it incredibly clear to me what they intended to do, in what time scale, and what the next steps in my care would be, answering any questions I might have thought to ask before they even occurred to me. They each displayed this incredible empathy for their patients as they did their rounds, and not one of us had anything but praise for them when they had left. During my stay, every new admission that came to the ward was treated with equal care, and I could see them visibly relax after they had been inducted, finally sure they were in the right hands. I can' emphasise enough how important this is to a new patient, or how well, how naturally, they did it. My stay was a short one, but my fellow patients, some of whom had been in for over a month and were going through dreadful days, were so clearly content with every aspect of their care that it felt more like a cruise liner than a hospital ward. I admit to having been a needy patient, unable to cope with the amount of pain I was in, and every single time I pressed my buzzer for pain relief, someone was there, ready to do whatever it took to get me well again, nit because it was their job, but vecause they truly cared. The nurses and Drs and surgeons and workers I saw in Ward 7 were the best I have ever seen. An amazing team working with full hearts for the right reasons, doing a job that not many can ever imagine trying their hand at, even for a day. A job made more impossible all the time by factors outside the Nhs' control. A job so important that society would crumble without it. They are true heroes and I am utterly grateful to each one of them for making the worst day of my life physically one of the best emotionally. The people working at BGH don't just fix your body. They also restore your faith in humanity. Thankyou.