"Poor experience at Ealing Hospital"

Anything else?

I hobbled into Ealing Hospital A&E with a suspected fractured leg (fibula) and fractured thumb. After receiving an indifferent greeting from the receptionist I sat in the messy waiting room for an hour (which is very good) before being seen by someone who I presume was a doctor - he failed to introduce himself. I was sent for x-rays where the radiographer told me I had in fact fractured my fibula and thumb before seeing the doctor again. The doctor told me my leg wasn't fractured - just my thumb. After telling him the radiographer said it was fractured he consulted with a colleague for some time before coming to the conclusion he had been looking at the wrong x-ray. Whoops! I was then passed on to a clinical assistant who spent over half an hour trying to find me a thumb guard to wear. I helped her look through the unorganised and messy draws in the search for a large right hand guard. No clearly laid out and well stocked cupboards here! I was told to take it easy and given an appointment at the fracture clinic for five weeks later. When I presented at the fracture clinic there was no record of my appointment, After waiting for an hour I was met once again by someone who lacked the common courtesy of introducing themselves. This person - presumably a doctor - literally poked the area where my leg had fractured and asked if there was any pain. He then bent my thumb and asked the same question. Replying no to these questions I was "discharged" and sent on my way. My experience of Ealing Hospital left me with very little confidence in the skills and expertise of the staff. The only person who seemed to know what they were doing was the radiographer. Up until very recently I worked at a large NHS Trust and the care provided there is far superior to what I experienced at Ealing Hospital. Overall a very unsatisfactory experience!