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Chaotic car parking, new system is hopeless

Story from nhs.uk

"Chaotic car parking, new system is hopeless"

About: North Tyneside General Hospital

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I am a strong supporter of Rake Lane, they have always provided great care and the staff are great. Unfortunately this standard of care does not extend to the new car parking system. It the old system worked, you knew if you went through the barriers there was a space and you only had to pay on departure. Now you can drive round and round looking for a space, the machines don't take notes, the change machines were out of order and if you don't know how long you will be you end up paying more than you need to. Today I arrived at 9:35 and spent the first fifteen minutes trying to get change, then the payment machine wasn't working but I was going to be late for my appointment if I wasted any more time trying to pay. I paid on departure, after having to walk the length of the site to find a machine that worked. I only paid for one hour although I was technically on site for 65 minutes. You are supposed to get thirty minutes free, so charges should only start after thirty minutes and I spent over fifteen minutes trying to pay. Please get this system sorted, it is stressful enough coming to hospital and great work of the staff to try and put you at ease is wasted when the car raking system adds such confusion and unnecessary stress.

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Responses

Response from North Tyneside General Hospital 10 years ago
North Tyneside General Hospital

Submitted on 09/09/2013 at 09:05
Published on nhs.uk on 10/09/2013 at 04:00

Dear Sir / Madam, I would firstly like to thank you for your very kind words relating to the care you have received at Rake Lane and to the staff that work there. It is very obvious you are a supporter of the hospital, thank you. I was disappointed to hear about your experience with the new parking system and I am sorry for the inconvenience and stress that this has quite obviously caused you. Whilst the introduction of the new parking system has actually resulted in an increased number of parking spaces for patients, I can appreciate how frustrating and difficult it can still be to locate a free space during the busier times of the day. The difficulties you experienced getting change are unacceptable. I will ensure that your comments relating to the change machine being out of order are forwarded on to Laura Hutchinson, the manager responsible, so she is able to look into this. It is essential that the machine is in good working order to avoid patients and their families experiencing the stressful situation you describe. I’d agree that the last thing we’d want to do is add to any anxiety a patient may feel prior to a hospital appointment. No patient or their family should ever pay for more time than they have used. The new system does allow you to pay for the full parking time on departure or top up any additional time incurred. I know there have been ongoing efforts to improve the new system based on patient feedback. I feel you raise a number of important points and will ensure your views are passed on to the Director of Estates Steven Bannister. Thank you for taking the time to make them. Best Wishes Annie Laverty – Director of Patient Experience

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Response from Annie Laverty, Chief Experience Officer, Patient Experience, Northumbria Healthcare NHS FT 10 years ago
We have made a change
Annie Laverty
Chief Experience Officer, Patient Experience,
Northumbria Healthcare NHS FT

Submitted on 04/04/2014 at 22:21
Published on Care Opinion on 07/04/2014 at 09:19

picture of Annie Laverty

Just to update you on the outcome of this. The Trust has made an important change and reached an agreement which will result in the termination of the management contract with Parking Eye on all Northumbria premises.

I hope this provides you with some assurance of our determination to listen and respond to the needs of our patients and the local people we serve.

Thank you for bringing your concerns to our attention.

With all best wishes,

Annie

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