"Poor attitude and appalling visiting times!"

Anything else?

I called yesterday to ask about visiting times, as I wanted to visit a very dear friend of mine who had just been admitted. I live over 100 miles away from Epping, so it was going to be a long drive and I needed to get back home by 3.00pm to collect my granddaughter from school. Imagine my dismay when I was told that there were no visiting times during the morning! Only 2-4pm and then 6-8pm- incredibly inconvenient for many people, especially those mothers who need to be home for children leaving school. I explained my dilemma to the nurse who answered (Poplar Ward) and she was rude and unsympathetic. I had not seen this friend since his admittance to Broomfield (all day visiting...) and would dearly like to visit him, but she did not care. 'Those are the visiting hours so do not come at any other time!' Absolutely dreadful!! What a terrible way to treat elderly unwell patients who need visitors to cheer them up! His family also all live over 50 miles away- goodness knows why he was sent here!