"Good care in A&E, but not enough staff"

Excellent staff, but not enough of them. Two of them really stood out for me. They were a Romanian doctor whose name began with an M (Mihai maybe? Truly sorry I can't remember it) and a really lovely nurse called Phoebe. Both of these had excellent communication skills, ensuring that I knew what was going on and that I was happy with and informed about each stage of my care, so that I knew what I was consenting to.

The doctor's skill at finding a vein was fantastic and he used methods I hadn't seen before but were really logical and they worked really well. Phoebe was kind, put me at ease and ensured that I was happy and informed. She treated me with respect, finding the right level to deliver information so that it was neither condescending nor over my head, and it was clear that, despite being ridiculously busy, she knew exactly what my treatment plan was and made sure that I did too. I really felt like she was looking out for me and it helped me to feel much more relaxed.

My only complaint is that there just weren't enough staff. While I was in a majors cubicle, a trauma call came in and many of the staff (quite rightly) were called away to it. I completely agree with this, but it meant that I was left without pain relief for a considerable time as there was nobody to dispense it and, after having to lay still to have a scan, my back went and I ended up crying in pain. This was not the fault of the nurse looking after me - I don't think I've ever seen someone run around so much or work so hard (and she still managed to make me feel like she had ample time for me).

This was down to there just not being enough staff. I overheard a member of staff say that they were really short staffed that day... again. The tone she used suggested that this was a regular occurrence and that it was affecting morale. This is madness as there are some great staff members there but, as with any workplace, I'm sure that they will leave if they feel unhappy and YDH will be worse off for it.

Please address this because it would raise the standard in A&E from 'ok' to 'great'.