"Ward E15"

My husband was admitted to QMC on 30th August. Majority of staff we encountered were lovely, however they were often rushed off their feet & unable to provide the level of care which I’m sure they would have wanted. Dr at NEMS diagnosed possible kidney stones & NEMS Ambulance took us short journey to QMC & ward B3. On arrival no beds available & so we sat in waiting area for almost 2 hours. No medical staff came to check on us & husband in such agony that I actually asked if there was somewhere he could lie down on the floor! Once allocated a bed my husband given anti-biotics (for urine infection) & anti-sickness via IV & morphine orally (for pain). Didn't see another doctor again re pain for 36 hours! On Sunday moved to E15 & discovered his blood pressure had dropped significantly. He was given saline via IV to rehydrate him, but no drinking water for over 12 hours! Surely a basic need? Blood pressure hardly monitored during Sunday – staff seemed uninterested. Night staff then very concerned to find his blood pressure low. I am very concerned that the day-time nurse didn’t check this, even when asked. On Monday the nurse was very caring & professional. However elsewhere there were issues easily avoided but which compounded patient suffering: No record from B3 of the anti-biotics my husband received on 30th August. Nurse stripped patients beds but then found no clean linen. Patients had to sit for several hours waiting for fresh linen. My husband felt so wretched he simply lay on a bare mattress! Perhaps check fresh linen available before beds stripped? Evening meal – no spoons so patient given a fork to eat soup! By Tuesday still no spoons & patients given forks to eat ice-cream! A cancer patient required scan & so on Mon ‘nil by mouth’. By lunch-time on Tues (& now absolutely starving) & still awaiting scan, he had 2 mouthfuls of lunch & porter arrived to take him for the evasive scan. Couldn’t now have scan as he had eaten! Monday pm porter took my husband for CT scan, but took him to Ultra-sound scan dept. Not until my husband had removed his top & been smothered with lubricant that the staff realised he was in the wrong place! Porter then took him to CT Scan dept area but as busy, my husband left outside in the corridor in a wheelchair alone & not having any idea of his whereabouts within the hospital. A 94 year patient was then left with him. Leaving very sick patients alone in a corridor is simply dangerous & wholly unacceptable. On Tues my husband discharged as CT scan & x-ray ‘clear’ & pain diagnosed as muscular & told no more treatment required. By Friday & still in significant pain, my husband visited his GP. From CT Scan notes GP spotted it quite clearly noted sigmoid diverticulosis & she diagnosed diverticulitis was quite likely the cause of his continuing pain. A course of anti-biotics have been prescribed & we are hopeful that his symptoms will now ease