"My father's wait for emergency surgery "

At 22 pm on the Thursday my 87 yr old dad complained of severe abdominal pain and nausea, he had a golf ball size swelling in his groin. I have been a nurse for 40 years and it was like he had an incarcerated inguinal hernia.

We got to A and E and taken immediately back to treatment area by 2230 or so. By 3am he was in such pain I demanded treatment and found out he could have had pain med. Finally after 4 am he saw a doctor. At 5am a surgeon. At 7am he was hurting and it took 35 minutes for pain med. At 8 am another surgeon came and said he needed emergency surgery and they would soon work him in.

During the day he was bumped back and went to surgery at 2200 on the Friday. The hernia was now almost 3 inches long and rock hard. At surgery, because of the strangulation, he had to have a resection of his bowel. He had a drain in and it drained copious amounts of bloody pus. I’ve chased staff for dry IVs, pain med etc.

I worked in the USA for 27 years and always bragged on the NHS, now I’m horrified; 5 hrs to see the doc and 15 hrs after he was declared as needing' emergency' surgery.