"I have had to attend hospital ..."

What I liked

I have had to attend hospital four times this year - twice by ambulance and twice as an outpatient. Apart from one member of the Home Treatment Team in Mental Health speaking to me as if she was "not bothered", chewing gum and sighing as if she didn't want to be there, the paramedics and staff treated me very well on the two occasions that I needed emergency treatment.

When I had to attend for a CT scan, I was seen bang on my appointment time of 1.30 pm and the radiographer was very pleasant.

When I attended for my ultrasound scan, I was seen within 10 minutes of my appointment time and the radiographer was very pleasant and easy to talk to, explaining everything as she went along.

I was able to obtain my urgent CT scan and ultrasound examinations within one week for the CT scan and two weeks for the ultrasound, which is very impressive.

What could be improved

One small quip with the CT scan - I wasn't told when the scan was actually going to start. This might seem like a niggle, but it was my first one and was nervous so it would have been nice to have been told what to expect.

I was disappointed to note that the cafe was closed when I left my appointment at around 10 am on Saturday and wonder whether the hours could be increased, especially as I had had to fast for six hours before my tests, especially at weekends, so that they remain open throughout visiting hours.

Anything else?

I am glad to be one of the lucky ones who had a good experience at hospital. My estimation of Newham General has gone up considerably from some years ago, when it was very disappointing - I believe this may be due to the fact that it is now a teaching hospital.

The hospital seemed very clean and the staff treated me with respect.

As mentioned above, longer opening hours for the cafe would be useful, especially at weekends.

Finally, many thanks to all the medical staff who looked after me during my visits.