"Having attended the A & E ..."

What I liked

Having attended the A & E department of the hospital on a thursday evening after turning over badly on my ankle playing football I was swiftly brought into triage for initial assessment. I was treated well by the nurse and sent to xray where again I was seen to swiftly and efficiently. Up to this point everything had alleviated the natural worry of waiting for hours to be seen.

What could be improved

My wait was 3 hours subsequent to my xray, which was understandable as there was a steady stream of people coming into the waitiing room. My main issue is regarding the treatment I recieve by the doctor who examined my ankle. Her manner was very indifferent, almost to the point where I felt I was merely an irritant. She examined my ankle in what appered to be the correct way, testing different areas for pain/ pins and needles etc. She went away to look at my xray and returned with the good news that my ankle didn't appear to be broken. That was it. No offer of crutches to support me, no pain killers, not even a support bandage to wear for the next few days. Just a bolue card with some advice on it. I enquired about physiotherapy to which I was informed I had to arrange that through my GP. Highly unusual, I thought as this isn't the first time I've had to attend A&E for similar injuries. Now, four weeks after the visit, I have visited my GP, been asked to self-refer for physio, purchase my own pain killers and support bandages and borrow crutches from a friend. Simply not good enough, by anyone's standards.

Anything else?

I'm a huge supporter of the NHS and have never felt that I have been treated badly before. This was the first time I've had to attend the Northern General for anything and I feel it's important that I take time to inform you of the poor practise I experienced. I have managed with my injury because I am a young and otherwise healthy person, however I can't help but think about how an older or less able person than myself would have coped had they received the same treatment.