"The waiting experience in A&E"

Returning from Holiday I sustained a bad fall The doctor at the airport would only allow my to fly home if I promised to go straight to hospital on arrival in the UK.

I arrived at East Surrey A&E to an empty waiting room and was advised the wait time was 2hrs. During my wait two people came in - one with a heart condition who went through ahead of me. The other a finger injury who also went ahead of me.

I saw the triage nurse within 15 minutes of my arrival, she did nothing but sent me back to the waiting room where the coffee machine was not working and the chairs are the most uncomfortable in the world. Two hours later, having been told nothing, I asked the receptionist why I was still waiting. She told me that other people were coming in by ambulance who took priority.

After 2. 5 hours I was called in. The treatment area was almost empty - I saw only three other people in cubicles. The doctor I saw was very pleasant and efficient. I saw at least two doctors on duty. A very poor experience with no information during the wait. It may have been within the target time of 4 hours but next time I will try Epsom and hope for a better experience.