"Shocking"

Almost two years ago I went through a horrendous time after being rushed into Burton hospital with severe abdominal pain. Myself, husband and family could not believe the events that unfolded over the next two days, a wrong diagnosis almost resulting in death combined with an utter lack of compassion and empathy left me feeling completely let down and ultimately terrified that if anything else went wrong I could not trust the staff to recognise it quickly and treat me correctly. Having been treated as if I was exaggerating my symptoms and being told I needed to calm down and the pain would go away combined with staffs' refusal to give me adequate pain relief, I was told I merely had constipation. After hours of writhing in agony and staff being rude to me and my family for showing concern and insisting something should be done, they finally agreed to send me for a scan (after I was approached by a doctor after my family had been forced to leave the ward who asked why I thought I knew best and needed a scan at all). After the scan they discovered a huge twist in my large intestine, so tight that the blood supply had been cut off causing the organ to die inside me, I needed immediate surgery before the intestine ruptured. I had to have the whole of the right side of intestine removed. No apology was ever given to myself or my family for missing what was wrong or for treating us so badly. The anaesthetists and surgeons were phenomenal but the nurses on the ward and in A&E should be ashamed of themselves. The two days following the operation were so traumatic because of the care (or lack of) they gave me. Once moved to the private wing I was at last shown some compassion. Its taken me two years to get over the trauma and I still wake in the night with panic attacks that I might have to go back there and be treated in the same way. I have avoided reporting what happened because I was not strong enough following the removal of my intestine, but having spoken to A&E over the weekend re an emergency supply of medication, the rude nature of the person who answered the phone, the lack of compassion or any sign that these people actually care about the health of the people who rely on them, I think its about time that these people are shown up for what they are. I am terrified that if I have more serious problems that I can not trust the NHS staff to help me and look after me properly and that is a scary place to be. I only wish who ever treated the people on here who rave about the staff were around to look after me in my hour of need.