"The skill and ability of the surgical ..."

What I liked

The skill and ability of the surgical team that operated on my father and the care shown by the nurses in the stepdown ward following the operation

What could be improved

Patient history handovers between wards. each ward my father went to had no idea of the treatments he had recieved in the previous ward or his history of heart failure or the extent of the surgery he had or the recovery characteristics of bowel cancer removal. each ward isolated him and tested for cdif due to his loose and frequent bowel movements. on the last ward he was still being isolated 6 weeks after the operation and it wasn't until one of the surgery team explained that this was standard following bowel removal that the ward doctor took him out of isolation.

Anything else?

My father was released from hospital, still fighting for breath, coughing up blood and low blood oxygen levels which are all classic symptoms of a pulmonary embolism which was missed on the three wards he stayed on. pulmonary embolisms occur following long periods in bed and also cancer operations. my father was in a hospital bed for six weeks following his operation to remove his cancer, why did this not leap out at the doctors on the wards. our local g.p diagnosed this after spending 5 minutes with him at home following his release.