"Excessive wait for an appointment and rudeness of a member of staff"

I had an appointment in August 2016 at the Orthopaedic Dept. at RAH Paisley which resulted in being sent by one consultant for an MRI scan and then onto another consultant to hear the outcome of the scan. However, by this time, I was having problems with my left hand and wrist and so the second consultant sent me for an X-ray. Having viewed the X-ray, he then said that he would refer me back to the first consultant as,he suggested he was the best person for the job. This appointment took place early Nov 2016.

In late Feb. 2017, I received a letter from the referral management centre giving me an appointment for March. 18 weeks and 5 days after I had been told I was being referred. I attended the appointment on the  with my husband and told the consultant I saw how long I had waited. He agreed it was too long and then went on to look at my X-ray and discuss how he would treat my problem. He also said he would see if he could try to fit me into his session at the Vale of Leven Hospital in lateMarch A couple of days later, I received a standard letter, at the bottom of which the last sentence was highlighted. It asked me to please phone on receipt of the letter to discuss my waiting list entry. Naively I took it that the consultant had indeed spoken about me and phoned immediately, On being told my CHI number,I was told that 'they' thought that, given where I live, I should now be seen at the Vale of Leven. I responded that I had already agreed this with the consultant and repeated what we, my husband and I, had been told. by him about the clinic in late March. At this point she become very strident and said there was no clinic until the early April and the appointments would be decided purely on clinical needs. I said that I was very upset by this and tried to say that I was only repeating what we had been told, but I was  interrupted  and she started to repeat what she had just said. As I struggled yet again to try to explain what had been said at the appointment and why I was upset to have been told something would happen when It was not the case, I was rudely told in a very strident voice that she was speaking and instructed to let her finish what she was saying - a courtesy which she patently unwilling to extend to me.

She eventually finished the harangue and said that she would speak to the consultant and get back to me. A week later, and I have received no communication from  anyone.

I was and am very upset by the whole process. I waited patiently for my appointment despite being in pain and the suggestion about an early appointment was the consultant's own. I did not raise the subject - the consultant did! I merely made the mistake of believing what I was told and then was harangued for doing so. I thought that the letter was the result of the consultant speaking to organize my appointment as he had said he would. Apparently I was wrong!

I was left very upset by the whole episode and felt that the staff member did not believe what I said about the conversation my husband and I had had with the consultant. This behaviour to me was rude, unprofessional and patronising in the extreme while their listening skills and attitude left much to be desired.