"A truly outstanding Hospital, with..."

What I liked

My stay at Deal Hospital was absolutely wonderful! I felt that all of the staff, medical, nursing, healthcare assistants, domestics and physiotherapists, were not only extremely caring and friendly, but also took a genuine pride in doing their work well and in ensuring that the patients were well looked after and that they were dedicated to rehabilitating them effectively.

I have had some very unpleasant experiences in other hospitals over the years, both in connection with my own health and that of my 30 year old daughter, who has had Type 1 Diabetes since she was eight, so I can genuinely commend this hospital as being by far the best in every respect. I look forward to volunteering my services to the hospital and will whole heartedly support any campaign against proposed closure of this outstanding institution, which is a credit to the NHS!

What could be improved

I think that, at times, there were insufficient staff on the ward and in the physio. dept., which meant that the staff were overstretched (*run ragged*) - is it possible, despite the obvious financial constraints, to employ more staff whenever possible? Also, I recall that on one particularly hot night, there weren't enough cooler fans available to meet the demand, so I would hope that it might be possible to provide some more for such situations.

Anything else?

As I said, I shall be happy to do anything I can to support the hospital. I am a published writer and am also very interested in psychotherapy & counselling. I have already enrolled on a Psychology/Counselling course at the University of Oxford Continuing Education Dept. (commencing Sept. 2011) so, if I can be of service to the hospital utilising either/both of these skills/contacts, I will be only to willing to volunteeer my time.