"Many things"

What I liked

The midwife/+nurse receiving me at the Day Assessment Centre was extremely professional, efficient and quick on her feet in all aspects of her work. She constantly kept me informed about what she had done, what she will be doing and whom she had spoken to regarding my case. Her bedside manners were excellent and her natural empathetic way of care was beyond my expectations. Having blood taken for tests is not my favorite thing, but this particular lady is certainly my favorite professional to take blood from me. She might be more experienced than many others, but she certainly is very good at her job. She was very knowledgeable about the condition in my case. This midwife/+nurse was a fountain of knowledge about many things related to health, wellbeing and pregnancy related issues.

One becomes spoiled by such exceptional and experienced professionals and then others don’t seem to measure up to such high standards.

What could be improved

Number of staff:

Number of people working in one area, so that the one very professional and lovely professional wouldn't get as busy as she did.

Waiting time:

Waiting time - due to no fault of the person attending to me - was very long, presumably due to lack of staff and the need for too much bureaucracy in the work place, reg. paper work, record keeping, signatures needed etc etc. But mainly lack of enough staff to share the work load as it seemed.

Some staff:

On some occasions one could get the impression that some of the staff don't seem to work as hard/fast as they need to, in order to meet the needs and expectations of those using their services. Many people seem to be dissatisfied with the long waiting times, which is mainly due to the inefficiency of those staff members who take their work less seriously, or the inefficient style of work undertaken by some members of staff that delay the process. What ever the reasons for long delays and waiting times, it reflects badly on the organisation as a whole. People walk away with dissatisfaction and remember mainly the negative highlights of their experience.

Calls in:

I called in to speak with someone to ask about appointment details etc. ; my call/message was taken by someone who did not feel comfortable giving me their name. Later I discovered my message was not forwarded to those it was addressed to. When people call a hospital, their query is usually very important and in some cases matter of life and death. Phone calls need to be taken seriously; dealt with professionally, recorded and forwarded efficiently. Also, members of staff need to provide their name and role -or at least a form of ID- so that the caller can refer to the conversation they've had with the people over the phone.

Anything else?

I was received by the same person twice, and if I could choose to be seen by her every time, I would always choose Royal Surrey. Unfortunately one or several very good people are not on duty round the clock, and also, one does not get to choose whom one is received by.