"A bad experience with not very competent..."

What could be improved

I had a very painful stomach ache and I visited the hospital at around 11:00 pm in January 2011. I had to wait for over 4 hours for a nurse to look at me. Although there were a few patients waiting, by no means was it exceptionally busy. The person at the desk did not consider my pleas to be looked at sooner as the pain was unbearable nor did the staff provide any pain relief.

Eventually I was looked at by a doctor at 4:00 am. This was the worst doctor I have ever met in my life. He did not seem very intent in examining me and even if he somehow had an intuition about what was wrong with my stomach, he did not reveal it. When my wife complained, he made an attempt to examine me and asked if it pained at various places around my stomach and just left without a word!

A nurse came later with some medication and asked for a urine sample. Another nurse came a few minutes later and asked for another urine sample. When told that the sample was already given, she got very upset. It transpired that they had lost the sample.

All this happened when I was in severe pain.

I was glad to just get out of the A&E and pray that I would never have to go anywhere near the Northwick Park Hospital.

Later I got examined by the GP and my condition was resolved. I contacted Northwick Hospital to get a medical report on my treatment there, but was told that they should be contacted by my GP surgery. I asked my GP surgery to contact the hospital, but despite repeated requests (written, fax, phone calls) , there has been no response from the Northwick Park Hospital A&E department.

I do have huge respect for the medical profession and people involved. Although, thankfully, I have seldom had the to visit hospitals, I do not have words to describe the excellent attention and treatment that my wife got during her pregnancy. The midwifes, nurses and the doctors were nothing short or a godsend, but again that was a different hospital.