"Thank you for the care and well ..."

What I liked

Thank you for the care and well being of my 85 year old mother who ispent a week in Eashing Ward at the RSCH for a chest infection with heart failure. I liked the idea of a designated nurse who looked after my mother and got to know her and her condition. All staff were very helpful and worked as a team, always answering my questions, or getting someone else to give me an answer. The environment and my mother were spotless, she looked well cared for at each visit, getting better all the time. The staff were very patient with some difficult and demanding patients, retaining respect at all times.

I work in a residential home with elderly clients and know from first hand how difficult elderly care can be.

What could be improved

Difficult for you but my mother was sent home with her normal drugs, that she was familiar with, but some were in different dosages from which her doctor precribed which left her very confused. My mother takes about 6 different drugs during the day.

If, for instance, she takes an antidepressant of 15mgs once a day at bedtime, she finds it confusing if the hospital give her the same drug but 30mgs, and tellls her to take half a tablet at night. She gets confused with all the different names and sometimes finds it easier to refer to her drugs as her "water tablet" or her "heart tablet". I spent about an hour today sorting her drugs out for her and writing her a new simplified list of her drugs and when to take them. No problem for me, but some elderly do not have this support. My mother also refers to the times of taking her drugs as "before breakfast" or "after teatime" or before going to bed" etc

My mother is very able, alert and likes nothing better than attending her whist card playing groups, which she is very often the highest scorer!