Our experience of the health service has been that it has been all that we would want, and more. The level of care Elizabeth has received has been consistently excellent.
From the beginning of our journey, a role the staff offer other than patient care, is care of the family. First contacts are very important. I was struck by the honest, gentle caring contact we were given. We were quickly orientated into our new lives, and the details of the haemorrhage were clearly explained. I noted that at all time the information we were given was simply the facts, and prognosis were kept to a minimum. At times this was hard, especially in the care planning meetings when staff who were usually very up beat would not say much at all about future chances. I was interested that this relaxed when Elizabeth moved out of NHS provision, into a rehab home. Here staff do not wear uniforms, they are not bare below the elbow (BBE) and they talk more optimistically about the future. It's a different culture.
It was explained to us that Elizabeth would be moved to the Royal Hallamshire from the Northern General. The nurse informed us that the journey was assessed as safe for Liz. In the Royal Hallamshire we were aware that we were in a place that had very high standards, and all the staff knew that they were standard bearers. Elizabeth was next to a bed space that underwent a deep clean. The was clearly an industrial process. It was impressive to witness. At one point we stood away from Elizabeth's bed while an x-ray was taking place. We had inadvertently strayed into a neighbouring ward. It was like an invisible political divide. Staff on that side of the line clear viewed us as different. They had a 'no phones' rules, and disapproved of us flaunting our phones openly. We soon learnt to keep our side of the demarcation.
We had earnest conversations with .A', the discharge nurse. He explained why Elizabeth would be moved very soon back to Leicester. First we had to re-register her with our GP in Leicester. This is normally very difficult, but fortunately our GP knows us well and agreed to have Liz back with her. Then A started pushing on the wrong door. He tried to get her a bed at the LRI. The Leicester General has intensive care, although it has been scheduled to be cut for the last 7 years.
A eventually push on the right door. We had just prepared ourselves for a long stint in Loxley, and then on that day we heard that Elizabeth was to be moved to Leicester. An Ambulance was arranged. Liz's Granny had just arrived by train only to see her trussed up on an ambulance stretcher, looking exceedingly uncomfortable, with an ancient ventilator. Elizabeth's journey to Leicester was very quick as the ambulance had flashing blue lights and didn't stop once. We followed on behind.
The ICU in Leicester was a curious affair. No investment was going into the building as it was destined to be close. Margaret did not like going into the family waiting area because all the chairs looked revolting. However, the staff made up for the environment.
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