LETTER: Address hospital issues or heads should roll

My son had an appointment to see a consultant at an outpatients’ clinic in the afternoon. We checked in at reception 45 minutes before our appointment was due. Our time came and went, we checked on what was going off with the hold backs, and were still there 20 minutes over our time, and had not even been called for. They then told us there was a delay with the consultant clinic and that she was not actively taking her own clinic today and that someone else was dealing with this matter.

This delay went on to become a further 45-minute wait. With this I asked why no messages had been put out to warn us or should I say advise the patients what was actually happening?

The outpatient department reply was “a tannoy system message has gone out”, which was a small muffled noise and God knows what the message said, it was not understandable. So down to the lack of communication and the rudeness of the staff within the department, we ended up making a new appointment. 
There’s a few things that actually, in my eyes, really annoy me with regards the hospital and has happened a few times where the nursing staff are involved. It pains me to say this because there are thousands of brilliant nurses in this country and then there are the other kind who walk round with files in their hands looking lost with personal details on display for passers-by to read. They sit around on reception desk and talk to administrators. The lack of communication and being rude.

The next issue with regards to any visit to the hospital is the task of trying to get in and get parked.

The way the parking system is is very much beyond a joke. You have to wait for a car to leave the car park in order to get access to the car park, this is down to it saying full, but when you actually get into the car park there are quite a few empty spaces already there before the prior car left the car park.

Then there is the added cost of the carpark tariffs you face on leaving the hospital. How does the hospital justify making disabled people pay to park their cars at hospital? Doesn’t the hospital make enough money out of the rest of the public who pay to park there? Where are all the rest of the people going to park their cars when the new cancer centre is opened?
The hospital has already said before, after the last car park extension was done, that it would no longer be allowed to add anymore car park spaces within the grounds of the hospital. That was after the three new wards were opened. 
I don’t knock the hospital for trying to bring the cancer services under its roof and work alongside Macmillan cancer team.

But what I do knock is where the extra car-park spaces are going to be when the current car park is not sufficient for the services already provided.

I think its about time that someone within the trust at board level stood up and took charge for all of what I feel is wrongdoing. If no-one does then heads should role.
Where does all this money go that they make from charging people to park at the 
hospital?

Frustrated

Name supplied (by email)