Tuesday 17 January 2012

Buggar! Buggar! Buggar!


Buggar! Buggar! Buggar!

I think that just about sums up our feelings today.
I had an appointment with a consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at St Barts (top man apparently) to discuss possible future surgical treatment. When you have a terminal prognosis you need to find out what is available and try to keep ahead of the game. You read up on treatments and do the research and have lots of unanswered questions. This brings with it a whole load of stress and anxiety and pent up emotion. Well my appointment was for 4.15 pm. We took the high speed train up to London and arrived at the hospital about 3.45. After a short wait we were spoken to by the matron who informed us that the consultant had taken annual leave and ALL OF HIS CLINIC APPOINTMENTS HAD TO BE CANCELLED . Others in his department were apparently unaware that he was on leave!!! There was nobody else to take his clinic and nobody had thought to phone patients to cancel. This level of sheer incompetence just beggars belief! Unable to organise a proverbial whatsit in a brewery springs to mind.
Nothing we could do – getting mad with the matron wouldn’t change anything – wasn’t her fault after all but I really hope that someone gets a good reprimand. Surely the consultant has a PA/Secretary/Appointments clerk to sort out his diary!
To add insult to injury as I am currently on chemo  we decided not to try and travel up and down to London in one day as I am so exhausted so we booked an overnight hotel. The result of this is we are £200 lighter in our wallet, travelled 160 miles round trip, got so upset and uptight and all for nothing. I was MAD!
Alan just had a few words to add when we left – F**K, F**K, F**k. I think he is letting his emotions out at last!
Watch this space!
Tess x

9 comments:

  1. Oh Tess! This just beggars belief!! There's nothing to say other than to send you and Alan a huge hug.
    Ann x

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are being sorely tested, Tess. Thinking of you and hope your consultant has a rotten holiday and his person Friday receives the same unprofessional lack of consideration that you have had to put up with.

    Janet xx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tess, I am fuming reading your post. No one should be treated this way and I wouldn't have expected it of St Bart's.
    Sending you and Alan love and huge hugs.
    Keep on keeping on.
    Christine xxxx

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh Tess, what unbelievable incompetence. I hope you and Alan can destress, regroup and then put in a very strongly worded letter of complaint.
    Big hugs to both of you
    Claire xx

    ReplyDelete
  5. Tess I am so sorry to read this... how badly they have treated you. Lots of love and hugs and a long letter of complaint I think are needed right now Love Cynthia xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. That's appalling service Tess. I can't imgine how you must have felt when they told you he'd gone off on leave and no alternative arrangements had been made for his patients. Definitely a letter of complaint should be sent a.s.a.p.
    Hugs
    Beryl xx

    ReplyDelete
  7. So sorry Tess such lack of consideration and total incompetence. Bless you both. Hang in there.
    hugs Jen x

    ReplyDelete
  8. That is such an impressive level not just of incompetence but lack of any consideration at all, that it actually leaves me totally gob smacked !! You must both be totally knackered- when you get a chance to de-stress make sure you do write the letter of complaint , otherwise these things are just swept under the carpet and nothing changes.

    Amanda

    ReplyDelete
  9. Tess I can't add anything that hasn't already been said but my thoughts are with you and I know you will write the right kind of letter to get some sort of result. Sending you and Alan hugs .

    Jenny x

    ReplyDelete