Can wrexham.com find out please?
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Can wrexham.com find out please?
Why there is no provision for patients to telephone home from the wards at Wrexham Maelor Hospital?
When I was a patient there, they had mobile coin-pay telephone units which could be wheeled around the ward, plugged into a socket and hey presto! Admittedly, half the time they were broken & jammed and you had to walk down to the café area or get someone to push you in a wheelchair. But there is nothing now.
Many mobile phone networks don’t work inside the hospital and the so-called ward mobile phone is always broken…and can’t receive a signal.My Mum has been on Cunliffe, Overton and more recently Pantomime wards and the situation is a JOKE!
Her only communication with the outside world, confined to bed, and wheeled to the bathroom, is a visit. And visitors, mainly elderly, have to park on the overflow car park a very long walk away where the illegal gypsy site used to be?
No parking
No telephoneJOKE!
and why? Do they no longer have ice machines in the ward kitchens?
It’s bad enough being in the horrible dry atmosphere of a hospital, not to mention when patients are dished up tap water in those plastic jugs, and expected to drink that till the next shift arrives? Especially the elderly?
Patients are relying on relatives bringing in plastic bottles of water to give them a cold drink of water!!
Just imagine, if you were elderly or infirm etc. Parked at the far end of the overspill car park by the railway line. The walk to the revolving doors of the main entrance is one hell of a walk. Then, you have a long walk, past A&E…
I would gladly endure this long walk if patients were provided with a cold drink of water.
I really just can’t get my head around this. I don’t want anyone to die in hospital for want of a cold drink of water.
Simon, I understand your frustrations as I have spent a lot of time over the last few years visiting and also receiving treatment at the Maelor hospital. However I do feel that some of your comments are a tad unfair.
Mobile phones do work in the hospital, admittedly the signal gets lost in some parts, (unfortunately that is often a problem with large buildings). I have found that different phone networks vary in how they pick up signals in various parts of the hospital. Maybe a family member will have a phone that works in whatever ward you are visiting and they can lend a phone to the patient.
Car parking. It isn’t really anyones fault as his will always be a problem as a great many people visit the hospital throughout the day. (At least the car park is free and I have never failed to find a place although obviously on occasions I have ended up a long way from the entrance.) The nearest car park will always fill up during visiting hours. A possible solution would be to try to get to the hospital a fair bit earlier. Another alternative is for somebody to be dropped off at the entrance and the car is driven to a parking place. Other than that I don’t know what else to suggest.
Regarding the problem with water. I have found that all wards I have been on have drinking water available. If that is not the case on wards you have visited, I suggest you bring up the problem with staff actually on the ward.
Simon, you have obviously had the same experience with an elderly relative in hospital as I have. One thing that I personally feel that they could do is stagger visiting hours for certain wards. There are numerous doors around the hospital, surely some of them could be accessible at visiting times. The majority of nursing staff do their best but there is a lot of room for improvement with others. You would think that one priority would be for urine containers & sick bowls to be placed within reaching distance for people who were fastened up to machines. They could utilise volunteers a lot more. Mobile phones I found worked best at the top of the stairs by a window. I dread the thought of being in hospital nowadays.
There is a flip side to this as well.
Granted, for those that are bed bound, there MAYBE a problem in carrying out their basic functions without assistance but there are many patients who expect to be waited on hand and foot (when they are quite capable of doing things for themselves) at a moments notice.
A fresh supply of water will always be provided if you ask for it, all you have to do is ask!
As far as requesting Wrexham.com to ‘investigate’, have you lost the power of speech or are you timid to speak up for yourself or relative?
Perhaps, if you asked nicely, they may provide a shuttle bus from the far reaches of the overspill car park or you could take some notice of the sensible advice proposed by Mike Davies (above).
One question though, how is bottled water better? Doesn’t that warm up if left to stand also? Or if it’s kept in the ward fridge, wouldn’t you have to ask for it the same ask asking for a fresh supply?
I leave it with you.The problem is Benjamin, the elderly are often of a breed who don’t like to be a trouble to anyone. They may ask for water but it may be quite a while before it is forthcoming if staff are busy & then it may be forgotten if the request isn’t repeated. Bells/buzzers pressed are often not answered. Some beds don’t even have one all the time. Often, patients look out for each other & the able bodied will seek assistance for those who are not, if a patient is in distress. How would you feel if you wanted a wee & no help was at hand? I think that there is even a notice up about it by the nurses station.
I have no qualms about the medical treatment at the hospital, just concerns that the staff just can’t cope.
It is a regular occurrence when the night-shift comes on duty that the patients often don’t get their 9pm drink from the trolley till gone 10pm. The same applies for the medication which can often be dispensed as late as nearer 11pm. This can be due to the staff being occupied by just one incident elsewhere on the ward. There does not seem to be enough staff on the wards. From personal experience on the surgical wards there are usually only 3 people on duty at night time. 2 staff nurses and 1 auxiliary nurse. I presume the same applies to wards with mainly elderly patients. At times there can be only 2 members of staff on duty when one goes for his/her break.
BenjaminM, regarding the bottled water….. Many relatives bring bottles of frozen water with them at visiting times, or a cold drink from the shop or vending machines. They used to have ice machines in every ward kitchen. The plastic jugs were half-filled with ice by the staff and filled up with water and given to the patients. The atmosphere is so dry in the hospital, it doesn’t take long for a jug of water to warm up I can assure you from personal experience. I myself as a patient regularly used to run the tap in the bathroom and drink water from there.
I have asked staff on the wards about telephones. The ‘ward phone’ is usually broken or cannot receive a signal. Why don’t they have those portable pay phones they used to have? Especially on wards like Cunliffe which are many populated by the elderly?
As for the parking, say no more!Mike Davies
My Mum is an invalid. In 18mths she has gone from an independent woman who drove to Sainsbury’s by herself, to someone who has trouble walking 6 steps. She has to be taken to the bathroom.
She has actually messed herself waiting for someone to take her to the bathroom they are so busy. On one occasion this year on Cunliffe Ward she was in a lot of pain at 9pm and asked for pain relief. She had to wait till 10am the next morning before a doctor wrote her up for painkillers.They can’t cope.
@Simon 10820 wrote:
Mike Davies
My Mum is an invalid. In 18mths she has gone from an independent woman who drove to Sainsbury’s by herself, to someone who has trouble walking 6 steps. She has to be taken to the bathroom.
She has actually messed herself waiting for someone to take her to the bathroom they are so busy. On one occasion this year on Cunliffe Ward she was in a lot of pain at 9pm and asked for pain relief. She had to wait till 10am the next morning before a doctor wrote her up for painkillers.They can’t cope.
Simon. This is a different issue to the ones you highlighted in your original post and I totally sympathise with what you are saying. Unfortunately the NHS (like other public services) is struggling to cope with underfunding etc. etc. Despite what governments may say there are staff shortages everywhere.
If you feel that any staff have failed in their duties, you should make a complaint to the relevent department.
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