Caithness General A & E

[solastar]

After all the complaining and feeling the service is bad at Wick hospital. dont worry because it will be closed down before we know it!
it seems to me that it is going to reduce its services down to nothing then it will just be a big Wick white elephant..
and we can all look forward to the long trip by road to Raigmore......

[Leanne]

dont worry because it will be closed down before we know it

Think someones been reading the caithness courier

[Fran]

After all the complaining and feeling the service is bad at Wick hospital. dont worry because it will be closed down before we know it!
it seems to me that it is going to reduce its services down to nothing then it will just be a big Wick white elephant..
and we can all look forward to the long trip by road to Raigmore......

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Dont be silly. theres no way our hospital is going to close, it is improving and progressing all the time. we have just got a ct scanner.Rumours, rumours, rumours.
Also we are very very lucky with our A&E department and the caring hard working staff in it. If you were in edinburgh etc you would have to wait hours. I cant beleive they would have made a child with his finger tip cut off, bleeding heavily, sit and wait all that time. Not unless they were dealing with say car crash victims.

[Lolabelle]

I have just spent my afternoon in A&E after my 12 month old fell on some glass & sliced the end off his finger! it was bleeding profusely when we arrived & the lady at reception had to go for dressings to stem the blood.
Now I know A&E can get busy & today was definately that.There was a waiting room full of people & an ambulance had come in.
But can someone please explain how there waiting system works?? obviously ambulances with emergencies take priority over everything but then what? is it first come first served?
We sat in that waiting room for 3 hours!! two people in the waiting room called before us actually asked the nurse if they were going to call my baby first, the reply was 'NO!'.
I wouldnt of minded waiting so long if anyone waiting before me was a priority but doesnt common sense tell them that a bleeding baby might be a little more important than a swollen hand or sore back!!
I eventually left after 3 hours without even seeing a doctor!! I decided it was quicker to take him to the local surgery.
This isnt the first time ive had a bad experience with the A&E and I will definately be thinking twice before I dash back there again.

It's the same in any hospital emergency around here too! Disgusting really, that these governments can make profit, lend money to other countries. . . but can't afford to take care of even basic health needs of it's citizens!

[BRIE]

re hospital staff they are over worked,under staffed but yet we moan,sorry there was no toys for your little one to play with

And heres another one that has decided to only digest certain details of the thread! honest some people!

[BINBOB]

And heres another one that has decided to only digest certain details of the thread! honest some people!

I am just glad ur wee lad is ok....

[BRIE]

Thanks BINBOB. At the end of the day that all that really matters.

[John Baikie]

I've been in A&E 3 times in the last 2 weeks and have been treated great. One time I had to wait a while but as it was busy and I wasn't in too much danger of dying I expected not to be a priority. I think some of us just are too impatient at times - I hate waiting around for anything to be honest but this is different, and you need to accept that there are serious emergencies coming in all the time.

[whaligoechiel]

have been in the A&E a couple of times had to wait a wee while on one occasion but staff were run of their feet
I have found all the staff to be very friendly and professional
good job they are on call 24 hours every day

[Fran]

There is a bell in a&e to press if you need someone urgently, like if you are having a heart attack and someone will answer straight away.

[parkie]

And heres another one that has decided to only digest certain details of the thread! honest some people!

no i read all the detail,s,a-e do a great job

[Thumper]

Had to take my son there last night,seen and treated within an hour -seen in first instance in less than 5 minutes and then a wee wait for the doctor to come but all in all great service and lovely staff nurse x

[BRIE]

hope your sons ok thumper x

[Thumper]

hope your sons ok thumper x

Thanks Brie,he is fine now,the joys of having kids eh?x

[Mik.M.]

Back down in London I waited 10 hrs in casualty to see a Doctor.He then told me exactly what the Triage nurse had told me 9.5hrs earlier.People who came in shouting and swearing were seen before those of us who were sitting patiently. Give the staff at CGH a break,they do a stressful job for crap pay.If you think you can do better crack on.How do any of us know what other priorities the staff have to deal with first.I`m sure they deal with everyone in a fair order.

[Fran]

It is so nice to see so many of you supporting our hospital on here. we are very lucky to have it. If i take very ill i hope i go to Caithness General, not Raigmore or anywhere else, as i know i will be well looked after and properly treated in wick, as i have been in the past.
If anyone has a complaint it should be sent to the hospital manager or the patients council, not aired on here.
I have nothing but praise for all the departments in our hospital and all the staff from consultant to cleaner, and the catering department. You wont find a cleaner hospital than Caithness General..
Brie, this isnt the first time you have complained on here , .about A&E in wick, the last time being may 15th and on 16th march about raigmore.Yet on 17th march when posting about Caithness General you stated "I couldn't fault the staff at Caithness General when.....".

[Stavro]

Brie, this isnt the first time you have complained on here , .about A&E in wick, the last time being may 15th and on 16th march about raigmore.Yet on 17th march when posting about Caithness General you stated "I couldn't fault the staff at Caithness General when.....".

Yes, I think that BRIE has perhaps been telling a few porkies!

[Skerries]

It's a dangerous road to go down to tell people that they shouldn't discuss something about a public service if they are not happy with it. They should also raise the issue through the proper channels.

Obviously we all support our local services but if you are not happy then you should raise a complaint - isn't that what continuous improvement is about?

No service is 100% brilliant all the time and saying that doesn't equate to wanting to have it shut down! Nothing is that black and white

[BRIE]

Absolutely correct FRAN well done for going back through the post to get the correct dates etc apart from May 15th 2008 was the first time I complained not the last. But I'm sure I put on a recent post that Ive complained before! it isn't a secret
First complaint I made was May 15th 2008 after my son who was 14 at the time was brought in by ambulance following an accident, I arrived at the hospital extremely worried etc after the dreaded phone call,( I was also 9 months pregnant at the time) to be told to wait in the waiting room until the doctor had seen my son, I was only allowed to see my son once the doctor had been & then had to go & find a nurse to ask them what the doctor had said! I think this was worthy of a complaint & I'm sure any mother in the same position would agree! when a child is scared & hurt all they want is their parent.
Second complaint was on the 16th March 2009 in response to someone Else's post complaining about Raigmore Children's hospital I agreed stating that when I had 2 of my children admitted one nurse kept shouting at my 8 yr old daughter who had just come round from being unconscious, my daughter had been seriously ill & i thought it unacceptable for a nurse to behave like this.
Yes on the 17th March 2009 again on the same thread I did praise the staff on the ward at Caithness General hospital they were absolutely fantastic from the nurses to the cleaners they bend over backwards to do everything they could for you, Fantastic people!
& just for the record I also complained about the maternity ward on the 18th March 2009 & the fact they were so short staffed.
I dont actually know what your post was getting at FRAN ? I havent tryed to hide anything & as you can see it obviously wasnt just a bad day the A&E were having as ive had a couple of bad experiences. I havent complained about Caithness General as a whole as there is no need to, the staff on the general ward are fantastic also out patients, x-ray & physio are fantastic! I am just pointing out factors of the hospital that could be improved, maybe it was just certain staff that were on shift on those particular days I went as there is one male nurse in A&E who is brilliant or maybe its just the system that is wrong.
So there it is I voiced my opinion on more than one occasion feel free to shoot me!!
STAVRO please also enlighten me as to the porkie pies ive been telling!

[Leanne]

I am just pointing out factors of the hospital that could be improved

If you contact PALS or write to the general manager about your complaints it will have more effect that whining on here. If you were that bother you would have done so. Or are you just a habitual whiner?

The staff in A&E are busy, they cannot be checking everyone in the waiting room is OK every 15 minutes or so. You still haven't answered the question - after sitting there for 3 hours and not seeing anyone other than the receptionist, did you press the urgent bell? Did you try and stop one of the medical staff? Or did you just sit there and fume?

A couple of days ago I myself was in A&E. I rang the bell to grab the attention of the receptionist and was really impressed that she sat down with me to fill in the registration form (really personal touch I feel - most hospitals you have a counter between you and your first point of contact). During my time there there was a gentleman stood at the window. The receptionist was at her computer and didn't see him. This gentleman was stood there huffing and puffing for a good 5 minutes yet he didn't press the bell or say "Excuse me" through the open window. I finally got annoyed with him and went up to the window and caught her attention myself. She apologised for not seeing him - why should she have to? She was doing her job and he hadn't even made himself know. I feel that people should take responsibility a bit for their own actions. You can hardly condemn someone for not doing something if you don't make them aware that there is a problem in the first place...

I'm not shooting you down, I'm just trying to make you aware that if you had rang the bell and said that you child was really traumatised them I'm sure they would have prioritised you. From your lack of response to the previous question (asked by someone else initially) I'm assuming (as this is all I can do without the answer to said question) that you didn't alert anyone. Without this alert as to how serious you felt the injury was, how were the medical staff to know?