Calming fish in the Medical Physics department
I didn’t think I was going to post again until the New Year but, having had a visit to hospital yesterday (no, not a new problem) I just have to say something, and pose a question.
First, the staff – from receptionist to radiographer, they are truly delightful. I have said that in the past about the staff at Airedale hospital, where I’ve been an inpatient more than once and outpatient more times than I can remember over the past three years, but the same is true at Bradford Royal Infirmary where I was today. Not an inpatient, just there for a bone scan, the fourth one I’ve had.
Jolly Scottish radiographer and Jamaican goat curry
Previous to that experiences, not on my own behalf but as a visitor, they were not happy ones. My elderly mother was the patient and visiting her was a depressing experience. When I had to to be taken to A&E (Accident & Emergency) three years ago I was, frankly, rather frightened from my previous experiences visiting my mother. However, because of where we live I did not and generally do not go to Bradford, only for the type of scan yesterday. I had the same jolly Scottish radiographer as previously and because for some reason this time he mentioned goat curry made by his Jamaican mother-in-law, he had me reminiscing about my visit to Jamaica years ago.
All this was before the scan, for which you must lay perfectly still for an hour or so while ‘Hawkeye‘ (that’s the name of the scanner, which made me laugh) looks for gamma rays from your bones, blood system having been injected with a radioactive potion a couple of hours before. Something new was after the hour I was stretched out on the ‘table’ he asked me to “sit on the camera” – to get a different view of my pelvis.
I couldn’t get WiFi working in the Medical Physics department where the scan was done so spent much of the waiting time in the magnificent new ‘reception’ area – bright, cheerful and more like a shopping centre (mall) – Marks & Spencer Simply Food, Costa coffee shop, newsagents and hospital restaurant – than a hospital. I managed to get WiFi there, partly in the restaurant eating an excellent leek and potato soup, so spent much of the time ‘chatting’ to a dear blogger friend far away.
My question
Which brings me to my question. When our National Health Service is so strapped for cash as repeatedly reported now, nurses underpaid and both patients and visitors ‘ripped off’ with crippling parking charges (luckily I can park some distance away and walk to the hospital) – should what clearly had been a very substantial sum of money be spent on the reception area? Maybe the respective NHS Trust had been as wily as the authorities in the Romanian city of Iasi, where commercial interests were allowed to develop a modern shopping ‘mall’ if they paid for restoration of the nearby magnificent ‘Palace of Culture’ museum. I don’t know.
I cannot decide on my own answer to my question. I understand the reasons for making such reception/waiting areas more bright and cheerful, and it certainly made the experience of visiting hospital better, but would the cash be better spent on medical facilities or staff? What do you think?
Grumpytyke 
March 1, 2018 at 5:49 pm
The reception area – I’m inclined to agree with you, but can’t be sure without knowing all the facts including the sums involved. There may be positive side-effects like helping to calm otherwise aggressive patients, who can cause a lot of trouble for everyone else. But it does suggest twisted priorities.
My own experience last year with my 91-2 year old mother was similar to yours, though with no one incident that bad. People followed rules and were convinced they’d done a good job if they’d done everything by the rule-book. Often they did not ask themselves if what they’d done had been good for the patient and if I queried this, I would simply get a puzzled look and a reiteration of the rules.
This “Jolly Scottish Radiographer and Jamaican Goat Curry” sounds tasty, if possibly illegal.
January 2, 2018 at 8:06 pm
I would guess this part of the hospital would be privately developed not using nhs funds. Hopefully they would be paying enough in shop rentals
December 31, 2017 at 10:46 am
Oh, and Happy New Year to the pair of you 🙂
December 31, 2017 at 10:46 am
Sadly my mum died in Airedale, but it was a long time ago and much has changed since then, so I wont comment on the system back in the 80’s.
I would hope that any fancy new reception area would be paid for and developed for the concession holders of the shops and restaurant that you mention, otherwise you would have to question the funding for it. Unless of course the extra money they can charge for the concessions covers the cost of development?
Gosia was lucky enough give birth to our latest edition (Zosia) in a private hospital which has the contract to supply services for the national health service, which seems to be the trend here in Poland as older communist era buildings redeveloped. I fear the trend for the health service in the UK to contract out to the private sector is the wrong way round.
December 30, 2017 at 10:03 am
Hello, I think the benefit of the patients is of utmost importance and money should be spent accordingly. Nevertheless, as we “live” by the representation of things, and not the things in themselves, pleasurable experiences are appreciated. Also I have told you that lately I have visited a hospital on behalf of someone else. As a visitor, my experience was pleasurable, but from the other point of view, not so pleasurable.
December 30, 2017 at 9:19 am
it’s a hard question you are asking!!! Here in Latvia also nurses are underpaid etc. but believe me when I had to wait for 6 hours in cold “corridor” on the Soviet Time chair with 39C… I wished for such a beautiful waiting area!!!!
December 30, 2017 at 9:53 am
Yes; the worst experience with my mother, at the time approaching 90 years old, was when she was taken into A&E then spent 11 hours on a trolley in a corridor because “we can’t put her in a bed until the doctor has seen her”! You can imagine my reaction to that. As I said, I don’t know what I think about my own question.