"Emergency care"

This is actually happening as I type. My relative presented at Fairfield Emergency as directed by their GP. This was 5 days ago. They needed IV antibiotics and surgery for a severe infection that could become life threatening very quickly.

As Fairfield is under the SW area health umbrella along with Liverpool hospital, they are theoretically supposed to have a more streamlined patient process. Definitely not so in this case! My relative was left in short stay ward at Fairfield emergency awaiting transport to Liverpool where the surgery is to take place. Short stay ie 12 to 24 hrs. 3 days later a Dr was trying to get my relative to discharge and take them to Liverpool as Fairfield couldn't get my relative a bed at Liverpool.

Nurses at Fairfield Emergency were very kind, even fighting with kitchen staff to get my relative a bottle of water which was not allowed to be given as they were not in a normal ward. This we were told was based on cost cuts. My relative had to keep remaining nil by mouth until late at night when transport option would not be appearing so they were then allowed to drink. My relative couldn't eat as their mouth couldn't open.

Fairfield kept up my relative’s saline & IV antibiotics, managed their pain, kept an eye on their extremely high blood pressure etc. Fairfield did all the scans and bloods, put them in the system so Liverpool docs & surgeon could manage from their end.

I believe the only way my relative got transferred to Liverpool 3 days later was because they stood their ground and didn't discharge. Nurses were telling my relative to stand their ground as they would have to start all again in the system.

The CT machine at Fairfield broke on the 3rd day. Liverpool wanted my relative to have another CT scan to see if they still had to have them. An ambo had just dropped off a patient and was returning to Liverpool, so the medical stuff hustled to get my relative in it to go to Liverpool for their CT scanner. Also as a way to get my relative into Liverpool Hospital while they were still in the system so they could get their continuing care eg IVs to keep Sepsis from occurring as Fairfield had been doing.

At Liverpool the lovely ambos apologized as my relative had to be left sitting in the Emergency waiting room....and there they sat overnight for 20hrs and counting! My relative is now worse than when they got there. It seems mental health patients are given beds that they come and go from to have smokes, I believe a patient felt unwell so they were given a bed by triage, my relative and 2 seizure patients shared chairs all night.

The head nurse came and saw my relative still sitting there and asked if they had gone home. My relative replied they hadn't but was left there all night and is now worse than when they got there from Fairfield.

So finally atm my relative is being prepped for surgery. I feel it's a broken system with breakdown in communications, poor judgments, unsafe patient care, I believe some nurses can't speak or understand English very well, not reading patient notes carefully- as in about to over medicate my relative at one point until they advocated on their own behalf and they checked my relative’s notes and agreed it would have been dangerous if they had proceeded. I feel the standards are so low compared to years gone by. I grew up in the area so I've seen the drop first hand.