"appendix surgery & stay"

I was flown to Fiona Stanley from Esperance, via RFDS, recently. I was suffering from a burst appendix and was initially placed in the ED waiting room, then 2 other rooms.

I was a tad disconcerted that a room wasn't already available for me, given the severity of my issue.

I would like to give a special shout out to the young lady who was tending to me in one of the side rooms; she very kindly consoled me after I broke down, letting me stay in the room until I was moved elsewhere by one of the doctors, and I never saw her again.

Shout out also to the ED nurses, one in particular, who saw to it that the doctor allowed me to have a black tea & water, between 3-4pm.

Sometime after 4pm I was taken to the Short Stay Ward and much later informed that I would be having surgery later that evening.

Thanks to nurse, who looked after me prior to the surgery, and again from after 1am the following morning; I saw her again a couple of days later & got the impression she may have been in trouble for helping me break my fast post-op, and I hope this was not the case.

Thanks to nurse Kim(?), who helped me through my anxieties the night after surgery.

Thanks to everyone else who looked after me throughout the week, including on the Medi-Hotel later in the week.

All staff were very professional, friendly, happy, hard-working, and very much under the pump. I got to witness what I believe is the schism between them & those "upstairs".

I now know, and understand, what it's like behind the scenes in WA health care.