The new ED is a larger, cleaner, more comfortable space and it has accessible power and USB points. However, what it does not have, like it did in the old department, is a privacy door. So when you speak to the triage nurse or the admin clerk, everyone in the waiting room can hear your personal details being checked and all the private information about your health concern. That was bad enough, but then imagine my surprise when the triage nurse asked me to drop my trousers in that public space!
Admittedly, there was no-one else in the waiting room at the time, but anyone could have walked in at any moment. When I complained, she took me to an examination room, but this had a big clear glass window in the top half of the door and I had to ask the nurse to draw the curtain. As a former police officer, I fully understand that the security staff need to be able to see (and maybe hear) if a patient is being threatening or abusive to protect the staff, but a patient's privacy should be healthcare 101.
Reception
Privacy
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