"trip to emergency with my child."

Recently I presented at Maroondah emergency room with my daughter who had been suffering fevers for about 5 days. I walked about to triage where I was sat down by the lovely ward clerk. We chatted. He obtained my info. He knew my GP clinic. I felt instantly reassured.

Then the CNS nurse came to the window. Her first words to myself as I stood at the window were.."Which one are you?" I thought, "Is she talking to me? If so, am I meant to know what she is talking about?" Then she said, "Are you the paed review?" My instant reaction and gut feeling was, regret. That minute I knew I should have bypassed my local hospital and gone straight to the Royal Children's Hospital. The CNS didn't give me any confidence that I was either in the right place or she knew what she was doing, all in 2 short sentences.

To cut a 2 hour story short we left as my daughter got a bit better. We had not seen the doctor. My daughter, with fevers cough and chest pain, which the nurse in Short Stay said is common with coughing patients, was feeling better after panadol. So home we went.

Two days later when my daughter was no better we decided to go back to hospital. We drove past both Eastern Health hospitals to the Royal Children's. Where the nurse greeted us with, "Hello my name is .....I am your nurse today. What can we do for you today?" I cannot fault the hospital. We waited all day. We did not mind. We were informed and comfortable. We knew we were in the right place. My daughter was examined and had a chest x-ray and has pneumonia. By coincidence we saw the same Dr we were meant to see at Maroondah on the Friday. She was fabulous. The Royal Children's were outstanding. I am glad we went there.

I am not convinced that I will stop at Maroondah A&E again. As far as I could see, the department was far from busy and nothing urgent seemed to be occurring. I was disappointed because I had taken my daughter there years previously and the doctors were amazing, however similar experience with the triage nurse. I was explaining my daughter's genetic disability and the triage nurse said, "I thought she looked a bit Downs". I was so upset. As the two conditions are very far removed and this one comment showed a lack of respect, manners and knowledge, as you either have an extra chromosome or not. However, I have excused that as the paediatrician was so good with my daughter. He sat with us for hours. So I am not sure how a hospital gains consumer confidence.