"My stay at Sydney Eye Hospital"

I developed a case of conjunctivitis in my eye. This was a very stressful time for me. I was sent from my optometrist in a regional centre to the Sydney Eye Hospital. I presented at the emergency department with my referral letter, but was told I would have to go through triage like everyone else. My referral letter didn't help. There was a lot of waiting and plenty of patients, not just with eye problems. The doctor I saw in ED was very professional and very kind, but they seemed to be very busy and understaffed. It was just after midnight before I was in the ward, after going to hospital at around 6 pm. The staff on the ward, were very good. One nurse in particular was fantastic and administering my eye drops was no bother to her. The doctor came around every morning at 9 am and it is good to know how you are progressing.

After a couple of days I developed chest pains and shortness of breath. Within seconds I was having an ECG and scans and being seen by doctors and nurses. It turned out to be an allergic reaction to my eye drops that had been changed that day. The social worker pleaded with me to stay a couple of extra days as I had no one at home to care for my eyes. She was really lovely.

When I was discharged, I was told that patients are discharged at 9 am, but that is generally before the doctors come round to see you. I rang my partner to see if they could pick me up, but couldn't get there until midday. One nurse came and said I had to leave, so I had to wait in the waiting room until my partner turned up. The nurse in charge saw me and said I didn't have to leave and I could go back to the ward as they were not short on beds.

I have now improved but I am still having weekly checkups but these are problematic and something needs to be done. I had a specific appointment but when I turned up there are lots of patients who have the same time as me and we are assigned a number when we turn up and are seen by that number. Sometimes I am not seen until a few hours later and then only by a nurse. I have had to wait many hours to see the doctor. This is not good enough.