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Emergency Department treatment

Posted By sagittawc66

"Emergency Department treatment"

About: Bunbury Hospital / Emergency Department

(as other),

I took my partner to a GP with chest pains. They ran an ECG, gave aspirin and a spray under the tongue at night. Completed a letter for us to take to emergency. They also arranged for their receptionist to fax the letter to ED which I saw them do.

We arrived at Bunbury Health Campus, ED department half an hour later. I went to reception and told them we had a letter from the doctor. I was told to wait for the triage nurse and dismissed away as, in my opinion, they weren't interested at all. We were seen by a triage nurse half an hour after our arrival. The triage nurse assessed my partner as triage 3.

They said they were busy and we should be seen in 30 minutes but that it was likely to be longer as they were very busy.  The triage nurse said that we shouldn’t leave. They said to tell reception if my partner feels worse. I went back to reception to give my details and I asked where do we sit? They said the blue chairs so that’s where we sat. We waited for an hour and fifteen minutes until and then my partner made the decision to leave. We left even though my partner was still having chest pains. In my opinion, nobody was interested in any of the patients there and there was a general apathy by all staff.

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Responses

Response from Suzanne Smith, Nurse Unit Manager, Medical Ward B, Bunbury Hospital 2 years ago
Suzanne Smith
Nurse Unit Manager, Medical Ward B,
Bunbury Hospital

Submitted on 27/08/2021 at 4:11 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 4:27 PM

Dear sagittawc66,

Thankyou for taking the time to share your experience following your visit to the Emergency Department at Bunbury Hospital.

Coming to the Emergency department in pain can be a frightening experience and I am very sorry that you left feeling dismissed and that it took an extended period for your partner to be assessed by a triage nurse. Patients are triaged in the Emergency Department using the Australasian Triage Scale (ATS). I can see that your partner was triaged an ATS 3. We aim to have ATS 3 patients seen by a Doctor within a 30-minute time frame. At times, delays to see a Doctor may occur, though patients should be kept informed and reassessed if this occurs.

If you feel comfortable I would sincerely appreciate the opportunity to discuss your partners care experience further so to look further into what occurred and prevent this happening to another patient. We are striving to provide excellent care to all patients and the care experience you describe is not the standard we set for ourselves. I am very sorry that you left feeling that no staff members were interested in your partner.

If your partner is still experiencing chest pain, I strongly encourage that they seek immediate medical attention. I would like to also reassure you that the Bunbury Emergency Department is here for you 24/7. If you do attend the hospital again and at any time you feel you are not being listened to or helped you can also call CARE CALL on 1800 744 059. Your call will be answered by a senior member of our staff. After listening to your concerns, the staff member will take what action is required to address your concerns; for example, they may contact the treating doctor or other members of the healthcare team to ensure you or the person you are concerned about is assessed and any necessary changes to the treatment plan are carried out. The person who receives your call will keep you updated as to what action has been taken.

My name is Suzanne Smith - Acting Nurse Unit Manager of the Emergency Department and I can be contacted on (08) 9722 1000 or alternatively if you prefer our Customer Liaison officer can be contacted on (08) 9722 1521.

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