Letters - September 21, 2017

I was so pleased to read about the new hospital services being introduced at Victoria Hospital.

Only last week due to illness I had to first use the Urgent Care Centre and a few days later the A&E department.

I knew I was likely to be admitted to a ward and had heard that it may involve a 12-hour wait. As I only had to wait 10 hours I felt fortunate.

However I can honestly say that 10 hours was the most fraught time waiting in the waiting room which ebbed and flowed from being calm to extremely noisy and almost violent! Not the sort of environment you want when you are really poorly. Even the Medical Assessment Unit wasn’t much better as I spent most of the night awake due to all the noise and also worry of when I would be seen by the medics, who apparently had a list of 40 patients to review that night and I knew I was the last to be admitted to the ward.

Staff in both departments were obviously working under a lot of pressure and I sincerely hope the new areas being introduced will make a difference for patients and staff alike, as nobody can keep working at the pace that they were that night.

On the plus side when I did reach Ward 2 following the assessment, the staff there could not have been more caring or compassionate, even though they appeared as busy as the Assessment Unit.

I really cannot thank all the staff enough for their swift action and help to make me feel ‘looked after’ and safe. Plus when I was discharged I used the newly introduced ‘Discharge Lounge’ where again I found the staff very caring and attentive making sure everyone there was comfortable as everyone waited for whatever transport was taking them home. An excellent service with trained staff on hand in case they were needed. Again huge thanks to the staff who were on duty there on Thursday September 14.

Karen Pennington

Blackpool

CHARITY

Why don’t they collect plastic bags?

Could one of the many charities who keep putting plastic bags for donations of clothing etc through my door explain why they do not collect them?

This week alone I have had three. I have got together items, put them in the bags and left them outside on the day and by the time stated.

Bag no 1 - out all day - no collection/

Bag no 2 - Ditto

Bag no 3 - Ditto

I eventually had to take the bag to a charity myself.

I did see one of the collection vehicles go past my house, but if I had left a tank outside at the speed he was going it’s doubtful he would have seen it.

As you will gather I shall not be leaving any items outside for collection in future and any bag left at my house will be left empty and deposited in the dustbin. At least they will be collected from there.

Mrs Pamela Evans

Bispham

EMERGENCY

Thank you to staff and paramedics

On Saturday, September 9 I went for my usual shop at Sainsbury’s in St Annes.

While in the shop I felt my legs become heavy and the next thing I knew I was being assessed by an ambulance crew. I had had a diabetic hypo.

First I would like to thank the Sainsbury’s staff for the care and speed they got an ambulance at about 10.30am.

Sainsbury’s should be proud to have such caring and supportive staff. Second I was extremely grateful for the professional care and concern given to me by the two male paramedics and one female paramedic who attended to me and after treatment delivered me safely home.

The ambulance service like all NHS staff deserve better treatment from our government given the extreme of incidents they attend on a daily basis.

Thanks for all the care and support given to me by Sainsbury’s staff and ambulance crew at such a traumatic time.

To say I am grateful is an understatement.

Ian Hargreaves

St Annes

LOVE

Online dating is 
not the answer

Re: internet dating, a friend of mine joined this scheme last year and got approaches from someone in Scotland and one from way down in the south of England.

How are you supposed to go on a date once a month? Years ago, without the aid of these modern inventions, we happily were able to meet someone, perhaps in a dance hall, a pub or at work. Perhaps also an old fashioned blind date, where friends introduced you – computer not yet invented!

Edna Levi

via email

THEATRE

Why don’t we get the top shows?

As a keen theatregoer, especially of musicals, I am well on record bemoaning the fact that top shows failed to be booked at one of Britain’s most beautiful theatres - the Opera House.

I follow The Stage magazine and am well informed of the top shows that are touring. So it is frustrating to find such spectaculars as Miss Saigon and Crazy for You, don’t appear to have been booked, yet a show full of has-been pop acts like Gerry & The Pacemakers and Brian Poole have been booked.

Twenty four dates have also just been announced for a national tour of another big musical, An Officer and a Gentleman, but the Opera House is not among them.

I am totally surprised the management of the theatre has failed to indicate why most of these top shows have not been booked and I invite them to indicate such to local theatregoers.

Neil Kendall

South Shore