NHS DVD & FUK

VIVA NHS

Recently there have been so many articles written about the NHS and about the lack of care provided by the nurses that I was dreading going in for an operation but I am happy to report that there are actually centres of excellence that are actually, well, excellent. So a big thumbs up to the Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead. This is a very small, almost cottage like hospital, that does great work in its specialist fields. I was given 4 hospitals to choose from and after research opted to have the operation at the QVH because of its high feedback ratings and positive comments about the care provided by the staff. Everyone concerned in my care was professional, caring and did their best to make me feel confident and at ease. I'm thrilled with the results of the surgery and can't think why I put if off for so long. We are so lucky to have a highly skilled NHS and it has saved my life on two previous occasions, once when in my first pregnancy I had placenta previa, a condition that can be dangerous for both mother and baby and the second time when I had breast cancer. It would be fair to say that my recent operation was mainly cosmetic yet the care I received was as good as it was when my conditions were life threatening. If you Google articles related to NHS you will find awful stories about old people left to starve or left to lay in soiled beds, stories about long waiting lists or treatment being denied to those in need. There will be stories about nurses ignoring patients while they gossip in their nurses stations, stories of MRSA infections and dirty wards. Maybe patients with experiences like mine aren't newsworthy. I had my non urgent operation 18 weeks after seeing a consultant. I had a choice of hospitals. They insisted on my attendance at a pre operation seminar and talked through all the options with me. On the day I was greeted by a friendly face and introduced to the team that were taking care of me. I was given my own room (tip...in pre-assessment say you snore - they will do their best to give you a private room, at least I think this is why I was given this luxury - or maybe it was something on a swab!). Also in addition to the usual blood tests etc I was given a ECG and swaps were taken from every orifice (to protect from things like MRSA). They also had a photographic studio and took several pictures which they may use in a before and after presentation, with my permission of course. 

This morning, less than 24 hours after my operation I was up and about and pain free, Totally pain free. Without  any medication. How is this possible? I think meditation has helped along with my breathing exercises. Anaesthetic makes your breathing shallow and this means that in recovery you are given oxygen. I found that my breathing exercises increased my oxygen levels and this meant I was on the road to a quick recovery. It also helped with staying calm during the more unpleasant aspects of surgery such as having tubes and needles inserted and removed.

SIGHT AND SOUND
In fact this was my first experience of a non teaching hospital. It was much more intimate than I am used to, more charming. There wasn't a television on the ward or in my room but a radio that picked up the BBC radio channels, local radio and BBC1, Channel 4 and ITV. I was able to listen to Coronation Street and when I actually watched the episode later at home I was surprised to find it did not differ to the image I'd had while listening. Every scene looked as it had in my imagination. When I was younger I used to think I'd rather be blind than deaf. The thought of living without music terrified me so much. This changed when I had children. Seeing their faces became the most important thing. Now I'm not so sure. I know every inch of their faces, every look they have, every nuance. But I'd hate not to hear their chatter and their laughter.

Imagination is a wonderful thing. My daughter tells me she was playing football with her son, just the two of them, and she scored a goal. He interrupted her goal celebration to tell her the goal was disallowed as the flag was up. 'What flag?' she asked quite reasonably seeing as they were the only two there. 'The flag in my imagination' he said. Needless to say he eventually won the game.

WHY WRITE?
My grandson is almost 6 and his reading and writing is coming on in leaps and bounds. He was discovered sending his dad a text this week. His mum and dad are 'on a break' and he had asked his mum for a new toy to be told 'no, I can't afford it this week. Maybe when I get paid'. A little later he entered her password on the phone (she uses the same password for everything and he remembered it) scrolled down to to find his dads name and sent him this text 'dad can you lend me sum £monee pleess'. On his birthday wish list he has written 'dee vee dee' as they have been working on the 'ee' and 'oo' words at school this week. Then I found some envelopes that he had written on in the back of his mums car. 'j is a nic person becos he let me play on his putor' and on the other side he had written 'fuk'. When I challenged him about this he was very affronted and told me 'that is my diary and you are not meant to read my diary.' Notwithstanding the attempts to write swear words I was pleased he felt the need to write down his thoughts. The fact that he isn't only writing at school but for his own needs and entertainment at home gives me a warm glow. Think I'll start him Blogging.