Croydon University Hospital A&E head 'shocked' at letter
KATHRYN Channing, head of service in Croydon University Hospital's A&E, said her staff were shocked after a letter went to chief executive John Goulston from A&E staff branding the department "probably one of the worst in the country".
Ms Channing said although it is true more space is needed in order to deal with patients, the claim the department lacked an addressograph was unfounded and that five more consultants will be employed along with a total of 17 more nurses.
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Kathryn Channing, head of A&E services, tracks patients on the department's system
She said: "It was shocking to us to see the letter from staff branding this one of the worst in the country. It was devastating. The staff here work very hard and we feel that the letter doesn't represent the majority of staff.
"And in terms of the staff survey, I have had both my children here and told my friend to have her baby here."
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The Croydon employee for eight years added: "We have trainees who ask us if they are going to get a job here and have people coming back, which wouldn't happen if this was a bad place."
Speaking of the new IT system, which is to go live in June to make tracking patients easier, she said: "I think it is going to make life a lot better."
3 Comments
by vmh1234
Friday, February 22 2013, 2:31PM
“Croydon University Hospital! Pah! Mayday, you mean, or as millions know it "May Die" - and it didn't get that nickname for nothing!”
by millie99999
Wednesday, February 13 2013, 3:00PM
“I too have had a very bad experience with your A&E. I started getting bad stomach pains when my daughter was born and it would get so severe that I would end up curled up on the floor for hours until the pain would eventually subside. I was taken to your A&E by the ambulance a few times during 2010. At both occasions I was discharged after 3-4 hours of waiting with a diagnosis of indigestion. Second time I asked for some painkillers and never got any. I was never offered a scan or a blood test. The reality was that I had more than 20 gallstones in my gallbladder but at both occasions they missed to diagnose it.”
by napopfro
Tuesday, February 12 2013, 12:45PM
“Well Kathryn Channing, I am glad you're proud of your department. I don't think I would say it was the worst in the country, I have been through there with children with broken bones and other ailments and generally the experience was positive. However, my late husband passed through your department many times in the last year of his life and what I remember about that is the doctor who sighed and said 'oh not him again, he's going to die anyway so what's the point' - charming. I also remember the nurse who when asked for some water by an elderly lady on a trolley said 'there's a tap over there'. One thing I learned from spending hours in your A&E dept. is all about the sex lives and holiday plans of your ever so busy doctors and nurses. I've been in worse places, but that's no excuse for some of the lazy uncaring staff you employ. We hear a lot about the abuse suffered by A&E staff and yes, that is completely unacceptable. It should also be unacceptable for them to dish it out too, after all we patients know only too well there's no point complaining because for people who work in a caring profession, you really just don't care.”