Everyone should get to know the NHS

Bright lights and small clinical looking spaces are over filled with people who stumble around still drunk with bleeding heads, others with one leg raised on fold up chairs, some coughing and spluttering centimetres away from one an other. The smell of vomit and urine filling the air and the noise of crying babies echoing through corridors. In the centre of this a water fountain operated by one single button cross contaminated [touched] by blood stained and sputum covered fingers with a pile of used or ‘maybe not’ used cups to one side.

Time zones are different in hospitals and for those waiting in A & E time goes slow. Very, very slow.  Recently I found myself accompanying a family friend who took a turn for the worst in rural England. After an outstanding response by the paramedics we found ourselves at A & E very quickly.

Thankfully our friend was given the all OK pretty quickly while we only had to wait for results and the consultant to sign off. So ,I had 5 hours to kill (excuse the expression) and no phone battery, and no 24 hour cafe in sight.

After ‘diagnosing’ the whole waiting room, there were 3 main themes emerging:

1) Drunks

2) People getting high

C) Too many people not looking very sick! Eep I know that sounds harsh as not every illness is physical or visable. BUT,   if you’re taking a selfie in A & E are you really that poorly?! 

With one toilet to share and a long wait we all got to know each other very quickly.

One very patient mother was trying to bribe her 3 year old to do a ‘wee wee’ for a sample. This seemed like an impossible feat and after 4 hours, the Grandparents arrived to assist with the help of her princess potty.  After 4 hours and a very tired toddler we had ‘wee wee’ lift off.  In true British style we all commended the little girl with a polite clap and cheer, I now wonder if she expects this level of applaud after every visit to the loo.

A herd of youths taking up 4 chairs supporting their mate who had a bleeding head sat in front of me. They managed to get blood everywhere (water fountain and all) with a feeble attempt to clean the wound. The injured and his friends were frequently going outside for a smoke and even missed the doctor calling him in to be treated.

Another 2 older teenagers were accompanied by their parents and were not physically injured in anyway.  In fact they arrived separately and then realised they knew each other and it became a social event. In between laughing and reminiscing they went outside to get stoned. While the smell was more pleasant than the hospital aroma. I could not fathom why on earth they were spending their valued Saturday night at A & E.

Amongst some questionably ill people, were some genuinely very sick people and very upset family members. Who seemed to get lost in the sea of selfies and stoners.  At times there were no chairs and I imagine no hospital beds. There was one very busy and very competent receptionist who managed to deal with drunks and desperately despairing parents and spouses in a manner that needed some kind of Nobel prize. She also doubled up as A & E waiting room cleaner and concierge. I wanted to make her a cup of tea and give her a super women cape all at the same time.

So you see, everyone should get to know they NHS from a very young age to endorse it’s true value. In order to really recognise the amazing NHS service you may receive one day and to acknowledge the importance of investing in self care to promote and maintain wellness. I myself have worked in the NHS as an Occupational Therapist and I truly believe more needs to be done to promote proactive health care with individuals taking responsibility for themselves, rather than the reactive system we have turned into.

 

Spread some self care, then maybe in the future with emptier beds and waiting rooms in the NHS a more holistic supportive service could be offered. Play therapists for poorly children, a tranquil spiritual room for those in distress, different holistic therapies to support physical and mental health, fresh clean water and nutritional foods on offer and drugs rehabilitation programmes. Calming aromatherapies filling hospital waiting rooms, sensory rooms, clinical and non clinical staff with decent pay packets and supportive systems for their resilience and care. Now that’s an NHS I would like to get to know more of.

Happy self caring guys x