"Lack of dignity and privacy"

I was sent to crosshouse Hospital via a referral for the combined assessment unit (CAU). Upon my arrival I noticed patients waiting in ambulances  and counted roughly 17 patients in the waiting area of all ages and abilities. I never expected that an ambulance wait is due to them parked at the hospital being used as beds. 

I waited five hours to be triaged. My triage wasn't by a medically trained nurse. Afterwards told to wait an hour for blood results. (This hour turned in 10 hours)

3 hours after this a nurse arrived to tell us that all the beds were gone. They had three beds, which had to be shared with A&E. They also had two patients still waiting a few hours on the ambulance and needed to release the ambulance. We knew we were stuck for the night In the waiting area. These seats are not designed to be sat in for 17 hours. We had to request some water be brought in.  When asked will my bloods be seen to by a doctor as I wanted to just leave, I was told that the doctor is seeing to sick patients. Making myself and 6 others feel as if we weren't sick. At this point I feel the manager on duty should've come to speak with us. It would've been the decent thing to do. I was 12 hours on a plastic chair at the point. If the Dr looked at our results then we could've made the decision to stay or go, but that decision couldn't be given.

Morning arrived and I was told nothing was available and I would be moved to the rapid assessment care RAC. I will say for all this time I did not see one cleaner. A person had been vomiting in this waiting area and it was not sanitised. I walked through the CAU to get to RAC. I haven't seen anything like it. People in trolleys leaning against the Dr stations and lined all along the walls in the corridors. I am certain I saw someone in a cupboard area. This was right next to staff lockers etc. I just hope nobody took a video of this because the media would love to see what staff have to do and what patients undergo in your care. In my experience, no dignity is shown at all in any aspect.

I came out of double doors and into a corridor of fresh faced people awaiting their morning appointments. The RAC staff gave me hope again. They used a person-centred approach. After 3 hours I had a treatment plan in place and was treated as a patient and a human. 

I look at people waiting on their appointment outside RAC waiting area not having a clue what lies behind the double doors marked staff only. I chose to make the decision to go home, I fear what was ahead of me if I decided to stay. It was a risk I could fortunately take, unlike the others who are stuck on a small trolley looking at people everywhere with no privacy.