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Disappointed by the delays

Posted By hehandgh21

"Disappointed by the delays"

About: Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital (Wonford) / Accident and emergency Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital (Wonford) / Medical Imaging

(as the patient),

Visited A&E after injuring myself 4 days before. Was seen in triage and quickly saw a Dr and was sent for x-ray. Then saw a consultant who diagnosed me with a torn, maybe completely ruptured, hamstring.

I was told surgery was out of the question..no further follow up suggested and just discharged with advice to come back or see GP if no better. Was left on a trolley at its highest position with sides up, with no assistance to get down. Dr walked out of the room and shut the door.

Felt satisfied then…but then saw a private physio for some rehab to be told that I really should have had a scan to see the extent of the injury and he was unhappy that this had not been automatically done to prevent further injury. GP then was asked to refer urgently for a scan, which I finally had 6 weeks after referral. Then told 2-3 weeks for the report.

I feel very disappointed by the delays in all this. I accept this is not life threatening but it is limiting and risking further injury which at my age - I'm in my 60s - I can do without. I may not be sporty but I would like to remain as active as I can and work without fear of further injury.

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Responses

Response from Tamara Martin Garcia, Sister, Emergency Department (Eastern Services), Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust last month
We are preparing to make a change
Tamara Martin Garcia
Sister, Emergency Department (Eastern Services),
Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Sister Emergency Department

Submitted on 09/03/2025 at 03:42
Published on Care Opinion on 10/03/2025 at 06:51

picture of Tamara Martin Garcia

Dear hehandgh21,

Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We are genuinely sorry to hear about the difficulties you experienced during your visit and the delays in your care. It’s clear that the treatment you received did not meet the high standards we aim for, and we understand your frustration.

Your experience highlights some important areas where we can improve. We sincerely apologize for the discomfort and confusion caused, including the lack of assistance when you were left on the trolley and the lack of clarity around follow-up care. We also regret that you were not given the thorough investigation you expected for the extent of your injury.

We understand the impact of such an injury on your ability to stay active, and we recognize that being left alone for so long only adds to the frustration. We will use your feedback to help improve the way we manage follow-up care and ensure that further delays in diagnostic testing and treatment are minimized for all patients.

Thank you again for sharing your experience, and we sincerely hope that you can make a full recovery. If you have any further concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Tamara Martin Garcia

Emergency Department Sister

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful
Response from Michelle Ann Cruel, Clinical Nurse Manager - Emergency Department (Eastern Services), Emergency Department - RD&E (Eastern Services), Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust last month
Michelle Ann Cruel
Clinical Nurse Manager - Emergency Department (Eastern Services), Emergency Department - RD&E (Eastern Services),
Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Submitted on 10/03/2025 at 01:11
Published on Care Opinion at 01:11

picture of Michelle Ann Cruel

Hi hehandgh21.

Thank you for sharing your experience and feedback. Although your injury is not life threatening, it is life changing and I understand your frustration.

I will share this feedback to our ED lead consultant so we can look into this and identify our areas of improvement. It would be helpful to know the details of this incident to help us understand more what has happened.

Please accept our apology for the inconvenience caused. We are hoping for your good recovery.

Kind regards,

Mitch

Clinical Nurse Manager

Emergency Department

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Response from Elizabeth Chapman, Cluster Support Productivity Manager / Admin Services Manager (Eastern Services), Specialist Services - Medical Imaging / Radiology (Eastern Services), Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust last month
Elizabeth Chapman
Cluster Support Productivity Manager / Admin Services Manager (Eastern Services), Specialist Services - Medical Imaging / Radiology (Eastern Services),
Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Submitted on 12/03/2025 at 09:12
Published on Care Opinion at 09:12

Hello hehandgh21

My name is Liz Chapman and I am the operations manager in Medical Imaging.

Thank you for taking time to feedback on your recent experience in A&E and medical imaging.

I apologise that there were delays in booking the urgent scan from your GP and being told it would be 2-3 weeks for your report.

If you haven't received your report, please contact the Imaging department of PALS to provide your details for escalation of the report.

I appreciate you taking time to share your experience as it helps the service to make improvements for all patients.

Kind Regards

Liz Chapman

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Update posted by hehandgh21 (the patient)

I am increasingly frustrated. I eventually had an MRI scan and was told 2-3 weeks for the report, I have attempted to chase this but have been told that it would be another week and would have to be sent to the person who referred me-my GP - where I rang as requested.

Yet another 2 weeks have passed and still we have not had the report. For an ‘Urgent’ scan I really think this is unacceptable…I have had so many people saying that they understand how frustrating this is… but that is not an excuse, apologies do not make this ok. I feel fobbed off and ignored.

Response from Tamara Martin Garcia, Sister, Emergency Department (Eastern Services), Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust last week
We have made a change
Tamara Martin Garcia
Sister, Emergency Department (Eastern Services),
Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

Sister Emergency Department

Submitted on 08/04/2025 at 11:18
Published on Care Opinion at 13:43

picture of Tamara Martin Garcia

Dear hehandgh21,

Thank you once again for sharing your feedback with us. We are truly sorry for the difficulties you experienced during your visit and the delays in your care. We recognize that the treatment you received fell short of the standards we strive to provide, and we sincerely apologize for the frustration and discomfort this caused.

We want to assure you that we are taking immediate steps to improve our communication and the way we manage patient care, especially in relation to follow-up appointments and diagnostic testing.

We fully understand the impact that such an injury can have on your ability to remain active, and we are committed to ensuring that this type of situation does not happen again. Your feedback is vital in helping us identify areas of improvement, and we are actively working on addressing these concerns.

Once again, we apologize for the experience you had, and we truly hope for your swift and complete recovery. If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out at any time.

Best regards,
Tamara Martin Garcia
Emergency Department Sister

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