So that's what a hospital's like
Aug. 7th, 2006 08:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
king_pellinorI've just made my first vist to a hospital in perhaps 12 years - the first time I've needed medical help in rather longer than that. I feel rather a cheat. I wandered in, all hale and hearty, and said "I've got a cut about an inch long, can you have a look at it?" I mean, here we are with a multi-million pound hospital and a staff of hundreds, and I want them to do jump to it and deal with something so trivial :-)
Anyway, they were all terribly efficient. I was met by one nurse and shown to reception, where I had my details taken by the bloke there (who seemed to want me to keep confirming my DoB - I did ask if I'd been getting it wrong all these years). A second nurse sat me down in an examining room and took some more details, and got rather confused. She didn't seem to mind that a friend had hit me with his head, but did get very suspicious when I said what the first-aiders had done - "Why were there first aiders there?". Anyway, she took off the dressing then went to get something, at which point the wound brast asunder and started dripping. It may have been something to do with my trying to get to the mirror so I could see the damage, but probably not :-)
So I manfully staunched it with a hanky, this examining room seeming not even to have a box of tissues, and she came back an put another dressing on - back to square one :-)
Then off to a doctor, with only half a page of the book I'd brought to pass the alleged four-hour wait gone. He was very nice, but a bit unsure of himself - he kept nipping off to get people to have a look and confirm that his decision that glue was all that was needed was OK (he had also warned me that he'd give me an anaesthetic if I needed stitches). So that was two more nurses and a lady with an alligator purse. She put a bit of a downer on the hitherto very upbeat business by saying she was terrified of getting glue in my eye - I'd only been mildly worried about the idea until then :-0
Then that was it. Two leaflets about caring for people with head wounds and how to care for the dressing, and I was out on my ear.
Very quick, very kind, all in all rather a pleasant experience. Even if it did take 7 people - that's about 3mm of cut each :-D
Oh, except that they said I cannot get the dressing wet under any circumstances for 5 days. So I'm fine unless I want a shower (explicitly banned!), or it starts raining, or I get a bit hot and sweaty running for the ferry, or generally do anything other than stay in my cottonwool-lined box. Not exactly an ergonomic dressing design. Ho hum.
Anyway, they were all terribly efficient. I was met by one nurse and shown to reception, where I had my details taken by the bloke there (who seemed to want me to keep confirming my DoB - I did ask if I'd been getting it wrong all these years). A second nurse sat me down in an examining room and took some more details, and got rather confused. She didn't seem to mind that a friend had hit me with his head, but did get very suspicious when I said what the first-aiders had done - "Why were there first aiders there?". Anyway, she took off the dressing then went to get something, at which point the wound brast asunder and started dripping. It may have been something to do with my trying to get to the mirror so I could see the damage, but probably not :-)
So I manfully staunched it with a hanky, this examining room seeming not even to have a box of tissues, and she came back an put another dressing on - back to square one :-)
Then off to a doctor, with only half a page of the book I'd brought to pass the alleged four-hour wait gone. He was very nice, but a bit unsure of himself - he kept nipping off to get people to have a look and confirm that his decision that glue was all that was needed was OK (he had also warned me that he'd give me an anaesthetic if I needed stitches). So that was two more nurses and a lady with an alligator purse. She put a bit of a downer on the hitherto very upbeat business by saying she was terrified of getting glue in my eye - I'd only been mildly worried about the idea until then :-0
Then that was it. Two leaflets about caring for people with head wounds and how to care for the dressing, and I was out on my ear.
Very quick, very kind, all in all rather a pleasant experience. Even if it did take 7 people - that's about 3mm of cut each :-D
Oh, except that they said I cannot get the dressing wet under any circumstances for 5 days. So I'm fine unless I want a shower (explicitly banned!), or it starts raining, or I get a bit hot and sweaty running for the ferry, or generally do anything other than stay in my cottonwool-lined box. Not exactly an ergonomic dressing design. Ho hum.
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no subject
Date: 2006-08-07 08:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-07 09:06 pm (UTC)I have designed an elaborate system which lowers the shower head to shoulder level, thus allowing the upper part of my own head to consistently protrude above the water level.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-08 12:13 am (UTC)Hmm...that sounds rather interesting, actually. I think you should try it, just to see what happens.
;-)
no subject
Date: 2006-08-08 11:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-08 05:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-08 06:07 pm (UTC)Good - I'm pleased to hear it.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-08 08:23 pm (UTC)