My Mum had a fall this morning and fractured her wrist.

She’s almost 90 and lives in shared accommodation with a bunch of other elderly folk.

Unfortunately she was outside when she fell and lay in the rain in pain, getting wetter and colder for approximately half an hour before she was able to summon help.

An ambulance was called and she was taken to the local hospital; Mum was ‘admitted’ to A&E at 10:35.

I was contacted just after midday and of course dropped everything and headed into the city. The hospital car parks were all full. The unmarked roads around the hospital were all full of parked cars. The nearest public car park with spaces was almost a mile away. What did I do? Well I parked in the public car park and walked back to the hospital.

Arriving at A&E I gave my name and my mother’s name to the receptionist. She told me my mother wasn’t on the system. I explained that the hospital had ‘phoned me and somehow Mum suddenly appeared on the system: how can this be?

Having located my mother, I waited while the medical staff did those things they still needed to do. At about 2:30 they said she could go and would I please take her home. I explained my car was parked some distance away and that I’d need to go and collect it. Oh yes, that’ll be fine as long as someone stays with your mother. I explained it wasn’t possible for me to be in two places at once and was told to speak to the lady at the desk.

I went through my story with the lady at the desk, who shook her head and said she didn’t see what it had to do with her. Well because I can’t be in two places at once that someone who is going to sit with my mother has to be one of your staff. Oh no, we don’t have enough staff to just have them wait around with patients, you’ll have to wait with her. Um, no that won’t work; I need to go and get my car. I can’t go and get my car if I’m waiting with my mother. Well can’t someone else wait with her? No, I’m here by myself. We’ll have to put her in a cubicle by herself...

I went to collect my car as quickly as my little legs would take me. Returning to the hospital I drove in through the main entrance and told the security operative that I needed to collect a 90 year old, physically unstable lady from A&E. He was very helpful and suggested I squeeze my car as near to the ambulances only bay as possible. I did exactly that.

Back inside the hospital I eventually found Mum sat in a wheelchair all alone in a cubicle. I looked for someone to tell them I was about to take her away; things were obviously busy and I’m not sure the nurse I spoke to had any clue who my mother was. I looked at the woman on the desk, thought better of it and pushed Mum outside and installed her in my car.

While I’d been with Mum at the hospital earlier, we had been given a piece of paper with details instructing her to make a follow-up appointment. We had been expressly told to ring as soon as could and to make sure the appointment was within seven days.

Having got Mum home and settled, I rang the number on the paper to arrange the follow-up appointment. They asked my mother’s name and the reference number, which I gave and guess what? My mother was not on the system and a follow-up appointment could not be arranged!

The medical staff had done their job, despite being extremely busy.

The security staff under duress because of the number of people trying to park cars inside the hospital grounds had done their job and helped me collect Mum.

So how come the member of administrative staff who’d had Mum’s details since she arrived at the hospital some five hours previously hadn’t managed to get her “on the system”?

Am I a tad pissed off? You bet I am!

Apologies to any hospital administrators reading this, I’m not tarring you all with the same brush, honestly. I am just frustrated by today’s events and suspect you would be too had this happened to you.