Dr Andrea Tocca

Written by a patient at Newcastle Crisis Assessment Team

Initially it was fairly difficult for me to open up as it my session was not 1 on 1 he was cheerful and friendly, and so was the observer(who shared my, somewhat, rare name! What are the chances?). I felt that he appeared to be dismissive at first but this was mostly down to my sensitivity in regards to his speech(I always feel that doctors are dismissive when it comes to me explaining problems, this is mostly paranoia, I think). It didn't take long to adjust to his personality and afterwards I feel that it was necessary to cut through what wasn't important, without this we would never have reached a resolution and I would have waffled on for hours recalling memories and stories that had little use or relevance to the session. As terrible as I am feeling he still joked and managed to provoke laughter in me - that was more helpful than I can explain and as the session went on I became able to look him in the eyes(normally a big thing for me!) for longer periods without freaking out. I would definitely recommend him, even for people who are overly sensitive such as myself. I was uncomfortable at first because I shelter myself in ambiguity and subtlety but his forward personality cut right through that with an active positivity(without appearing too callous), which is good as it is difficult [for me] to progress with passive doctors. He would give a small verbal push if I became mired in indecision or reluctance but would not force anything if I became too uncomfortable. He also led conversation and minimized periods of silence, which I do not find with other doctors and is so important because it is horrible to feel like you are left hanging after answering personal questions. He did not change his disposition regardless of what I admitted - this was very helpful as I felt i could tell the truth(often I am scared of disbelief or the reactions of doctors make me anxious, so I lie and make my issues out to be less intense than they really are, or skip over them altogether). I feel I was lucky to be referred and I am hopeful for my treatment.

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Written by a patient at Newcastle Crisis Assessment Team

Lovely guy who made me feel comfortable and listened to me.

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Written by a patient at Newcastle Crisis Assessment Team

I will keep this short as to say I second the many positive comments written about Dr Tocca on here. He made me feel respected, listened to, cared for and above all that there was hope. Thank you

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Written by a patient at Cherry Knowle Hospital

His passion, and knowledge I cannot fault, as he clearly wasn't to try and understand what I was thinking (not easy for anyone when faced with an autistic adult). I did feel at times that I needed to stop him talking so as I could continue to explain something (he will interrupt if he think's it's needed). Similarly I did have to repeat myself a few times as to why I was looking for Crisis Team help (off the back of a police visit). Being an Italian migrant, I take these few negatives as a cultural thing (something anyone would need to adapt), what I never doubted was his intellect, his passion for helping others, or his compassion. It's also through his work I was finally able to start getting the help I'd been pleading for months to get prior to what caused my most serious health issues since university. I don't wish to harsh, it may have been nicer as a 1 on 1 (it was 2 on 1 when I met him), but as he's not speaking to my employer, about what kicked everything off.. for now I can't really fault him when given free say to do. I'd also thank him for not taking anything I said as too disturbing, rather than the stressed out situation it was.

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Written by a patient at Cherry Knowle Hospital

I found I was not seen as much as I should have been, even when an appointment was made for a certain time on a certain day with my family who took time off work, the Dr came out 10 mins after my appointment time to advise that their was a mix up with the times and could not see us, for which I thought was very inconsiderate, and I was very distressed which required further medication. He said he would make another appointment through his secretary for which we never received, the next time I saw the Dr was at a discharge meeting with my family for which I was sent home and thought I would be happy just to go home as the Dr did not seem to care. If I require further help with my illness I would prefer to see another Dr. (the nursing staff are brilliant).

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