Dr Christine Burness 2014-04-28 Person 4 5 0

Thank goodness! At long last, 'times they are a-changing' when it comes to the attitudes of hospital Consultants. Or at least female hospital Consultants. For reasons I won't go into here I've had to see a number of medical Consultants over recent years. Most of whom seem to be legends in their own lunchtime! Not Dr Burness thankfully. For once here's a Consultant who talks to patients on a genuinely friendly/caring basis, but at the same time keeping it 100% professional. A Consultant who actually sits and listens to what you're saying, instead of rustling through a (seeming) quagmire of paperwork while you're talking, or frantically scribbling notes here there and everywhere while you're explaining YOUR problem. Typically male NHS Consultants make you feel like you're an inconvenience to their working day. That they could be doing something so much more worthwhile instead of having to see you. All male Consultants I've seen have had a nurse on hand, and that's almost always for the Consultant's benefit, not the patient's. The nurse is usually there to ensure the 'Big Chief' doesn't have to sully his hands by actually touching the patient (God forbid!) Not so Dr Burness. During my consultation I was asked if I could take my shoes and socks off so she could examine my legs and feet. I explained that I might have difficulty getting them back on again due to my physical limitations. That's where the senior (£35k+ pa) Consultant's hand maiden... er sorry nurse, usually steps forward. When I mentioned my problem to Dr Burness however, her response was a real shock... "No problem, I'll help you put your shoes and socks back on." In itself that might not sound like a big thing, but believe me, it's (disappointingly) unheard of for male Consultants to offer to assist a patient in such a helpful and direct manner. Always has been. With all the talk these days about the NHS having so many financial constraints, which I know it does have incidentally, why is it still employing highly qualified senior nursing staff in the posts of 'Consultant's Gofers'. If they're not having to help put a patients socks back on, they're retrieving paperwork from Medical Records, or making sure the Consultant is kept topped up with tea and biccies between seeing patients. It really is pathetic when we all know that such tasks could very easily be attended to by Care Assistants with no medical/nurse training whatsoever. Better still... let the Consultant make his own cup of tea... and in his own time like any other mere mortal at the workplace! But anyway, Dr Burness... Fantastic! Caring, understanding, respectful, professional, aware of how patients might be feeling. Not a case of being in touch with her feminine side. But unlike many Consultants, just a case of being in touch with her human side! Incidentally the only reason I excluded one small star from the trust issue is because she is a Consultant. And unfortunately, thanks to so many other Consultant experiences, I've developed an unhealthy mistrust in the medical profession as a whole. In the same way I would give no stars at all regarding trust of a Banker, Estate Agent or Solicitor, no matter how good they appear to be at their job!