Borders General Hospital

Borders General Hospital 2023-06-30 Person 3 5 0

I had to attend A & E as I had hurt my abdomen and I'd been in agony after exercising. The nurse at the A & E obviously didn't believe me, he examined me then went to another room and heard him say to a colleague that he had better things to do. To cut a long story short I had a scan and they said I needed surgery and I was back two weeks later for an operation I can't fault them for getting me in so quickly and the consultant was excellent. It was more the nursing staffs attitudes. My nurse on day one was very caring she really looked after me. The second and third day she wasn't there unfortunately. I was taken off the drip and on the afternoon a nurse came to see me and was surprised and not happy that I'd been taken off the drip, she said I could have pain relief whenever I needed it. I asked for a painkiller later that afternoon and was told curtly "they are in a meeting!" and "been looking in our file have we?" the previous nurse had left it open on the bed. I asked another nurse for a painkiller and I was given something that completely knocked me for six. My family came to see me but I could hardly speak and wasn't able to tell them I had been given something. They left thinking I was just tired. The next day I was told I was going home I asked the nurse on duty if she would ring my family and she refused. I had to painfully shuffle myself over to the desk in the waiting room to use the phone. I hope I do not have to stay there ever again. This is just my experience others may have a better one I just felt I needed to get this off my chest.

Borders General Hospital 2023-04-06 Person 4 5 0

This is not about those truly amazing nurses doctors cleaning staff all Angel's. This is about a female cardiologist I saw in a follow up appointment since I had my heart attack. Was going through a really bad time since my husband died. I was trying to make sure my children were ok along with working 4 jobs to try and keep my home eventually I lost interest in everything however I was told to slow down ..I couldnt. I ended up taking a heart attack. All staff were great. My problem was with a female cardiologist follow up appointment at the BGH on meeting for the first time I hadn't even sat down when she said in listen to me tone of her voice.."there will be no surgery" I didnt expect any I found her manner unacceptable for anyone recovering from heart problems and I have never encountered ever anyone speak to me like that especially not nurses doctors or other consultants diesnt she know or care we are already at our lowest ebb

Borders General Hospital 2021-11-15 Person 5 5 0

Ward 9 at BGH was fantastic. There are some lovely caring staff working there, under very difficult and stressful conditions. They all displayed patience and kindness - without exception. The ward was well run and communication between staff and within the MDTs (often the downfall in health care settings such as this) was fantastic.

Borders General Hospital 2019-10-12 Person 2 5 0

in the first ward I was in nurses and all staff were excellent. But things changed dramatically when I was moved to another ward only in for 2days but I was verbeliy abused by the sister in the ward it was so bad I will never consent to treatment in that ward again I have since heard of various events concerning the said nurse so I feel there is no point in complaining about her as she did say to me when I asked for a complaints from quote "we don't have any will give you a phone number but they won't believe you. I Feel putting this down has at least. Have me some relief

Borders General Hospital 2016-04-23 Person 3 5 0

It is a big busy hospital that has out grown its self - Parking is shocking - if you build a hospital in the middle of the country you need to get there some how, and now that the council are removing more buses car are more needed than ever before!

Borders General Hospital 2015-05-27 Person 2 5 0

I have given the ratings for this but truthfully cannot be sure that things were as I state because this was something that happened to my mother in law who normally resides in an excellent nursing home and this was something that happened to her and we were not present. My mother in Law has vascular dementia, is almost totally deaf and blind and completely incapable of making any decisions for herself and is most certainly incapable of deciding what is good or bad about her care and so the matron at her home, and her family, have to make these decisions for her. On may 21 2015 she fell from her chair at the home and appeared to have suffered a dislocated shoulder. Matron, to save time, sent her to the A&E with a trusted carer. This was early in the morning. By lunchtime matron had made several fruitless calls to try and find out what was happening. She even sent her handy man to the hospital to try and find out what was happening, to be told 'she's got a fracture'. When she was returned, with the carer, it transpired that there was NO written correspondence and the carer, who has no medical training at all, was unable to remember exactly what she was told and so Matron had to GUESS that it was probably a fracture of the humerus. This is unprofessional, uncaring and indicative of an NHS that is gradually falling apart and also it is indicative of a hospital that doesn't follow sensible rules. There are 3 reviews on this site for this hospital and all 3 were written by me, just 1 person.

Borders General Hospital 2015-05-20 Person 2 5 0

I had a problem with my right foot, born with equinivarus talipes (severe club foot). I began to have serious problems with it in Oct 2012. My GP referred me and by Jan 2013 I had heard nothing. The GP wrote again but meantime the problem had got so bad I couldn't wait any longer and used my private insurance (limited cover but enough to get the ball rolling). The specialist stated I needed a triple arthrodesis(fusion of 3 bones) and achilles tendon extension. He couldn't do the op himself because it was hugely expensive and my cover wasn't enough. He did ALL the x-rays, cat scans and MRI's needed, so that saved the NHS a great deal of money. Then I finally got my appointment at BGH. On arrival, I reaslised I was to see a traineee registrar. I knew at that moment that no decision would be taken that day because I needed to see the head honcho, problem was beyond a trainee. When I finally got into her office, it transpired I had been allocated to a clinic that deals with HANDS!!!! Another 4 months went by waiting for another appt. That appt saw me again with a registrar without the necessary skills to deal with my complex surgery. I had to have another appt. He arranged one for a month later. That arrived, I walked into the clinic to find I had been allocated to the same registrar, because the specialist was on holiday! The registrar went off to see Mr Gilmore, head of the ortho team and he immediately put me on to the waiting list, regardless of any trip to see my surgeon. I finally met my surgeon 6 weeks later. My surgery was scheduled for 21st Sept 2013. At my pre op assessment it was determined that my BP meds were leaching potassium from my blood and it was too low for surgery. I had to come off my BP meds and further tests were done a week or so before scheduled surgery. Everything seemed OK this time. Morning of the surgery, I was prepped, sitting in a wheelchair, arrow painted on my leg at 0800 but at 1500 was finally told surgery was cancelled due to my surgeon being used to treat crash victims. I was incandescent with rage by this time and a manager was sent to me to sort things out. I was sent home with the promise that surgery would take place at the Nuffield in Glasgow because they accepted I had been messed about too much already. Actually, I think it had more to do with the fact that I had by now, made a formal complaint. When I went to have my pre op tests done, I was told my BP was now so high, 220/110, it was imperative that I saw my GP, on the way home! Surgery was again cancelled. It took 6 weeks to get my BP under control and then my surgery was performed in Nov 2014. damn nearly 2 years after the first referral letter. And, the surgeon couldn't do the full op because the risk of infection to my poor foot (due to very poor circulation) was too great for a private hospital to take the risk. So I wound up with only a double fusion and no achilles extension. My advice, do NOT take it for granted that the admin is efficient at BGH, they lose referral letters, don't read them properly, don't allocate patients to the right surgeons and then have to pay for private care simply to make sure something happens. Unbelievable!

Borders General Hospital 2015-05-20 Person 1 5 0

We visited a haematologist because my husbands symptoms of Pernicious Anaemia were returning earlier and earlier between B12 injections. Her attitude was 'So what?' She was rude, unhelpful, patronising, condescending but frighteningly, she was incorrect, inaccurate and downright dangerous as we have now discovered that the information she gave us was completely wrong. What's more, we are now finding that this lack of knowledge is almost universal in the UK. Loading doses are NOT done as they should be and blood tests are totally inaccurate, almost useless but still being relied upon, whereas governmental advice actually states that treatment should be given based on clinical symptoms rather than test results. She admitted the tests are 'crap', her words not mine, but then based her medical opinion totally on the results!! DOH! And the reason can only be down to some imagined cost. But here's the rub, patients are told that treatment is expensive, and toxic if too much is given. The truth is that B12 cost 60p an injection and a dose 5000, yes, five thousand times that of a loading dose is given to a cyanide poisoning sufferer. In most countries abroad, B12 is available in injectible form (the only way for PA sufferers) over the counter, but not here. Our own GP was galvanised into action, referring my husband for a second opinion to a private haematologist only after we had had the courage to face up to him and land a thick file of documents on his desk that he subsequently read. our hope is that this new consultant will actually know what he/she is talking about, but we are not holding our breath. My husband's neurological symptoms are now so advanced that he can remove an egg from boiling water with his bare fingers, and he constantly has to check his arms are still there by looking for them. If we get no sastisfaction we will be left with no choice but to self medicate, a perfectly legal route for us to follow, thank god. If anyone out there has PA, or is simply B12 deficient, please join the PA Society website and learn what you can do for YOURSELF, because the so called medical healthcare professionals at this and most other hospitals in the UK are sadly wanting.