Getting to hospital and arrival

On Wednesday 11th September I set off from London to Wolverhampton to New Cross hospital for my first or left-sided surgery for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome [TOS]. Everything went very well. I took a cab from my flat to Euston and made use f the disability service for the first time and they took me directly to the train by a buggy and put me on the train. The journey was on time and very pleasant and two hours later I arrived at Wolverhampton. A local taxi cab dropped me off quite the wrong end of the hospital, but I managed to find my way to the Pre-Op assessement suite, where the poor staff told me the computer system was down. They welcomed me and I was weighed and measured, had bloods taken and an ECG. A nurse then went through all my medications and asked me various questions about my general health and whether I had things like cardiac problems, asthma, diabetes, loose teeth, caps, crowns etc. This took a short while and then I saw another nurse who gave me a pair of hospital stockings to wear and then took me to the admitting ward.

As luck would have it not only was this a small ward, but a very specialist ward it being a 'Neck and Head' ward - [well I was having neck surgery!]. I then couldn't believe my luck as I was taken into a side room with a nice view of the skies and trees [OK also the car park] and it had its own TV! I sat for a moment not quite believing all this and then started to unpack my suitcase and arrange everything the way that I wanted it. I had even bought in some cards from home to put up as well as tons of magazines and a book and my MP3 players.

Not long after I arrived I was asked what I'd like for supper - there was a choice of 4 things and I chose a chicken curry. I then watched Downton Abbey.

Unfortunately the doctors still hadn't clerked me in at bedtime so I took my own medications, but then was woken up twice in the night as two different doctors had to try to put a cannula in and a drip of fluids. This was very disruptive and I didn't sleep well.

I fell deeply asleep in the morning, and should have got up when the Healthcare Assistant [HCA] woke me to make my bed for theatre. I should have also had a shower because in the end all I managed was a wet-wipe type wash before my surgery.