"Daughters inpatient stay and aftercare"

My daughter attended the Royal Children's A&E. Although on her first visit we felt slightly dismissed, on our second visit we could not praise the staff enough. The doctor who seen her knew straight away there was a serious problem and would not allow us to leave until we had seen the appropriate team with a follow up appointment made. I never got the doctors name and regret not being able to highlight her excellent knowledge and manner. 

After the MRI appointment, a few days after A&E, my daughter was taken in as an inpatient for osteomyelitis. She was in Barbour ward. The staff were all amazing, from the Health Care Assistants to the consultants. They were patient, kind, reassuring and caring. They went out of their way to find food she would eat, to keep her calm while her medication was being given, chatted to her about what was happening and entertain her as the boredom set in. Particular praise for Jade, a nurse who treated her like the almost teenager she was and made her laugh even while in pain, yet was always professional. 

We were in the hospital for a week and the team helped us get through it.

Mr Ballard and his team were also incredible. We had months of scans, visits, blood tests, etc. Everyone of the outpatient team addressed my daughter and ensured she was involved in each step of her treatment meaning she always felt she was in control, important for a child at that age. Again one nurse stood out, unfortunately I never caught her name as she was always busy chatting to the child about football. But she ensured there was no fear around blood tests or the next appointment. 

Please pass on our thanks and gratitude to the incredible staff at the Royal Children's Hospital.