The SAH is a big hospital. It caters for multiple disciplines of surgery and had a fully functioning emergency department (which I have never been to). There is not much that isn't done at the SAH. But the question you have to ask yourself is "do they do it well?" I feel the answer is no.
The processes are streamlined to maximise efficiency and one thing I picked up on was that the staff were disgruntled and patient welfare was sacrificed. It is what you get when a hospital is run by bureaucrats and administrators, and I would feel very uncomfortable going back there.
Cotham private is by contrast the exact opposite. It is a much smaller hospital and certainly didn't cater for all different types of surgery. However, what they did do seemed to be more than they were capable of. For small surgeries the highly skilled staff seemed very proficient, but would I want a major surgery there? The answer is no. I something went wrong I would question their ability to deal with it.
You must also make sure you will be comfortable during your stay. Especially if it is a longer stay. Surgery is traumatic and if you let it, it will effect your mental health and leave you with nothing but a miserable memory. Don't get me wrong, surgery is never fun, but if you do it right it will be an inconvenient and mildly uncomfortable event that is a good opportunity to catch up on some reading or DVD watching. Done wrong, it can feel like hell on earth.
So when you are in a hospital, make sure that you are going to be comfortable. A lot of this can be done by what you bring, but also look for the following:-
- Nurses are kind and responsive.
- Colour of the ward is warm and inviting.
- You have your own bathroom.
- You have a single room if desired.
- The food is good.
- You have good entertainment provided.
- Hospital has a nice setting (good view, easy to get outside, coffee shop, etc)
Next time I will explain where you can get this information. Until then, stay well:)
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