Can You Hear Me Now?
Oh, the joys of socialized medicine! From the Daily Mail:
Hospital gives elderly patients a TAMBOURINE to call nurses
Elderly hospital patients who were terrified that they could not summon help from nurses hoped that an electronic alarm would be installed in their day room. Instead they were given a tambourine to shake.
And in case that broke, a pair of maracas was also supplied as back-up.
One man visiting his mother put the system to the test by rattling the tambourine for 16 minutes – but failed to attract the staff's attention.
Yesterday the hospital was forced to apologise after an NHS watchdog described the policy as ‘unacceptable’ and criticised it for failing to install a proper alarm system.
The farcical arrangement was put in place at Cardiff Royal Infirmary after more than 30 elderly patients in the west wing complained that they were ‘too scared’ to use the day room in case staff did not hear their calls for help.
The room is almost 40 yards from the nurses’ base at the Victorian hospital, which is notorious for its long corridors and has even been used to film episodes of Doctor Who. One relative said: ‘It is ridiculous. These people are pensioners – not members of the Monkees or Mick Jagger.
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