How to handle Accident and Emergency situation

DO:

• Let us know if you think you have deteriorated while waiting to see a doctor.
• Gently remind us if you think you have been forgotten. The computer systems we use for tracking patients are not 100 per cent foolproof.
• Be polite and friendly to the triage nurse - it might help. A thank you goes a long way.
• If you have a minor injury, come during the day shift as a specialist nurse is more likely to be working. If her shift has ended, you'll spend a lot longer waiting to see a doctor.
• Become a famous politician. You'll even be seen by the most senior doctor around. Maybe that is why they think everything is so hunky-dory in the NHS these days. (P.S. If you're heavily pregnant, say you think you might need to push soon. Nothing gets us more scared.)

DON'T

• Call an ambulance, unless it is really necessary.
• Remind us that you are Lord whatever and a big contributor to the local area and so forth.
• Tell us that NHS Direct said you had to be seen straight away. They advise you to come to A&E. We decide when you need to be seen.
• Be rude and abusive. All the above will lead you to the back of the queue at the very least.