Where’s Wellow Ward? Management speak

A hospital chaplain, who retired yesterday, has said his pleadings for more signage to the end-of-life Wellow Ward at St Mary’s have gone unheeded.

Neil Aplin, of Freshwater Bay, feels he can now go public regarding the frustration he, and other staff, have had to endure since Wellow Ward was merged with Compton Ward. His wife, Karen, who has spent more than 32 years working in hospitals and hospices in palliative care, had already resigned over the situation.

Neil said: “Wellow Ward was closed last May, when we were told it would not be closing, but it appears to have been closed by stealth. It’s now very difficult to find, because there is hardly any signage, and family members struggle to get there when they first arrive.

“Senior nursing officers have complained but nothing has been done about it. My wife, Karen, resigned in frustration because nothing has happened. We are haemorrhaging staff; they don’t trust the decisions which are being made. For many, this is the straw which broke the camel’s back.”

Neil gave me a tour along the long corridors in the hospital on the ground floor, leading to the lift to take us up to the North Hospital where Wellow has been relocated.

There is nothing at reception to say where Wellow is based, apart from one sign hanging from the ceiling to say it is part of Compton, which could easily be missed. Once, upstairs there is no signage, until you get to the actual ward after a long walk. None of the ward signs along the corridors mention Wellow. The map of the hospital, available on-line, shows Wellow and Compton Ward in different locations.

Neil added: “Families from the mainland and even abroad come to visit their loved ones in the last few hours of their life, but they don’t know where they are going, especially later in the evening when there is hardly anyone about to direct them. It’s an ongoing recognition problem to what is happening at Wellow. We are just given answers in ‘management speak’ so that boxes can be ticked.”

One Islander, whose relative died on Wellow Ward, said: “Patients are transferred to Wellow from other parts of the hospital. The treatment my relative received, before it was moved, was first class, and as a family they looked after us very well. But management needs to understand Wellow is an end-of-life ward; you need to be able to find it easily at any hour of the day or night, even when you are beside yourself with grief.”

A hospital spokeswoman held out hope that things might improve. She said: “Clear, visible signage in our healthcare environments is really important to inform staff, patients and visitors of where they are and where they need to be.

“Feedback on when signage is not helpful for people is also really important and we will look at the signage we have in place for Wellow and how we can make it clearer for people visiting.

“Whilst we try to make sure our signage is up-to-date and visible, the improvements that are being made to St Mary’s Hospital estate as part of the Investing in our Future Programme means some signage in the main hospital may be temporary in several areas whilst changes take place. All signage will be reviewed as part of this improvement programme.

“Volunteers are based at the Main and North Reception and provide support to anyone visiting the hospital. They are always very happy to take people to their location either by foot or using the hospital buggy.”