Clare mother’s hysterectomy post-op nightmare at UHL

A CLARE mother has claimed she was subjected to a “humiliating experience” in University Hospital Limerick (UHL) trying to obtain proper pain-killing medication six hours after she was discharged following a full hysterectomy 26 hours earlier.

In an interview with the Clare Champion, the 43-year-old has outlined how some staff didn’t believe she was back so soon in the hospital after such a major operation while she was crying in pain in the ED.

The mother would like to see Health Minister Stephen Donnelly provide funding to appoint more doctors and nurses to UHL.

She believes a review needs to be conducted by the UL Hospitals Group concerning the length of hospital stay for women after they had a hysterectomy and a new policy to ensure all women receive information sheet when they leave the hospital after a major surgery.

She has made a number of claims about the care she received after she had a full hysterectomy via robotic surgery in UHL on May 4.

The mother-of-one has opted to remain anonymous for personal reasons but has chronicled her experience in a bid to improve the aftercare for other women who have had a hysterectomy.

Under the care of a gynaecologist since she was 17, the mother had several gynaecological issues over the years and eventually was advised she required a hysterectomy.

She thought she would be kept in UHL for three or four days after her robotic surgery, which is less invasive than traditional surgery.

However, she said that she was surprised to be discharged from UHL about 26 hours after her surgery at about 2pm on May 5 without any information sheet or a full examination from a doctor.

She said she left the hospital with a prescription for paracetamol and/or Solpadeine, knowing she couldn’t take these at the same time.

She was examined by a nurse and physio to see if she could walk up and down the corridor before her discharge.

“I wasn’t feeling great the morning after the operation. I was told I would be better off going home because there was Covid-19 in a lot of the wards.”

The mother recalled she went home and went to bed.

A few hours later, she said she woke up in severe pain and a high temperature, took the Solpadeine, rang her GP, who advised her to go back to UHL to check if there had been an infection.

“I didn’t know what to do because I got no information sheet, that is why I rang my GP.”

Her niece drove her into the ED and they arrived around 8pm. Even though the woman explained numerous times she had a hysterectomy the previous day, she said medical staff didn’t believe her and thought she was hysterical because of hormone-related issues.

“When I explained I had a hysterectomy the previous day, I was met with shock. I don’t know did they not believe me, but everyone was pretty shocked.

“If I said it once, I said it 20 times, I had a hysterectomy yesterday.”

The mother acknowledged she was brought into triage fairly quickly and her bloods were checked to see if she had an infection.

“I didn’t want to go to the ED in UHL but I had to go because I was in such a state. I was left standing in a corridor. I could not sit down, I was in so much pain. I was out of my mind with the pain. I was bent over the back of a chair for about four hours.

“I started crying. A very nice male nurse went outside and got my niece for me who was in the waiting room. I was told staff were waiting for a doctor to come down from surgery to see me.”

She recalled an old man on a trolley kept coming over to her asking her if she was ok.

“I had a full blown panic attack. I was eventually put in a room that had a trolley and a chair.

“I couldn’t lie down at this stage. They didn’t believe that I didn’t get the right medication when I was discharged.

“It was only when a doctor came down from the gynaecological department that I showed him my prescription. A male nurse had gone to the doctor looking for a pain killer. The doctor was horrified. He said there was no way I should have been discharged with this prescription.

“The doctor gave me an injection of morphine some time after 11pm. I think they thought I was crazy.”

She said she was crying in pain for hours until a doctor came and administered morphine some time after 11pm.

A few minutes after getting the medication, her high temperature dropped and she fell asleep on a chair.

Having had several surgeries, she recalled getting an information letter with a phone number to ring if something goes wrong, but is adamant she got no information sheet after her surgery on this occasion.

She felt she was treated like a “second-class citizen” in the ED compared with the “fabulous” care she got during and after her surgery in the ward.

She arrived home around 12.15 am with a prescription for a morphine tablet and diaphine.

After taking this medication, she was able to sleep and lie in bed without experiencing too much pain.

“I wasn’t crying any more. When the medication was wearing off, I knew it was time to take another one. It took a while to recover but I am back to normal now and am pain free.”

The UL Hospitals’ Group stated it is unable to comment on individual cases, due to its ethical and legal obligations to respect and protect the privacy of all patients who attend our hospitals, and of our staff.

“Hospitals across the world strive to introduce efficiencies to reduce overall length of stay. A focus on length of stay is important in the Mid West, where the group have widely acknowledged deficits in inpatient bed capacity and where, in common with other regions, it have seen considerable reductions in access to surgery/scheduled care for our patients due to Covid-19.

“In 2021, the average length of stay for all patients in UL Hospitals Group (excluding those with a length of stay greater than 30 days) was 4.2 days, in line with the national target of 4.8 days.

“It is important that patients get sufficient time to recover after a procedure and hospitals record readmission rates for patients as an indicator of quality and safety.

“Readmission rates for surgical patients in UL Hospitals Group in 2021 was 2.2%, in line with the national target of 2%. This should provide reassurance on quality and that patients are not being discharged prematurely.

“Specifically in relation to gynaecology, the robotic surgery programme at UHL is improving patient outcomes. Research presented at the NCHD conference at UHL earlier this year showed how patients are benefiting from reduced length of stay, quicker recovery times and better outcomes compared to open and laparoscopic surgery.

“This research examined 50 cases completed in UHL between January 2019 and September 2021. The rate of complications within 30 days was low (4% of cases) and there were no cases of post-operative infection. The average operation time was 2 hours and 34 minutes while the average length of stay was one day, all patients having been admitted on the day of surgery.

“This is not to minimise the experience of any patient who suffers post-operative complications or pain.”

The group encourage any patient who is dissatisfied with their experience to speak to their treating clinician or to make a complaint to yoursay@hse.ie

This will inform its ongoing work to improve quality and patient safety. As part of a quality improvement project commenced earlier this year, the group are working on improving written information for gynaecology patients on post-operative care.