Dr Sharon Power

Dr Sharon Power 2024-06-22 Person 5 5 0

By Paul Griffin. Saturday June 22nd 2024. Wexham Park Hospital, near Slough. Thankfully I’ve never needed to call on the NHS except for ‘tests’ which are increasingly frequent once you hit 60. Monday morning began as they all do with coffee and a bit of a cough – standard practice for someone with a 40 year smoking habit! This time though it was a bit different, when I coughed I felt something ‘go’ in my upper left lung area, breathing became immediately more difficult but as someone that accepts that aches and pains increase as age progresses I thought it would fade into an annoyance and nothing more. I showered, dressed and set about the day. I was telling a friend what had happened earlier who remarked that I was looking a bit rough and perhaps I should see a Doctor. It was already past the magic 08:30 appointment booking time so I dismissed that but she then said I should go to A&E. A vision of sitting in a waiting room for most of the day passed my eyes and again I wrote that idea off. Second thoughts occurred and I suggested that perhaps she could drop me at A&E so that I can see how busy they are and make a decision whether to stay or not. She kindly dropped me outside, the whole journey, all of about 15 minutes was a challenge and the sweating etc had started. When I got to reception three ladies listened to my tale of what had happened, one disappeared within seconds ( magic words from an older man – ‘chest pains’ – she’d gone to alert the ECG specialist) whilst another took some basic details. I was asked to take a seat in the waiting area which wasn’t busy. I’d barely put my bottom on the seat when a chap poked his head out from one of the doors calling my name. I estimate that process took a max of 5 minutes. I was impressed. The Nurse put me straight onto a 10 or 12 point ECG and we chatted about what had happened. I said that it felt more like a lung thing or a rib muscle and not my heart, but what do I know? He agreed and sent me back to the waiting area after about 10 minutes. Before I could decide whether to look for a coffee machine I was called again. Another chap took me off to another room within 30 seconds walk to take blood samples. Several samples were taken, labelled and despatched somewhere for processing. Back at the waiting area another Lady called me and we had a brief chat about what had occurred. She was very kind and caring and listened to my amateur prognosis with interest. She said she thought she knew what had happened but I had to see a Consultant. The image of sitting in a plastic chair for the day crossed my mind but again I was wrong. Within 10 minutes of being back in the waiting area another chap called my name and we were soon on our way to X-Ray. There was no queue and my insides were photographed within seconds. Back to the waiting area. A lovely young lady called me and I was taken to her consulting area, she is the first Doctor that I had seen, probably within 45 minutes of arriving at A&E. She explained that she thought I had a Pneumothorax which in English is a collapsed lung! That was a bit of a shock to say the least. She updated the file that had been created for me on the system and went looking for a Consultant. Within 10 minutes a Consultant in grey scrubs arrived and we went to another more surgical looking room. It was explained to me what had definitely happened, I was shown the x-rays etc and also what the proposed treatment would be. They would make a hole in my side, between the upper ribs and insert a tube that would drain off the air that had escaped from my lung and found itself between the rib cage and the outside of the lung, this had created pressure on the lung itself and stopped it filling properly, hence the term ‘collapsed’. They would do all this with a local anaesthetic and some intravenous support through the cannula that had already been inserted. I asked when they though they’d be able to see me to do the procedure. The Consultant seemed surprised at the question and responded with ‘well we were hoping to do it now’. Again, I was shocked and disappointed that I hadn’t even had any time to panic! A couple of close friends were in the waiting area and they were encouraged to come and offer some emotional support, which they did of course. I think the procedure started about 12 noon and was all done within 45 minutes. Every aspect was explained in detail and the Consultant also trained two others on the various techniques and tips at the same time – quite a remarkable man! I was already in a gown by this point and was whisked off to a ward upstairs in the MADU ( Medical Acute Dependancy Unit ) a beautiful new facility above A&E. This is where the second part of this amazing tale starts… Phase 2 of my care found me in MADU under the care of Sharon Power, with more attention than a naked celebrity. The guys and mainly girls (used affectionately) are insanely committed to patient care and comfort on the hopefully brief journey back to full health. I simply cannot speak highly enough of this team but it did make me wonder who hires so incredibly successfully! They gel, they communicate, they talk and discuss, they disclose, they explain, they look after every aspect of everything. It’s like those formation air displays of old, the timing and perfection are both awesome and it almost makes being poorly a pleasure. I was keen to get home, who wouldn’t be, but I was also sad to walk away from a bunch of people that had become at least ‘mates’. I think I fell in love with at least three of them! We all know there are issues with the NHS and we all know that generally things could be better but if there’s one thing I can say from first-hand experience it’s simply this – there is absolutely nothing wrong with those at the sharp end of delivering world-class service on time and with more care and attention to detail than I bet you’d find in any world-class hotel. Thanks to them I have gone from a life-threatening emergency on Monday to feeling better than ever 5 days later. What is that worth in money? If it was costed I bet I couldn’t afford it. 5-Star, world-class and astounding. And that was just me. They do this all day, every day for thousands of people. I won’t ever have a word said against those that deliver the service. Thank you, all of you, every single member of the team, you are ALL amazing!

Dr Sharon Power 2022-08-09 Person 5 5 0

My wife was admitted to hospital with Sepsis/pneumonia on 1st April 2018. An A&E Consultant suggested we gather the family- suggesting the end was in sight. Being a Bank Holiday weekend we did expect too much to happen medically!! However my wife ended up in the MADU ( Respiratory diseases ward ) under Dr Power!! Dr Power was very strict, thorough and had the ideal bedside manner. She was very ‘hands on”! My wife spent 12 weeks in MADU under Dr Power’s care! Sadly, three and a half years later my wife had a chest infection but because of the pressures of COVID, bed limitations my wife passed away. I am sure if Dr Power had been available she might have been able to overcome this infection! I I do believe that Dr Power truly saved my wife’s life at that time. I discovered later that Dr Power trained as a nurse before becoming a Dr !