Dear Editor:
Complaints about the quality of care at our hospitals are common; I want to add a positive account of my recent experience at Lions Gate Hospital emergency.
On Easter Saturday morning I was taken to the Jim Pattison Emergency Centre of Lions Gate Hospital. Though it turned out I did need emergency attention, my presenting symptoms did not place me high on the triage order of urgency, so I had to wait some five hours until it was my turn, but in the interim, after the routines of entry, I was soon given a stretcher to lie on, a warm blanket, and felt that I would be looked after in time.
Once my case came up I was thoroughly examined in every respect and the physician who came to my bedside apologized for my long wait, explained the meaning of my symptoms and the plan for curing them.
At every stage in this process I was grateful for the care and courtesy of attendants, and through that night and next day on intravenous I was deeply impressed by the same qualities in the nursing staff. I felt very well looked after. I was released only after the presiding doctor was sure my condition was corrected and I would recover better in my home.
We who live on the North Shore are fortunate to have such a first rate facility.
Jean Mallinson West Vancouver
