Husband Makes Charges of “ No Savee ” at Hospital.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18419, 22 March 1928, Page 5

Husband Makes Charges of “ No Savee ” at Hospital.

COULD NOT FIND OUT THAT HIS WIFE HAD BEEN OPERATED ON

A CHRISTCHURCH MAN whose wife has just conic out of the Public Hospital makes surprising statements regarding the difficulty he had in obtaining from the Hospital correct information concerning his wife.

The husband states that his wife went into hospital to undergo an operation, which was necessary, though not of a serious'nature. He rang the hospital on the evening of the day on which he believed the operation was to take place, and asked if his wife had been operated upon. He was informed that he would have to see his wife’s doctor, who was not on the premises. The husband says that he found out afterwards that his wife had been operated upon, and was back in the ward at the time of hix telephone inquiry. The wife was discharged at the end of ten days, after having been out of bed for one day only. The hospital rang up the husband to say that his wife was ready to go home, and the time of 2 p.m. was mentioned for her discharge. The husband asked that the time should be 3 pjn., which would

enable him to go for his wife himself. This course the hospital agreed to. The husband arrived at the hospital in a taxi at 3.10 p.m., and was told that his wife had gone. He drove home, only to find that she had not arrived there, lie went straight back to the hospital, and was then told that his wife had waited for him until 3.45 p.m., after which the authorities had rung up for a taxi, in which she went to her home. The wife found the house locked up, and, having no key, had to climb in through a window. In her comparatively weak state this was difficult, especially as she had only been out of bed for a day during her stay in hospital. The husband found himself faced with the cost of two taxi-cab trips instead of one, owing to hospital blundering, but he was more concerned for his wife’s health. Fortunately, .she has suffered no ill effects from her unusual method of returning home.