The Good, the Bad, and the Indifferent

The past few days have made me realise how many good people there are in the world ... and this throws into stark focus those who are bad and indifferent.

The Good

• All the people who have sent their condolences to my family and I in response to my blog entries, my recent status reports on my Facebook page, and to my personal telephone calls and emails. A thank you to you all ... and an apology as well; I just wish that I had the time to thank you all individually.
• The staff at the Chaseview Nursing Home, Rush Green, who made my father's last few hours as comfortable as possible, and who did all they could to keep him alive as his breathing problems became worse.
• The paramedics from the London Ambulance Service, who helped the staff at Chaseview Nursing Home resuscitate my father when his heart stopped, and who got him to the Accident and Emergency Department at Queens Hospital, Romford as quickly as they could.
• The staff of the Accident and Emergency Department at Queens Hospital, Romford, who made my father as comfortable as they could, thus enabling him to die with dignity.
• The staff of the Co-operative Funeral Care branch in Upminster, Essex, who helped (and continue to help) my family and I to arrange my father's funeral so that it is exactly the way he would have wanted it to be.

The Bad and the Indifferent

• The staff of the Bereavement Office at Queens Hospital, Romford, who did not answer their telephones for nearly two hours (the 'phones just rang and rang without being picked up or a recorded message being left), and who - when we finally managed to get through the security system that 'protects' them from having to deal with directly the public - showed little or no consideration for the bereaved families they were dealing with. (The reason they gave for not answering their telephones was that they were all attending a meeting, and were 'unavailable' to deal with bereaved families and to issue Certificates of Death.)

More Good

• The Coroner's Officer who patiently and carefully explained that my father's death was going to require a post mortem examination because the doctor who had dealt with my father in the Accident and Emergency Department at Queens Hospital, Romford felt unable to sign the Certificate of Death. (The reason for this was that the doctor had not known that my father had only been discharged from hospital less than 24-hours beforehand. The Coroner's Officer had also not been informed of this by the hospital.)