Nowadays, as anyone visiting (or being a patient in) a hospital will know, most patients now have a "named nurse". This is great, in theory, because (in theory again) your nurse knows you, and you know him/her. You are able to form a relationship.
The problem with this is that nurses, like everyone else, have coffee breaks, days off and even need to go to the loo. I was talking to someone last week about her sick brother. My friend had phoned the ward for a progress report, but the named nurse wasn't there, so no-one could tell her anything about him. Isn't that wonderful? When I was a nurse on a hospital ward, from my student nurse days up until my time as a ward sister, I had to know ALL about EVERY patient, even after several nights off, and I did. We all did. Because that was our job.
A few years ago, I was in hospital with a broken elbow. A delightful young man introduced himself, and told me he was my named nurse for the duration of my stay.
I never saw him again.
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