We can't recommend treatment or advice, but those of us who have had it can share their experiences of it. I can't see how it's different from discussing experiences of having a broken leg or the like.
OK cool, because I had electro Cardioversion last Friday and found it to be an incredibly harrowing experience. I want to find out if what happened is normal practice or not.
I arrived, as instructed, at 12 noon and was directed to Ward 10 where I was greeted and shown to a bed within one of the rooms within the ward. A junior doctor came and introduced herself to me at some time in the afternoon and said she would be performing the Cardioversion. My Cardioversion actually went ahead sometime after 4pm.
As I understand it I was one of four patients booked in for Cardioversion that afternoon and I believe I was the last to receive treatment.
My bed was situated within a room which was directly opposite the room where the Cardioversion procedures were taking place and I watched as each patient was wheeled into the room to receive treatment. On several occasions the door to the treatment room was left open and I could hear everything which went on within the room, including lots of beeping machines and then actual screams or shouts from the patients themselves.
At this point, to say I was a little apprehensive when I was wheeled into the room would be a vast understatement.
I have to mention at this point that I have suffered with anxiety for the past 11 years, and that had always been focused on my heart - even though it was perfectly healthy at the time (ironic, I know).
When in the room I had the paddles attached, one to my chest and one to my back and then the Doctor seemed rather concerned and asked if I was having any chest pains as my cardio reading did not look normal. I said that I had been feeling chest pains but nothing more than what I usually feel when suffering with anxiety. She then went to find a more senior doctor/consultant for advice. The more senior doctor/consultant had to point out that the reading she was looking at were from the paddles and not from a full ECG machine. I was quickly wired up to said machine and everything seemed ok to proceed - my mental state at this time was going into overload as my faith in the doctor performing the procedure had dropped to the point where I was wondering if she was competent to proceed!
As i understand it they usually give 8mg of midazolam in order to sedate the patient enough to perform the procedure. I was given the 8mg and felt nothing, so another 8mg was administered but still (other than feeling a little woozy) I was wide awake. They ended up giving me 45mg midazolam and 2.5mg diamorphine before I was sedated enough to proceed.
They only have me two shocks (they usually can go up to the) as I was still not sedated enough to proceed with the third.
Everything was a little fuzzy for the rest of that afternoon, (I was as high as a kite) and a lot of the following day to be honest! But I was told, by my girlfriend, that I was given some medicine which I needed to take for at least the next three week and they would try Cardioversion again under a General Anaesthetic.
It wasn't until I looked up Amiodarone online that I realised what a heavy duty drug this actually is - to the point where it is sometimes delivered in hospital for the first few days as the patients need monitoring closely! I wasn't given so much as a leaflet on advising on potential problems to look out for let alone any kind of consultation regarding the medicine or the next step of my treatment.
All in all I found the whole experience to be quite harrowing and I have lost faith that UHCW can complete the rest of my treatment with competence, I therefore requested to be transferred to Leicester Glenfield Hospital's cardiology department for the remainder of my treatment/care as I understand they are one of the best in the country - and conveniently quite local to me.
I think it's probably more of a vent I needed more than anything - is this the usual level of care expected/received?
