Patient Stories

 A Vets Tail – April 2023

Agata shares her experience of receiving care and treatment via Leeds Dental Institute. The film describes the chronic pain Agata experienced as a result of teeth grinding. Agata describes the partnership forged between her and clinician as they implemented a plan of chronic pain management which includes a pain management booklet.

You can view the story here - A Vets Tail

Donald’s Story – April 2023

Donald shares his life changing experience after receiving Laser treatment for Rhinophyma at Chapel Allerton.

You can view the story here - Donald's Story

Safeguarding Voices – March 2023

This film highlights the lived experience of adults subject to a safeguarding referral as inpatients. Experience captured centred around when concerns are first raised. In order to retain the anonymity of participants their comments are shared on screen to a backdrop of images and music. 

You can view the story here - Safeguarding Voices

Accessibility (Location Location Location) – February 2023

Alison Shares her experience of navigating a large hospital as a disabled woman with a visual impairment. This includes her involvement in the Ophthalmology Relocation Group who supported the Trust to enhance the experience of its Ophthalmology patients in terms of wayfinding, use of technology and the built environment.

You can view the story here - Accessilbity (Location, Location, Location)

Patient’s Experience of Excellence - November 2022

This story was put together for the Excellence in Practice Programme. This is a programme that has been set up for nurses in the organisation to undertake and celebrates their competence and pride in working for Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust.

The video focused on two patients with different hospital experiences. The first patient explained he originally met his nurse when he came in to discuss a new treatment for his condition while suffering with problems with his voice and his chest post COVID infection. He explained the nurse advocated on his behalf when he lost the energy to fight. The nurse was described as “the most selfless person and an amazing and caring nurse”.

The second patient explained how she and her wife first met their midwife while she was in labour with the couple’s son. The patient has additional needs as she is moderately deaf and autistic. She explained the midwife took the time to understand how best to communicate with her and keep her comfortable. She made sure the patient’s wife was also comfortable and looked after her. The midwife explained to each professional that came in to the room about the lady’s needs so everyone was aware how best to communicate with her. The midwife also ensured she explained to the patient who everyone was and what their job was, to avoid causing the patient distress.

You can view the story here - Patients Experience of Excellence

People’s Experiences of Hospital Discharge - September 2022 

This video was developed by Healthwatch Leeds. They had been requested to collect a variety of discharge experiences by the Trust to support the work in this area that is taking place. The stories captured focused on patients that had recently been in the care of the Trust. The video described that a number of patients and their families had care plans that were put in place to help them re-adjust to life once they got home. Patients explained that their anxieties, stressors and concerns were minimised when they knew what the plans were for discharge and their on-going care, including which appointments they would need to attend.

You can view the story here - People's Experiences of Hospital Discharge

Super Saturday - Leeds Children’s Hospital - July 2022

This story focused on Super Saturdays - a recent initiative that has been introduced in the Children’s Outpatients Department where different activities take place to support improvements in children’s healthcare. Saturday appointments have been found to be a lot less stressful for families than attending hospital during the working week and the waiting times are a lot shorter because the department isn’t as busy.

The film depicts workshops taking place, including “Mini Dental Hygiene” which shows children the importance of brushing their teeth. A “Tablet Taking Workshop” supports children to practice taking tablets, using sweets and water to build up to the size of their own tablets. “Virtual Reality Distraction Therapy” is being used for children having their bloods taken and helps to distract them whilst they are undergoing their procedure.  

You can view the story here - Super Saturday

Sally’s story - July 2022

Sally was taken into hospital with a fracture. Her sister contacted the LD team to support Sally during her stay. The story highlights how the LD team assisted hospital staff to provide the best care for Sally and advocated for her needs, as she received care, which included a stay on ICU. It describes the individualised care Sally received and how the team enabled her to stay connected to her sister.

You can view the story here - Sally's story

Gillian’s Story - May 2022

Gillian describes the support she received from the Trust Learning Disability and Autism team during a stay in hospital and during an out-patient appointment. She appreciated the way they advocated for her, working with hospital staff to help them understand how they could best help her. She particularly appreciated the help she received on Christmas Eve which enabled her to spend Christmas with her family. She thought the team had gone above and beyond to help her at this important time of year and she spoke highly of the compassion that they and the clinical staff had shown which enabled this to happen.  

You can view the video here - Gillian's Story

Robert Ogden Centre - March 2022

The patient story involved the wife of a patient who was diagnosed with cancer in August 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. She contacted the Robert Ogden Centre as she wished to be considered for any available therapies. After her husband had a five week in-patient stay she became his carer, sometimes taking him to hospital three times a day. She spoke about the physical/practical things she had learnt, as well as the emotional challenges she faced. She was offered hypnotherapy by the Robert Ogden Centre and this made her feel less alone. She was cared for by Lynn Daniels, a volunteer practitioner working in the service. After Lynn’s interventions, she was left feeling like she could manage. She describes how the support she received from Lynn completely changed her perspective and gave her hope.

You can view the video here - Robert Ogden Centre

Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care - January 2022

This video encourages us to think of others and to understand what others may be going through at any particular moment in time. The video is shown to staff groups when they start work in the hospital and encourages us to understand the nature of empathy.

You can view the video here: Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care

Penny, Healing the Wound - November 2021

The patient story was provided by Penny, who raised a complaint with the Trust after a distressing hospital experience.

Penny explained that although her experience had been unpleasant and had caused significant distress, she felt that she had been taken seriously when she received the complaint response letter. The letter felt warm, compassionate and empathetic and Penny described that because of this it went some way towards healing the emotional wound she had been left with when she left hospital.

You can view the video here: Penny, Healing the Wound

April and Olive - September 2021

The patient story described the experience of April who went into premature labour at Leeds General Infirmary during the pandemic. Sadly, April’s daughter, Olive, passed away shortly after her birth.

April described feeling extremely supported during her hospital stay and felt that the midwives responsible for her care had been compassionate at a very difficult time. She was particularly grateful for the opportunity to meet Olive and spend time with her and found the care that had been provided to her that enabled this, extremely comforting.

You can view the video here: April and Olive

Sally’s Story - July 2021

The Patient Experience Team has received this patient story film from Sally. It recounts her treatment in LGI ED, Theatres and Anaesthetics, Radiology and Trauma and Orthopaedics in September 2020. Sally’s story makes clear how important the ‘small’ things are in creating a great patient experience.

You can view the video here: Sally’s Story

Dolf’s Story - May 2021

The patient story described the experience of Dolf, who was an inpatient on ward J30 at St James’s Hospital for 18 days during the pandemic, because he had contracted Covid-19. Dolf was first admitted to SJUH ED where he described the atmosphere as one which was calm and made him feel at ease. Dolf explained that everyone involved in his care wore the correct PPE and always acted in a professional way.

 Dolf had been admitted as an inpatient to St James’s Hospital five months prior to this for a kidney transplant and he reported that the food menus were exactly the same on both of his visits and they seemed ‘very old fashioned’.

You can view the video here: Dolf’s Story

Thomas' Story - March 2021

The patient story described the experience of a patient called Thomas who needed urgent emergency surgery at the Trust during the pandemic. Thomas spoke about the impact that the Trust’s visiting restrictions had on him and how it made him feel nervous to attend his surgery without his partner present. He shared that although he felt frightened and alone, the staff on ward J44 were kind to him during his stay.  He suggested some areas for improvement which included communication from doctors on the ward.

You can view the video here: Thomas’s Story

Safeguarding Voices - January 2021 

The patient story had been produced by the Patient, Carer and Public Involvement Team. The video described inpatient feedback received about the Adult Safeguarding service in 2020. 17 conversations had been captured in total in response to specific questions including ‘Was safeguarding defined for you?’ and ‘Did you feel supported and safe?’

The video was commissioned by the Adult Safeguarding team who were keen to gather the experience of inpatients where a safeguarding concern had been raised. The PCPI team supported the discussions with patients. The feedback collected has enabled the Adult Safeguarding team to share the information collected in a way that is easy to communicate and to consider areas to celebrate/improve.

You can view the video here: Safeguarding Voices

Quality Improvement Partner - November 2020

This story described the experience of a Quality Improvement (QI) Partner currently volunteering at the Trust. The Partner discussed hearing about the role whilst being involved in other focus work within the Patient Experience Team. He shared how he was initially intrigued by the opportunity to improve processes and services within Leeds Teaching Hospitals on behalf of patients and medical staff.

As a transplant patient, the Partner is able to bring first-hand experience to Quality Improvement work that the Trust is taking forward. The individual is involved in the Infection Prevention Collaborative (HCAI Faculty) and has taken part in analysing questionnaires and collecting data from wards. The Partner shared their view of the collaborative they are involved in as a valuable piece of work and reported that they are pleased they were given the opportunity to participate.

You can view the story here: Quality Improvement Partner

Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People - September 2020

This patient story describes the experience of a Deaf patient in the care of the Trust during the pandemic. The patient explained how staff wearing facemasks had made it very difficult for him to understand their communication because he lip-reads. He also shared the small ways in which his experience could have been improved to reduce the social isolation that he felt during his stay.

The story was shared at the Trust Board meeting in September 2020 and also at the Connecting Leaders in Care (CLiC) meeting in the same month.

You can view the story here: Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People 

Carers Animation - July 2020

This short video was made to raise awareness during Carers Week 8th - 14th June 2020 of the challenges faced by Carers.  The video uses feedback gathered from surveys that were conducted by Healthwatch Leeds during the pandemic, as well as surveys that  were conducted by the PET by Carers experiencing Trust services. 

You can view the story here: Carers Animation 

Deaf Animation - July 2020

This animation was developed by the Patient Experience Team (PET) and describes the challenges Deaf patients face during the pandemic. It was based on feedback from patients who had experienced Trust services and was created in collaboration with people who are Deaf or who support people who are.

 You can view the story here: Deaf Animation 

Liz and Jordan - Maternity Experience during COVID-19 - July 2020

Liz and her husband Jordan share their experience of the birth of their second baby during the COVID-19 outbreak. They had their first child at the Trust and so were able to compare their more recent experience to this.

During this period, it was not possible to invite patients into the Trust to share their story with us and the couple were therefore asked if they were happy to independently film the video at home, which they kindly accepted.

The team is exploring innovative ways to capture patient stories going forward, taking into account on-going requirements for social distancing and limiting visitors wherever possible. This is therefore also an example of testing a new way of working. 

You can view the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOBcc5I7QM4

Joyce Intro Video - March 2020

This patient story is the second service user, alongside Kari, to be included in the city-wide ‘How Does it Feel to Be Me?’ project. The project involves the monthly recording of individual’s health and care experience in Leeds through video and written narrative. The Trust receives the information captured regularly and is expected to use the opportunity to influence service development. 

You can view the story here: Joyce

Kari's Story: July 2019 Update - January 2020

This patient story has been produced by Healthwatch Leeds. It features Kari, a citizen of Leeds who has a number of health conditions. Kari described her health and care experience during July 2019 when she had used the services of a number of different providers, including the Trust. She felt there had been some good aspects to the care she had received and also that there were some areas that could have been better.

You can view the story here: Kari's Story 

Healthwatch Leeds: Seeing Things Differently - November 2019

The patient story was a video produced by Healthwatch Leeds, featuring two women registered with a visual impairment. The video showed how difficult receiving hospital letters, attending hospital appointments and finding your way around the hospital can be for people with eyesight difficulties. Measures, such as making volunteers available, were shown to be very helpful in supporting patients. Additionally, the video explains the importance of the Trust working towards achieving the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which is aimed at making healthcare information accessible for everyone. 

Living with Motor Neurone Disease - September 2019

This patient story featured a gentleman living with Motor Neurone Disease and showed how he has been supported by his partner, family, friends, carers and the NHS to do the things he enjoys and to get the most out of life. The gentleman has managed to continue to pursue his favourite pastimes including listening to music, attending concerts and spending time with people he loves, despite the constraints of the disease. The message is particularly uplifting, and has wide applicability if shown across a number of clinical areas. Click on the image to view the video.

You can view the story here: Living with Motor Neurone Disease 

Patient Participation of Administering Intravenous Antibiotics - July 2019

This patient story described an improvement project that was implemented within adult cystic fibrosis (cardio-respiratory), to support patients to be a second checker for their intravenous medicines. The story showed a patient testing the process and describing the experience of taking part. Benefits from the patient’s perspective included being able to maintain their independence throughout their stay and feeling as though being involved was a way of being helpful to staff. Click on the image to view the video.

You can view the story here: Patient Participation Story 

Leeds Children's Hospital Videos (Various) - May 2019

Leeds Children’s Hospitals TV was created to support children and their families through treatment by providing access to stories shared by other children and families who may have been through a similar experience. One LCHTV story describes what hospital feels like for children who find they experience long periods of isolation as part of their treatment and talks about how hard this can be from the perspective of a young person. Click on the image to view the video.

You can view the story here: Leeds Children's Hospital Videos

#treatmewell Reasonable Adjustments at LTHT - March 2019

This patient story explained how people with a learning disability and/or autism may experience hospital and talked about the importance of reasonable adjustments for disabled patients. Examples of reasonable adjustments that can be made across the Trust were presented by volunteers with a learning disability and/or autism at the end of the video included examples such as “give me enough time” and “speak clearly and use simple words”.

You can view the story here:#treatmewell

Celebrating Volunteering - January 2019

This patient story described a number of volunteers who had supported the Trust during winter 2018.  It showcased a range of activities they had undertaken such as helping out at meal times, being a helping hand and a person for patients to speak to. The volunteers described how rewarding they had found their experiences within the hospital and the challenges they face.

You can view the story here: Celebrating Volunteering 

Care of a Patient With Complex Needs (AMS) - November 2018  

This patient story explained how the abdominal, medicine and surgery CSU had responded to the reported experience of a young woman, Becky, with complex needs who required regular admission to their wards. The patient had shared their concerns originally with Healthwatch Leeds and this story was a good example of how the Trust had collaborated with Healthwatch Leeds to ensure an improved patient outcome was achieved.

You can view the story here: Care of Patient with Complex Needs

Maggie - A Valued Member of the Critical Care Team - September 2018

This patient story described a new initiative in Critical Care which involved the introduction of a volunteer and their PAT dog, Maggie, into the department.  The video showed how successful Maggie has been in providing distraction to patients and relatives in difficult situations.  Maggie has also improved morale in the department as staff enjoy the weekly visits and the difference they make to the people they are caring for.

Endoscopy Introduction: The Patient Journey - May 2018

This patient story was made in response to patient feedback in the endoscopy department. Patients had described not knowing what to expect when undergoing an endoscopy and the film was developed to improve patient understanding of the endoscopy journey.  

How it feels to be...LGBT

My Story: Joanne Lancaster

Connecting the dots: Geoff Roberts

You can view the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goamB3Ps1Ss&feature=youtu.be

Howard Beck: A Patient Story

You can view the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK36e2oXSgM&feature=youtu.be 

Improving Care After Death: Hospital Funerals

You can view the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmgP0DHAarQ&feature=youtu.be

A Carer's Story: Dementia and End of Life Care

You can view the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsgPXV9_rdg&feature=youtu.be

Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care

You can view the story here: Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care - YouTube