I must admit, when I was told I would have to go to an AandE as I writhed in pain on my bed, I considered enduring it. I had heard and reported stories about the long wait times people faced before being seen in hospitals.
So, needless to say, I was quite apprehensive about what was going to happen. But nothing could have prepared me for what I witnessed when I got there.
This is the stuff we fear, and this is the stuff that we don't anticipate - at least I certainly didn't when I started my day. I had been experiencing stomach aches as night fell for around 2 days consecutively at this point.
I didn't think too much of it. I had been exercising at my gym when the pain returned.
I knew something wasn't right, so I cut my gym session short and decided to head home. However, as I was heading home, it began to worsen, reports Wales Online.
I tried a hot shower, hoping the pain would ease but it didn't work. When it became so severe I found it difficult to move, I thought it best to seek help.
I called 111, the NHS Wales Helpline, just before midnight at 11:12pm. I don't recall the wait being long, however, and was soon able to speak to a professional.
To my dismay, the person on the other end informed me that a medical professional would be calling me back, but it could take almost two hours for them to get back to me. Luckily, I received a call back at 11:52pm, and was instructed to go to a hospital.
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I live alone, my family is across continents, and most of my friends live at least an hour away. So I was prepared to spend the night alone.
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However, when I got to Morriston Hospital's AandE, at around 12.30am (the next day now), I realised exactly how wrong I was. I wasn't alone; there were many people waiting to be seen just like me, with the only difference being - some were worse than me.
There was a solemn silence, however, punctuated only by the buzzing noise coming from the vending machines. Everyone in the AandE had a worried look on their faces, understandably.
They all had their aches, their pains, and their own long wait. One of the only things breaking the silence, and the anxious, monotonous look on the faces of people, was an occasional nurse calling out people's names to take them in to be looked after.
Those who were called out jumped out of their seats as best as they could, while others, like me, waited patiently for their turn. I held my belly, as it continued to give me the same pain, others clutched their heads while several others lay down in the waiting room.
There was another thing that broke the silence, a person, who I later learned had problems with his pancreas, moaning with pain, sometimes having to throw up. I had taken to writing short notes about the entire experience on my phone.
As I look at my notes now, at 12.45am, I had written: "Only thing I can do [to] distract myself from pain is to write. But now I'm finding it difficult to ignore".
After penning this, I was overcome with a wave of nausea. The agony in my stomach had escalated to such an extent that I found it impossible to remain still.
I squirmed in discomfort on the waiting room couch. Soon, the sickness became unbearable, and I dashed to the lavatory in the waiting area - I felt as though I was about to vomit.
Now, a trigger warning is necessary, as I'm about to recount what transpired, and if you're sensitive to descriptions of medical conditions or symptoms, please bypass this paragraph. My memory of the exact events is hazy, but I recall belching violently, and the next thing I knew, I was kneeling over the toilet bowl, coughing and retching.
This ordeal lasted nearly 10 minutes, but thankfully, or perhaps regrettably, I didn't vomit. I managed to compose myself and staggered out of the restroom.
Whatever had occurred seemed to alleviate my pain significantly. It was still present, but it now ebbed and flowed.
I don't remember much after that, as I was primarily recuperating from the ordeal I had experienced around 12:50am. Finally, at approximately 2:30am, a nurse attended to me, took my blood pressure, checked other vital signs, drew some blood and instructed me to wait once more for a doctor's consultation.
Before being seen by the nurse, I hadn't paid much attention to my surroundings. However, after returning from my consultation, feeling somewhat better despite not having received treatment yet, I noticed the long wait times in the AandE waiting room.
As time passed, hunger set in and I observed people making trips to the vending machines, only to return empty-handed. When I felt peckish, I too approached the vending machines for a snack and a drink.
To my disappointment, the machine didn't accept card payments from my phone. Thinking it was a fault with that specific machine, I tried another one, but to no avail.
I had been advised to avoid caffeine, so I didn't bother with the hot drinks machines. This was a letdown, not just for me but for others as well.
No one plans a visit to AandE and often doesn't have time to pack food. The long waiting times at the hospital are already a challenge, and this issue only added to the discomfort.
The Swansea Bay University Health Board issued an apology regarding the vending machine debacle, stating: "We apologise for anyone affected by the issue with the vending machine.
The health board already had plans in place to improve and modernise the food and drink vending offer in the ED waiting room. A new machine was ordered but unfortunately it was delayed. However, we are pleased to confirm it has now been delivered."
Meanwhile, patients languished in long waits, as one individual recounted speaking to someone who had been there since 8pm or 9pm after approaching them sometime after 2.45am. Another patient was seen vomiting before finally receiving medical attention.
By 4am, another patient noted their pain subsiding on its own, prompting a fellow waitlisted individual to quip that perhaps the lengthy wait was a form of treatment. Despite this attempt at humour, the grim reality of the overcrowded waiting room allowed no space for laughter.
People continued to await medical care, some having been assessed by a nurse while newcomers joined the queue. Amidst visible agony and silent endurance, a shared sense of frustration pervaded the atmosphere.
By 6.45am, I was already questioning if there had been a mistake, surely it can't take this long before they attend to me and others who arrived at the same time. I noticed new faces entering the AandE, and some who had been waiting longer than me had already departed after receiving their treatment.
However, the shared sense of worry, anxiety, and frustration was palpable in the waiting room. Finally, at around 8.45am, I heard what I had been anxiously awaiting.
The doctor summoned me for consultation. I had arrived at Morriston Hospital's AandE at approximately 12:30pm, making it over 8 hours since my initial arrival.
The doctor posed a few questions, conducted an examination, and concluded that I was suffering from food poisoning, which would resolve itself in a few days without medication. I was finally discharged at around 9am, relieved that I did not have any serious condition, but also deeply concerned about what I'd witnessed.
I was fortunate that my illness wasn't severe, however, not everyone is as lucky. Individuals with serious illnesses should not have to endure such long waits for treatment.
I have no qualms about the treatment I received, nor any complaints about the NHS staff who, I believe, do their utmost with the resources at their disposal. This is not a new problem, nor is it confined to Swansea; it's a crisis that affects the whole of Wales.
If this was my experience in AandE for a minor ailment, what must it be like for those suffering more severe conditions, enduring greater pain and discomfort, and potentially waiting hours just to be seen, let alone treated?
What does it say about a country that struggles to care for its sick, I can't say. All I know is that if things don't drastically improve, people like those I encountered in Morriston Hospital will continue to endure pain across Wales, as they anxiously await medical attention during some of the most challenging times in their lives.
