First, let me say that I do really love our new ER, I love that the rooms are all walled in and mostly private. I love that it has its own departments, making wait times shorter..

However, the other day I had H1N1, and I experienced a bad reaction to Tamiflu. The new 811 service said I needed to go to the ER, so I did. They have a quarantined waiting room for flu patients - but I was never shown where it was. They just yelled my full name across the room for everyone when they were ready for me.

I was taken to an "intake" room with only chairs, where a nurse asked me 3 basic questions that the EMT had already asked and then left me alone. My friend that brought me was not allowed in with me (even though she is a nurse).

I was finally placed in a room, alone, again my friend was not allowed in. A doctor assessed me, told me he was "going to give me a needle, and then water 30 mins later". He then left, and a nurse came in, jabbed me with a needle, and left.... without giving me a basin to vomit in, without giving me a call bell. I was totally alone after an injection for 30 minutes, in a room with closed doors, and no way to summon anyone if anything happened.

The nurse returned 30 minutes later to give me water, but again did not ask how I was doing, or provide me with a call bell or a basin to vomit in. When the inevitable vomiting happened, I was forced to use a garbage receptacle, as the room I was in did not even have a washroom facility available to me.

When I was finally released, the doctor said I was free to go. No one showed me how to get out of the maze that is the new ER, and no one escorted me out - I was completely alone again until my friend came to pick me up.

I can't seem to find anywhere on their website that allows me to contact someone - but it seems to me that this was unsafe. Giving someone an injection and leaving them unsupervised for 30 minutes afterwards, and also letting them leave the hospital alone after an ER visit is just plain unsafe and distressing for the patient. I know nurses are busy, but this is common sense - I was terrified that I was going to have a reaction to this medication as well and no one would notice until it was too late.

---Outpatient out of patience