This hospital saved my life a few years back. I'm thankful that I can enjoy more moments with my family due to the care I received. I also appreciate those who generously donate blood. Especially those who give multiple times, as I required several transfusions to recover. God bless all the doctors, nurses, and staff at hospitals globally, who work hard for the benefit of others. Your support means a lot. read more

Royal Adelaide Hospital 'Short Stay' Mental Health Ward. *Starts Bad And Gets Worse.* To start with, the airconditioning is Loud and is on, full blast, 24 / 7. There is apparently no way to turn it down or off. If you have sensory issues, or find it 'too' loud, you are offered headphones. (How you're supposed to sleep with headphones on, is never mentioned.) Talking of sleeping, the beds do not have anything resembling blankets. You have a sheet and a thin cover. Period. With a very cold AC on, 24 hrs a day. I know I wasn't the only one using towels for warmth. The sheets and towels are also only changed when a patient leaves. Most are apparently only detained for a few days or a week. Some however are there for weeks. One lady I got to know slightly was detained for 8 weeks. Did I mention the sheets are only changed when a patient leaves? That's right, 8 weeks with the same set of sheets... No real medical help, or even counselling, is offered. The 'hospital' is simply a short term detention facility for those with mental health issues. A place to put them until they are deemed to be sufficiently cowed (Or drugged) to be released into society once more. Basically, the adult equivalent of being sent to your room until you calm down. The laundry facilities - Should you be fortunate enough to have a change of clothes available. Not everyone does. - are locked. You need to find a nurse and ask permission to wash your clothes. Then you need to find a nurse once more so you can change them to the dryer - and again to retrieve things once they're dry. (If you don't retrieve them they're tossed into a basket out in the dining room for anyone to help themselves to.) Drugs, multiple times a day, are mandatory. If you try to refuse, you are physically held down, stripped and forcibly injected. (I am female. *Everything* below the waist was on view to the five (!) men in the room, the time it happened to me.) I was given a bag containing further drugs when I left. I did not 'ask' for these drugs and I did not 'want' them. I was told I was not allowed to leave the hospital without them. No mention of anything else was made. Imagine my surprise when I received a bill, a week or so later, in the mail, for the drugs I did not ask for or want... I won't go on about the legalized harassment that is called follow-up 'care' and basically consists of people turning up to question you, at home and work, at irregular intervals, several times a week for the next six weeks... Among other things, extremely embarassing, as they make no attempt at discretion. Overall an extremely unpleasant experience. Signed An ex-patient who is now scared to seek help for her problems because she is afraid of ending up back in 'hospital' again. read more

18/1/2012 I have only been to the Royal Adelaide once ever in my whole entire life. I still remember that day. It was just another Saturday afternoon, one time last year. My eldest brother invited me out to play some intense street basketball. And what would a game of basketball be without another injury? I was dribbling the basketball at the top of the key, and just as I started to drive hard left for a sweet score, I heard a loud bang against my forehead against another male! BANG!!!! I suddenly blacked out! Once I regained consciousness, my head was throbbing in pain! And then all of a sudden, I had blood rushing down my lips and hands. You know "the crimson red liquid" that I'm talking about - not red wine or the fake blood you see in Hollywood movies, but real blood. I admit, on the drive to the hospital, I was quite annoyed at my big brother for involving me in this street game, yet it was my fault for agreeing to it. I just couldn't resist another game of bball. At that time, I hoped that I didn't seriously injure any parts of my head, or had a major concussion...I was swearing profane words to myself in my own head, as my blood was still flowing down to my hands. I knew straight away I couldn't go back to the game, because when there is non-stop blood gushing out, it's time to rush straight away to the hospital immediately. NOW! No matter how badly I wanted to win that game! The ER at the Royal Adelaide Hospital was filled with happy, efficient, caring, and pleasant receptionists and nurses - which is saying a lot considering that all of them were staring at me walking in. They spoke softly to me, explaining that everything was going to be okay, and all I needed were several quick stitches on top of my eyebrow. I mean...I was freaking out a little in my head, so they knew how to calm me down! The best part? How fast those nurses were in stitching my eyebrow. We (me and the guy I bumped heads with) walked in, were treated within 10 minutes, and I was back at home in less than an hour, showing off my battle wounds to my disapproving parents. I still remember that day, and I am really thankful for Royal Adelaide Hospital and all of the wonderful staff there! Cheers! Since that day, I quickly learned my lesson, and I'm proud to say that I've never gone back to that street court again. I gave this 5 stars simply because of its most convenient location, and is the fastest and easiest emergency department to access if you're within or near the city. read more

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Well the government might want to build a new hospital and the facilities are looking a bit old but I recently had lung surgery here and regardless of the old buildings the staff were thoroughly professional and caring. They were always full of smiles, encouragement and went out of there way to be helpful and kind even SMSing an american friend for me on my phone to reply how I was when I was having trouble seeing straight. After the surgery I was put in a large room and told it was the "Queens room", well it was large and I'm not sure how I ended up with it other than I couldn't tolerate any of the medication they gave me and kept throwing it up. The food ( I requested vegetarian) was mixed, some meals were bland and tasteless others were quite nice it was a bit like lucky dip, the mushroom gnochi and vege quiche rated the best with me. But facilities aside the staff were the standout and I am very thankful to them for all their help and I think far more important than the building. read more

It's unfair to paint with such a broad brush--but what the hay--I'm going to anyway, because I'm a huge fan of the treatment I received at RAH. I'll try and be as specific to my experience as possible. As a Canadian I didn't have preconceived notions on private vs public care in the Aussie health system. Actually I did, I believe in universal health care and I think a two-tiered system is bullshit. But what I meant to say was that I didn't have any preconceived notions on the quality of either in the Australian system. Earlier this year, I had a fairly major surgery (thoracotomy) done publicly at the RAH and spent the better part of a week recovering in the cardiovascular ward (I believe) of the East Wing. First, I received the surgery in a timely fashion (under 2 months) for something that was non life-threatening. As you would expect everything in the lead up was well organised, professional and done exactly to protocol. But you might not have expected the warm, patient and attentive service generally delivered with a sense of humor. And the precautions done were extra, extra on the safe side. Perhaps the most noticeable aspect of an operation for a patient is the post surgery care. I spent one day in a room with three other people and was lucky to be moved into my own room for the duration of my time. I was on a ton of drugs, but other than the stress of having the surgery (and the pain) it was not an unpleasant experience. When I started feeling better (and lost the morphine clicker thingy) the treatment went into a slightly incongruent and less organised phase, where I couldn't quite go home but the hospital had lost some of its ability to deal with me. I'd caulk this up to the fact they allocate resources where they're needed the most. Overall I'm extremely grateful to the safe, top notch treatment from the RAH, thanks guys! And I'm so boring I can't even confirm the horror stories about the food. read more

I've gone with a mid range of stars since I have had both positive and negative experiences with this hospital. I personally have had day surgery here twice for different things. I found their day surgery unit to run very efficiently. The first time I was first cab off the ranks so I think I was home by about 11am and all done. It was amazing. I was quite sick after the anaesthetic though. More recently I as there earlier this year. In the newer day surgery unit. It was very nice. And heaps bigger than the old area used. I had to be there by 9am and was told I was 3rd. After waiting in my dressing gown for about 5 hours I was told 3rd is actually last and it would be a bit longer. So consider I never went through for surgery until almost 3pm it was pretty amazing I was home by about 7pm that night. And now they have stuff so you don't feel sick afterwards. I can't believe how amazing I felt when I woke up. It was great. However on the down side I would never choose to go to accident and emergency at this hospital. The waits are ridiculous, as they are everywhere. But I find the calibre of people you are forced to share the waiting room with here a little uncomfortable to say the least. I have seen full on fights in here. There are always security guards there and police and plenty of guards on patients as well. If I have to be in A & E and I have a long wait ahead I would prefer it be at another hospital thanks. As fort he controversy over the new hospital the government want to build.......this one has been upgraded quite majorly over the last 10 years or so. It is in a great location and it makes sense budget wise to finish the upgrade rather than build an entire new facility. But that's just my opinion. read more

I've had a couple of experiences in the RAH, and they have been quite good really. Mostly to do with mystery allergic reactions I was having. I would suddenly break out in hives, itch, my face would swell, rash etc, pretty bad like a nut allergy really. I was rushed to the RAH and immediately shoved through emergency without even signing in because there was risk my airways would close over. I was treated great by lovely caring people in emergency and although there was a wait on most things once I was in, that is to be expected. Since the severe reactions I have had numerous testing appointments in the immunology unit which were pre booked and organised. The nurses were great and catered for me (as I'm weak and faint from like anything medical) with fans, cordial, chocolate, TV, reclinas, magazines and chatting. I honestly haven't had too many medical experiences overall in my life, but the ones I have had in the RAH have been fine, considering it's inner city location and the amount of patients (and type) it deals with. read more

Why does everything always take so long at the RAH?! Outpatient appointments, Emergency Department visits, etc. it's all so frustrating! Can't see that the new hospital will improve things much . I'm not saying that nurses and doctors have easy jobs, because they don't, but having things happen more efficiently and without procrastinating would be appreciated. read more

I had the misfortune of limping into the Royal Adelaide's emergency room one weeknight after an unfortunate klutzy moment. On the one hand I'm grateful we have a public health system in this country, on the other I literally raced out and signed myself up for private hospital cover the very next day. Yes it was that bad! Aside from the MANY horror stories I've heard surrounding Golden Staph infections there and my subsequent refusal to touch anything or ideally breathe the air, my waiting room experience was the stuff of legends. I was among the oddest variery of humans I've ever seen and it appeared that an entire family was actually bedding down for the night on the hard, plastic chairs. There were repeated reminders regarding intolerance for violence, abuse and such, which does nothing to ease the pain - especially if you've no chance of a quick escape in your injured state. Apparently I have no good reason to complain since my wait was very swift at a mere four and a half hours from start to finish. I felt more sorry for the poor sod next to me wearing a pirate patch after an ocular mining accident - he was still in the waiting room as I left (dragging my leg behind me). WTF? Surely eye beats ankle everytime! On the bright side the staff were making lemonade from their lemons and were doing their best to be kind and helpful to the bunch of sorry-looking (and feeling) mob before them. In a nutshell - good if you need it but pray to the hospital gods you don't! read more

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I have luckily not had an encounter with here yet, however the same can not be said for my father. This hospital was great in restoring him to full health after falling off his bicycle. Hospital food is also apparently quite good according to my grandfather, and the doctors are generally quite friendly. The place seemed very organised and clean when I was there, however I guess that when they move to their new location that the corridors shall become less crowded. read more

I recently had an out patient appointment in this hospital. My appointment was for 11:30 am and I presented myself 15 minutes before my scheduled appointment. I waited till 12:30 pm and was still not called in. I noticed that several patients who came after me and had appointment after me were called in. When I queried this with the nurse she said "it is the Doctors prerogative to call patients in the order she wants" I completely disagree with this and the attitude of such nurses should change. A new posh building will not help. The hospital complaints procedure is equally bad. I took them several reminders and weeks before they even acknowledged receipt of the complaint. Instead of impartially assessing the merits of the complaint they try to make excuses for the doctors and nurses at the clinic. I am from a medical background and worked in the NHS in the UK. The attitude there is different if an error was made an apology would have defused the situation. read more

A relative was an emergency admission at RAH a couple of weeks ago and frankly I am pretty appalled about a few things. The actual medical care is excellent, so no complaints there. What has appalled me is more of an administration issue. Apparently it is customary with orthopaedic patients requiring rehab to kick them off to a rather ancient looking 'hospital' (which doesn't even have a doctor on premises after hours) to wait for rehab. So no further progress is being made, the patients are just hanging around for an indeterminate period waiting for the actual help. THE RAH tell the patients they are going directly to rehab, a blatant untruth. They are given multiple different stories by various nurses because apparently it is not deemed important that the patients give informed consent. After all, you can't escape with broken limbs. There is NO excuse for misleading and ignoring patients. read more

I have not had any good experiences with the RAH. I constantly have to stand up for the rights of a family member. It is as though the staff try to wear you down so that you do what they want you to do not what you want and feel is good for your family member. Thank goodness I have private health insurance. I feel blessed for that. I would not recommend RAH. read more