Lesbatees

"Lousy food was a small price to pay for the peace of mind in other aspects" Couldn't agree more. Just back from an 8 day stay for major surgery, the standard of care was superb, the cleanliness of the wards couldn't be faulted, and the nursing staff dealt patiently with the fact that my grasp of the French language tended to desert me at the most inopportune moments. One little incident says it all. On the day of the operation, to my great surprise, they let me keep my Sony Walkman right up to the point they knocked me out - I was expecting to be told to leave it in the room. I passed out happily to the glorious strains of JS Bach. When I came to, hubby, who had been waiting for me in my room, reported he had found it waiting for me on the bedside table. Some kind soul had made the journey from ground to third floor in order to deliver it before I woke up. I was impressed. Afraid as far as the food was concerned tho' it was omelette every night for five nights. My surgeon reckoned desperation was a big factor in my swift recovery. :-). Val

[quote]Can't say I have had much of a wait in the Royal Berks, I think once with something non serious we were there a couple of hours but apart from that, pretty quick - instant in the case of my son who ha...[/quote] Ever been there on a Saturday night, Gaye? I think you'd find that waiting times are a teeny bit longer then, from what I hear. Despite living 5 minutes down the road I managed to keep well away from the place during my time as a citizen of Reading. Making up for it now, tho'. Becoming depressingly familiar with the inside of French hospitals (sigh!!). Val

I'm sending our details, too. Good idea. Keep up the good work! Val

We don't have a telly at home, so I was introduced to French TV during a recent hospital stay. Watching Dallas, Little House on the Prarie, Stargate SG-1 and Alias dubbed in French has to rank as one of the most surreal experiences of my life so far. Found French soaps incomprehensible, but I suppose you have to know what has been happening before any of it makes sense. Do they have an Archers equivalent? Val

Thanks all. Glad its not just me - I don't feel quite so deprived now! I even felt quite lucky after reading the black pudding story (yuk!). With regard to the veggie isue we wrote a letter expressing our disappointment to the administration of the Clinique which I put with the customer satisfaction survey left for me to fill in. We pointed out that the booklet they give you at the beginning of the stay does say that special diets can be easily accommodated. Of course, we haven't received an answer. I'm due to go in for another extended stay in early Feb - be interesting to see if anything changes. Somehow, I doubt it. Ah wel, c'est la vie. Val

... or is it just me? After all the wonderful things I'd read about French hospital catering, I was expecting a culinary treat each day. Boy, was I disappointed! The food I was served was every bit as bad as the school dinners I remember with loathing. Tired veg, tinned fruit, same bloody packet soup for starter every evening ... Of course, I wasn't expecting much on the vegetarian front, but JUST plain boiled pasta with not even a hint of sauce five nights out of fourteen was a bit much even by French standards. If it wasn't for my other half, who cooked me pies, nutroasts and pasties and bought them in every day, I'd have starved. To rub it in, a friend who was in Reading's Royal Berks hospital around the same time was offered three different choices of menu - standard, vegetarian and halal - and said that all three were great. Maybe I was just unlucky. What have your experiences of French hospital catering been like? Val

[quote]Thank you for your comments. I did, in fact, arrange another appointment for next Monday with the same gynaecologist and we agreed that I would try, as many of you suggested, bringing a French-speaki...[/quote] Evo, That seems a positive solution to me. Hope everything goes OK, and will be thinking of you. Best wishes, Val

Firstly, I do understand how you feel. I am currently undergoing treatment for both breast cancer and fibroids. Of all the things that have happened to me in the last few months, nerving myself to go to that first appointment with a gynaecologist was the most frightening. But – and it is a big but – although I feel the tone of Alexis’ post was rather harsh, it is essentially correct. Even if you do find a gynaecologist who is also a fluent English speaker, you will inevitably find yourself dealing with nurses and other hospital staff who speak only French once your diagnosis is made and you begin treatment. You cannot hide forever – you do not say what is wrong with you, but if you suspect it might be serious delay could be life-threatening. Is you pride really worth that? My own experience has been that a lot can be overcome with good will on both sides. French health professionals, like English ones, actually do want to help you, and most will be patient with halting French, provided you do your best to prepare questions in advance. Treat it as part of your learning. It might also help if, as Russethouse suggests, you can find someone more fluent who would accompany you to the initial consultation. I was very lucky that a female French friend who is also a fluent English speaker agreed to come with me to my first appointment. My gynaecologist was quite happy with this arrangement, as it made things far easier for him. Oh, and the upside is that all my neighbours, the nurses at the hospital, and my oncologist reckon my French has improved a lot over the last couple of months! I hope things work out for you. Val

“Unless they do things differently up north to down south in the UK I'm not sure you are quite correct. There are no rates now but a council tax that is based on a band in which your type of house fits.(maybe!) My last house was in band C thank God, therefore the council tax 3 years ago was "only" £922.00 say €1309 @1.42. Last years Taxe Fonciere here was €637. The water was billed by Thames Water and bore no relation to the council tax. I can't find an old bill but it was a lot more than €180 for last year here, including watering the garden and 2 horses.” TU is actually right. In the UK water charges for non metered properties are calculated based on the (former) rateable value of the property. This is because the regulatory authority (Ofwat) has yet to come up with an alternative that would be regarded as fair and equitable by all parties involved. When I last looked at the statistics (which was a while ago now) only 25% of UK properties had a water meter installed, despite governmental and regulatory pressure on the water companies to increase take up of meters. UK water charges bear very little relation to the actual cost of providing the service, as they are set by the regulatory authority, Ofwat, on a five yearly periodic basis using a fiendishly complicated economic formula known as the K factor to determine by just how much above inflation the water companies may raise prices each year. The equation takes into account maintenance and replacement of equipment and the whole thing is then averaged out to ensure that customers in rural, hard-to-serve areas don’t end up paying over the odds. By contrast, here in France, metering is virtually universal. Unlike the UK form of privatisation, the system is subject to market forces. Communities own the plant and equipment, and companies tender for operations and maintenance contracts of varying lengths. Hence the wide variation in price per unit of water consumed across the whole country. That’s my understanding, anyway. Val (Ex Thames-Water employee)

Dear all, Can anyone tell me what is the French equivalent of those window locks you can get in the UK to stop kids opening the window and falling out? And where can I get them? Can't find anything at the Bricolages. Many thanks, Val

Help! I have a dental crown, which is mounted on a peg that fits in to (what used to be) the root of one of my front teeth. Damn thing has always been a problem, as periodically the cement that holds it in cracks and it comes loose. I need to go to the dentist. I've had a good one recommended to me, but he doesn't speak English. I've looked everywhere to find the French term for "crown", but I can't. Also, what words do I use to explain that the crown is loose? The dictionary is no help at all. Any assistance gratefully received. Val

Would suggest Gelozone or another veggie alternative if you use it. Hubby claims to have seen something similar in a local health food shop, but we haven't been back yet to check. Val

Can anyone help? The CD ROM drive of our three year old TIME computer is refusing to read CDs. You load one and it simply says "device not ready". Is this terminal, or is there anything we can do? Thanks, Val