NO more relationships with 'girls next door'!; - after TWO in the 'Priory Street Posse'!

So, Saint Albans Abbey Ward PICU revisited four years
on from Spring 2004 and four whole months there then.
A mercifully short six weeks this time, with severe semi
serious attempts by the staff and I as a team, to at last
sort out my serious side effect problems – with my
haldol depot!
I arrived at Abbey ward at dusk at 6pm on Thursday 21 st
February, and soon settled in unlike Blackheath – as I knew the
ward routine, and most of the staff were old faithfuls whom I
knew well from last time. Ann, Cyril, the two Johns, Blessing,
Charles, and above all Maggie the witty, intelligent Ward
Manager all soon appeared when on shift. I noticed after just a
day on the ward several noticeable differences apart from
familiarity with Blackheath; and only several differences of note
from last time on this ward, which remained remarkably
unchanged since then. Obvious differences to Blackheath
were:
1. This was a lower grade of security of ward, so there was
only one troublesome (violent at all) patient the whole
time I was there, compared to about half previously
2. As a result, as well as the PICU only having eight beds not
sixteen as at Blackheath, the staff were totally in control,
especially as ever with a very over rigorous way of doing
things strictly to the minute, by the clock, still
3. It had been an early Spring in the London suburbs, with all
the Spring flowers blooming in the garden there that we
were often let out into for a smoke and a chat
4. Blackheath had been single sex, whereas this ward was
mixed and had two women most of the time
5. The food was back to appalling NHS standards, only
slightly better than on Mymms ward – and far from the
cordon bleu quality at the private Cygnet Wing!
Obvious differences to last time on this ward were: -
1. Above all, a very heavyweight rule for the smoking room –
these days only one person was allowed to smoke at once
- and what with nearly all eight patients smoking, there
was often quite a queue of smokers panting for a drag
while waiting for whoever was already in there to finish!
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