I suffered a severe stroke last march.
and on arrival at the hospital. was eventually sent for a CT scan.which showed no problems although I couldn’t walk my face had dropped and my arm was paralyzed. the consultant suspected a Tia
and I was sent home.the next day I fell
in the house,and back to hospital I went.
another CT scan no issues. my wife insisted on an MRI, but was told they had no one to
operate it as it was Easter break.
anyway my wife printed off the correct procedure in these cases. from her relative
who works in a top London hospital stroke
ward. and after a heated discussion with the consultant. as a result I had suffered
severe stroke affecting a large area of brain. So please don’t be afraid to challenge the decisions of the doctors sometimes. I’m here now because of my wifes determination. this is not a criticism of the doctors,more a failure of the system
occasionally.
Thank you for sharing this with us - this is excellent advice and I hope someone will benefit from it.
You are absolutely right when you say you are here because of your wife’s determination.
It is a terrible shame you were sent home after your first visit and didn’t get the service you needed because it was Easter and there was no one to operate the scanner 
I do not understand why the hospitals, medical profession thinks people do not fall ill at the weekends and on holidays - it is an absurdity, but nevertheless it is a sad fact of life that hospitals and other key services that should be available 24/7 are not. It might be me being idealistic, stupid or whatever, but healthcare cannot and should not be closing down at weekends and holidays.
Do supermarkets close down at weekends? Why is that supermarkets can operate and provide full if not extra service at weekends and holidays, yet doctors and other healthcare professionals cannot?
Back to your point which is to not be afraid to challenge. Doctors are not always right - they are only human after all and in my personal opinion, the healthcare professional today is not the healthcare professional of old
Look after yourselves and if you feel you have been short-changed go back and fight for your right to have the best care you can get.
Best wishes and happy challenging to all.
Namaste|
@richfinn as @ManjiB says it is such a shame you didn’t get the scan you needed on your first visit. Sadly this is quite common & does seem to depend on whete you live. I had an MRI on Christmas Eve so guess We had the staff needed. It is not unusual for a CT scan to miss a stroke too. An MRI is more detailed.
It is very important that we advocate for ourselves though. We are best placed to know something isn’t right. We do have to be forceful sometimes.
Best wishes
Ann
unfortunately it is the way down here in
Devon. we get the last bite of the apple.my hospital MRI machine is in the carpark on a trailer.
It is a bit of a post code lottery - the care and treatments vary from place to place. Neighbouring boroughs in London offer different levels of care and support.
Regardless of where you are, making sure you are able to challenge something that doesn’t sit right with you is most important. You know how you feel and if necessary, you can ask for second opinion etc.
That said, you may still not get the best treatment/care you deserve/need, but at least you know you will have tried 
In my husband’s case post stroke the CT showed nothing but thankfully an MRI followed and confirmed everyone’s concerns that he,d had a fairly big stroke.