title: A family's perception of a public hospital.
abstract: This article tells of one family's recent perceptions of major public hospital. Their story is a personal one hat revolves around the illness of a family member. Visiting their loved one every day meant they gained heightened awareness of the day-to-day running of the hospital. As the patient had to stay in hospital nger than originally anticipated the family members begin to observe details of contemporary hospital life not noticed on occasional visits. What they perceive leads them to question those often heard, and taken-for-granted, values of efficiency, accountability and competitiveness.
authors.affiliation: Australian Catholic University, Melbourne.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cullen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001315:Australia; D006779:Hospitals, Public; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D005791:Patient Care; D012938:Social Perception