I've been in the hospital twice in the past year (once to visit my grandfather, once to have my appendix removed), and I was really bothered by the lack of communication. In my grandfather's case, the nurses were bewildered by the fact that his blood pressure varied so wildly between lying down and standing (which causes him to pass out). I finally had to ask them "Surely the doctor told you he has Shy-Drager syndrome, right?" They had no idea that this was normal for him, and will only get worse as he gets older. If it only took me 30 seconds to explain it to them, why couldn't his doctor have done the same.

When I had my appendix removed, I was on a couple of prescription medications, which I brought with me to the hospital to ensure I got the names correct when I informed the front desk clerk as I was admitted. Two days later my nurses had a hissy fit when they discovered that not only was I on prescription medications (this somehow hadn't been communicated), but that I was also administering them myself (apparently a no-no in the hospital).

Apparently no one talks to each other in hospitals.