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Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Has Anyone Else Heard The Same About PRMC?

Joe,

I am an avid reader of your site. It is the only site to address issues as they really are.

I have seen a lot on your site about City and County furloughs, but nothing on the PRMC situation.

There have been multiple layoffs lately, morale is low and most fear for their jobs.

Today they are arriving at work to find out their vacations have been cut by two days.

Wonder if the top heavy management there are getting the same treatment.

Just wondering if you had any knowledge on the subject.

I think in the end the patients will be the ones to suffer most.

41 comments:

Anonymous said...

Why should they be any different than any other business?

Anonymous said...

I hope they go under their service SUCKS thats rite it Sucks took my wife there last friday nite took 45 mins to get looked at by triage then we waited another hour in the waiting room before walking out and going to Atlantic General there we were in and out in less than 50 mins

I have no love for PRMC they spent too much on that abomination of the so called tower decimated a neighborhood in the name of making gravel parking lots and thats just the start... hopefully someone in the city will stop them from buying more land they have enough and what they do have looks like hell as they dont maintain it hell the roof of one house they have on center street has a 1 foot round hole in it and there are animals running around inside it ... it would be a good slum of the week property but no one lives next to it

I say Down with them

Anonymous said...

PRMC makes millions every day, this is crazy

Anonymous said...

ditto 9:14 and why is dp&l on strike. these union members need to get a life. do they yet realize the severity of the economic situation?

Anonymous said...

Thought there was a nursing shortage??? Guess not...I heard they were laying staff off...is this true?

Anonymous said...

They need to lay off whoever is responsible for taking soiled sheets off the floor to the laundry. That 4th floor stinks. The smell of feces and urine will knock you out as soon as you round the corner. I realize the patients are ill and make a mess on their beds. I also know the beds are changed ASAP. What I also know is these soiled sheets are left out in the hallway and not removed to the laundry or another area where the smell is not offensive to patients, visitors and medical staff. I don't know how the staff works with that strong odor, it gave me a headache. And another thing, foul odors are caused by bacteria, this bacteria is out in the hallway for anyone and everyone to breathe.

Anonymous said...

i was suffering migraine-type headaches at one point a few years back. i could not stand up. sunlight killed my eyes. this continued for a few days. it was dreadful.
when i went to them, they gave me a spinal tap to test for meningitis (SP?). they said i didnt have it and tried to send me on my way. i said i still have the headache. they let me lie down and gave me IV fluids. THEN sent me on my way.
less than a week later, i had to go back because the headaches never stopped. they said it was from the spinal tap that my headache was there and pretty much refused to check me any further.

2 relatives died under their care as well...

so im going to have to agree with 933am. down with prmc!

Anonymous said...

Every side of the story whines and puts forth their own version. Nurse shortage so pay me more, medicaid short pays us so we have to raise rates, working coniditions are terrible but I don't want to leave, non-insured expenses that we are not being re-imbursed for.....it goes on forever. But it is the business of health care so why should it be any different? The good news is Obama will fix it so nobody has to work and gets everything free.

Anonymous said...

PRMC is a sh*thole of a hospital. Plain and simple. I'm just glad I can go to better places off the shore, I'd hate to be stuck having to go there for their substandard service and dunce doctors who couldn't hack it elsewhere.

Anonymous said...

Rumors I have heard that employees are being fired for use of cell phones on their own personal time, no cell phones in patient care areas, but employees that are not even clocked in on their work time are being fired. At what point does the facility think you are on their time:driving to work, driving in to the parking lot, walking to the facility door, walking up the stair, taking the elevator, or walking to clock in. IMHO i think this is overkill. there are problems that personnel have to attend to before work, family issues and now with the slow deterioration of the landlines, the cell is the only means of communication or contact. AGAIN, this is all rumor.

Been Around Awhile said...

PRMC is just falling in line with other hospitals in the area (Easton, Kent) by laying off staff. PRMC has never been the best company with regards to treating their workers well. It has been said many times in the past to workers there..."You won't quit. Where else are you going to go?" So this news does not surprise me.

p.s.: Instead of waiting in PRMC's "triaged" ER waiting room, go to one of the private companies operating in our area (ie: Your Doc Is In) & be seen in half the time.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Anon 9:33 AM. The biggest problem is with the p!ss poor leadership they have always had.

Anonymous said...

9:33 AM - Obviously by listening to your complaints you have never been to a New York City Hospital. You complain about waiting 45 mins in triage. How about waiting several hours. Thankfully, if your wife was in and out of Atlantic General, there was nothing seriously wrong. Once she was triaged she most likely had to wait for more serious patients to be taken care of. A heart attack or major injury trumps migrane. Its amazing how a person has one unfortunate incident and they condemn the whole hospital.

Anonymous said...

You might just wait 45 minutes at PRMC if it's NOT an emergency. AGH is not a trauma center, that's why you can get in out so quickly.
Another thought, why would they be laying off people when they have so many job openings on their website?

Anonymous said...

1056-I have experience with PRMC's ER. I found the best way to get my family member into care immediately was to be kind, yet intimidating. I knew which door to open, led him to a bed in the back, and kicked it at the nurses station until the first doc I saw, then kindly led him to my father. I wasn't waiting on them, and having been very experienced with being in hospitals and caring for family members, I've found it to work the best.

Anonymous said...

i went to prmc once upon a time. taken in by ambulance with severe chest pains. diagnosis was indegestion, this was on friday night.
by tuesday my general practitioner sent me to a cardiologist because he didnt lik emy ekg. then to seaford hospital, by wed i was in johns hopkins with a bloodclot in my heart.

yeah prmc is sooooo great.

Anonymous said...

a side story...a friend told me he got a stint put in the wrong part of his heart after a heart attack. they left that one in there and had to re-do the second (which was the first).

Anonymous said...

Ahhhhh the PRACTICE of medicine

Anonymous said...

@ 11:20, trust me. Its not one bad incident that has given this hospital a bad reputation.
I am willing to bet this is just the start. This goes deeper than the waiting time for treatment.
I have also heard the cell phone story and have been told by an employee that its true to a point.
PRMC's politics go way back before the healthcare change and its only going to get worse.
They have positions posted but a hiring freeze so dont get your hopes up if you applied.
I agree 10:56...the urgent care centers are the way to go unless your dying and if thats the case, you wont have to worry about the wait.

Anonymous said...

Stop whinning , anyone who puts in time at that place is just stealing. A bunch of lazy a$$ liberals. I hope they shut the place down. Sorry mexicans , and welfare recips. .

Anonymous said...

I took my daughter to the ER at age 2 with a seizure caused by fever. Later to find out that its fairly minor and she was fine in an hour or so. My issue is that if I had not been there they would have double dosed my daughter with the same medication. Thats right. Two different nurses came in to give the same thing. Yes I stopped them and after multiple calls to the E.R. Nurse Director with no response I had to threaten to go to the Chairman of the board before she would return my calls. AGH is a great hospital.

Anonymous said...

Don't know much about the layoffs and such, but I do know a little about the ER/ED wait time....
This can be blamed on every Tom, Dick and Harry of all races, and colors using the ER/ED as there primary care docs.. for stupid crap (my back has been hurting for years, head hurts from drinking to much, i have a cough, my body aches, my temp is elavated, and the list could go on and on).
Now IF people would use the ER/ED correctly then the wait times would be less. Oh, then there is that LAW that requires all hospitals to treat you even if you can't pay...

Give PRMC a break people!

Anonymous said...

Having the President of PRMC walking around dressed in Scrubs with her hair pulled back trying to catch anyone doing something wrong just to fire them. Cutting two days off the employees vacation! I work very hard at my job and if my boss told me they were taking 2 days off my 2 weeks. I wouldn't be putting my all into the job anymore.
You don't improve cutomer satisfaction, moral, and better a place by beating down the worker bees. How about the head people taking a pay cut to save money?

Anonymous said...

@237pm

i feel ya! my mother went in to the ER once because she was dizzy (no kiddin). my sister asked if she had taken her vertigo pill. the answer was no. *sigh*
some people just love the attention.

Anonymous said...

PRMC is a joke. My grandmother was admitted after suffering a heart attack a few months ago. She was in there for a few days. I went to go visit her one day and a nurse came in trying to give her diabetic medication (My grandmother is NOT a diabetic!) After that incident I found out from her that they came in the night before and tried to give her the same diabetic medication!! Thank god she was coherent enough to tell them she was not a diabetic,otherwise who knows what would've happened to her! The staff needs to pay attention to what they are administering to patients...that is ridiculous! I don't trust anyone at the hospital!

Anonymous said...

It is very disrespectful after 20 years of service to be told that you will be having 15 hours (2days) deducted from ur vacation time because of "the hardship" that the hospital is in at this time. They say they are doing us a favor by not making us take unpaid days off instead! Thats bull crap - get rid of those 6 to 7 employees that are standing out in the parking lots moving cones around telling people they will move the cone so they can park there - what a joke!!!! Or the guy thats supposed to be parking cars in the main lobby thats standing there talking crap all day long 5 days a week! I look forward & have earned my vacation how dare they take it away! Get rid of some of these supervisors that are not needed since there are coordinators etc in place. We don't need Directors, supervisors & coordinators telling us what the hell to do - wtf! Knock out the golf tournament & 5k runs - nobody wants that mess except the higher ups that feel they deserve these little perks & the hospital foots the bill - I bet their vacation isn't being decreased.... PRMC is a joke!

Anonymous said...

1:54

Was it a STINT ir a STENT????

Anonymous said...

Low morale at an eastern shore business. No way. I feel your pain, its just as sh*tty down at 2011 N Salisbury Blvd. The lack of leadership around here is pathetic. This is a weird area if you ask me.

Anonymous said...

PRMC management SUCKS!!!! Anytime you think it can't get worse just hold on and the next one is lots worse. You now have 3 females running the place and it is BAD!!! Peggy Nalepa is a B**** and NO one likes her. and then there is Karen Poisker who is Nursing Director and could care less about the nurses...just sucks up to management's ass. She is a joke in itself. What ever happen to the management that actually looked out for their staff? like Doris Taylor and Doris Hammond and Edie Johnson. They were the real deal....not these clowns that are in there now. No one wants to work there now..... that's why there have to boat in the foreign nurses. What a sad time. The establishment gets bigger and bigger and it's reputation gets worse and worse. But give them alot of money and they will put your name on one of their area's. Hey Gueirre's or Hanna's or Layfield's why don't you donate to a fund to get better management in there or pay the staff better. Oh I forgot you wouldnn't get recognition if you did that would you. I guess rich people have the desire for recognition instead of truly helping the people who work very hard to service the community. And Dr Todd, you are really what made that hospital come to life when you started the heart center and it should be the Todd Tower after all what did Virginia Layfield do to deserve it (oh I forgot...she gave money)!!!

Anonymous said...

As an upclose and personal witness to the quality of nursing care at PRMC all I can say is go back to school! PRMC is firing the experienced nurses who are needed to teach the new grads; no one knows what the H#** to do. They bring in foreign nurses who were taught to do what the doctor says and not critically think much less understand the nursing process taught in AMERICAN nursing schools, who have taken new grad and experienced nursess jobs. Better yet they are being paid more money than existing staff members with more experience, provided housing allowances, getting pregnant as soon as they get here. How can you expect a foreign nurse who's only cared for infants to begin to take care of adult critical care patients??? Much less can anyone understand what she is saying?
I say to the "suits" walk a mile in a nurses shoes for more than a day, your eyes will be opened! Karen Poisker and Peggy Nalepa SHAME on you for allowing the integrity of nursing to completely disappear from your life! You claim patient care is of utmost importance.....what a joke! You take away 14 telemetry beds, decrease staff on a neuro unit that requires close supervision of compromised patients; take away vacation time......Be careful bad Karma has a way of biting you in the butt! Your Heath grade status is simply words on a banner...God help your facility if JCAHO decides to do a surprise visit. Pulling a Nalepa, walking around in scrubs to "catch" all the dispicable infractions that go on every day!

To the Hanna's, Guerieri's, & Layfield's...build a new hospital to be run by physicians and nurses not by suits who do not have a clue what it means to give quality safe and ethical care of patients.

Anonymous said...

@9:43 today, AMEN!!!! This is the problem at hand...not the damn waiting time in the E.D.

Anonymous said...

This should be moved to newer posts where its easier to see....the good stuff is finally starting to come out.

Ken Smith said...

Our experience with the ER in particular and the hospital in general has been good.

Anonymous said...

@ 3:41- Your grandmother may not have been diabetic but if she was on steroids or because of another med her blood sugar may have been repeatedly high; in which case a Dr. would order sliding scale insulin. Maybe you should research the practice before you bad-mouth it.

Anonymous said...

i WORKED at PRMC's ER, and would never suggest for anyone to work there. as far as medical care i feel the doctors and nurses are very good, i would let any doctor there treat me. as far as how they treat their nurses and other staff, well........ let me say, people must stay because slaves have to be sold. they cant quit. it is sad they are the only choice in town. i now commute two hours to work and i an sooooooo much happier. i am paid twice as much, the director of the ER and all managment staff work on the floor with patients. i came to work the other day my director was starting an IV and giving medications. and yes it is as big as PRMC's ER 55 beds. i bet you managment at PRMC could not mak it one hour taking care of patients. if they have no idea to do what their employees do for 12 hours, how the he** can they tell them how to do it? oh i could go on and on and on. i think the care is great there but i will drive across the bridge haveing chest pain just because i dont want to feel the "masters" of PRMC!

Anonymous said...

10:16 I totally agree with you!

Anonymous said...

Most people who are making negative comments who are ex employees who are just plain pissed off cause they have been fired...PRMC reputation has improved dramatically with the new administration...Why are you blaming PRMC for cutting days...HELLO PEOPLE WE ARE IN A RECESSION and it also affects non profits....So why don't you people who are hating get a life and try to find another job at a Hospital on the Western Shore and see how long you last..TOO MANY UNEDUCATED PEOPLE WITH NOT ALL THE FACTS...

Anonymous said...

The last post must be one of peggy's family members... how boring. peggy came from the western shore, southern maryland to be exact and they have the worst hospitals anywhere! And she was affiliated them. Also, Calvert memorial has ecare and now look prmc has ecare how quaint. Is she getting a kick back form this multi million dollar deal? I'm sure there are some perks involved!
PRMC has been an outstanding hopital for the eastern shore with outstanding employees! since peggy has taken over revenue, profits, employees, and morale has been down.the local community should still think of prmc as the place to take care of their loved ones, prmc employees love taking care of members of their community, the community that they themselves live and work in.peggy will be gone and we will have a new flavor of the month in a few years.

Christina42 said...

You must file complaints against Peninsula Regional Medical Center.
My husband’s cancer was misdiagnosed, resulting in a year of treatment for the wrong cancer, and his untimely death in 2007.
My husbands mother died of gangrene, in the hospital, just days after her operation on her colon in 2003.
My experience in the mental health system turned into a nightmare. The care is substandard, at best. Because I am not an addict or alcoholic, there was no programs or treatment. After I was home and seeking continued care, I had to contact the social worker regarding an error she had made. Her response was to argue with me about whether or not she had made this error, and rather than correct it, she stated “if you’re so smart you handle it” and hung up on me. This woman, Tanita Brown, then responded to my complaint, along with her boss, by lying about our conversation, disputing was was clearly written out in the discharge paperwork, and claiming that I was rude and used foul language. It is easy to get away with such slander when you are the hospital, and the complaintant was treated in the mental health wing. They responded to the Joint Commission and the DMH with the same false information about appointments and dates. Despite the fact that their claims are contradicted by the documentation, no action was taken. No apologies were made. I spent weeks trying to line up proper care for myself.
Do not let PRMC continue to operate in this manner. One complaint at a time can be covered up, two complaints can be dismissed, but the hospital, the Joint Commission, and the Maryland Department of Health cannot ignore all of your voices of anger at once.
There is the Joint Commission, the Maryland Department of Health, the hospital itself, and of course, you can always contact a lawyer.

Unknown said...

I've been in and out of prmc some good some bad there's some of their staff really sucks I'm still sick I want back last week and waited 8 hours and got lost in the systemthey kept telling me I was not and every hour went by I finally left I'm scared to go back but I'm still really sick

Anonymous said...

Do not take people you care about to prmc. They dont care about people and would just let you die. How the hell did they get a good rating?