Hi Joe,
I know that PRMC gets a lot of flack in the community sometimes for care that people deem to be less than appropriate but sometimes people need to be praised for the good jobs they do.
I encountered my 2nd bout with kidney stones in 6 months this past weekend. While my first had been uncomfortable to say the least, I exited the experience basically unscathed. Round 2 however would prove to be no walk in the park. I entered the ER on Friday evening at 7:25 and it was busy to say the least. I didn't fit into the "express crowd" so I waited for about an hour. I could tell the nurse behind the triage desk was "feeling my pain" and she got me in ASAP. Once I was in the care area...no grass grew under anyones feet. I was immediately assessed, labs drawn, and an IV started for delivery of pain medication to ease my IMMENSE discomfort. I was then taken for a CT and wasn't back from that 30 minutes before the doctor (Dr. Wild lol) was in and giving me the low down. The staff nurses backed him with the what-to-do-from-now-on rules and I was out the door and on my way home, in comfort, by 11pm.
When you are in that much pain, time is of the essence.
My hat is off to the fine ladies and gentlemen who did their jobs with expertise and professionalism on August 5th. I have followed the rules they put in place for my issue and things are going quite well for me.
However, should they go awry again in the future, I will have 100% faith in the crew at PRMC's Emergency Room.
Thanks so much!!
Angie Wilkins
I am really happy for you that the care you received at PRMC was exemplary. Having said that, I can also say that every once in a while even the worst batter on the team gets a hit.
ReplyDeleteI, too, was diagnosed with kidney stones, three of them. Because of their size, surgery was the best option. I went in for that, was prepped, etc. When I woke up in post-op, the doctor came in to say that he had not performed surgery because he couldn't find any. I realize that this was more the fault of the doctor than PRMC, of course. Still, it makes one wonder. When I went into the ER earlier, the nurse came out and said that I had a kidney stone which was "a millimeter or a centimeter or something like that." I still have to laugh at that, though at the time I was not amused.
Glad you had good luck, I had just the opposite with my 2 visits for kidneysones.
ReplyDeleteI was neglected, left in room with empty IV bag filling with blood for a couple hours with alarm going off while I just wanted to sleep or at least have pain go away. For my CT scan I was wheeled into a hallway with a demensia patient where we were both left for 45 minutes, while he screamed and moaned the whole time, urinated/deficated on himself, and I was told I'd soon be given pain meds, which took over an hour to get.
I never once saw any janitorial staff clean anything, and was like wow, this is why people die from infections at PRMC. (including my uncle who ended up nearly dying from MRSA there and spent 23 days in John's Hopkins to get better).
I went to Nanticoke to have stone removed and it was a complete 180. Staff extremely attentive and nice, place was very clean. I was constantly kept informed as to what was going on.
You are one of the lucky ones. I have personally been left to suffer in agony for several hours in the waiting room with a kidney stone. In another incident, my wife almost died in the ER waiting room because they were so slow to see her. The bottom line is if you are seriously ill, get there by ambulance and you will bypass the apathetic triage staff in the waiting room. It might save your life.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with Angie. I was there as well just this week with a kidney stone and have been there in the past as well with other issues. My wife has been there and was admitted a couple of times with a really bad blood infection. I have always been quite impressed with PRMC. This past week, I went to the ER, this time it wasn't very busy. Weekdays usually aren't I guess. I was back in a room within 30 minutes. I have always been treated very well there. I really have to say they took DAMN good care of my wife while she was there for 3 weeks. So far, I have no complaints.
ReplyDeletePhil Berryhill
I have been to the PRMC ER DEPT. many times. I have always been treated with respect an in a timely manner. Even though I would like for my treatment to go faster, I know that tests take time.
ReplyDeleteThe few times that I was admitted, I was treated more as a guest than a patient. Everyone from the aides to doctors and aftercare workers treated me with great care and respect.
I, too, believe in giving credit due - we do have a fine emergency room staff. However the staff I'm talking about is the support team (the technicians, transcribers, registration crew, etc.) My recent experience was quite different. The 'doctor' spent about 3 1/2 minutes with me and then 'diagnosed' me from across the room. I then had to wait for more than an hour to be discharged. The reason I visited the ER was in response to guidelines from my primary care doctor - he stated if I had these symptoms I should go to the ER (it was early Sunday morning when I couldn't stand the symptoms any more-so that's the reason for my visit.) I did contact the Hospital about my experience and they presented it before their ethics and quality review 'group'. Even though I did get a written apology (a month later) for the length of my wait in the ER - they did note I had some elevated blood levels from lab tests my primary doctor ordered the following day and they hoped everything was well with me. The only prompt thing I received from PRMC was the bill! My share was $100 for that doctor's 3 1/2 minutes of wrong diagnosis. I have since transferred my care to Johns Hopkins. Even though the travel time is a pain - the care from all the staff is fantastic!!!!! (and they follow up promptly with email and phone calls.)
ReplyDeletei've had nothing but excellent care at prmc. even the food was good.
ReplyDeleteYou are very right there are times that there are a few people that actually care about there pts.
ReplyDeleteBut I have seen the other side as a nurse who works at PRMC I have seen things that would blow your mind , like DRS choosing the easy way out by taking the easiest cases ever. Then after they leave the room they totally take that pt apart , But on the other hand there are some very competent Physicians that really do care about people.
Yes PRMC staff members that provide excellent care should be recognized for what they do. Many of the staff of the hospital is excellent however too many are not. There are doctors and nurses that are uncaring, unprofessional, dishonest and even immoral. Some of the things that go on at the hospital are truly shocking! And let’s face it any hospital that actively participated in up to 200 unnecessary stent surgeries, risking the welfare of the patient because of financial greed has a serious problem! The hospital seems unable or unwilling to deal with the problem of bad doctors and bad nurses. And until it does you will see the level of dissatisfaction reflected in the recent comments in the press. Yes we absolutely should recognize those staff members who do a good job. Celebrate them and give them the praise they deserve! But the responsible thing is to hold all doctors and staff accountable for their actions and not tolerate any employee who does not meet high standards.
ReplyDeletenow if they'd just mop up around that place
ReplyDeletethere are cleaner grocery stores
I went to Atlantic General when I had my first and so far my last kidney stone. From the time I left my house got there got checked in, pain meds, CT scan and the results and back home in bed it was less than 2 hours! No joke...they had me in and out of there in a flash. The only delay was they could not find a good vein to get the I.V in. I have had that problem with every one that has stuck a needle in me so I'm used to that.
ReplyDeleteI have never had a good experience with PMRC this hospital is nasty and full of MRSA.They let patients go unbathed and laying in urine this is the last place I will go, I will go to Atlantic General or carry my butt to Baltimore.
ReplyDeleteI had an issue with PGH a while back and sent them an email. They responded to my concerns quickly by email and by phone.
ReplyDeleteResponding to me was more than I expected and they satisfied my concern well.
They even said they would use it as a training tool.
They can't fix what they don't know is broken. If you can't get anywhere with the people on the floor, contact the brass.
They have the power to make changes and corrections.
4:34 You are assuming that we have NOT contacted the hospital. I have done that several times and they apologize but don't ever get to the core of the problem. It appears that management is afraid of the doctors and is unwilling to exert control or discipline. The docs know that management is weak and take advantage of it. They continue to do anything they want.
ReplyDeletelearned by experience. john's hopkins if at all possible.....
ReplyDelete4:34 You are assuming that we have NOT contacted the hospital 7:07 PM
ReplyDeleteWell yes I guess I was. I just related the positive outcome I had.
I don't know who you contacted, what the issue was or if anything could be done about it.
Maybe you did'nt contact the right person or the problem couldn't be fixed overnight. I don't know.
I have absolutely nothing good to say about PRMC, and that is sad. Those who said it is full of uncaring and poor-performing staffers are 100% correct; those who detailed medical mistakes are also 100% correct. Add to that the incredibly heartless director (who asked me not 5 minutes after the sudden passing of my husband, "How was the care?", and you will always remember to NEVER go to PRMC!!!
ReplyDeletelast time I was in PRMC for surgery, the care was so bad I checked myself out! and to think how much my insurance company was paying each day for substandart care! I was left laying in my own vomit for hours do to a reaction I had to the medicine they gave me! Never again! Thank God we have better alternatives in this state.
ReplyDeleteLaying in vomit for hours? That's hard to believe.
ReplyDelete7:46 Maybe your nurse was out flirting with one of the docs and didn't notice you were laying in your own vomit! Taking care of patients so gets in the way of my social life!
ReplyDeleteThis hospital is a joke. Now I am not saying there aren't any good people there, because I have met plenty. Sadly, it's the few that make up the majority of bad news with this place. My mother alone has been through multiple unnecessary surgeries due to the incompetence of the staff. With everything from not being able to read lab tests correctly to wrong diagnosis, no wonder the community as a whole dislikes PRMC. And 10:06, you hit that nail right on the head. Quite often you will see the playful banter between doctors and nurses right in front of you. It's disgusting and unprofessional. I will surely do everything in my power to steer clear of this place.
ReplyDelete