My husband wanted to do something nice for me before I woke up by painting the ceiling trim in our new apartment. Unfortunately while attempting to get up in the step ladder his knee popped right out of his joint. He managed to pop it back in again but understandably the pain was pretty intense. When it didn’t go away we decided to go to the local er to have him checked out. We counted ourselves lucky that we had one two minutes from home.
I started to become suspicious when the intake nurse didn’t ask a lot of questions. She assured him that when he was called he would have a wheelchair bring him to the room. Two people were called at the same time, and other lyrics one wheelchair was there. When my husband went to sit down in it, the tech snapped at him. Asked what he thought he was doing, he could walk. I snapped back telling her he was promised a wheelchair because of his knee. Turns out there should have been two. The tech became very pissy after that.
Then the nurse comes in. Didn’t have a chart, just a folded up piece of paper towel. She asked him his allergies (none), asked his precious surgeries (1), then asked his past medical issues. This was confusing since it sounded like she meant conditions that have resolved itself. My husband at this point is in extreme amount of pain so I answer for him. When I told her he has Ankylosing Spondylitis, she looked at me and asked, “what?” I repeated myself and she rolled her eyes and wrote it down. Now I get that AS isn’t the most common disease in the world, but it isn’t the most uncommon either. I didn’t even tell her about his bipolar disorder. They probably would have thrown him out right then and there.
The nurse didn’t ask for his list of medications. She didn’t even do a physical preliminary exam. She just looked at both knees, shrugged her shoulders and told us she’d ask the doctor if he wanted to do an xray on the way out the door.
It is currently one hour with no one even looking in the doorway.
This is absolutely disgraceful. I thought I had had the worst experiences before, but this really takes the cake. Even if I am bleeding out I don’t want to come here again. Based upon this treatment they’d probably let me bleed out anyway.
1 hour and a half later they finally did an xray. The women were so unprofessional, but given the rest of the treatment team I’m not surprised.
A half hour after that the doctor finally comes in. Orders a knee brace, pain meds, and crutches. Still doesn’t ask for a list of his medications. I guess we are going to hope whatever he’s given doesn’t react.
The tech would puts on his brace is rude as fuck. Makes comments about how the doctor doesn’t think there is anything wrong with him. And when he has to stand up makes another comment about how he’s looking so incredibly good for someone who has supposedly been injured in the knee. At this point I am two seconds away from smacking the ever living shit out of her.
At this point waiting for discharge is painful. I need to get out of here before my mouth takes over and I start really losing my mind.
By the way, still no chart in sight. Just shit written down on loose prices of paper.
I will NEVER COME BACK HERE. I WILL be making a complaint. Just when I think medical treatment in this country couldn’t get any worse, I have another experience like this. We need to start treating people better.
And I will be finding another hospital, even if I have to drive an hour to get there.
A Beautiful Bipolar Mind 