Avista Adventist Hospital

Reviews 3

ME

Megan Irvine

It has taken me quite a while to be able to conceptualize and verbalize what happened to me at this facility. It took an emotional and psychological toll that I needed to process before being able to verbalize this. After being unable to sleep for two days straight due to intense, level 10, stabbing abdominal pain, I admitted I needed help and drove to the Avista Adventist Hospital Emergency Room at around 530-6 am. I was admitted, put in a room, and immediately examined, unfortunately, that is where the productive and professional part of my emergency room visit ended. I informed my doctor and nurses that I had an IUD implant, and was suspicious it was causing the issue. After going through a barrage of tests, including a CT scan, an ultrasound, and several others, over the course of about 5 hours, my doctor re entered the room to inform me there was "nothing wrong with me." Not that "we couldnt find what is wrong," they openly said "there is nothing wrong with you," while providing no information as to whether my IUD was correctly placed or even visible. The nurse discharging me went as far as to imply to my father, who immediately drove from South Denver to the hospital after hearing of my condition, that I was seeking drugs, and calmly explained that they do not write prescriptions when there is nothing wrong with a patient. She helpfully suggested that I should try using ibuprofen to manage my symptoms (when I was admitted, I told them I had taken three ibuprofen every 4 hours for the past two days to manage the level of pain, which clearly she did not notice when consulting my chart). This was her response to my father asking to have me referred to a gynecological department for further investigation, and asking what else we could do. The answer we continuously got was "we do not write prescriptions in cases like this," despite the fact we were asking for referrals, second opinions, and options, not drugs. All persons involved were obviously disinterested, and my doctor went as far as to roll her eyes, sigh, and recommend a hot pad for my discomfort, again in response to asking to be referred to another physician. After two days of calling gynecological offices in Boulder trying to schedule a same day emergency appointment, I was denied due to the fact these offices require a hospital recommendation to schedule same day appointments. Finally, after having to take almost a week off work due to excruciating pain, I contacted a Planned Parenthood office, who despite being underfunded and understaffed, booked me a same day appointment. A 20 minute, $120 pelvic exam concluded that my IUD had dislodged and was wrecking havoc in my uterus, as it had cut the side of my uterus and was beginning to navigate into my abdominal cavity. How Avista managed to miss all of this with the literal thousands of dollars worth of tests they charged through my insurance, I have no idea. Planned Parenthood discussed further options and after care, and sent me on my way with several referrals for follow up appointments to ensure the damage done would not cost me my fertility. If I were to summarize my visit at Avista Adventist Hospital, I would shortly say that after managing to get an enormous amount of money from my insurance, they humiliated me, accused me of being a drug addict, and discharged me with a condition that could have caused serious infection, internal damage, cost me my fertility, and possibly even my life had I not ultimately managed to receive help from Planned Parenthood. I am utterly disgusted this hospital manages to have one of the better reputations in the Boulder area with the horrific quality of treatment they offered me. Unfortunately I ultimately had to drop my malpractice lawsuit against the doctors involved due to lack of personal funds and since my insurance had already paid most of the bills. The best I feel I can do is warn any others who suspect they have gynecological emergencies to stay AWAY from this emergency room and seek out your nearest gynecological office or Planned Parenthood.

PH

Phillip Swartz

Before coming here I naively believed that every hospital was interested primarily in patient health, however, some medical care facilities dont care about you unless youre paying. Disappointing experience with a for profit company that uses Christian biblical quotes on their marketing materials but two of the employees I encountered did not make me feel welcome as Christians should. What if Jesus had awful indigestion and this is how he was treated? Awful customer service. I came in around 3am with horrible abdominal cramps which I suspected were a result of traveling and changing my diet/schedule but the pain was severe enough I wanted to be somewhere safe with a clean restroom while I monitored my condition. I offered to check in but they said it wasnt necessary unless I actually wanted care, so I got stuck in an emergency room limbo where I was sick, but not currently sick enough to utilize expensive emergency resources, but I was made to feel extremely uncomfortable for simply wanting to hang out in a safe environment. I explained my situation to the receptionist who was extremely helpful and kind, a nearby nurse also indicated that it was ok for me to sit in the waiting area. After about an hour of sipping tea, attempting to nap, and watching horrible television Kyle, the paunchy, overweight security guard, came into the waiting area and began conversing with the receptionist about me in a manner that was clearly meant for me to overhear since I was sitting nearby. When she told him to talk to me Kyle sauntered over and began asking me a series of personal questions about my condition. Felt like I was being interrogated. Not satisfied he told me to leave in a half hour or I would be considered loitering. Half hour goes by while Im in the restroom. Shortly after returning to the seating area I see Kyle and a different nurse through the doors leading to the patient care area. I guess Kyle is busy this time, so Bruce the nurse proceeds to approach me, interrogate me about my condition, then proceeds to make a flippant remark about loitering as he walks back through the double doors. At this point I proceeded to fill out two comment cards and left them with the receptionist who happened to be very understanding and nice throughout the ordeal. Thankfully, I was feeling better at this point and left.

KR

kristy riviello

I delivered my son last week at Avista Hospital and cant rave enough about my experience there. Not only is the facility very clean and organized, but their staff is just full of people who really take pride in what they do, starting with the front desk all the way into the New Life Center. There are a couple of staff members who were EXCEPTIONAL. Michele was our nurse when we were getting admitted into the hospital and she was also there for the actual birth of my son. She has a very comforting way about her and really made this process much more comfortable with her calming reassurance and professionalism. This is a person who was meant to be in health care. The lactation specialist, Nicki, was also amazing. When I was very exhausted, stressed and discouraged about my lactation abilities, she brought a very encouraging and enthusiastic approach to things and really changed my perspective. She is just incredible at what she does and Im thankful she was there. Dr. Huynh was my OB and Ive been seen by her for the last 9 months. Ive had some struggles throughout the pregnancy and she really made things so much easier for me. I instantly felt comfortable with her and she was born to do what she does. The delivery seemed to go pretty much seamlessly and I cant imagine a better Dr. to have guided me through it. To top it off, I received a card in the mail yesterday that was personally signed by the staff members that assisted in my delivery and recovery.