Northside Hospital Forsyth

Reviews 3

CH

Christopher Johnson

Before I begin, I would like to point out, that I have had (and still have) continuous health care coverage for as long as I can remember, and have been covered by my employer(s) since I started working full time in 2000. With that preliminary information out of the way, I would like to start by saying if you dont have or they (Northside Hospital) THINK you dont have insurance, they either want you to hurry up and die or go home. Late 2010, I had a very severe asthma attack after playing football at a park. Luckily my friend was still around and he called 911. The ambulance arrived about 3 minutes later and rushed me to the hospital. I fell unconscious on the way to the hospital, so I dont remember much except for some inaudible talking while I continued to slip in and out of consciousness. I finally woke up early in the morning (still dark outside) with a tube down my throat. I fell asleep again and woke up a few hours later with my wife in the room. Because I was still attached to the ventilator, I was unable to speak, so we would communicate by writing stuff down. Eventually the ventilator was removed when it was determined I could breathe on my own. After it was removed, one of the first things my wife told me was that the hospital tried to get her to consider signing a DNR (Do not resuscitate) sheet on me, but obviously she refused or I probably wouldnt be writing this review. My only guess is that the reason they tried to push the DNR on her was because they THOUGHT I didnt have insurance. (I did BTW, and still do). Because I arrived to the hospital unconscious, there was no way I give them my information. But that didnt seem to matter to them; the quicker I die, the quicker they no longer have to waste their time or resources on me. The staff was nice at first, but as the days went by as I continued to recover they seemed to get more and more irritated, and seemed to want to force me out. The day of my discharge, a lady came by to discuss payment options and thats when I told her I did have insurance and told her my wife would be bringing by the insurance card. When my wife came by to pick me up, that lady was already gone for the day, so I physically walked down to the billing department to give them my insurance information. That walk triggered another slight asthma attack, but the nursing staff didnt even seem to care, they sent me home anyway, but luckily I recovered on my own over the next day or so. I paid the $1000 deductible and the insurance eventually paid their portion of the bill, but I was quite offended that they would try to force a DNR on ANYONE, much less someone who DOES have insurance. Just goes to show you that many hospitals these days only care about money and not keeping people alive. I was lucky, I had insurance, and my wife refused the DNR. If I didnt have insurance and/or not someone to speak on my behalf, Id probably be dead right now. Whatever happened to hospitals actually caring about their patients? These days it seems it only about the money and if you cant pay or they THINK you cant pay the bill, then you dont deserve to live.

LI

Lindsey Alexander

IF YOU can make it to absolutely ANY OTHER hospital, go. Due to my illness and this hospitals location, Ive visited the cardiology office, neurology, radiology, and ER. I wont go into ALL details to spare your time, but incompetency and negligence is prevelent. For example, the radiology department offers poor quality imaging and scant reports which are utterly useless for referring doctors. The ER staff does not check in on patients whose heart beat monitors jump into pre-tachycardia... And that was in my case. I did not realize the beeping was this machine I was attached to... Every time my pain shot up, I looked over and the beeping indicated a pulse over 100. Then dropping back down to 70 or 80. No one came in...the blood pressure cuffs did not work either and the staff knew this. I talked to the supervisor of the ER after I left... She said "they often get holes in them and stop working..." But the point is, I was having symptoms of meningitis with no infection. Low grade fever, syncope, and a history of CNS abnormalities caused by a birth defect ( I had even brought my records). Something acute had complicated my health and I couldnt get into a doctors office for another week. The entire weekend prior to this decision to check into the hospital, I was laying on bags of ice. They melted... My family brought me more.. And more.. and the migraine got worse despite medications... I could have died and likely would have until it was when I took several antihistamines when I got home.---MIRACULOUS last resort.. Likely combating an autoimmune reaction--- The ER here diagnosed me with a UTI...which is insane...the doctor said all the pain was from this infection... But he said it was a minor uti.. Contradiction... Infuriating negligence. Lawsuit? Perhaps once I get on my feet again. The antibiotics did absolutely nothing for the pain, and might have made it and head swelling worse. The pharmacy here is also just as bad. A chronic pain patient I knew missed a doctors appointment one month and was 2 or 3 weeks late. I visited her and she was absolutely bedridden She was able to get other pills filled close to her home but the only pain meds that work well enough for her can only be found at this pharmacy (dont ask me why--perhaps the other locations had them on backorder). But her meds are narcotic and the manager of this pharmacy came out to see her in person after she was able to reschedule her doctor appointment and he told her she could not have another prescription filled until one year following that date. He told her "if you miss a pick up...it means you are cured..." This poor woman with severe arthritis and bone spurs... She was born with serious skeletal abnormalities which required the breaking and realigning of bones when she was just an infant and of toddler age again. If you go to this hospital for any reason, be prepared to get less than what you pay for. You could be risking your very life. It is a sad time for health care in Georgia. I wish I understood why, but I will always publicly attest to any corruption, illegality, or negligence I find. All the best

JA

jaleah hill

My familys experience at Northside Hospital was the worst we have ever had at any medical facility. About three months ago, my mother starts experiencing extreme muscle weakness; sometimes, it was so bad she needed assistance to walk. My mother would feel dizzy often, and tremors would shoot through her limbs.She went to her neurologist for an appointment, and he sent her to the ER due to her poor condition. She was hospitalized on Tuesday, and for the next two days she underwent basic testing (e.g. bloodwork, ultrasound, etc.). Every test either comes back negative or inconclusive, but clearly she is very ill, as she cannot leave her hospital bed without assistance. On Friday morning I arrive early so that I can be present when her doctor, Dr. Cooper, comes to communicate the results of the last test. when Dr. Cooper enters the room, he announces that my mother is to be discharged that day, and that her last test revealed nothing as to the cause of her symptoms. My mother asks, "So, theres no way to know whats wrong with me?" Dr. Cooper informs her that he believes her situation to be purely psychological. He says that she could walk if she really wanted to, and that he would prescribe physical therapy. My mother then asks why he would prescribe physical therapy if her condition was just in her head. He says, "To help you get over it." He then storms out the room, slamming the door behind him. It should also be noted that my mother and I were not alone in her room; several of her friends had come to visit her. Even so, Dr. Cooper felt comfortable discussing her medical situation, without even asking if my mother would prefer that everyone be excused. After Dr. Cooper leaves, I also exit the room, so I that can have a word with him myself. I find Dr. Cooper at the nurses station taking a phone call. After patiently waiting for him to finish, I calmly introduce myself, and then I tell him that he owes my mother an apology. I say, "Even if her symptoms were purely pyschological, which theyre not, that is not the way you speak to mentally ill patient or any patient for that matter. You acted extremely unprofessionally, and you owe my mother an apology." Not only does he say, "Well, I disagree", but he also walks away from me, even as Im still speaking to him. I would never expect this kind of behavior from an adult man, especially someone whose occupation is caring for the sick. He acted immaturely, unprofessionally, and with seemingly no provocation. I would never recommend this hospital to anyone, and the thought of Dr. Cooper practicing at this hospital (which I know he still does) turns my stomach. The only bright spots were a few of the nurses. One in particular (I think her name was Heather) helped my mother bathe every day that she spent in the hospital. By the way, my mother received her diagnosis today. She has small fiber neuropathy, a rare neurological disease that may or may not be treatable depending on its cause. Even if it does turn out to be treatable, it can cause irreparable damage, damage that could have been prevented if Dr. Cooper had been willing to do his job.