Lehigh Valley Hospital - Pocono

Reviews 3

A

A Private User

I have lived within walking distance of this place for three years, but never been there before today. The reason is that all the locals weve met have told us horror stories about the quality of care here. One of my friends said he almost walked out of the ER because the doctor was so mean to his 2-year-old son, and when my wife went there once for an emergency, another doctor gave her very rude and medically inaccurate advice (according to the WHO, anyway) about breastfeeding. All of the people we know in E-Burg or S-Burg either go to Hackettstown (about 35 minutes away) or to Mount Pocono (30 minutes), and we have mostly done the same-- Hackettstown when our daughter was born and Mount Pocono whenever my wife and I need care. Well, today, I was feeling very feverish and had a huge headache, and didnt feel like driving so far, so I decided to chance it at the Pocono Medical Center, thinking "How bad could it be, really?" The answer after what I experienced is "even worse than I thought." The first thing is that they will make you wait for a couple of hours at a time, and not tell you why you are waiting or how long it will be (except of course, for your payment information--that they get 30 seconds after you enter the ER!). Just five seconds of courtesy could avoid this problem. When all my tests were done, after an hour of additional waiting I went to ask the nurse at the desk what my status was; she rudely responded that only the nurse who was treating me knew that, and that he wasnt around right then. "Well, when will he be back?" "I dont know," she says. And then, several minutes later when the nurse returned, while I was within earshot (they put me on a cart-bed in the hall the whole time I was there, instead of a room, but thats another story) she loudly mentions to him that I had been causing trouble with her. Anyway, the nurse immediately wandered off again, and didnt even tell me what was going on until I flagged him down 30 minutes later. They treated me like I wasnt even a human being. The other thing is that the nurse who treated me was incompetent. He couldnt even take my blood without the strap violently pinching my arm. Also, the doctor had asked me for a urine sample, and then when I had gone to the bathroom and came back with one, the nurse just left it sitting there on my bed. "Do you need this?" I asked. "No, just leave it there," he said, and it sat there literally the whole time I was there up until the moment I left. Guess they didnt need that urine sample after all. It really adds to the ambience of your visit when your space is a tiny bed in a hallway, and you get to share that space with a jar of your own urine! One thing I will say is that the doctor I had, one Richard Cornish, was pretty kind and professional. The X-ray team was the same. But really the whole visit was ruined by the maliciousness and poor care given by the secondary staff. According to U.S. News and World Report (which I checked when I got back home), the PMC ranks far below the national average in terms of patients who say they would return there for care. I totally see why. From the way I was treated, the ER is a disgrace and I will never be returning.

BA

Barbara Zimmerman

My husband went for surgery to have a peritoneal dialysis catheter removed. Two days later he was discharged, even though he had a fever and was vomiting. At home, he did not seem to be recovering and was becoming mentally confused. I had to physically dress him to take him to a doctor, not the same surgeon, and was sent right to St. Lukes in the Lehigh Valley. He was diagnosed with a perforated colon and septicemia. He died. He was 45 years old. Another person I know took her young son there with appendicitis. Following surgery, he was diagnosed as being dehydrated, so they gave him lots of IV fluids. He was not responding. He actually had kidney failure, and they were pumping him full of liquids his body couldnt handle. By the time they realized their error, he had to be airlifted to Childrens Hospital in Philadelphia. He was there for three weeks before he made a full recovery. I had a friend who went to PMC one night with a bad stomach ache. They told him he was constipated. Two days later he was dead. The person I heard of who died during surgery to have a bunion removed is another reason I wont go there. There was also a visit to the ER when my husband was suffering abdominal pain. Peritonitis is more frequent with peritoneal dialysis patients, and his doctor wanted to get a specimen of the dialysis fluid to check for infection. A nurse came in with a big needle and asked us where she should stick it into his belly to get a sample. We had to point out that there was a port that had to be opened under sterile conditions, to get a sample. We had to show her how to do it. As she walked away, she tripped over his IV tubing. Then there was the time I fell at Camelback and my friend took me there because it was the closest ER. I was diagnosed with a wrist that was broken in two places. They gave me a sling and told me to find an orthopedist to get a cast. I called an orthopedist associated with PMC and told him I had a broken wrist. He gave me an appointment for two days later and said hed get my x-ray When I got to his office, still in pain. I waited for a while, then he came out and said to me and another person, " I have to leave. Its an emergency. Who is Barbara?" I answered and he just said "you have a broken wrist. Make another appointment." Granted, maybe there was someone in the hospital that had terrible, life threatening injuries. But for me to wait another two or three days to see a doctor was ridiculous. I called a friend to get the name of the doctor that treated her for a knee injury, called him, and a few hours later I was in Geisinger with a cast on my arm. That same orthopedist also took care of my, at night, in the Geisinger ER, after I broke a bone in my hand. If you have a choice, get to Geisinger off of route 115, or get to St. Lukes.

JO

John Alers

My daughter Ashley received an insect bite on her right foot on 7/5/16. After Icing and taking anti alergy meds provided by urgent care, the swelling continued to get worse and discoloration had begun, not to mention she also was in a fair amount of pain. On 7/6/16 , I decided to take her to your ER. It was about 10 pm. She approached the registration desk while I parked my car, by the way, she is 24 years old. It was obvious that the waiting area was at full capacity. She was greeted by a staff member by the name of David and he asked her the usual questions then made a remark to her that insect bites sometimes take time to heal. which she responded that urgent care had adviced her to go to the ER if swelling became worse or if you have any changes in color. She then told him that her parents were concerned because she also was in a fair amount of pain. He seemed to be bothered by another person added to the work load and responded "no one can force you to come here". To that, my daughter was speechless, then tried to explain that she wouldnt be there if she also didnt feel it was necessary. Afterwards, another woman walked in who we could see was bleeding from underneath her dress. Her husband approached the same staff member and we heard David say coldly" theres nothing I can do". While the woman cried. He then looked at the floor which was blood stained and shrugged his shoulders and knodded his head as if he was bothered to now have to clean it. I consider myself to be a fair man and can understand that no one is perfect and we are all entitled to have a bad day. However, I also would like to know that I can rely on my local hospital and their staff to be courteous and professional. It is not alright to disregard a persons illness or emotional status because you have become immune or feel it is not a life or death situation. Remember, you are the professional and patient care begins at the door. I am very disappointed with this staff member. I hope that my review will be taken into consideration and that it will be addressed appropriately. In closing, my daughter was seen about 3 a.m. which she was given iv fluids and antibiotics for a high white blood count due to an infection resulting from the insect bite. If my daughter had not been seen that evening it would not have gotten better on its own as your employee had implied. Her health matters as does that woman who was bleeding and every one else in that waiting room. No one was there by choice...they were there by necessity.