About a month ago, I took my son to the ER, where he was admitted to the Behavioral Health Unit…read more The ER nurses and physician were professional, patient, and genuinely empathetic. We did have to wait a bit to see the doctor, but once he arrived, the admission process moved quickly and smoothly. I live in Northern Virginia but chose Sibley Memorial Hospital because of its strong reputation, especially compared to other hospitals I've visited in my area. During his stay, the Behavioral Health Unit staff consistently showed real care and concern for their patients. I visited my son every day and was always greeted warmly. The nurses were kind and attentive, and I often heard positive feedback about my son's behavior, which meant a lot to me. His psychiatrist at Sibley, Dr. Peters, also stood out. He took the time to listen to my concerns and even reached out to my son's private psychiatrist to better understand his situation--something no other hospital psychiatrist has done for us before. Thank you for everything you did. Please keep up the great work--it truly makes a difference. Helen R.

I visited a friend a few times and I was floored by the attitude of the kitchen staff. Borderline…read morerude on the phone, and very, very slow. They would forget orders. If you call one hour after placing an order they will still be unable to give you any information. Will take them over an hour to put the simplest meals together... When you consider the fortune that Sibley's charges, it is really mind-boggling.

I like to elaborate, this Hospital is well equipped for Trauma than most others in the area. They…read morehave a professional staff and deal with a lot of trauma from accidents to fires and all the rest. Although the building may be needing some construction but overall they are very well trained and can handle it all. My personal experience was great and everyone was very thorough and good. The communication may need to be addressed since after I had checked in to a regular room the receiving nurse stated that mo info was given prior to my arrival and the main doctor for me never appeared or sent someone to address my results of my Cat Scans even after several times of doing it. They myst know that inly having a nurse to address patients is good but having doctors introducing themselves early and continuously having interaction is a good thing. I hope this helps them with customer service and they emphasize the importance of early introduction. It is simple and fast, the easiest thing to do.

I had the worst MRI experience this morning. I literally cried and was yelling, cussing to be let…read moreout after the saline solution pained my entire arm. No amount of flailing my feet nor using my free arm to swipe the inside of the machine helped. and as soon as I went in, I wondered why I didn't get the "help ball" to squeeze/alert if needed :( And thennnnn, I go back to my dressing room. The Sign on the door said, in use. I knock and wait. No one responded, so I entered. I get about 90 percent dressed when a Male employee walks in! Wtf. He apologizes and leaves. No knock, nothing! Just walks into a dressing room where the sign still said IN USE. He was wearing a burgundy type of scrub with I think was a long sleeve black shirt underneath MRI parking now has some machine that takes up about 85% of the parking. Apparently, many people were complaining about the white film/dust that was getting on their cars from top of the ER. This happened to me, and I posted on here about it. So that moved whatever issue to this parking lot. Will be there a few years, I was told.

I have been a patient at GW for more than five years now. Over this time, there have been many…read morethings and people I truly appreciated about the hospital. However, it pains me to say that the quality of care, professionalism, and overall patient experience have declined significantly over the years. Last month, I had an appointment scheduled for 10:30 a.m. I arrived early, yet I wasn't seen until 1:15 p.m. There were no apologies, no consideration that I am 20 weeks pregnant, and no acknowledgment that I am a working professional who had taken time off from a full-time job. It seemed like none of that mattered. When I was finally seen, I was spoken to in a dismissive manner, as if the inconvenience caused was my fault. When I questioned the delay, I was told that they had patients back-to-back, but isn't that the very reason appointments are scheduled and spaced out? Now, at 24 weeks pregnant, I had an ultrasound scheduled for October 28th. I received a call saying the technician was unavailable and my appointment would need to be rescheduled for October 31st. Today, as I was on my way there, I received another call telling me it had to be rescheduled yet again, now for the second week of November. I also have another ultrasound scheduled around that time, and when I asked for clarification, I was simply told to "check if you still need the prior appointment." This is deeply concerning. Does a hospital not have backup staff or contingency plans in place to ensure patients are seen as scheduled? Does an entire department stop functioning because one person is unavailable? How is it acceptable that one staff member's absence disrupts care for all scheduled patients? It truly makes me question whether GW still takes its patients seriously. Has compassion and quality care become secondary? Are staff members no longer trained to communicate with empathy or handle patient concerns appropriately? It's disappointing to see such a reputable healthcare institution become increasingly careless about those who trust them with their health and well-being.

It's a hospital... but it's so so bad... Tiny rooms, horrible parking situation, bad location…read more Unless you are taking metro, it's really not accessible friendly if you need to get here for any kind of testing or any kind of stay. Doctors that performed the surgery never came back to speak to us. Acute PT got frustrated when we said we would need more than one week for a broken hip and arm, left the room in a huff and quite upset because we needed more long term PT care for an elderly person who couldn't walk nor use a bathroom solo. Nurses hardly ever brought anything that was requested i.e. ice bags, ice water, or juice cups. They left an elderly person with a broken arm to try and open food containers on their own when food was dropped off rather than assist with opening containers so she never really ate much because she had no help. This place is an absolute disaster for elderly patients. Quality of overall patient care was not good and if it wasn't the only place we could go for the complicated surgeries she needed, we would have definitely picked a different hospital.

Awesome service and pleasant medical experience. My teammate was taken there after a mild stroke…read more He was seen in hurry and diagnosed fairly quickly.

I am writing regarding my experience in the Emergency Department at Howard University Hospital last…read morenight. I arrived severely dehydrated and actively vomiting, seeking urgent medical care. Instead of reassurance, I encountered an environment that was chaotic, unprofessional, and deeply concerning. Upon entering, the individual stationed at the podium was dismissive and unwelcoming. I had to ask if I was even in the Emergency Room. When someone presents visibly ill, the initial interaction sets the tone for trust and safety. That tone was not established. The staff member who collected my insurance information and listened to my symptoms was kind and professional, and I appreciated her demeanor. Likewise, the male nurse who took my vitals was compassionate and respectful. They were the only aspects of the visit that reflected what healthcare should look like. Unfortunately, the triage area told a very different story. A triage nurse was loudly yelling at a homeless woman who was clearly in distress and attempting to get assistance. Regardless of the circumstances, this interaction lacked professionalism and compassion. Watching that unfold while feeling physically weak and ill made the experience significantly worse. The "waiting room" -- essentially a hallway -- felt overcrowded and visibly unclean. The overall environment did not reflect the standards one would expect from a hospital serving the nation's capital. Emergency departments are inherently busy, but disorganization and poor conditions should not be normalized. After being told the wait could extend up to six hours, I ultimately chose to leave because I did not feel confident remaining in that environment. No patient seeking emergency care should feel that staying would compromise their well-being or dignity. I am sharing this not simply out of frustration, but out of concern. This institution carries both community responsibility and national visibility. Patient experience, professionalism, and facility conditions directly impact public trust. I sincerely hope hospital leadership reviews these concerns and takes meaningful steps to address them.

My wife is currently undergoing cancer treatments at Georgetown and part of her treatment plan is…read morechemotherapy in their infusion center. While the nurses and staff in the check-in center are very friendly and warm, the nurses and staff in the infustion center, where I think friendly, warm and caring is needed most, do not have the best bedside manner. As my wife's caretaker, I sit with her for hours while her chemotherapy is administered. Today, we were there for four hours for a treatment that was to took 2.5 hours. Waiting for the nurse to change the IV was a lot of it. Usually, when patients undergo chemo infusions, food and drink are made available for consumption. This includes various chips, cookies, yogurt, sandwiches, tea, coffee, water, sodas, etc. The last two times, the staff and nurses in the infusion center moved the sandwiches out of kitchen (no notification was given to patients) and put them somewhere else, so they are no longer readily available. My wife, is diabetic and must eat lunch. We bring our food as well, but we don't expect to be there as long as we have been on some days, so some days, she asks about sandwiches. When I went to the nurse's station and asked if sandwiches were coming, since my wife was sitting with an IV in her arm, the nurse replied while in full stride, "I doooooooonnnnttt know" and kept it moving. Eventually, one of the techs walked around a cart with the sandwiches on it asking if my wife wanted a sandwich. At that point we were told that these items were available for patients only, not for caregivers. In my opinion, that is ridiculous. We are sitting there the entire time, going to get bottles of water, coffee, tea, etc. that the patient may want, so still providing care. I have witnessed the staff eating the snacks, sandwiches, etc., so that's ok? This policy needs to be reviewed. There is an abundance of snacks, sandwiches and drinks delivered, so I'm not sure why the restrictions have been put into place. Georgetown needs to review this policy and make it known to patience when sandwiches are available to patients.

If youre feeling crappy, and you have an urge to feel even worse, go to this Emergency Room…read more I took my husband there yesterday because he was having severe abdominal pain. 8 or 9 on a scale from 0-10. They took about 90 minutes to bring us back into the ER, did bloodwork and a CT scan, and many hours later sent us home with instructions to take Ibuprofen. Today we went back because he was vomiting, and his pain level was 10/10. We sat in the waiting area for nearly 4 hours, never saw a doctor, finally gave up and went to a different ER where he is being admitted for observation, and where he was seen by a doctor within 90 minutes of arrival.

We took the kids to Children's National Hospital for an appointment, recently. The parking garage…read morehas very tight parking spaces and takes awhile to get to the bottom floor. The hospital itself is pretty cool, and everyone is very nice. The check-in process is quick and efficient. Making appointments can be difficult, however, depending on the medical speciality or practice.

The new beds are horrible. They constantly make loud noise, and my 7-year-old couldn't rest or…read moresleep post his surgery. The excuse for the distressing loud noise is to keep the bed dynamic and create some movement for the patient. But the BIGGER ISSUE is that the patient CANNOT rest or sleep due to the loud noise of the bed!!! How is this acceptable!!?? Is it even legal to prevent the patient from getting any rest or sleep post surgery???

My one star, like probably most listed here , is standing in for what I want to give- NEGATIVE 10…read more Or just a skull and crossbones emoji. Do not come here. 90percent of staff are uncaring and sleep walking. I will say when I finally saw the 2 doctors they seemed very confident, smart and kind and ran good tests. But then I never saw them again. This is not a functioning ER. I feel bad for the staff and our city and the people forced to sleep here but this is a homeless shelter/ overdose clinic with some medical equipment. And GW is doing a bad job at all 3 of those things. The rooms are not as clean as hospitals (or homeless shelters!) should be- the bathroom had no soap! The person who checked us in was nice/ treated us as people. But the next woman said noting to me, never made eye contact, took out a needle and put ii in my arm. What is it? Why? What's your name? Truly the just the very basics of human civility. I tried to be calm and polite and ask, what is in my arm? She just growled something. It went on like that. I waited about 4 hours. I'm an otherwise healthy person who fainted twice for no obvious reason- because I hit my head they wanted to do a ct scan. Fair enough. I'm finally in a bed in a room with 3 other people, a nurse who is hard of hearing and also has this generalized annoyance/animosity toward all patients reads my chart with my personal information like my SS # and address at the TOP of her lungs. I ask her nicely to stop but she keeps going. Then, bc I'm in a bed with side rails and tightly tied-to an IV , when I have to go to the bathroom I can't. I'm literally stuck. I yell for help and nobody hears, nobody comes. I was told I'm a "fall risk" but i take out my IV (blood falls everywhere so I use the blanket as a tourniquet) the fluids from the IV is now shooting around the bed and still when a nurse come in she notices NOTHING. Just tells me to sign my intake form. Intake? I'm clearly leaving! This woman fails to notice that I've gotten out of bed, yanked out my tubes, and am actively bleeding! It's almost hilarious So I walk out the door. I explain to the person at the front desk what happened and he says, truly half asleep, oh...sorry about the waiting. But then it's byegirlbye. Not like, let's get your chart, are you ok? How are you getting home at 4am since we just called you a fall risk? He just goes back to half sleeping. Please do not go here. And whoever runs this place, please do better. honestly I felt safer at home. At least there if I yelled, my husband would help me. And if I'm going to die from a blood clot I'd rather do it at home than in there.

I saw Dr Palak Turakhia Sampat June 1, 2018. I had been in a car accident on 14 October 2017. The…read morephysical therapy place I was going to was actually harming me and keeping me in pain. Dr FITZPATRICK WILSON at MULTISPECIALITY (now EXCELSIA) finally relented and let me seek better help, but he must have called ahead to talk with Dr Turakhia. It was recommended by one of my doctors to go to GW after I complained about the care at MULTISPECIALTY. I thought I could go to GW for physical therapy and get better care than the place I was at. DR WILSON must have called ahead (I'm guessing) telling them I was a pill seeker. The young woman, Dr TURAKHIA must have been fresh out of med school. She didn't look me over properly, didnt look through my files, told me I probably had arthritis in my neck and that I already "had been injured in my back before and this accident set off my old injuries". She only looked at my neck. There was no back exam. She said she "didn't" prescribe pain meds. It was so strange. I was flabbergasted and was like "wait I thought I was going to have a care team and physical therapy..." "oh so you want physical therapy? Ok, I'll write for water therapy!" and she wrote a script for water therapy and dashed out the door. Next appointment was like months later if I remember correctly. I saw her in the lobby on the way out and she ignored me. She left me no choice but to find care elsewhere. I had no idea you cannot just stop pain meds and need to be tapered off or you risk withdrawals. I was in the ER so many times from 14 October 2017-2018 because the physical therapy chiropractor, Dr Richardson, was harming me with his malfunctioning equipment that he just laughed at as he kept shoving me in the back. He didn't get that he was making things worse. So I would end up at the ERs looking for like Tordol or something for pain. I wasn't looking to just increase my dose of opioids or "take an extra pill". I was being incredibly cautious. Like why didn't anyone actually TEST ME for alcohol & other substances? Like the neurologist, DR SYME, prescribed AMITRIPTYLINE and ALSO did not taper. DR WILSON had cut me off my medications of HYDROCODONE and DIAZEPAM at the end of APRIL. I was OUT OF PAIN MEDS two weeks after I stopped seeing DR WILSON. I didn't see PALAK until 1 JUNE 2018. I had 16 years of sobriety at the time and everyone treated me like I was a pill seeker...I couldn't find care or get refills. I ended up at SPINE & PAIN CENTER where they ACTUALLY took care of me. They said that it could have been too early for physical therapy. They took my pain seriously. And no I didn't get more HYDROCODONE & DIAZEPAM. I didn't know any better so I ASKED FOR A LESSER known evil, another opioid, and they idiotically prescribed TRAMADOL. It would be this mixture and KLONOPIN, but not the HYDROCODONE & VALIUM prescriptions, that must have sent my PSYCHIATRIST for a loop. Doctors in charge of my care: DR DENNIS GLICK, DR TODD CHRISTIANSEN, DR FITZPATRICK WILSON, DR BRUCE KEHR, DR SYME, DR FISHKIN, SPINE & PAIN CENTER in Silver Spring, DR PALLAVI BELUR in Rockville. At SPINE & PAIN center, I received injections into my spine on 3 AUGUST 2018 for the pain I was in. TURAKHIA never looked at my files. DR FISHKIN had taken MRI's. I was doing DRY NEEDLING for pain on top of pain medication and the needling worked better than the medication! I did not see anything wrong because I was looking for better care & my doctors were out to lunch. This doctor, Turakhia, does not listen and does not do a proper evaluation. I received no proper treatment and was forced to go elsewhere. Blog explains: tooshallpass13.Wordpress dot com Wow, I should have read the reviews before I met with her. She's a run of the mill doctor who probably got into this for the money.

Now closed, this was the best hospital in town for all women!!…read more I worked at Columbia Hospital for Women as an RN for 18 years. We gave World Class Service to our patients. All the employees were like family, including the doctors. Best place ever to have a baby ( I had both of my daughters there!). We were ahead of our time in the 80's and 90's in the OR, doing advanced laparoscopic gyn surgery before anyone else was. Too bad greedy capitalist insurance company's put us out of business. We would not sell out and compromise our care. Our beloved Dr Rifka put out huge sums of his own money to keep us going at the end. No one took a raise for several years either, but we never quit. COLUMBIA HOSPITAL I MISS YOU!!!

I am looking for my medical records from Columbia Hospital for Women which closed in 2002. Does…read moreanyone know where I might find them? I have been looking for several months.

Yesterday morning I may have ruptured my Achilles tendon but after a visit to Georgetown University…read morehospital I still don't know. But what I do know is for someone who is paid as a medical professional why Alex would move a near incapacitated patient in a wheelchair without shoes from the warm area near the door to a colder area after midnight when the facility had a heated area less than ten feet away. I almost fell trying to maneuver a wheelchair meant to be pushed by myself I was left alone in this wheelchair as my foot continued to swell for hours. I decided it was best to seek help elsewhere or at a better time. They chose to be unresponsive and unhelpful to the point of making my wait for a car more uncomfortable by again moving the wheelchair from a warming area to one that was cold. After this experience I went home I've been up all night. I attempted to call the ER and after having to be explain this traumatic visit to Julia another "medical professional " there instead of telling me " sir the charge nurse isn't available you'll have to try back at another time " or anything of the sort, her choice was to put the offending party on the phone to re-offend me. I don't know what type of facility this is but after dealing with similar treatment at other places ( none this egregious) I don't think my best option is to purchase a bubble to live in

My husband had a very serious crainiotomy at Georgetown several months ago. (Actually, what type…read moreof brain surgery ISN'T serious???) The Neuro ward could not have been better. They always showed up in the room within 10 seconds of being called. They were very respectful of my husband's condition and they treated him with competence and compassion. Not even one nurse had a bad attitude. Also, as a family member they kept me properly informed every step of the way. So, why not 5 stars? 1. After being discharged it is almost impossible to get back to your surgeon by phone. Endless phone trees. Very hard to even leave a message. Perhaps this was a unique situation with our surgeon, but l doubt it because he is a stellar surgeon who is caring and very patient-oriented. 2. The ER at Georgetown is the worst, worst, worst ER I have ever encountered. Always a wait of several hours, during which your place on the waiting list is frequently lost. Yes, you read that right : you are often there long enough - - without being seen-- that you'll be fortunate to survive several shift turnovers of nurses. HOWEVER. if you are lucky enough to finally see someone, they are always understanding and professional. DO YOURSELF A FAVOR : Call the Sibley Hospital ER and ask how long their wait is. There usually is NO wait. Or, preferably, if you have a an emergency issue that needs to be addressed immediately, just go to SIBLEY in the first place! . It pains me to highlight these 2 serious problems with Georgetown University Hospital, because in general things couldn't have been better during my husband's operation and recovery. Just be sure you are fully recovered before you allow yourself to be discharged! Once you're out, you're out and on your own! Would I go back to Georgetown University? Absolutely YES!

I had an ER visit followed by a 6-day hospital stay in 2023. The care was outstanding and I was…read morevery impressed (and healed!). Subsequently, both my wife and I have been going to the VHC out-patient pavilion for primary care and cardiology and have been impressed with the patient care and customer service. Our only complaint is with the business office. Our insurance coverage has changed twice during that period and attempts to update the policies online (both on website patient portals and VHC app) proved fruitless. We received bills with substantial balances because the old insurance was billed and rejected. We tried to send emails to the business office asking them to resubmit the bill to the new policy but nothing happened. No one responded and the bills remained outstanding. Eventually we called the business office and resolved the issue within minutes. It is very frustrating trying to fix billing issues and update insurance online when whatever is done seems to disappear into a black hole. It seems the only way to successfully interact with the business office is by telephone.

Came to the ER here very unexpectedly while in the area. I'm not from Virginia and had no idea what…read moreto expect. Cons: no live wait time on website, registration staff who truly DGAF, dirty waiting area Wait time: 2.3 hours just to get into an exam room (I was balled up in a corner in pain and begged for a blanket because it was cold inside and 50 degrees outside. They triaged me, took blood and urine and had me remain in the waiting room. Once I actually got into an exam room, things started to move more quickly. Care: Dr. Sidara was actually the saving grace here. He was incredibly nice and thorough, spoke to me with respect and care, and worked to address my issues as soon as possible. He was even able to pull info from past doctors visits, which included a slight ear infection and double checked my ears while I was there to make sure he didn't miss anything further. I won't go into all of the details of what he discovered, but had he not caught one thing in particular, I might still be in excruciating pain. What I didn't like is the fact that I was in an exam room for maybe 30 minutes, then they took me to get a CT. And once I finished the CT, I was not taken back to the exam room, but taken to the "results waiting" room. There, my IV hung in front of me, without being connected, for about an hour. When all of my results were back, the doctor returned to me and told me all the findings and the plan moving forward. I do wish they would have kept me overnight so that I could continue to be monitored and receive pain management medication, but I understand that's not necessarily typical treatment for what I was experiencing. Shortly after the doctor checked in with me, my discharge papers were drafted, and I was on my way out. I was there from 3:50-9 p.m. ish.