AVOID THIS location!
Network systems were down at the Marlton location the day I went in for bloodwork at 1 p.m.
The phlebotomist was in a tizzy because she'd "been calling IT since 6 a.m." and had to manually write down all information for each patient.
She was in a rush and quite careless when going to withdraw my blood. She hastily tied the tourniquet around my arm and said "big pinch!" It felt as though she stabbed my arm with the needle rather than carefully inserting it. I instantly felt an incredible amount of pain and startling numbness all the way to my fingertips. I couldn't help but shout "WHOA!" She casually said, "I'm sorry. It's a big needle." Then my arm proceeded to swell up with two golf-ball-size lumps on either side of where she punctured my arm. She finished drawing the 7 vials of blood, despite my verbal reaction and the concern I expressed about the numbness and tingling AS WELL AS my arm's physical appearance. When done, she placed a cotton ball and a 3-inch piece of tape over the puncture point and said, "OK, you're done." I said, "No, actually, I'm not. Do you see my arm?" She looked at my arm, quickly adjusted the same piece of tape, and said, "I'm sorry I hurt your arm." Then she proceeded to take my vials of blood across the room and return to tell me, "you can go." I said, "No, I can't. Not with a swollen arm and a numb hand." She said, "Oh, just put pressure on it. It will go away. But you can go." I got up to leave and said, "I hope for your sake it goes away." The swelling has gone down but the constant pain and tingling is still very much there. I have since consulted with a doctor who examined my arm and has referred me to a neurologist. To be continued... read more
