It is my understanding that Loma Linda University Medical Center is a teaching hospital. Teaching…read morehospitals can be wonderful, and my experiences with UCI, another teaching hospital, have for the most part involved elevated, quality care. Unfortunately, our experience at Loma Linda was very different.
On Friday night, I took my daughter in for a gastric-related emergency while she was in her first trimester of pregnancy. We were directed from the ER to the Labor & Delivery/Maternity area. I understand there are limitations on what can safely be done during early pregnancy, so this review is not about the medical care that was or was not provided. My concern is the astonishing lack of communication between staff and what felt like a notable absence of experienced supervision.
My daughter needed to be evaluated by Gastroenterology. Having spent more time in hospitals with her than I ever would have wanted, I completely understand that specialty teams round when they can. Waiting for GI was not the problem. Eventually, a GI doctor came into the room, spoke with us, and after discussing the options, we decided not to proceed with an endoscopy. Fine.
Then apparently he activated stealth mode. Five additional hours passed, and staff still seemed to be waiting for a procedure that we had already declined. During that time, we told three different nurses that GI had already been there and that we were not proceeding with the endoscopy. Yet somehow that information apparently traveled nowhere. By this point, we had been there approximately 15 1/2 hours, during which my daughter had labs, one bag of IV fluids, an ultrasound, and a great deal of waiting.
Eventually, after we became increasingly frustrated and pushed for answers, another doctor came in and told us she was waiting for the procedure orders. That was the moment our patience finally evaporated. We explained, again, that GI had already seen my daughter and there was not going to be a procedure. At that point, I genuinely wondered: Does anyone here actually talk to anyone else?
The discharge conversation didn't improve matters. The doctor explained signs of gastric bleeding that should prompt my daughter to return. I said that I had spoken with my daughter about letting me know immediately if those symptoms occurred so I could bring her back. The doctor then looked directly at my daughter and said, "You know, you don't have to tell her anything. You can come to the hospital on your own as well." She followed that by saying that if my daughter didn't tell anyone or didn't come to the hospital, she would be assuming that risk herself. She then looked at me and added, "No offense."
It was an incredibly strange and unnecessary response to a mother saying she would bring her pregnant daughter back to the hospital if she began showing signs of another gastric bleed. I found the implication uncomfortable and inappropriate. After approximately 15 1/2 hours, my daughter was finally discharged.
Loma Linda, if you're reading this: do better. A teaching hospital should be teaching more than medicine. Communication between physicians, nurses, specialty teams, and patients is part of patient care. When three nurses are told that a procedure has been declined, yet hours later a physician is still waiting for orders for that procedure, something in the system has broken down.
And while I understand that teaching hospitals rely heavily on residents and physicians in training, patients also deserve to feel that appropriate supervision and experienced medical leadership are present and accessible. We didn't expect instant answers or VIP treatment. We expected communication, coordination, and confidence in the people caring for a medically complicated pregnant patient. On this visit, unfortunately, we didn't get that.
