I don't know if I have ever left a review on Yelp, but reading these, I feel compelled to share my experiences.
December 2024 - taken by ambulance to ER. EMTs asked if I had a preference, as I was living significantly closer to Crozier Chester, which was still open at the time. This was my first time with a kidney stone, and I was terrified, in the worst pain of my life, and having a panic attack from the nausea. It was roughly 6 am on a Saturday morning. All of the care I received - from the nursing staff, doctor, radiology techs, and even the person who wheeled my bed from the ER to radiology for a CT - was patient and kind. I'm sure kidney stones are commonplace for them, but as a first-timer, I'm sure I was not the easiest to deal with, between crying, panicking, hyperventilating, and then (once I agreed to pain meds) half-conscious. They were patient while I tried to arrange transportation home, and even made sure I had an extra blanket when I was cold. The next day, they called as a follow-up.
Previous visits - June & August 2023 -
I also went to Riddle Hospital ER (driven by another person by car) in both June and August 2023 for anaphylaxis. With no history and no known allergies, it made course of treatment more difficult. In both of these instances, the care was (again) kind, patient, understanding, and concerned. The visit in June 2023 was a mid-week mid-morning visit, and therefore less crowded. They were able to put me into a "room" in the ER. The visit in August was a Monday morning, which is notably one of the busier times for any emergency department. There were no "rooms" available, but when I came in to get checked in (both times, actually), the symptoms I was experiencing were seen as urgent, and I was taken back immediately; They treated me on one of the beds in the hallway. The physical limitations of the building are unfortunate, as they definitely could not have anticipated all of the other local hospitals closing and the influx of patients that would create, and therefore the necessity for a larger emergency department with more "rooms" and semi-private beds. They are doing an incredible job with the space they have to work in.
My visit in June 2023 resulted in an overnight stay for observation. I had been taken upstairs later than meal requests are submitted to the kitchen, but the upstairs staff was able to get me something to eat, and even moved my IV port to a less irritating location so I could function more comfortably. I had to be monitored overnight, and the night nurses and aides were careful, quiet, and gentle. I have to note, the sandwich they got for me was incredible; it's been over 2 years, and I still think about that sandwich.
So many complaints here about waiting times, lack of staff, etc. This is across the entire healthcare provider sector -- even scheduling a normal routine exam with a PCP can take months to get scheduled; finding a new medical provider is even more difficult, if possible. These particular complaints would be seen at ANY hospital. A lot of the wait is the triage staff sifting through to get the urgent cases treated and then people who maybe should have considered Urgent Care instead of the ER end up having to wait because, unfortunately (but also fortunately), their emergency is less life-threatening than someone else who may have come in after they did. The emergency department staff at Riddle (and likely any other local hospital that is still open these days) is working with the same tools they had before the other hospitals closed, but now with significantly more patients to treat.
By comparison, my father lives somewhere else and is a "frequent flyer" at a hospital near to him. I find that I received better, more patient, and thorough care in my visits to Riddle ER than he has at any of his visits to that hospital.
Also, a lot of reviews make it clear that people don't know what HIPAA is about and what is protected patient medical information vs not protected. read more