Kelowna General Hospital

[kayleeraen45]

My exsperience with KGH over the past month and a half has been honestly one of the worst in my life.
Reasons why? I'm from out of town and they transferred me here for better care as they have a NICU and the hospital in my home town does not. They wanted me to stay in KGH for 2 weeks on extremely strict bedrest due to a short cervix ...I couldn't even shower. My midwife and OB from my home town weren't sure why they were being so strict with me as they have had hundreds of moms with short cervixs and not been on as strict of bed rest as I was. I have no other medical issues either. The nurses and the ob they assigned me treated me pretty badly. I had one nurse come into my room during a non stress test and tell me things she knew were going to make me upset and stress me out(as we had had the same talk multiple times and always ended up with me in tears). What's the point of a non stress test if you are going to come stress me out. I asked for a sleeping aid one night and didn't get one so I asked again didn't get it and finally I did about 4 hours later and asking almost 5 different times. The next day my husband and I wanted update on our baby. We got 4 different stories from 4 different people and no one actually gave me a straight answer as to what was going on with my baby and I. During My 3rd day there we were told that the OB I was given didn't like midwives and that's why she was being so intense with me. That is obviously hear say but it made sense. Finally after 4 days I checked my self out because I just couldn't take it. They sent me on my way and told me I would have to come back for weekly non stress tests which is totally fine. On my first weekly visit back to the hospital we were in the waiting room awaiting a nurse to come get us for my NST. When we were waiting there the OB they assigned me walked passed me and gave me a very intentional dirty look. My husband witnessed it and even another women waiting had said something about it. The NST went fine the nurse I had was lovely. I then waited for the OB to come and talk to me about my ultrasound results and she never came. I called KGH the next day and they said that the OB had it written down she did talk to me and they would call me back with results. I waited almost 2 days and no one called me back. On my last visit I explained to the nurse that I was having menstrual like cramps and they were just progressively getting worse and more painful. She didn't do anything about it or seem to even care. Seeing as I am going to the hospital weekly because I am at risk for preterm labour and a short cervix I found this horrible. After my NST I asked for someone to check if I was dilated and she said she would call the doctor. I sat down and waited for about 10 minutes she came back and said she had called the doctor and it'd be a couple hours until he could see me. I waited for about 20 minutes more and because I had been up all night in pain I asked the front desk lady if I could make an appointment and explained to her why. I'm exhausted, it's going to be a few hours, I need to go home and rest as I'm still in pain so can I arrange a time to come back when he is available? Before the front desk women could reply a nurse behind her pipped up and said " well if your tired your obviously not in labour so why do you even need to be checked." This really upset me for a couple reasons. 1. I am at risk for preterm labour 2. If I'm dilated I would like to know because it's been over 2 weeks since anyone has checked. 3. I know first hand labour is the most exhausting thing in the world so just because I am tired does not mean I'm not in labour. As that is all going threw my head and I'm almost in tears, the nurse who said she had called the Doctor came up behind me and said "oh so now you don't want me to call him? Because I was just going to" after she had clearly told us earlier she already had. At this point I have had enough. And I just left. I am at the point where I feel scared to give birth at KGH because of the way I was treated and the fact they made it seem like they really didn't care about my child by not giving me results to test, never giving me a straight answer and basically disregarding my pain. I feel as if they really do not care about me or my baby.

[atenbacon]

Well... Why leave your pregnancy in the hands of medical professionals? Pack your things and head home with your husband, Midwife and OB... Draw a bath and pop out your kid at home, that way you will not have to deal with doctors giving you dirty looks as they try to live up to your expectations of a pleasant happy birthing experience.

[Xia33]

Well... Why leave your pregnancy in the hands of medical professionals? Pack your things and head home with your husband, Midwife and OB... Draw a bath and pop out your kid at home, that way you will not have to deal with doctors giving you dirty looks as they try to live up to your expectations of a pleasant happy birthing experience.

You are kidding....right??? This lady is concerned...and has every right to be....and likely afraid with good reason. She has every right to answers to any and all questions and fears.

[kurtan]

Healthcare cuts all over bc. Thats how my experience has been at kgh. Slow!

[mexi cali]

Simply stated and this comes from experience, health care professionals do not like to be questioned nor do they like patients to dictate how things are going to happen.

I would encourage anybody who is in the hospital for any reason to actively participate in their care by insisting on answers and action if they aren't getting what they need.

I think that one of the biggest issues is that they see it all everyday so to them, most of what goes on is not a big deal.

What they fail to recognize or remember is that to the patient sitting in front of them, what they are experiencing is not normal or every day and they are scared.

I am not condoning aggression. I am advocating assertion and resolve. They are there to look after you and part of that means being transparent and accountable.

[Ken7]

A sweet grandmother Telephoned Kelowna General Hospital. She timidly asked,
"Is it possible to speak to someone who can tell me how a patient is doing?"

The operator said, "I'll be glad to help, dear. What's the name and room number of the patient?"

The grandmother in her weak, tremulous voice said, Norma Findlay, Room 302."

The operator replied, "Let me put you on hold while I check with the nurse's station for that room."

After a few minutes, the operator returned to the phone and said,
"I have good news. Her nurse just told me that Norma is doing well. Her
blood pressure is fine; her blood work just came back normal and her
Physician, Dr. Cohen, has scheduled her to be discharged tomorrow."

The grandmother said, "Thank you. That's wonderful. I was so worried. God bless you for the good News."

The operator replied, "You're more than welcome. Is Norma your daughter?"

The grandmother said, "No, I'm Norma Findlay in Room 302. No one tells me
*bleep*."

TRUE STORY

[atenbacon]

A sweet grandmother Telephoned Kelowna General Hospital. She timidly asked,
"Is it possible to speak to someone who can tell me how a patient is doing?"

The operator said, "I'll be glad to help, dear. What's the name and room number of the patient?"

The grandmother in her weak, tremulous voice said, Norma Findlay, Room 302."

The operator replied, "Let me put you on hold while I check with the nurse's station for that room."

After a few minutes, the operator returned to the phone and said,
"I have good news. Her nurse just told me that Norma is doing well. Her
blood pressure is fine; her blood work just came back normal and her
Physician, Dr. Cohen, has scheduled her to be discharged tomorrow."

The grandmother said, "Thank you. That's wonderful. I was so worried. God bless you for the good News."

The operator replied, "You're more than welcome. Is Norma your daughter?"

The grandmother said, "No, I'm Norma Findlay in Room 302. No one tells me
*bleep*."

TRUE STORY

Apparently not a true story, at least not true when you try to say it's a KGH story.

http://www.artwanted.com/mb/topic.cfm?Topic=535752

[Ken7]

OK its a joke right, tried to lighten up the topic.

I knew a fellow who went in by ambulance as he thought he was having a heart attack. Ended up after checking a few things over, he was placed on a cot and was placed in the hallway where he lay most all day and no-one would tell him a thing. Now that's a true story!

Under staffed and no enough rooms. Possibly with the old age crisis in this City they need another hospital..

[Bsuds]

I have a friend in the KGH right now. His surgeon says he can go home but the internist says no that there is still something that the surgeon needs to address!
They can't agree and he and his wife are getting frustrated with them.

[Ken7]

I have a friend in the KGH right now. His surgeon says he can go home but the internist says no that there is still something that the surgeon needs to address!
They can't agree and he and his wife are getting frustrated with them.

If you are not your own advocate, you will be put to the back of the bus.

Be persistent when ill and keep on them or you will end up being one of those stories we hear so many of. Well they were sick but the doctor said it was nothing.... now rest in peace!

Sadly in saying that some people who are not ill seem to keep the system plugged up and those who are ill get pushed to the back of the bus.

[Poindexter]

They don't call it Inferior Health for nothing but I can't get on board with bashing nurses.

I know a few nurses at KGH and they are equally as frustrated. While the extrinsic rewards are well met with good pay and benefits, intrinsic rewards such as job satisfaction are getting harder to come by. The vast majority of nurses do thier best to meet patient demands but the clerical and babysitting part of thier job is increasingly taking over patient care.

I can tell you some horror stories in patient care but there have been enough examples provided on this thread. The affect on patients are well documented but the affect on conscientious nurses is brushed over. Poor management who write up hard working staff and ignore obvious training and attendance/staffing issues are at the core of the problem IMO. And lousy working conditions only adds to an already challenging occupation. One of the nurses I know, as a test, wrote a date in washable marker on a bedside privacy curtain that had feces on it. Even though he reported it the cleaning staff didn't get around to it for weeks, may still be hanging there as haven't talked to him for a while. I couldn't work in those conditions, they couldn't pay me enough.

Then there is the high maintanance patients that think its a five star hotel and want tea and crumpets at nurses beconed call. They constantly buzz the nurses stations for seemingly nothing and take away from time with patients who actually need help.

Its a shame but many nurses get tired of the uphill battle and surrender to a path of least resistance. That's when a good manager needs to step in and remotivate some of the burned out employees. One of my friends managers has 2 floors to watch over, how can a manager adequately do thier job with a span of control that reaches 60 to 1. The entire system needs an overhaul but nurses being on the front line take the brunt. I couldn't work in those conditions but nurses are asked to every day. Is it any wonder they has such horrendous staffing problems due to absenteism.

At the end of the day patients receive poor care and nurses go home feeling defeated. IMO the entire management team needs restructuring and retraining. And those with the power to make change need to involve nurses in improving overall care. It's not about wages and number of beds, it's about human dignity, and currently neither nurses nor patients are being treated with it at KGH.