Penticton Hospital's Dreadful Reputation

[maryjane48]

1 France
2 Italy
3 San Marino
4 Andorra
5 Malta
6 Singapore
7 Spain
8 Oman
9 Austria
10 Japan
11 Norway
12 Portugal
13 Monaco
14 Greece
15 Iceland
16 Luxembourg
17 Netherlands
18 United Kingdom
19 Ireland
20 Switzerland
21 Belgium
22 Colombia
23 Sweden
24 Cyprus
25 Germany
26 Saudi Arabia
27 United Arab Emirates
28 Israel
29 Morocco
30 Canada



all them countries beat us at healthcare

http://thepatientfactor.com/canadian-he ... h-systems/

[twobits]

1 France
2 Italy
3 San Marino
4 Andorra
5 Malta
6 Singapore
7 Spain
8 Oman
9 Austria
10 Japan
11 Norway
12 Portugal
13 Monaco
14 Greece
15 Iceland
16 Luxembourg
17 Netherlands
18 United Kingdom
19 Ireland
20 Switzerland
21 Belgium
22 Colombia
23 Sweden
24 Cyprus
25 Germany
26 Saudi Arabia
27 United Arab Emirates
28 Israel
29 Morocco
30 Canada



all them countries beat us at healthcare

http://thepatientfactor.com/canadian-he ... h-systems/

And coincidentally, numbers 1 thru 29 hardly anyone would want to move to because of taxation or living conditions. But go ahead and fill yer boots and move to one of them. I'll even help ya pack.

[Hermes]

If you're unhappy with the service, you can't vote with your feet and go somewhere else. It's illegal for the sellers and therefore there is no opportunity for the buyers. Monopoly corporation healthcare. My friends in Switzerland, UK, Singapore etc are shocked when I tell them non-government healthcare is illegal in Canada.

I get most of my non-emergency healthcare in Vietnam, India and Malaysia.

'Free' is very expensive.

I couldn't believe it the first time a physician told me he would be hauled up before the College if he let me pay for an unauthorized blood test.I have no problem with subsidized healthcare as a safety net for the poor (like for me right now!) I have a big problem when it is enforced essentially with a gun to the head. If all the wealthier people went to private clinics, the queues wouldn't be so long. The politicians in BC have no knowledge of economics or human rights (absence of coercion).

[youhavegottobekidding]

I have been to the Penticton ER on maybe 3 or 4 occasions in the past 3 years and have ALWAYS found the staff at the reception, the Drs and all staff very very friendly and knowledgeable. I have never had a bad experience there .

[0gopogo]

Same here. Top notch service!

[seewood]

I have been to the Penticton ER on maybe 3 or 4 occasions in the past 3 years and have ALWAYS found the staff at the reception, the Drs and all staff very very friendly and knowledgeable. I have never had a bad experience there .

Double thumbs up here. Both as a patient and as a first responder. Great bunch of people.

[Jhunter199]

I have seen both sides personally from PRH. I had a very serious injury suffered overseas a few years ago and after a few weeks of recovery I was air ambulanced 22 hours to Penticton Hospital. I was stuck in a room at 3am and told there was no way I could get anything to eat until morning. Lucky for me my Wife, Mother, and Mother-in-law were waiting my arrival and were able to grab me a sandwich. I had a traumatic leg injury and was unable to walk without major assistance to get up, stand up and walk very slowly with crutches and support. 8am rolls around and the charge nurse informs me I don't get breakfast cause i'm being sent home today... Now im stressing out as I have not even been looked at by a Dr. or a nurse. My wife comes in and asks how its possible to send me home? and do they even know what has happened to me? Nurses reply was "I dont have enough time to read everyones file". Needless to say we call our Doctor who rushes down to explain that there is no possible way they can send me home. I ended up sepending 2 weeks overseas in a hospital, 5 weeks in PRH and 2 weeks in KGH, just to give an idea of how serious this injury was.
In the first week I was moved rooms 8 times, I was moved once to an overflow room and never given a call button. I didnt have a cell phone with me, and was unable to get out of bed on my own. PRH pretty much lost me for 5 hours, my Mom and Wife both came to bring me lunch and was told I was sent home... In those 5 hours I missed breakfast and lunch and when was finally stumbled across by a nurse looking for supplies was told "you shouldnt be in here".
I needed an additional debridment surgery and the PRH resident surgeon wouldn't even come look at me.
Now for the good, The Rehab ward is second to none!!!! The ladies in there go above and beyond everyday, they understand that you are in a tough point in life and do whatever they can to ease your time there! In the rehab ward you werent just a patient you were a person.

Off point but the 2 weeks I spent in KGH was nothing special either, they are so busy that buzzers and beepers are going off all day and night, the food is far worse than PRH and personalized care is non-existent.

[JagXKR]

So I guess your story really shows the need for the new tower at PRH. Thankfully there will be more rooms in the not to distant future.

[seewood]

Thankfully there will be more rooms in the not to distant future.

But, will the budget have enough in it to hire the people to run it.
That was the issue at VGH with their tower. Took years to transfer from the old wings to the tower because of staffing and budget constraints.

This is one time I really hope I am wrong in this.

[JagXKR]

I'm not 100% sure but if we were to say....get a committee to study the situation then all would be right as rain.

[OkanaganBookkeeper]

Personally never had an issue with the care at the hospital I guess YMMV

Dan Barkman

[onestop67]

I'm 50'ish and have lived in Penticton for 10+ years. Reasonably healthy.

I used to get recurrent pains in my lower abdomen. Once, when it got so painful I left work and went to emergency. The doctor blew me off and said it was muscular, no need to do an xray cause it wouldn't show anything. Dumb *bleep* doctor.

I went through the same pain, every couple months for another year. Went to family doctor and suggested it could be appendicitis. He didn't buy that, but sent me for a CT. The CT showed not much, but they scheduled me to get another CT in 6 months. After the second CT they saw a lymph node had gotten bigger. They scheduled me for surgery to remove it and biopsy it. When the surgeon was in there, he saw my appendix was ready to explode, so he removed it at the same time. I KNEW IT!!!

Lymph node came back malignant, so I at least found out I have cancer at the earliest stage. I've had nothing but great care ever since.

But that first doctor in emergency....she's terrible.

[Bunnyhop]

I have seen both sides personally from PRH. I had a very serious injury suffered overseas a few years ago and after a few weeks of recovery I was air ambulanced 22 hours to Penticton Hospital. I was stuck in a room at 3am and told there was no way I could get anything to eat until morning. Lucky for me my Wife, Mother, and Mother-in-law were waiting my arrival and were able to grab me a sandwich. I had a traumatic leg injury and was unable to walk without major assistance to get up, stand up and walk very slowly with crutches and support. 8am rolls around and the charge nurse informs me I don't get breakfast cause i'm being sent home today... Now im stressing out as I have not even been looked at by a Dr. or a nurse. My wife comes in and asks how its possible to send me home? and do they even know what has happened to me? Nurses reply was "I dont have enough time to read everyones file". Needless to say we call our Doctor who rushes down to explain that there is no possible way they can send me home. I ended up sepending 2 weeks overseas in a hospital, 5 weeks in PRH and 2 weeks in KGH, just to give an idea of how serious this injury was.
In the first week I was moved rooms 8 times, I was moved once to an overflow room and never given a call button. I didnt have a cell phone with me, and was unable to get out of bed on my own. PRH pretty much lost me for 5 hours, my Mom and Wife both came to bring me lunch and was told I was sent home... In those 5 hours I missed breakfast and lunch and when was finally stumbled across by a nurse looking for supplies was told "you shouldnt be in here".
I needed an additional debridment surgery and the PRH resident surgeon wouldn't even come look at me.
Now for the good, The Rehab ward is second to none!!!! The ladies in there go above and beyond everyday, they understand that you are in a tough point in life and do whatever they can to ease your time there! In the rehab ward you werent just a patient you were a person.

Off point but the 2 weeks I spent in KGH was nothing special either, they are so busy that buzzers and beepers are going off all day and night, the food is far worse than PRH and personalized care is non-existent.

Patient care is poor to non-existent these days. Anyone admitted to hospital needs to bring someone along with them to act as patient advocate. Thats been my experience anyway.

[totoramona]

Patient care is poor to non-existent these days. Anyone admitted to hospital needs to bring someone along with them to act as patient advocate. Thats been my experience anyway.

Absolutely!! I agree 100%.

When an elderly family member of mine was at PRH, we stayed with her around the clock. The mistakes and deficiencies we witnessed during that time were truly shocking. The issues ranged from late or missed medications, improper charting, inability to operate medical equipment, unanswered call bells and more. I could hardly believe it myself, having not ever spent so much time at hospital with a loved one.

When the patient is elderly, severely ill, or heavily medicated, they will not be able to watch for these issues themselves. It is critical for a family member to stay and help.

[twobits]

I think the elephant in the room is the question of what level of care is expected and who is willing to pay for it? I understand some peoples frustration with personal experiences but I think the reality is, despite the perceived failings of our medical system, we are still much better served than a large part of the world. I think some may need to humble down their expectations and just be somewhat appreciative of the care that is available to us despite it's failings from perfect.