[CFrance]

Originally Posted by Bambi

Last week I went to the new free standing ER (it is not a Urgent Care) on 441 next to Spruce Creek - across from Camping World.
From the moment I walked in until discharge, I was treated promptly and with great courtesy by all the staff members. The doctor explained everything and spent quite a bit of time with me reviewing the results of the tests.
It is owned by Ocala Regional Hospital and is an extension of the ER on the main campus. Ocala Regional is the level two trauma hospital for our area. If you have to be admitted, if possible they will send you to your hospital of choice although they generally admit to their hospital. Again, it is not an Urgent Care but an actually well staffed and equipped ER with scanning capacity, etc.
I asked if they were busy when I walked in and it was affirmative with apologies because I waited about five minutes to be taken to a bed. Within ten minutes I was hooked up for an EKG, Dr in the room, chest X-ray and labs drawn even tho my main complaint was not chest pain.
I am a retired RN and have never seen a unit run as efficiently as this ER. I didn't count them, but it looked like they had at least 10-12 private rooms. It is a large building. Highly recommend.

Please, what is the name of this place so I can look it up and put it in my GPS? If my husband were within hours of leaving us, I would not wait around in an ER for 5 hours.

This new ER sounds like a very viable alternative.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by Bambi

Last week I went to the new free standing ER (it is not a Urgent Care) on 441 next to Spruce Creek - across from Camping World.
From the moment I walked in until discharge, I was treated promptly and with great courtesy by all the staff members. The doctor explained everything and spent quite a bit of time with me reviewing the results of the tests.
It is owned by Ocala Regional Hospital and is an extension of the ER on the main campus. Ocala Regional is the level two trauma hospital for our area. If you have to be admitted, if possible they will send you to your hospital of choice although they generally admit to their hospital. Again, it is not an Urgent Care but an actually well staffed and equipped ER with scanning capacity, etc.
I asked if they were busy when I walked in and it was affirmative with apologies because I waited about five minutes to be taken to a bed. Within ten minutes I was hooked up for an EKG, Dr in the room, chest X-ray and labs drawn even tho my main complaint was not chest pain.
I am a retired RN and have never seen a unit run as efficiently as this ER. I didn't count them, but it looked like they had at least 10-12 private rooms. It is a large building. Highly recommend.

Thank you so much. I have been promoting the Ocala health Care network for the 11 years i have lived here.

[Dan9871]

Originally Posted by CFrance

so I can look it up and put it in my GPS? .

Lookup Summerfield ER on Goggle Maps

But check the reviews there too... 4 of the 10 there are about poor service.

Google Maps

[PennBF]

We just spent 6 weeks at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville and have absolutely NO complaints ! When you have an appointment with a Dr. or other (e.g. Blood work,etc,) you can go to the bank that you will not wait more than 5 minutes regardless of the need. You can be assured you have a "team of Dr's" evaluating your med needs and getting the best professional treatment. If you call your Dr. at 12 midnight from home you can be sure that within an hour they will call back. If you go to Urgent Care you will be seen within 1/2 hour by a Physician.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by Bambi

Last week I went to the new free standing ER (it is not a Urgent Care) on 441 next to Spruce Creek - across from Camping World.
From the moment I walked in until discharge, I was treated promptly and with great courtesy by all the staff members. The doctor explained everything and spent quite a bit of time with me reviewing the results of the tests.
It is owned by Ocala Regional Hospital and is an extension of the ER on the main campus. Ocala Regional is the level two trauma hospital for our area. If you have to be admitted, if possible they will send you to your hospital of choice although they generally admit to their hospital. Again, it is not an Urgent Care but an actually well staffed and equipped ER with scanning capacity, etc.
I asked if they were busy when I walked in and it was affirmative with apologies because I waited about five minutes to be taken to a bed. Within ten minutes I was hooked up for an EKG, Dr in the room, chest X-ray and labs drawn even tho my main complaint was not chest pain.
I am a retired RN and have never seen a unit run as efficiently as this ER. I didn't count them, but it looked like they had at least 10-12 private rooms. It is a large building. Highly recommend.

Sounds pretty good. They do have several advantages that make it (and places like it) a more attractive and efficient place

1) They do not have to hold patients waiting for a bed on a floor to open up----just make an ER to ER transfer in accordance with COBRA laws and pack them off in an ambulance.

2) National ER admission rates average 13%, their admission rate is probably less than 2%, so less work messing with admissions

3) They do not have ambulances arriving every 10-15 minutes

4) The REALLY, REALLY sick patients tend not to go there, so the severity of illness is less

5) As far as staffing goes, as long as they are running it as a separate entity, they do not have to worry about less than optimal workers with a lot of seniority bidding for the jobs there, which tend to be more desirable, so they can pick and choose who they hire.

6) They are NEW, so the equipment and facility are modern, they can write policies and procedures that suit the place, and there hasn't been enough time for the staff to develop its own "culture", which far too often is a culture of laziness.


As an aside, I've always favored eliminating the solid walls and doors between the waiting room and the ER treatment area. Yes, you need to keep the patient rooms out of sight, but I think the common areas should be in view. If you think the people are angry when they wait in the ER now, just imagine if they could see the staff talking, giggling, sitting with their feet up on the desk, reading a book, surfing the web or even napping while they wait. If you don't think those things happen, think again.

[NotGolfer]

Originally Posted by golf2140

Some folks may remember that The Villages wanted to build a second hospital near Brownwood on CR 44 but were denied a permit. They tried to fix the problem. Give them some ctredit for building the hospital in the first place !!!!!

Totally agree! Think if we didn't have TVRH at all....we'd still be hearing complaints but most likely more because the community has grown since it was built.

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by NotGolfer

Great post from someone who is more experienced (being a former health-care provider) than most of us who post here. Thank you Golfing Eagles!!!! Gracie also made some great points!!!

I wonder how many folks actually contact the "powers that be" at TVRH to complain of their experiences??? We've had several stops to the ER since moving here---all were different. Only one was, should I say, not the best? BUT I made it known both to the staff AND later in an e-mail to the director. I've heard 2 times that "they are working on it"...meaning trying to make it better. The hospitals here are like small-town hospitals but with LARGE city needs. I have to wonder if there aren't people in management who read these posts. I still say though...folks need to talk to the source and not keep complaining on social media!

Excellent post. And since GE asked, I will weigh in.

Having observed, used, and survived some ERs, not all are equal. Once one is seriously broken, as is TVRH's, it can be very difficult to turn around. I've turned around a couple in my career so I speak from experience.

What I'm posting here has been written and told to the hospital leadership. There are a number of issues that are easily noted for someone like GE so let's see if he agrees with my analysis.

First problem, the ER docs are lazy. They have no skin in the game and act like they really don't give a darn. They certainly aren't oriented toward productivity. SOLUTION: hire a new ER group, and make sure the contract speaks to quality and productivity standards.

Second problem, the hospital employees have a terrible attitude. It shows in the way they interact with each other and patients. I believe the attitude has rubbed off from the docs. SOLUTION: Replace the docs, and have all employees take a mandatory course on customer relations. Disney offers these, and they will teach it on site.

Third problem (and this one is literally a killer), best practice protocols are not being followed. When a patient arrives at the hospital with chest pain, there are practices that must be put in place immediately. Although anecdotal, there is sufficient evidence to believe cardiac and other protocols are not always followed. SOLUTION: Replace the ER group. There should also be a medical staff committee that reviews records to assure QA. I'd recommend that the committee investigate certain protocols to be sure they are being followed. Where appropriate it may be necessary to require education, or restrict privileges.

Fourth problem, they invested millions to the expand the ER...most likely hoping construction would resolve many of the issues discussed here and in other threads. The problems have remained. And IMO, the ER docs are the bottleneck. SOLUTION: fire the ER docs, and bring in a consultant to assess patient flow and staff work patterns.

That's enough for now. What do you think GE?


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[kstew43]

When I needed them, They were there....But in retrospect I should have taken him to Ocala...

But..... we got a bill the other day from the ER doctor, that charged us $150 extra on his bill because we got to the ER at 11pm.....

We called him and had it removed, which they did....but the nerve.....

We didn't call him from home, he was on 11-7 shift.....wow.....

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by dbussone

Excellent post. And since GE asked, I will weigh in.

Having observed, used, and survived some ERs, not all are equal. Once one is seriously broken, as is TVRH's, it can be very difficult to turn around. I've turned around a couple in my career so I speak from experience.

What I'm posting here has been written and told to the hospital leadership. There are a number of issues that are easily noted for someone like GE so let's see if he agrees with my analysis.

First problem, the ER docs are lazy. They have no skin in the game and act like they really don't give a darn. They certainly aren't oriented toward productivity. SOLUTION: hire a new ER group, and make sure the contract speaks to quality and productivity standards.

Second problem, the hospital employees have a terrible attitude. It shows in the way they interact with each other and patients. I believe the attitude has rubbed off from the docs. SOLUTION: Replace the docs, and have all employees take a mandatory course on customer relations. Disney offers these, and they will teach it on site.

Third problem (and this one is literally a killer), best practice protocols are not being followed. When a patient arrives at the hospital with chest pain, there are practices that must be put in place immediately. Although anecdotal, there is sufficient evidence to believe cardiac and other protocols are not always followed. SOLUTION: Replace the ER group. There should also be a medical staff committee that reviews records to assure QA. I'd recommend that the committee investigate certain protocols to be sure they are being followed. Where appropriate it may be necessary to require education, or restrict privileges.

Fourth problem, they invested millions to the expand the ER...most likely hoping construction would resolve many of the issues discussed here and in other threads. The problems have remained. And IMO, the ER docs are the bottleneck. SOLUTION: fire the ER docs, and bring in a consultant to assess patient flow and staff work patterns.

That's enough for now. What do you think GE?


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I agree 100%, I think I touched on most of this as well. ER culture tends to manifest itself from the top down. I don't know about all the ER docs here, but the one we had , gave at least the impression of laziness. He also seemed to have the knowledge base I expected from my interns and 2nd year residents. Did he do the right thing---yes. Was he happy about being there---no. Did he do it anywhere near as quickly as I could have---not even close. I agree QA needs to be stepped up, as well as a review of admission protocols.

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

I agree 100%, I think I touched on most of this as well. ER culture tends to manifest itself from the top down. I don't know about all the ER docs here, but the one we had , gave at least the impression of laziness. He also seemed to have the knowledge base I expected from my interns and 2nd year residents. Did he do the right thing---yes. Was he happy about being there---no. Did he do it anywhere near as quickly as I could have---not even close. I agree QA needs to be stepped up, as well as a review of admission protocols.

Thank you GE.

I think one additional point I would make is we (TV residents) should not put up with such mediocrity. It's important to speak up - to hospital leadership, first. If you are the recipient of inadequate or dangerous care, and reported it to the hospital (but did not receive satisfaction), then report it to the State Department of Health and The Joint Commission. Both will investigate if you have a legitimate complaint.

Finally, there are really good ER physicians and companies out there, so don't settle. If enough people speak up it will help. I think we all want TVRH to be an excellent hospital. We need it to be one.


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[CFrance]

Originally Posted by Dan9871

Lookup Summerfield ER on Goggle Maps

But check the reviews there too... 4 of the 10 there are about poor service.

Google Maps

Thanks. Good to have choices.

[NotGolfer]

Originally Posted by dbussone

Excellent post. And since GE asked, I will weigh in.

Having observed, used, and survived some ERs, not all are equal. Once one is seriously broken, as is TVRH's, it can be very difficult to turn around. I've turned around a couple in my career so I speak from experience.

What I'm posting here has been written and told to the hospital leadership. There are a number of issues that are easily noted for someone like GE so let's see if he agrees with my analysis.

First problem, the ER docs are lazy. They have no skin in the game and act like they really don't give a darn. They certainly aren't oriented toward productivity. SOLUTION: hire a new ER group, and make sure the contract speaks to quality and productivity standards.

Second problem, the hospital employees have a terrible attitude. It shows in the way they interact with each other and patients. I believe the attitude has rubbed off from the docs. SOLUTION: Replace the docs, and have all employees take a mandatory course on customer relations. Disney offers these, and they will teach it on site.

Third problem (and this one is literally a killer), best practice protocols are not being followed. When a patient arrives at the hospital with chest pain, there are practices that must be put in place immediately. Although anecdotal, there is sufficient evidence to believe cardiac and other protocols are not always followed. SOLUTION: Replace the ER group. There should also be a medical staff committee that reviews records to assure QA. I'd recommend that the committee investigate certain protocols to be sure they are being followed. Where appropriate it may be necessary to require education, or restrict privileges.

Fourth problem, they invested millions to the expand the ER...most likely hoping construction would resolve many of the issues discussed here and in other threads. The problems have remained. And IMO, the ER docs are the bottleneck. SOLUTION: fire the ER docs, and bring in a consultant to assess patient flow and staff work patterns.

That's enough for now. What do you think GE?


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I so agree with you DB....."stuff" filters down from the top. I could give a seminar on how to be an effective front desk person in an office (medical or otherwise) as I've been there. They are the 1st people to be seen and represent the facility they work for. IF they aren't exhibiting a professional manner...then they should be fired! Bottom line. I can't speak to laziness of the doctors/nurses from our experiences at TVRH...we felt they were doing the best they could (for us) under the circumstances. What we see at the ER also happens in clinics across The Villages as well. Haven't seen it at T.V. health-care however but the others could use some training for sure. Again I say there it's their dr's and management who control that!!

[rjm1cc]

Fortunately I have no experience with the ER facility.
Up north the hospitals I used gave ER priority to those who arrived by ambulance. We were at a doctors office and were told to go to the ER. According to the Doctor and his experience we could take an ambulance from his office and be seen when we arrived. If we drove ourselves it could take several hours. We drove and it took longer to be seen that those arriving by ambulance. It seems that the ER is being used over its capacity.

The problem is that when you go to the ER you might not be sure how serious your problem is and if you should go to a more remote facility for treatment. For starters I would learn where other facilities are located and how long the average wait is. Then when an emergency occurs you have to make a judgment on where to go. I know one or more hospitals in Ocala let you make an emergency room appointment before you leave home. Of course they still take the most serious person first. Guess we all have to do a little home work and some postings on experience with other ER's would helpful.

[Suecorn]

It is not just The Villages hospital. Took my dad to Leesburg for choking and ended up getting admitted for high potassium. We waited 8 hours for a bed in the emergency room. There were stories of people waiting 17 hours and we were prepared to wait that long. Hoping they can come up with a solution with such a growing population of elderly patients. After living in the North (and thinking the wait times were bad) 1 hour or so this was quite a shocker!

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by Suecorn

It is not just The Villages hospital. Took my dad to Leesburg for choking and ended up getting admitted for high potassium. We waited 8 hours for a bed in the emergency room. There were stories of people waiting 17 hours and we were prepared to wait that long. Hoping they can come up with a solution with such a growing population of elderly patients. After living in the North (and thinking the wait times were bad) 1 hour or so this was quite a shocker!

Leesburg and TVRH are both run by the same organization- the Central Florida Health Alliance. So I wouldn't expect a significant difference in the two ERs.


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