[JourneyOfLife]

Originally Posted by Russ_Boston

Same company - same management - same nurses - same doctors. For the most part. I work both.

If citizens do not feel the current hospital provider is responsive to their needs then what?

Competition is good!

Instead of adding more of the same.... should citizens press local government to seek a different company to build a new hospital that is run by a top competing company.

Maybe a few of the TV residents should start a TV Club to organize a citizens action committee to take it to local local government.

[justjim]

Given the population of TV and surrounding area, TV Hospital is not large enough to handle the number of patients (especially in the winter) given their age and it doesn't take a smart person to figure that out! Apparently, it takes(1) money and (2) political clout to get the job done. hmmnn.....

[graciegirl]

Keep in mind what triage does. It is someone who makes the call who is seen first and if I remember correctly, I am not a medical person, that constitutes people with immediate life threatening emergencies, such as those unable to breathe, severe blood loss, strokes and heart attacks.

Broken bones, severe pain, cuts that are not hemoraghing, severe sprains, stomach pain without fever, etc,etc,etc,....all terrible and ugly and awful but not immediately life threatening.

We had a friend who snowbirds and who had a blood seepage into the brain from being on blood thinners and she was given a CT scan in the ER and had to stay overnight on a bed in the hall there until she could be given a room, but she was being observed and her vitals were taken, at the proper intervals but she wasn't in a comfortable private room. She was telling us last night that she was then content with the care given her. She like many of us who have the problems of age where she must take blood thinners or she gets clots in her legs and too much can cause a brain bleed. Her problem was indeed serious.

Serious and life theatening but not immediately life threatening but they were watching her for any change that would make her condition immediately life threatening.

[ilovetv]

Originally Posted by justjim

Given the population of TV and surrounding area, TV Hospital is not large enough to handle the number of patients (especially in the winter) given their age and it doesn't take a smart person to figure that out! Apparently, it takes(1) money and (2) political clout to get the job done. hmmnn.....

Good to think about. And that when government (Congress) "gives" money to improve healthcare financing for one sector of the population (as is truly needed for the percentage that's uninsured or "uninsurable"), it takes from another sector....that's already in deep financial trouble.

"....Medicare is already paying more in benefits than it receives in income.

As a result, the Medicare trustees in their most recent report issued a “Medicare funding warning” again, for the sixth straight year. Yet despite the looming crisis, before lawmakers start cutting benefits, raising premiums or increasing taxes, let’s fix Medicare first and make it worth saving.

Over the years, Medicare has become more complicated and confusing for the beneficiaries covered...."
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/op...-medicare.html

The writer, an economist, is a clinical associate professor of social welfare at Stony Brook University and a former senior investigator for the New York State attorney general’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

[rp001]

One thing for sure...This certainly is not "world class medical care"...let the flames begin

[gerryann]

Originally Posted by rp001

One thing for sure...This certainly is not "world class medical care"...let the flames begin

I should have done my homework when deciding where to move. We all wonder about activities, restaurants, golf courses, etc...but a good percentage did not check out the existing health care and hospitals. I for one wish I had.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by rp001

One thing for sure...This certainly is not "world class medical care"...let the flames begin

You won't get flamed by me. It is a very big problem.

My husband calls me a doctor snob. I think that it is because I have been spoiled by having some excellent facilities near where we lived.

And having never been old before this is the FIRST time I have encountered some of the pesky and annoying and even worrisome stuff that comes with age.

The opportunity does present itself right here to have a world class hospital and medical community that specializes in geriatrics, health issues pertaining to aging, but just how you attract that kind of facility and how it would be funded is beyond my knowledge. I know it doesn't just drop from the sky.

Boston's Childrens is the number one Childrens medical facility in the entire country by all determining factors and proudly Cincinnati Childrens is number three, but I don't know how they got to be so good.

The bottom line somewhere is always the money and the funding and the reseach money too, maybe...I don't know

Another issue that is probably a factor in the problem is that the phenomenal growth in this area has happened mostly in the last ten years and we may be still flying under the radar of the folks who are drawn to make medical history by coming here and helping us.

I don't know. It is a problem and it is frightening and that is the reason that this thread is so intense and heated.

But sometimes it isn't anyone's fault. And sometimes there are no easy fixes.

[ilovetv]

About regretting a move to TV because of the hospital and ER, let's keep it in perspective.

If the ER and other departments were comparatively all that "substandard", I think the JCAHO would certainly put a halt to it, and fast. See accreditation linked below for TVRH.

Also, when TV residents lived in, for example, MD, NY, MA, OH, MN, AZ, CA.....how many of us were a 10-minute car or golf-cart ride away from major medical centers like Johns Hopkins, Mt. Sinai-NYC, Massachusetts General, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Ohio State, UCLA, etc.???

We were usually 20 to 70 miles away from major medical centers like this, and now, here in TV we are 50 miles from Univ. of FL Gainesville Shands and Orlando, 80+ miles from Tampa, and 4(?) hour drive from Miami.

People on this thread have already stated that the wait times and sense of inadequate attention at other ER's near and far from here are not much better.

SEE JCAHO Accreditation:
QualityReport

The Joint Commission (TJC), formerly the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) and previous to that the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals (JCAH), is a United States-based nonprofit organization that accredits more than 19,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. A majority of state governments have come to recognize Joint Commission accreditation as a condition of licensure and the receipt of Medicaid reimbursement. Surveys (inspections) typically follow a triennial cycle, with findings made available to the public in an accreditation quality report on the Quality Check Web site. (wikipedia)

[perrjojo]

Many have posted that the developer SHOULD do something about this sitituation and I think that is happening with the new Villages Healthcare. The problem right now is that this will take time.....a long time. The new clinics can be quickly built but it takes time to staff these clinics with quality healthcare providers. Good physicians don' t just stop their practice and move to TV. One thing being promised at the new clinics is that someone will be on call24/7. That will be a great help with the less critical visits to the ER. But again, this is not happening over night. When I first started this thread, it was not my intent to BASH the hospital or the staff. I was merely reporting what I witnessed and what I witnessed was not a good picture. I have been in ERs in large cities and it is never a pleasant experience but I felt a great empathy for the long wait and suffering I saw from several other patients. Just because it is that way everywhere, does not mean it's OK. What I would like to see come of these 157 plus post is an effort to get physicians who will see or at least talk to their patient in prompt time frame. I would like to see an Urgent Care facility that is open 24/7. Maybe we need to make this a priority rather than whether or not we get a new Costco or Traders Joe's. of course that would be nice too.

[perrjojo]

RUSS_BOSTON. I have used urgent care in the past and been satisfied but most close at 7 or 8. Is there an Urgent Care in our area with longer hours.

[looneycat]

Originally Posted by billethkid

These stories have been talked about for years. Does anybody but me wonder why the powers that be allow it (?) to continue?

There are other options outside TV......but some say they are too far to go.
How far could one go in the same 3-5 hour time waiting in TV ER?

Until or unless something changes TV hospital is not on my list of choices.

btk

I have numerous 'issues' and turn to Shands hospital for treatment and exams. Have yet to find a quality doctor here.

[Warren Kiefer]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Keep in mind what triage does. It is someone who makes the call who is seen first and if I remember correctly, I am not a medical person, that constitutes people with immediate life threatening emergencies, such as those unable to breathe, severe blood loss, strokes and heart attacks.

Broken bones, severe pain, cuts that are not hemoraghing, severe sprains, stomach pain without fever, etc,etc,etc,....all terrible and ugly and awful but not immediately life threatening.

We had a friend who snowbirds and who had a blood seepage into the brain from being on blood thinners and she was given a CT scan in the ER and had to stay overnight on a bed in the hall there until she could be given a room, but she was being observed and her vitals were taken, at the proper intervals but she wasn't in a comfortable private room. She was telling us last night that she was then content with the care given her. She like many of us who have the problems of age where she must take blood thinners or she gets clots in her legs and too much can cause a brain bleed. Her problem was indeed serious.

Serious and life theatening but not immediately life threatening but they were watching her for any change that would make her condition immediately life threatening.

No one should have to sit in an emergency room for up to 12 hours. If this is the case, then the facility is not large enough to treat both the more serious and also the less serious. Backlogs do happen but they should not be the norm in any hospital. There should be staff and provisions, perhaps at another area, to treat the less serious while the more serious are being given the necessary accute care in the ER.

[looneycat]

I do have one rule of thumb, however, if I wait more than an hour past my appointment on two successive visits I change doctor. Any Dr. that overbooks to that extent has already told me, by these actions, just how much they care about their patients....when not due to REAL emergencies. I also have been amazed at how many physicians here are willing to trust the front desk of their practice to complete nincompoops!

[RedChariot]

Originally Posted by Warren Kiefer

No one should have to sit in an emergency room for up to 12 hours. If this is the case, then the facility is not large enough to treat both the more serious and also the less serious. Backlogs do happen but they should not be the norm in any hospital. There should be staff and provisions, perhaps at another area, to treat the less serious while the more serious are being given the necessary accute care in the ER.

Ok I'm going to venture into this thread again against my better judgement. Last time another poster pretty much told me I did not know standards of care because I was in Nursing Administration. What? Who do you think sees to it that hospital policy is adheared to? Anyway, on this issue of being in the ER for so many hours. The state required adequate care to the ER patient that is admitted and no available beds in house. We built a seperate area. Patients were taken off the ER stretcher and put in a hospital bed. I had to see that there was adequate staffing for that ER holding area. We even had critical patients on ventilators. Critical Care certified RNs were staffed there. In addition Medical-Surgical patients were held there with Med/Surg certified RNs. Too many situations can present themselves in acute care to discuss here. We had to find the answer.

[rp001]

Originally Posted by RedChariot

Ok I'm going to venture into this thread again against my better judgement. Last time another poster pretty much told me I did not know standards of care because I was in Nursing Administration. What? Who do you think sees to it that hospital policy is adheared to? Anyway, on this issue of being in the ER for so many hours. The state required adequate care to the ER patient that is admitted and no available beds in house. We built a seperate area. Patients were taken off the ER stretcher and put in a hospital bed. I had to see that there was adequate staffing for that ER holding area. We even had critical patients on ventilators. Critical Care certified RNs were staffed there. In addition Medical-Surgical patients were held there with Med/Surg certified RNs. Too many situations can present themselves in acute care to discuss here. We had to find the answer.

Sounds like your facility was willing to spend a little money and actually manage those that were in limbo. What is the difference from your operation than that at the villages? Is it only money or having the knowledge and ability to manage the circumstances? In my opinion what is missing here is just plain management. What they do have leaves a lot to be desired.