I am complaining about a terrible experience at parkwest hospital. I am going to tell only the facts, no exagerration.
I was having horrible chest pains. i had had the chest pains for a few months. one day it got so bad, i thought i was either having a heart attack, or had angina. I went to the emergency room at parkwest. Of course, they began with an ekg, to make sure i wasn't having heart attck. i wasn't. Then they sent me back to a room. I never once saw a doctor while i was there. They then gave me a urine test to make sure my levels or whatever were normal. They were. Then, the starting running test after test on me, before ever seeing a doctor. My general physician informed me that i should have seen a doctor before they started running multiple tests on me to determine which tests were necessary.
That didn't happen. The whole time i was in excrutiating pain. I asked them to please give me something for the pain. again and again they refused. They asked me if i maybe took drugs. They said cocaine can give you heart problems. I told them i was on no drugs, and have never taken cocaine in my life. They proceeded to ask me if I was on pain medicince, and i told them no, i was not on any drugs.
They ran more tests on me. I was crying and begging them to get something for my pain. at this point i was there almost 4 hours without ever seeing a doctor.
A male nurse came in the room and ordered me to have another urine test. i said "no, i've already had a urine test done" thinking he just didn't know that. He said they needed another one. When i asked why, and what it was for, he said "It's just to make sure you're ok." So he led me to the bathroom, and stood right outside my door, like a guard. Then, he sent me back to my room. I said "Can I please see a doctor? i really need something for my pain. Then a nurse came in and started injecting me with something. I asked her what she was giving me and she said nexium. I said "why are you giving me nexium?" She said it was for the pain. I told her ive never heard of injecting someone with nexium for pain. I asked her again when i could see a doctor. An hour later, i was still crying in pain. I said "i really need to see a doctor, i need something for my pain" No doctor came. instead, a nurse came and started injecting me again. I asked her what she was injecting me with tranzine. I said "what's that?" she said it was for pain. Come to find out, it is something that is given to alcoholics for anxiety with withdrawals.
I couldnt believe it when i got home and read that. Anyhow, after 6 hrs, a PHYSICIAN'S ASSISTANT came in the room. She did not give me any sort of evaluation at all. she sat in a chair on the other side of the room from me the whole time. She just said "you have acid reflux, im giving u a prescription for nexium". I protested and told her i would never go to the emergency room for indegestion. She just looked at me with her eyes wide open, and said "That's what u have".
Well, i finally got out of that awful er. Come to find out, nexium costs $250 a month!
I got samples from my general physician, but it never helped me at ALL with my pain. I got an itemized bill to, which listed a drug test for $200 that they expected me to pay. I absolutely could not believe what i was seeing. I was flat out lied to about the urine test.
When my general physician learned of my er visit, he was outraged. He told me, "they are not to start running tests on you before seeing a doctor." They also faxed him over the drug test results, which were ALL negative, just like i told them. I gave no consent to a drug test, and not only that, they deliberately lied when i asked them what the test was for.
I went to my general physician because nexium wasnt helping with my pain at ALL. He examined me and pressed on my collar bones and on my sternum, which hurt very badly to the touch.
He diagnosed me with costochondritis- a very painful inflamation of the sternum and collar bone with severe pain like a heart attack. Parkwest diagnosed me with indegestion, and prescribed me very expensive medicine i couldnt afford.
I feel that i was treated like a criminal. they refused to listen to anything i had to say, ran expensive uneccesary tests on me without seeing a doctor beforehand, and the only person besides a nurse i saw was an incompetent physician's assistant, who didn't even examine me. I have been stuck with a hospital bill with very expensive tests, including the drug test that i was never disclosed of. I suffered with extreme pain for months unnecessarily because of their misdiagnosis and complete disregard for anything i had to say about my situation.
I feel like the only thing they cared about was trying to bust me for drugs, even though i told them multiple times that i didnt take drugs. they sure must not have believed me. I feel i was badly mistreated, misdiagnosed due to refusal to properly examine me and suffered greatly afterwards due to this.
I do not feel like i should owe parkwest anything for the way i was treated and misdiagnosed, and it wasnt because they really tried to diagnose me, as no doctor saw me and the physician's assistant never even touched me.