Inova Emergency Room - Fairfax City (Dept of Fairfax Hospital) — Attraction in Fairfax

Subject: Urgent Concerns Regarding Discrimination and Negligence at INOVA Emergency Room

My recent visit to the INOVA Emergency Room in Fairfax City, VA, has left me profoundly disappointed and deeply troubled. As a disabled senior citizen who has relied on this ER for over a decade, I am compelled to share the alarming decline in the quality of care, especially during a recent crisis in the middle of the night, which was handled with egregious consequences.

Despite my decade-long loyalty, the INOVA Emergency Room exhibited a shocking disregard for my hypertension, with a blood pressure reading of 167/81, placing me in hypertension stage 2. This negligence is particularly troubling as I am already on medication for hypertension stage 3, making me high-risk for stroke and heart attack. Compounding this, I am simultaneously grappling with anxiety medication withdrawal, intensifying insomnia and worsening severe neuropathy pain.

The attending ER doctor's clear discrimination against a disabled patient, in violation of ADA regulations, adds an extra layer of distress to an already dire situation. This level of care falls far below the standard one would expect from a medical institution, especially when dealing with a senior citizen facing complex medical issues, and without a primary doctor for assistance.

Despite my 30+ years of 100% disability for anxiety and depression, and a documented medical history of taking anti-anxiety medication daily, the doctor callously refused to prescribe necessary anti-anxiety medication. Instead, I was given Lidocaine Cream and Flexeril, prescribed for insomnia, anxiety, neuropathy pain, and hypertension stage 2. This decision not only neglects my legitimate medical history and current needs but exacerbates my severe anxiety, depression, insomnia, and neuropathy pain.

To compound the frustration, INOVA Emergency Room’s practices and ER doctor, Alexander M Sidlak, MD, attempted to dispute my reported symptoms repeatedly. Patient’s medical symptoms are not up for dispute patient knows themselves better then any ER doctor misjudging them in under 5 minutes at 62 yrs old. The nurse's recommendation to seek care elsewhere after 2:00 am only adds to the lack of professionalism in the ER. This disregard for a senior disabled patient's well-being and the refusal to address established medical conditions amount to a severe failure in providing adequate emergency medical care, coupled with discrimination based on the nature of the medical problem presented.

No tests were conducted except for blood pressure, which came back too high, and no medication was administered during the ER visit. Proper insomnia, pain, and anxiety medications were all refused by the ER doctor, falsely claiming no history of anxiety medication prescribed in Virginia in the past year. My disability, stemming from traumatic injuries during the postal shooting on the job as city mail carrier 38+ yrs for USPS. USPS OWCP DOL 5 claims includes 1 for coverage for medical treatment for anxiety and depression paid for by USPS from 1990 to 2023. Receive SSDI for anxiety and depression 1990 to 2022.

04/11/1990 US Department of Labor “Please be advised that the USPS Workers Compensation Order claim is herewith accepted for the conditions of major depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, and psychological factors affecting physical conditions.”

This experience significantly deviates from the expected standard of care in an Emergency Room, raising profound concerns about the competence and compassion of the medical staff. I earnestly hope that this feedback prompts a thorough review of INOVA Emergency Room's practices to prevent future instances of discrimination and suboptimal treatment for disabled individuals. My intention is not only to share my experience but to encourage other patients to reconsider their choices in seeking care at INOVA Emergency Room -...

My son sees about 8 specialists, been countless times in and out of the hospital and ER, I have never written a review concerning his care. Not because we receive the best care. writing a good review requires a lot of time and energy and when I think about it each time, I rather spend that little time and energy giving my son the care he deserves. Maybe someday when my son is up , I will write a book that shares our experiences across healthcare system in this country. I regret that my waiting to write the review might not right some of the immediate wrongs but I read enough reviews here, some 3years old before dropping mine.

Last Monday 09/20/2022 my son was in and out of the ER at Fairfax and I did not see myself writing any review. Today is the 09/27/2022, 7 days later, his meds that were sent to be filled from CVS Pennsylvania finally arrived my home in Woodbridge where I have about 3 CVSs 3 miles away. Note this is not a specialty Medication. My son was diagnose with a urinary infection. As most CVS in Woodbridge are not 24/7 , that night 09/20/2022 upon discharge from ER, I had to shop nearby 24/7 CVs and fortunately a CVS in Alexandria was opened.

I know the questions are , Did the nurse review the discharge paper with you or did you call for the meds to be transfer back when you learned it was sent to the wrong CVS?. Yes discharge notes were reviewed but one missing after visit care plan caught my attention more than the others. The patients main diagnoses is airway, he was rushed to the ER because threw up , needed suctioning but his suction machine failed to respond. And now a nurse is sending me home without consideration (plan) on how the patient (mainly airway patient) is gonna survive if he has an episode on the way or home?. That is how and why i ended up missing the wrong CVS for his meds.

Save the long story...So in the end I would have been going home with two problems, one, an airway patient without any means to suction or clear their airway if he had an episode and two, a patient diagnosed with urinary track infection yet would receive locally available medication 7days later from a CVS in Pennsylvania.

From NICU with my son and back home , to ERs , visits , and hospitalizations, I am grateful for the good times but will never sleep on the trust issues i have developed in the healthcare systems, practitioners specialists in the last 3 years being a , parent, caregiver and...

On 19 Jan 2024 my daughter was diagnosed and treated for the Flu. It was simple and we were out in a couple of hours. However, INOVA Employs doctors through a scam-artist like operation named US Acute Care Solutions. A Google search shows this operation is notorious for directly billing of patients with surprise bills, that separately arrive weeks after a patients bills are paid by the patients insurance company. This is what has happened to my family twice. After my primary insurance provider paid INOVA for the care given my daughter, I separate bill from ACUTE Care. After calling INOVA and the number show for ACUTE Care, I learned that INOVA knowingly employees this firm and it is their "policy" that the doctors employed by Acute, bill separately from the facility billing. ACUTE Care claimed that when it attempted to file its bill with my insurance provider that their phone calls weren't returned... It was a lie, no claim was ever filed with my insurance provider, but my family billed directly. I filed a complaint with the BBB and that was of no help and ACUTE continues to harass my family with its fraud-like collections, without every filing its claim with my insurance provider. This happened a second time when my son received care at the same INOVA facility. ACUTE Care direct billed my house, failed to file with my insurance provider, but when I called and called their bluff, they apologized and reluctantly billed my insurance carrier. Same fraud-like technique, but at least the person I called that second incident recognized that ACUTE's bluff was called and took what insurance would pay. Why does INOVA continue to allow these fraudsters to operate within its facilities? It's fraud like that perpetrated by ACUTE Care Solutions that runs up medical costs in this country and there isn't much that can be done without our elected officials helping out...