Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla Emergency Room — Attraction in San Diego

I am writing to share feedback regarding my experience in the Scripps Memorial Hospital Emergency Room, arriving at 3:30 PM. My visit was ultimately for a diagnosis of norovirus, but several aspects of my care were concerning and I feel should be addressed. Administrative Concerns: Upon registration, the administrative nurse asked about my symptoms. I reported painful lumps in my neck, but no physical examination was conducted. The nurse dismissed my concerns without further evaluation. Additionally, I overheard her discussing my personal health information loudly with other staff and patients in the waiting area, which I believe constitutes a HIPAA violation. Registration and Room Placement: I was seated in a hallway chair (Chair 3). There was some confusion regarding patient identification, resulting in another patient being addressed as myself. The registration nurse acknowledged misnumbering me, which caused further delay and confusion. Physician Interaction: Dr. James Quran-Yu Hwang asked me to describe my symptoms but responded with very brief acknowledgments such as “yes” and “okay,” which made communication feel rushed and impersonal. While blood tests were performed, I was directed to research follow-up care on my own. Nursing Care: Nurse Shane administered an IV in a manner that caused significant pain. When I expressed discomfort, he insisted on continuing without sufficient care or reassurance. Due to my condition, I felt cold and had to request blankets from other nurses. After fluids were complete, the IV could not be removed until the blood results were reviewed. When I raised concerns about continued pain, I was told the only way to remove the IV was to leave the hospital and forfeit access to my results. Even when blood work results were available and normal, the IV removal was performed roughly, causing additional pain and distress. Overall, the interactions left me feeling unsupported, unheard, and uncomfortable in the emergency room setting. Summary: I understand that hospital staff are under pressure and emergency rooms can be challenging environments. However, the combination of dismissive behavior, lack of communication, HIPAA concerns, and rough patient handling made my experience unnecessarily difficult and traumatic. I hope this feedback will be used to improve patient interactions, bedside manner, and privacy standards in the ER. I am grateful to the other competent staff who ultimately diagnosed and treated my condition effectively, but I believe these concerns...

I ended up bringing my mother in as she was in Atrial Fibrillation for several hours and was experiencing severe limb pain. Upon checking in she was asked to provide “one symptom” so she told the nurse she was experiencing limb pain. At that point I thought it necessary to also share that she had been in atrial fib for hours and told the nurse “she’s also been in atrial -“ before she very abruptly cut me off and told me she was only asking for one symptom. The nurse then proceeded to just walk away to print something. Once she returned I repeated myself and was finally able to finish my sentence which changed the nature of the conversation. After my mother was admitted, several tests were ordered including an EKG and X-ray. The X-ray tech proceeded to X-ray her fibula and femur but skipped the knee despite the fact that the knee is where the pain was stemming from. After 4 hours of waiting the attending physician returned to inform us that no abnormalities were found/ all test results came back negative and we were discharged. However, once we received the results via the Scripps portal we found that there were not only abnormalities on the ultrasound (a cyst which was causing the pain and could have been addressed) but on the EKG as well.

At every stage of this process we were met with a combination of apathy and ineptitude which was extremely disappointing seeing as my mother is an ex-CNO at Scripps. I was truly shocked and disappointed at the rudeness of the front desk staff and level of disinterest of the entire team we dealt with. It was as if our presence in the ED was an inconvenience to the ED staff working and they couldn't/ didn't want to be bothered.

If you need to go to the ER, I would recommend going somewhere where the attending physician will actually take it upon themselves to accurately inform you of your test results and the nurses wont shush you for mentioning that your mother is in Atrial...

Had a skiing accident in Big Bear Mountain, where I was taken to a community ER in ambulance. They had me wait for a couple of hours and later, a technician brought in a portable x ray machine. Later on I was given three pain meds and a doctor came by to tell me I was going to be in a lot of pain for a week and needed an mri. Sent me home without any broken bones nor pain meds. Around 4 hours to find out no broken bones just horrible pain and withdrawal from the drugs. Back at the hotel, spent the night in a LOT of pain. Had someone drive me to San Diego the next day. Googled best orthopedic hospitals in San Diego. Scripps La Jolla ER Trauma came up. Check in was effortless since I’ve been to Scripps before. With tears in my eyes, exhausted from being in so much pain for 26 hours by then was almost immediately taken into a room. The Patient access rep came in just to gather three signatures and update my emergency contact, she had already updated my insurance information without me showing my ID’s which proves they go above and beyond with their computer systems. Dr Cadall came in shortly to examine my legs, ordered x rays, was given one pain med and was able to doze off. Later they took me for a CT scan. Dr Cadall came back to tell me her diagnosis, a referral to see an orthopedic surgeon in three days. Sent pain meds to my pharmacy. Told me no skiing for a while. I was able to sleep well knowing I will be taken care of, my injured knee will need work. All of this took fours, no withdrawals and no remorse. Now need to make appointments. Excellent attention to...