Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) — Local services in Erie

I am not sure how this facility retains any of its medical licensure nor credentials. I was admitted as a patient for mental health from October through November of 2023.

I have Complex Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, which can mimic other conditions. At the time, I believed myself to have Bipolar I Disorder based on previous diagnoses. I entered Millcreek Community Hospital on October 7th voluntarily. After a dispute with Dr. Snow about my diagnosis and my unwillingness to take a prescription that my mental health care provider had previously taken me off of, I was involuntarily committed.

Throughout the course of my stay, I was subjected to trauma and abuse from the staff. I was hit by a patient and the issue was barely addressed. Instead, it was written that I was going into patients' rooms and touching them inappropriately. As an obviously traumatized young woman, I was still exposed to and interacted with potentially dangerous men; this was never addressed by staff until I addressed it. I later had complications from being hit which prompted me to see my family doctor.

At the time, I was under the impression that I had Bipolar I Disorder and was interested in ECT as an alternative to psychiatric medication as Millcreek is one of the few hospitals left to provide it. Dr. Snow continued to inform me that I was Schizophrenic and needed to take Risperidone. After joining ACT, my new psychiatrist informed me that I have Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and am not in need of the medications I have previously been forced to take.

At one point, I called a lawyer who said that my individual rights were being violated. The phone was taken from me and, when I retaliated, I was treated as though I were psychotic. I also witnessed several civil rights violations. At one point, a veteran was asking to be transferred to the VA hospital while having signs of organ distress. He was ignored for several hours. I was treated as a burden by the majority of the staff, though my social worker Eliza was very helpful. Some of the nurses were helpful as well, particularly Tyler.

The charge nurse on night shift was a nightmare to deal with, lied about giving me my medications at times. I spent a majority of my visit there being handed medications without having a medical bracelet to be scanned nor did I have what medications I was taking explained to me unless I asked . Eventually, when I said I did not want ECT, I was still held on a petition. I work full-time and am a college student--I do not and did not have time be needlessly held in a hospital. I was required to have a court hearing, as the hospital was trying to hold me for up to three months. Nicole Sloan was able to get me removed from the hospital that day.

During this hearing, the doctor who was petitioning my involuntary commitment--Dr. Reddy--could not even properly spell some of my symptoms on her petition and she rose her left hand when asked to raise her right hand. How can someone who cannot follow simple legal procedures nor spell words relating to their profession be equipped to treat the public? If I was that psychotic, how do I remember these events? Why was it not addressed that I, a young woman with severe CPTSD, was hit by a male? Why was I instead called Schizophrenic and forced to take medications that can cause type II diabetes, brain damage, and sudden death?

After leaving Millcreek, I was admitted to care under the ACT team due to my Schizophrenia diagnosis. If I had not joined ACT, I would still be living my life thinking I had Schizophrenia and taking detrimental medications. Dr. Snow and Dr. Reddy do not seem to be well educated in their field, and it is astounding that they work in a hospital that is also a school. They cannot teach empathy to their students and they have narrow understandings of the scope of mental healthcare, focusing on prescribing dangerous prescriptions instead of looking at symptoms in a tactful manner while listening to patients. To call this a medical school or a hospital would be a disgrace to the...

Environment is abhorrent for the pursuit of an education. Many faculty chastise and work against current students. The school's sole priority is public image of the school to prospective students. With the PBL curriculum, faculty expect to not have to teach or support students and students are discouraged from asking questions to faculty and are expected to know most things from prior or outside experiences. Medical students do not learn clinical skills with standardized patients. Working to support and provide academic direction to current students is not prioritized. Exams are littered with typos, poorly worded questions and irrelevant material. Students are expected to memorize information from 35+ chapters for each exam. There are 2-3 exams semesterly so one poor exam grade will break you. Building has poor noise insulation and library is small, one-story, archaic, and poorly lit. Dropout rate of students is high. Moreover, the school gives no days off besides MLK day so there is no Spring Break or time for students to go home, recharge, and visit family. Any days without classes are scheduled to be in the middle of the week to inhibit students from being able to visit home. Access to enriching opportunities is low for faculty and students. The student body is large, but faculty pool is very small. The only time faculty interact with students are to give emails or lectures on how the class is underperforming compared to previous years. New and rigid rules are constantly added. Nepotism is a standard practice from the "empire" of the provost down to the satellite campuses. Instead of getting students access to boards prep resources, they instituted a mandatory "fast facts" class with a high number of quizzes that serves as an interruption while students are trying to study for boards. Options for rotations were VERY limited. Students here are put in a very unnecessarily toxic and disturbing environment, but are very intelligent and hardworking. Most excel despite the school, not because of it and some excel at the cost of mental and/or physical health. Additionally, 5-star positive reviews from students who have not yet matriculated or reviews from those who are employed by LECOM should be...

My experience here is beyond Terrifying. It makes Stephen King Novel looks like children bedtime story. It is like the Stanley hotel from The Shining, beautiful at first, but the longer you stay the more you will see. From my experience, if I could do it over, I wouldn't have come here. It was the worst time of my life. Lecture are taught in power point form, 8-5pm, in suits and tie. Exam the following Mondays and they expects you to be expert on the test. Do you become an expert in 1 week or 2? I was told to focus on the learning objectives to do well on the exam, except that is false because the questions are not always learning objectives. Faculty are overworked, some are extremely rude and unprofessional yet they expect you to be professional. Be careful with emailing some lecturers because they can be sassy, but in lecture or on camera acts extremely nice. No water is allow in lecture or anywhere besides lounge and cafeteria. Granted that you are paying lower tuition and fees but in return you get understaffed, unprofessional, hypocritical treatment. But not all staff are like this, a handful are very caring and compassionate but those who wields lots of power may not. Be cautious on coming here, do your due diligence. I cannot recommend the school at it current state, but I do hope LECOM will make positive changes and improve on educating, training and treatment of its...