Fairbanks Memorial Hospital — Local services in Fairbanks

This particular experience was 4 or 5 stars, but I have to give 3 because truthfully there have been incidents over the years I should've reviewed on for 1 star. Today I was pleasantly surprised!

My mom has end stage kidney failure and kidney stints to help mitigate blockages that caused it. A couple years in, and yesterday she had an ER visit due to fever, back pain and bad mental fogginess.

She was admitted. They told her it's time to give her a tube out of her back because the stints aren't working.

It took her days to get these answers, and there was no doctor to consult with. She felt scared and left in the dark. When she was told about the tube, she called me sobbing that her life was over, that shed have a urine drain out of her back and her urinary organs removed. I was heartbroken with her.

I asked to speak to someone. Her nurse, Savanna, came in. Savanna was a ray of light - all smiles, eye contact, and realism. She was actually optimistic about the procedure, and cleared up our concerns: This was likely temporary No removal of organs Would eliminate mom's need for stints for now and elevate her quality of life while we found long term ureter solutions As simple as a catheter draining one kidney, easy and quick procedure

When mom was still scared and upset, Savanna consoled her and lifted her up - told her how she could decorate the bag or easily hide it, and still live her life!

Savanna single handedly elevated this experience!

The reason for 3 and not 5 stars -

We've had too many visits and dealings to write individual reviews on:

Mom's had surgeries bumped which progressed her kidney disease.

She had an abdominal exploratory surgery, so severed muscles, and couldn't wipe while admitted. Embarrassed, she called for help. A nurse told her that wasn't her job and gave her cafeteria salad tongs and told her to "figure it out".

She had a neck catheter that her own bile visibly got into. When asking nurses to change the dressing and clean it, they scolded her about telling her how to do their jobs. She had to wait for shift change for someone to help. She developed a blood infection from this and had to get antibiotic infusions for a week

When she had cervical cancer that spread, the doctor shooting her up with radiation screamed at her for crying because the enema balloon to manipulate organ placement hurt too much to do sometimes. He yelled and decided to do it anyways. This is what led to 3rd degree internal burns on her organs, the ureters disintegrating and requiring stents, the stent replacements being bumped constantly and her kidneys sustaining permanent damage over time resulting in stage 5 kidney disease, and ultimately this nephrostomy tube. She was also required to sign an agreement not to litigate over the radiation incident or they would not continue treatment, and she would've died.

Being in charge of my mother's care and my own, I can say outside of this I've seen some instances of good work, but unfortunately I think these workers are worked too hard to give the quality of care deserved by the community, so 3...

Went to the ER yesterday for the first time in years. From the front door all the way to being seen everyone was wonderful! Despite it being busy, I didn't have to wait terribly long after triage. I came in walking(limping) and denied a few offers for a wheelchair from all the reception and security. Shirley was the triage nurse and saw me limping over when called and grabbed one immediately. A good way to make a stubborn person get off their hurt ankle! And she was so pleasant and professional! X-ray came in swiftly. I loved that the x-ray tech (i apologize I don't know his name) allowed his student to take the lead and was just there for guidance. What a wonderful teacher! And the student, I forgot her name even though I know there was introduction, was very kind and patient even when I had difficulty moving my foot for the different positions. And once finished even helped put my foot back on the pillow it was on! 5*!

Ross was my nurse and came to check on me. I know he was busy but I appreciated that he made an effort to come in just to make sure if I needed anything.

Kenny was the PA. I had been so certain I was being a big baby and that he was going to tell me to take it easy take ibuprofen and ice my ankle. Instead he told me I broke a bone, stay off it, and ensured I understood what I needed to do(I love to be active so my idea of a light activity was not in line with what I needed to do to heal. Kenny took the time to clarify and educate me) he also ensured i understood my follow up. Such good communication!

Registration was also prompt and informative when coming to my room to ask about insurance and understanding that with my new job i was having trouble looking up my insurance and was i a sort of limbo. They were also very polite and spoke with me for a bit even though I know they must have been very busy (I could hear a lot of medic crews out in the hall so I assumed there was much going on that morning) wonderful informative and polite. Great job!

Ross returned helped me into my boot and sized me for crutches. Then helped me carry my stuff to the lobby so I could sit in the sun (my personal preference) while waiting for my ride. Mike with security helped carry my stuff out to her when she drove up and was helpful all the way to the car.

I had felt so guilty going in and everyone from the door out ensured me I was okay and comforted me over my guilt of coming in.

10/10 would stress to everyone how amazing the team treating you is. They are doing an amazing job here and I think everyone deserves a shout out.

Today I called to follow up and give my insurance information. The answering operator was very clear and kind and even though I was unsure exactly which department to speak with they knew! And the billing office was exemplary in communication and assisting me with my insurance and some questions I had(again I never need to go to ER so I wanted to ensure everything was done and had questions in abundance)

Please keep up the amazing work FMH! I appreciate everything everyone did for me! From those I named to the many I...

Good afternoon,

My wife has been experienced back pain over the past few weeks. She was off of work for a week because of it then it got a little better for a couple weeks but then it got worse again. She had triple negative breast cancer in 2023 so her fear is always that she is going to get a recurrence. So on the night of May 9th after I got off of work we drove up from Delta to the ER. The place was packed, we were told the wait was going to be substantial. My wife was quite uncomfortable but we had no choice but to wait. It was around 1920 when we arrived and we finally saw the doctor at 2230. I was shocked by the types of people that littered the ER waiting room, drunks, homeless people, and folks who were obviously on drugs. These people were obstructing folks who really needed help but I was equally impressed by the professionalism of all the employees there from the front desk ladies who have to handle these folks head on to the nurses and doctors who have to deal with them if they stick around long enough.

Once we were taken back the nurse did her initial assessment then shortly after that the doctor came in. Dr Stan Robinson was very patient and considerate of my wife's concerns. He saw that she was truly in pain and wasn't just looking to get some drugs. She had an x-ray done but unfortunately their staffing shortage does not allow a tech to be on for an MRI on the third shift. He told us he would be back there the next day at 11:00 and if we wanted to come back he would be sure we got in for an MRI. That is exactly what we did and true to his word we had a short wait then my wife was able to get an MRI.

I cannot say enough about the professionalism and dedication Dr Robinson and our traveling nurse Heather provided. Dr Robinson stayed late on the night of the 9th just to help clear the long queue in the waiting room. With having to deal with so many types of people who are there for less than honorable reasons they're able to maintain their composure and provide quality health care to the people who need it the most. Our experience there was far above the one I received at Matsu Regional a couple years ago when I had my own back issues and was dismissed by Dr Basel. I ended up needing surgery even though he told me nothing was wrong with me. I don't believe I would have received the same...