Pennsylvania Hospital — Local services in Philadelphia

Unfortunately, I am writing to express deep concern about the quality of care I witnessed this week at Pennsylvania Hospital, specifically on the 6TH FLOOR, where a close friend and Elder of the Church is currently a patient.

This Elder is not only a spiritual leader but a long-serving community figure who has spent decades ministering to the people of Philadelphia. His life’s work has included expanding healthcare access, supporting returning citizens, and advocating for those affected by poverty, incarceration, and HIV. He is widely respected across faith and civic spaces, and his contributions have touched countless lives.

I visited him on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, after work and again on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, around 1 p.m. During my visit Tuesday evening, I sat with him in his room for nearly two full hours—and not a single nurse or staff member came in to check on him, say hello, or assess his condition. Not once. For a patient recovering from a serious condition, this lack of basic engagement and monitoring is unacceptable and frankly dangerous.

On Wednesday, I returned to find he was not in his room. But what disturbed me most was that the bed liner was visibly soaked with urine and the linens remained unchanged. The entire room reeked of urine. This was now my second visit encountering the same unsanitary and degrading conditions. No patient—especially an elder—should ever be left in such a state. Prolonged exposure to soiled bedding can cause serious skin and health issues. It is dehumanizing and, at its core, a violation of dignity.

Seeking help, I spoke with a food service staff member who kindly directed me to the front desk past the nurse’s station. A technician in a green top walked me to speak with NURSE CHRISTINA, the nurse assigned to his care. NURSE CHRISTINA seemed busy typing and chatting with colleagues. I waited patiently. When she finally looked up, she immediately said, “He’s in the OR,” before I could finish introducing myself or explaining why I was there. Her tone was short, dismissive, and unprofessional.

When I asked if someone could please change the linens before he returned, she snapped, “We have been.” I told her this was the second time I’d come and found the room in that condition. She began to offer a medical explanation—something I did not ask for and had to interrupt. Whether intentional or not, it came close to violating patient privacy, and it felt more like an excuse than a commitment to take action.

Let me be clear: There is no excuse for a patient’s bed to remain soaked with urine. There is no justification for brushing off concerned visitors. And there is absolutely no reason to deflect valid concerns by disclosing medical information.

This Elder has uplifted this city for decades. But even if he had no title at all, he would still deserve clean linens, timely check-ins, and staff who treat him—and his visitors—with respect and compassion. That is the bare minimum for any hospital claiming to offer quality care.

I urge Pennsylvania Hospital leadership to investigate the 6th floor’s patient care protocols, staff responsiveness, and culture of accountability. Patients and their loved ones are not burdens—they are the reason hospitals exist.

Do better. The community is watching. And our elders deserve honor,...

I'm giving them a well deserved bad review for the ER visit back in January. I had my baby at the hospital 10 years ago and they were great. I will no longer speak well on their behalf because I recieved a letter for my complaint and all they did was defend Dr. Patricia McCormick and her awful behavior. I have mitral valve prolapse and dysautonomia, which I was unaware of at the time, but suffered 2 years now. Of course it is very scary and feels life-threatening when you get a sudden attack of tachycardia, chest pain and a limp left side, which normally indicates a medical emergency. It tends to be difficult to pick everything up on an ECG and also after 1 hour in a waiting room. Then it just goes over many doctor's heads that this diagnosis even exists. I don't expect every doctor to be a robot and know everything, but to mentally abuse your patients and treat us like we are crazy is uncalled for. McCormick insists anxiety is the answer and did nothing short of mocking me and act condescending, even in my patient notes. My entire visit was me basically telling her about past ER and doctor findings and her responding "What heart problem? What blood pressure? What ear fluid?" As if everything was a delusion. She could have checked the notes and seen that I was discharged from this same hospital with high BP, but instead chose to treat me like a crazy. Her assistant nurse thought she was qualified to tell me to check in at mental health crisis center and get pumped on meds that would have damaged me even more. They are women, but reek of misogyny. They addressed my partner instead of me, as if he was going to agree with them. Wrong again. These false anxiety diagnoses are the new way of telling women that we are just crazy. There has been a rise of POTS cases since covid, and this seems to be the new and dangerous way of dismissing patients when you just can't figure it out. Also, she claimed to "evaluate" me by taking a 0.5 second listen to my chest. My PCP listened like a normal doctor and found an arrhythmia several times. I was diagnosed with a mitral valve disease by my real cardiologist. Dr. McCormick also guided me on hyperventilating myself and then falsely accused me of hyperventilating on a daily basis. When I told her "no, I practice proper breathing excercises" she said I am hyperventilating myself without realizing it because anxiety. I get air hunger and this just makes those symptoms that are already there, 10X worse. It doesn't make any sense. She thinks I don't know what anxiety feels like or how to breathe properly. So I'm the stupid one, right? When I first got my room, I asked for a simple napkin and she said "You mean a pad" and slams a period pad and a disposable underwear on the table. If that wasn't the first red flag! I have been to PT and many other doctors. They have not disrespected me like this. But now I continue to jump through hoops. I'll choose that any day over going here again. Do better! Tell your ER doctors to read more books and...

The Nastiest Rudest most tacky , unprofessional Clerk I have ever encountered is the EMERGENCY ROOM unit clerk Vanessa. She needs to be terminated or retrained on professionalism , and customer service . I spent the entire evening in the ER due to abdominal pains , throat pains and a severe cold. The experience overall was lackluster , the hospital is not equipped for a larger volume of patients as they place patients in hallways on beds so tackily , no privacy , and the sense of urgency or element of actually investigating issues is almost removed cuz it’s only so much help u can receive in a busy hospital hallway. Ultimately after discovering my pregnancy I was sent home as if that was a fix to my issues , but I still was experiencing pain , and had this extreme cold… I called this morning , as the discharge instructions state and the like I’ve done multiple times before because my throat has gotten worse and actually I’m having issues speaking . The woman who answered was not only less then pleasant or welcoming she was downright nasty and rude. She cut me off mid sentence before I could even ask if the dr had meant to send me something for my throat , since I had answer and he the nurse mentioned it but never actually gave it and she said no Dr or respectable practitioner is gonna speak to u. Or conduit u on the phone and if u feel sick u can come back in, I said ma’am resoectfully I was just there for 12 hrs I’m simply calling to see if my practiciner forgot my medicine cuz I’m getting sicker and that’s counterproductive and I was there for 12 hours and nothing was done.. she yells well if u say nothing was done.. then why would I even be calling us or wanting to come back here ? That don’t even make sense.. so I replied because it’s y’all job and my child is sick often and I call the er and actually receive service or a nurse returns my calls and sends her meds if they weren’t correctly ordered etc. she said well I’m telling h nobody is gonna talk to h or call u back and I’m the unit clerk .. I said ma’am what is ur name she said Vanessa , I’m the unit clerk .. I said u can expect a review frommme and she hung up while I was speaking … I will be filing a complaint with the hospital formally because when put in these positions dealing with folks health it’s important to place professionals with care and patience , that are knowledgeable and actually perform the job . I don’t know how this nasty , trifling , vile, disposable human has a job still with that attitude and demeanor but I’m sure it’s time she be retrained or placed in a position that is not customer facing . Now I still have no resolve and will have to laugh myself back to the earer after being there for 12 hours simply to receive a medicine my dr mentioned prescribing that they forgot and could hav e been handled properly had there been a professional in the position of answering calls for the emergency department as she is representing Penn and not...