Monument Health Rapid City Hospital — Local services in Rapid City

The lowest score I can give is one star. I would give zero if I could. I had another bad experience with this healthcare organization. Yes, another, although this is the first time I have written a review (should have during one hospitalization where my clothes were thrown away and another one when I was hospitalized for a surgery that required a wound vac and was told by the hospitalist and a wound care nurse that home health care would be set up without incident was incorrect or the time the physical therapist told me I didn't actually have breast cancer because she could see it in the system). I had an appointment for a CT scan and as I was checking in, i received a phone call from Monument Health. I answered the call and I was informed by the caller that I didn't have the appropriate blood work done for this scan and that the last lab result they could see were from a few months prior even though I had labs done a week before this appointment and could see those results in the patient portal. When I asked why I was receiving this call now and not prior to the appointment, I was told it was because "they were in a meeting."y response was that it was unacceptable and stated that I would show the technicians for this appointment the labs from my portal. I completed checking in for the appointment and when the technician came to get me from the waiting area, he informed me that we needed to talk and I explained about the phone call I had received. He told me that was what we needed to talk about and I told him I had had labs done a week prior and would pull that up on my phone when we got to the exam room. He also stated that he could not see any labs that were done the week prior in the system. I showed him on my phone what I had done and things went downhill from there. There was also discussion about my port, which depending on who you talk to at Monument, can be used for various things other than chemo infusions. One thing that Monument needs to set straight with all of their offices is when a port can be accessed and when it can't be. I've been told different things by different departments and it's frustrating. This discussion added even more negativity to an appointment that was already off to a rough start. The technicians wanted to access my port for the CT scan and I refused since I wasn't prepared to have it accessed since I had been told it was only for chemo infusions. Even though I didn't ask, the technicians had the department director come out and speak to me, which I don't feel helped anything. I explained that I felt like I was being blamed for not having the proper labs done for this exam, even though I know that is not my fault. At this point, I was just trying to get this done and over with. The technician finally explained that the lab that I had done was a urine test and not a blood test as they were truly needing. The radiologist decided that it was acceptable to proceed with this exam due to my labs a few months prior. When I asked why this was just being discovered right before my appointment, I was told "we've been emailing about it for days." This should have been stated immediately and would have saved an extremely frustrating appointment which left me feeling bad the rest of the day. The technician should have said "We're not seeing that you had this lab done as a blood test, but the radiologist... (insert rest of story here)" instead of the "We need to talk about your exam" as we're walking back to the exam room. It would have changed everything. It's inexcusable that this wasn't caught well before my appointment and being told "we were just meetings" or "we've been emailing about it for days" is not acceptable. An apology changes nothing and I am not seeking one. I would say do better, but I continue to have bad experiences with this organization. Perhaps that will change.

I share this experience so that others can learn. We all know that you are your own...

Since NO ONE reach out to me even I have provided MRN number & all my information & asked to be contacted, I'm writing it here too. I am writing to complain and praise regarding my visit. Praise: 1)Charge Nurse T was great. When I was able to have fluids, she offered comfort options like ice, water, and hot tea. 2)The tech who helped me to the bathroom and collected my urine sample was very helpful and kind. I was too sick to find out her name, but I hope you can identify and acknowledge her for her kindness. I’m very appreciative of her. 3)On the next day, I called ER nurse H, trying to figure out if my medicine could be electronically sent to the pharmacy or not. Heather was very nice.

1st Complaint Dr. Clay T. Winkler demonstrated poor bedside manners. I explained my symptoms and the context. Dr. Winkler was unprofessional, dismissive, unkind, and not personable. I had to tell him twice that my stomach hurt before he examined my abdomen. He did not explain my condition nor discuss any treatment plan. He seemed in a rush, even though it was not very busy. I later learned from a nurse that I was given medicine XYZ, so I had to figure out myself — with the help of T — I knew what happened to me. Dr. Winkler never came back to speak with me regarding my condition or care plan before discharge. Additionally, I was not given the option to send my prescription electronically to the specific pharmacy — something that has always been done for me for a decade , and my medical records reflect X as my default pharmacy. This oversight caused significant inconvenience, as I had to physically deliver the paper prescription, activate it, and wait up to X hours for fulfillment. I tried to resolve this by speaking to the ER nurse (RN H. She was kind and understanding), but she informed me that Dr. Winkler was no longer on shift and couldn’t authorize the change.

2nd Complaint, a BIG ONE. Most horrible experience I have in this hospital, way worse than Dr Winkler. You must find out who that nurse is. The nurse who discharged me was EXTREMELY unprofessional and rude. She complained about covering my charge nurse's lunch break and made it clear she didn’t want to be in my room. I had pressed the call button to use the restroom and waited over 15 minutes. When she finally assisted me, she removed my IV carelessly, causing blood to eject onto my thighs. She offered no tissue. I was too sick to ask for more help, so I just used the blanket to clean off the blood spill on my thigh. She also yanked the rest of the tape off, kinda like frustrated. Her attitude was unacceptable and unprofessional. If I had not been so sick, I would have confronted her immediately and asked to see a supervisor. 3rd complaint (a minor one) but I would not keep nursing student Anna in this hospital if I were you. Student nurse Anna, who accompanied T at first, rude and impatient when she returned alone. Her attitude was unprofessional, especially when the blood pressure machine beeped — something out of my control. She was snappy and made me feel like I was an inconvenience to her. She also left my door open & displayed an unwilling to help attitude when she had to give me more blankets. This experience left me feeling dismissed and poorly treated during a vulnerable time. I hope to take this...

This is my review based on several experiences with Monument Health ranging from the past year to the past month. #1 why on earth would you ever have pregnant laboring mothers “check in” at the ER where it is completely chaotic, over crowded, disorderly, and often times is unsafe to be there. Almost every time I’ve ever gone to the ER there is almost always a police officer there due to someone being disorderly and unruly. Not a good idea at all, and is not a safe environment for laboring mothers. They should have kept their West Entrance exclusively for laboring mothers. Please change it back!! #2 Most of the nurses (most not all) were very good, good doctors and CNPs, great CNA’s & lab techs who we dealt with were professional and helpful. The labor and delivery team and ICU team were amazing. I was sad to hear/see that they were short staffed CNA’s in the ICU, they really could have used the extra help and I felt bad for the nurses struggling trying to juggle both jobs (especially on night shift). I remember this being a huge issue for them years ago and am sad to see that nothing has changed regarding staffing issues, especially with nurses & CNA’s. Lots of traveling nurses were there which tells me that they can’t keep nurses staffed here. #3 The room that I was staying in in labor & delivery kept having air quality issues as the vent to my room was next to the Life Flight helicopter that takes off and the smell of exhaust frequently filled up my room causing nausea for everyone and difficulty breathing. For a hospital, I would have expected better indoor air quality. Staff was notified, and they were aware of the issue, but apparently there was nothing anyone could do about it. #4 When we were there we didn’t see a single housekeeper clean or take out the garbage in the room even though we notified them that the room needed swept/mopped and trash taken out. I stayed in the room for 10 days and the garbage only got taken out by the nurses (they’re too busy attending to patients medical need to be also doing housekeeping work!). Again for a hospital, you would have thought that it would have been better, or at least more mindful about cleanliness. #5 going to visit a loved one in the hospital shouldn’t require to the stop at the front desk and “check in” with your personal information. Stupid new policy and I could have put that my name was Jane Doe and it wouldn’t have made any difference at all. The red headed young lady at the front desk was extremely rude too by the way who you have to “check in” with. #6 They changed their main entrance now to the way back of the building. There was no sign or indication of where to go if you do try to go to their “old” front entrance, after the main front entrance being that way for the past 35 years. Very confusing for visitors. Please change it back or allow people to use both the front and back entrance, but at least put up signage as to where to go since it...