East Georgia Regional Medical Center — Local services in Statesboro

I have debated on posting this but it needs to be said. I went to the ER Tuesday night with possible UTI, kidney infection, or kidney stone. I was called back to get vitals-was never asked what meds I take, but I'm on BP meds daily, I also have white coat syndrome as I get nervous which causes my BP to rise which is what I told the nurse and was told as long as it's not too high; BP was 159/99, wasn't told the bottom # but nurse commented it's only 159 and said so what we gonna do about that! That's when I told him about the white coat syndrome and he says good thing I'm not wearing a white coat. He then proceeds to hand me a urine specimen cup and says you'll have to go back to lobby bathroom collect the specimen and HOLD the cup until I'm called back again. Now there are several people in the waiting room and there I am sitting among them HOLDING my urine in a cup. Embarrassed and degrading is an understatement! 45 mins later another nurse calls me back but only to retrieve the urine I've been holding and was told to go back to lobby and wait. While I was with the male nurse who took my vitals, I told him my concerns as I had a radical nephrectomy in 2023; y'all he looked at me like a deer in the headlights then proceeds to ask what is that?? That should have been my first sign to leave but I looked at him and said I only have one kidney, my right kidney is gone and he says oh! Anyways, I'm still waiting to be seen. I NEVER LEAVE THE LOBBY!! After sitting for about 5 hrs. a nurse practitioner calls me back to a holding room and tells me you have a pretty nasty UTI; we're gonna give you an antibiotic shot and send you home with script for antibiotics. I again express my concerns about the pain in my left side along with being nauseous that morning and also telling her about the radical nephrectomy and again get the deer in the headlights look and she asked what so I proceed to tell her it means I only have 1 kidney! I mean its simple medical terminology - ectomy means something has been REMOVED! No blood work to check kidney functions or CT to check for stones! Really felt like a cow waiting to be branded with no empathy or emotion. Was called back one last time for the shot and was told I was free to go home. Did not receive any discharge papers when I left. I was discharged at 9:34 pm. Next day I'm looking online at my visit and notice that my BP was noted 2 other times by another nurse at 2 am and 230 am. How is that even possible??? I was at home! I'm not sure but that seems fabricated to me. I did call and spoke to the director of the ER who tried to explain to me how it's a quicker way for people to be seen versus having to wait for hours - um I waited 5 hrs anyways so tell me how efficient that is. Oh and after telling 2 medical folks NO WHERE in my chart was the radical nephrectomy mentioned the director added it after I told him on the phone. The director also tells me I threw the nurse and nurse practitioner off by saying "radical" and I said to him they are licensed people they SHOULD know this already!! VERY CONCERNING TO KNOW THESE ARE THE PEOPLE SUPPOSED TO HELP OTHERS BUT DONT KNOW SIMPLE TERMINOLOGY!!! VERY VERY DISAPPOINTED AND HUMILIATED WITH THE CARE AND TREATMENT I RECEIVED!!!!! And if I could take the 1 star off I would certainly do not deserve it. Sorry...

(I'm writing this review under a pseudonym)

I had to go to the ER and was already very anxious and scared I was going to die, but the staff only made it worse. Many of the staff were outright disrespectful and unprofessional, and there was an utter lack of empathy. They acted like a bunch of high schoolers, talking shit about me in front of me and using unnecessary force to try to get me to wake up so that they could discharge me as quickly as possible.

I was in and out of consciousness, but I heard the staff making racist comments, making fun of how my body looked, making fun of my tattoo, making fun of my name, making fun of my belongings, as well as digging through my belongings to satisfy their own personal curiosity.

There was a lot of impatience, as well as an impression that they thought I was overreacting. Even when I was starting to feel better and a friend was in the room with me, I could barely get myself to wake up, and it was even harder to give them my name and birthday, but consistently, someone would come in, make a frustrated comment at my friend about how I still wasn't awake yet, then follow with a sternum rub. I understand the sternum rub is standard, but I heard one staff member recommending to another to pinch my nipples on top of it. Additionally, I don't doubt that there was more force applied to the sternum rubs than necessary, given the evident anger coming from the staff. Another staff member had angrily jerked the bed down and up.

I used to work at this hospital's cafeteria a few years prior. I already knew how unprofessional many of the staff were, and I saw how they treated their patients. To be on the receiving end of that was something else entirely. To have to go through all of that while being unable to advocate for yourself was scary. I keep thinking about what else they might've said about or done to me when I wasn't conscious enough to see or hear it.

I would not have chosen to go here if I had a choice. Do not go here if you can avoid it, especially if you are a visible minority of any kind, and even more so if you are unable to advocate for yourself. If you can't avoid it, then please try to have a loved one stay with you so they can make sure you are being treated right. And if someone you know is at this hospital, please check in on them if possible. I've seen people die here and I can't say with confidence that it wasn't because of negligence and...

My experience in the Women’s Pavilion was incredible. It was a beautiful experience with some of the most incredible staff. I had a stellar epidural from (Dr. Lee.) And the most amazing labor nurses (Emily Dawson) who calmed my nerves when I was sent straight over from the office to be induced. (Sarah Beth Walden) for helping me labor throughout the night and keep my baby’s heart rate where it needed to be. And (Brook Smith and Mackenzie Glisson) for being my labor nurses the day of my son’s birthday. These women were moving me in positions every 30 minutes. I was unable to move my legs much from such a great epidural and these ladies put in so much work moving me and getting my body to dilate. (Sharon Deal) was our nursery nurse and made sure our little one was healthy after delivery. On the mother/baby unit we had the sweetest nurse (Merlyn Cribbs) settle us in our room. And (Lauren Grace Carr) take care of us the next two nights. Lauren Grace treated us like gold and stocked us with anything we would need for the next few days and spent time doing a bedside bath so my husband could be familiar. She was very attentive to our needs. (Logan Hill and Kim Bazemore) were our nurses the next two days and helped our emotions when we were struggling with breastfeeding and also with being upset that our son would need to stay for phototherapy. Logan was able to get us help with the wonderful lactation nurse (Amanda Dowd)! And Kim helped ease our emotions with having to stay another night. (Paige Fail) cared for our baby the last night we were patients and let us rest as much as possible while also attending to our needs. (Cathy Lawson) was our discharge nurse and we were thrilled to have her be the one to send us home. She was quick on getting our paperwork printed so we could get our son home. We also want to thank our providers (Marla Conley, NNP) for taking such great care of our infant and overseeing his care start to finish. As well as the most incredible OB doctors (Dr. Chelsea Mikell and Dr. Small). I can’t imagine trusting anyone else with mine and my babies care. The last person that really left an impact on our experience was the kindest food service employee (Rachel) who had the most infectious personality and smile every time she visited our room. Her presence is refreshing and she has the character of someone who needs to manage or...