"This is a small older hospital. They are currently in the middle of a transition to another name. The staff was attentive and very nice. The names of the nurse and nurse's assistant were written on a whiteboard in your room.
I had a private room. It was good sized and clean. The bed was horrible. I noticed that I had a much older model than my co-patients. The matress was fairly thin and covered in plastic. When the bed was in the sitting postition, the sheets didn't fit and were stretched across the area of the fold. There was about 4-5 inches of empty space between the bed and the linen. The linen was very old and had what appeared to be moth holes in it. I had a trapese on the bed but the triangle was bare metal and my hands slipped. The controls to raise and lower the bed were built into the plastic siderails (like on an airplaine) and were difficult to get to.
The bathroom was ok but had no towels. The bathroom was not very clean. There were some dead bugs on the floor and the sink did not look as if it had been cleaned.
The food sucked. Absolutely inedible. Pureed turkey with no broth or seasoning. Yuk.
The worst thing was waking to the sound of some man yelling very loudly in what sounded like the language of Pakistan or India. It scared me. It went on for probably 45 minutes. This happened twice. I summoned the nurse because I could tell he was right outside my door. She informed me it was a Dr.!! I couldn't believe it. None of the staff asked him to quiet down or move. He just kept yelling into his cell phone directly outside the rooms of the newly post-op patients.
While I liked the staff alot, all of them...I would not want to go back to this hospital again."
"Dr. Atkinson came highly recommended and I found him to be thorough, caring and with a good sense of humor.
My Impression has not changed
His office staff is quite competent but seemingly a bit overworked.
I didn't dislike anything about him. I could better describe what I did like. Very unhurried, explained things fully. Encouraged questions.
The entire process from beginning to end is structured. Prior to meeting with him you must attend a seminar given by him and his partner, Dr. Fisher. It is 2-3 hours and very informative. This is not an option. There is a group meeting at the office where the PA talks about the procedure and answers questions. One person handles the insurance and explains that part of it. Another staff member has had the surgery and also askes questions. You are given a list of the medical tests you must have prior to meeting with the Dr. After that, you meet one on one and schedule your surgery date. Finally, the day before surgery you attend another meeting to explain what will happen in the hospital. You MUST bring your support person to this meeting. If you don't your surgery will be cancelled.
They have a great aftercare program including support groups that meet in person and on the internet.
I guess I'll rate him further AFTER the surgery which is scheduled July 7th.
As for the last question, surgical competence is a must have....good bedside manner is a plus.
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