Been to the hospital lately? Hope not!
*But for various reasons over the past four years, we HAVE – four hospitals in three counties, NOT counting the old Corning Hospital. And apart from the obvious, the experience wasn’t really all that bad.
*It wasn’t like the bad old days when visiting hours might be two hours long, three days a week. When even parents couldn’t get in to see their children. When a patient enquiring about his own condition might be met with belligerence, because that wasn’t any of his business, and he wasn’t equipped to understand anyway. When surgeons found that their patients had terminal cancer, but told them that all the cancer had been removed, so that they wouldn’t worry.
*Ira Davenport Memorial Hospital, between Bath and Hammondsport, was the smallest hospital we went to, and so has a different atmosphere from the others. It’s quiet, open, and friendly. Things operate on a personal basis. It’s easy to talk to the nurses, the doctors, and the other professionals. Immediate family can come and go pretty freely. If you’re there, check out the small sculptures in niches on the second floor. They used to be at the Davenport Girls’ Home (1864-1959), a remarkable orphanage in Bath.
*We also spent several spells at Arnot Ogden Medical Center in Elmira. Like many hospitals, Arnot Ogden has grown and been renovated over the years, in the process losing the original logic of its layout. When that happens, the bemused visitor/patient needs to rely on maps, signage, color coding, and the kindness of strangers… specifically, the hospital staff and volunteers.
*Arnot Ogden delivers, making it much easier to get around and find what you need. Most patients have 12-hour visiting windows, and some have 24. Both beforehand and when you arrive, the intake is very helpful. Patients and family each learn what to expect, and you even get discount coupons for the cafeteria.
*Unity Hospital in Greece is actually a cool place… something you don’t normally say about hospitals. It’s easy to get around in. We were there for three visits that each required at least one overnight, and I never had to leave the ground floor. With recent renovations, the place seems sparkling new. Everybody gets free parking! And everybody has a private room that was designed and built as a private room.
*Unity is home to the August Family Birth Place, which was NOT of any practical interest for us. But every time a baby is born, “Rock-a-by Baby” plays throughout the hospital. How cool is that? The first time we visited was by emergency and without insurance. I can’t say enough for how helpful staff were in supporting our stressful time in the hospital, and guiding us through followup.
*We are so lucky to have Strong Memorial Hospital/University of Rochester Medical Center in our region. Five U.R. alumni or staff have won Nobel Prizes, either in Physiology/Medicine or in Biochemistry.
*Our family were in Strong back in 1994 for open-heart surgery. In those days you milled around in the parking lot until you found a space, then hiked to the entrance, then puzzled your way from one location to another. Phones were provided all in one large room, in rows along a counter with two-foot dogears at you shoulders – no privacy whatsoever.
*When we returned for more surgery in 2015 and in 2016, we observed that everybody seemed to have taken a customer-service course, and taken it to heart. Pause in the corridor, and a passing staff member will immediately stop to ask what you’re looking for, then give you clear unambiguous directions, or even take you there.
*Family waiting rooms are staffed by volunteers who state explicitly that they are there to serve you, so that you will be free to serve your family member patient. Waiting rooms are pleasant, and arrangements for reports from the surgeon and /or O.R. staff work superbly. There’s even a floating nurse who circulates through the operating rooms to keep tabs, since the surgical team is naturally a little busy.
*If you’re overnighting, hospital folks will make arrangements for you to stay (at group rates) in the R.I.T. Conference Center on West Henrietta Road. You get cafeteria coupons. There’s a parking garage. You can walk a block to Barnes & Noble. The chapel is nice, and so is the chaplain.
*So, overall, I recommend you avoid the hospital if you can manage it. But if you HAVE to go, I think you’ll find it a much more human and humane experience than it used to be. Gold stars for the good folks at Ira Davenport, Arnot Ogden, Unity, and Strong. Thank you ALL very much!