DeGraff Memorial Hospital - North Tonawanda (NY)

5 /5 Cassandra Joan Butler - Astrologer: I had to transport a loved one for ER care at 3 am. Everyone from The triage nurse to the Doc were kind compassionate and very competent . Medical intervention began within 30 minutes of arrival. Excellent hospital experience in every way . Thank you.

1 /5 Taj Cochran: They treated me for wrong thing! I went in with pain in my left side. CT showed my spleen was enlarged and bloodwork showed an elevated white blood cell count. They gave me a G.I. cocktail and a script for Pepcid. Your spleen isn’t even part of your digestive tract! They blatantly ignored my actual symptoms and treated me for “heart burn” which I told them I don’t have! And they expect me to PAY them for their lack of basic medical knowledge or treatment. I had to go somewhere else for REAL medical care. Oh, and thank god I went somewhere else where I was tested and treated for a very serious medical condition. I’d hate to see how sick I’d be if I only took the Pepcid and didn’t seek real help. Thankfully I knew better. They’re out here scamming regular people who might not know any better.

1 /5 Franki Tufillaro: went in at 12am and left at 4am took over 3 hours just for a covid test and a flu test for a 1 year old,, also apparently they don’t have rsv tests and didn’t think to even let me know or advise me to go somewhere else and get a test for that done!

1 /5 Jocelyn Mathews: Degraff is usually my go to ER for my entire family because you get in and out quickly. Tonight I went at the request of my PCP for having worsening flank pain, decreased urine output and low grade fevers. On Christmas Eve I went to another ER facility and they suspected I was passing small kidney stones. So after two more days i started to feel worse. Well I was triaged and put back in the waiting room. After about 30/45mins I was taken in the back. After giving a urine sample I was in the room and the ER doc came in to talk to me. I knew this doc from working with him at BGH and his bedside manner depends on how he feels about the patient....he believes everyone is lying and drug seeking. He questioned me on why I was there and I told him everything that happened including the visit at the other ER and how i felt worse and my PCP said to come in. His response was "I already looked all your information up on Healthelink and of course your PCP would tell you to come here it keeps our numbers up". He said I looked fine despite my pain level being high and I only urinated twice today. He looked at my urine labs and said it looked ok.......I told him I was still feeling worse....his response was "we could check your lab values but the nurses told me you are a pretty hard stick to get an IV on and I dont know if it would be worth it to have them try". He did an assessment on me and said he thinks I was having back spasms & then he offered me a Motrin for my pain....which I have an anaphylaxis response to ibuprofen....after I told him that he said well I guess we could try a muscle relaxer but im going to discharge you and he left the room. I spent more time in the waiting room than I did in the actual room! I work for Kaleida and this visit really left a bad taste in my mouth. How could a provider be so dismissive of a patients concerns?? Clearly I was following the directions of my ER discharge papers: if you feel worse pain, or your symptoms get worse or you begin to have fevers go back to the ER to be seen. The doctor said I didnt have a fever, yes because I had taken Tylenol before going and that would lower it, he said my urine was fine....after looking in the patient portal it was not. He also stated he did a "chart review" of my chart and I had had way too many CAT scans for his liking so he wouldnt be ordering one. Every CT scan I have had has been necessary due to my lung issues and GI issues that I have. After this visit I called my PCP and she was furious at how I was treated. She asked for the names of all that encountered & she said she would be filing a complaint. It is very hard to be a young black woman who has medical issues and I go to be seen and I am completely dismissed in regards to how i feel and what my pain is. The doctor put in his note "she looks comfortable so she must be fine". Pain is subjective, sorry I wasnt falling all over the place and acting outrageous like yall expect black people to do. Smh my doctor is reaching out to the ER that is associated with her office to see if they can see me and ACTUALLY TREAT me. This is the last time I go to Degraff! UPDATE: My PCP had me go to a different ER who did do labs and images and I have a pretty bad infection in my colon and my blood levels are so low that I will need a transfusion!!

1 /5 Dunya Elbanna: I got sent over for an ultrasound because I was in extreme pain . They called and said they don’t know why I’m in pain so I got to the ER and they tell me I have a tubal . The old lady that took care of me needs to retire already very unprofessional and miserable sucks at her job at degraff . It’s crazy how they play a lot in healthcare most of the time they don’t care if u live. Guess what how those tables are turning now huh .