Steve Beynon

I am 84 years old and have had several visits to the emergency room at NRGH during the past year. I feel I am in a good position to assess our healthcare system. My visits to the emergency room were due to Afib episodes. During my visits, I spent between 3.5 and 9 hours waiting in a very uncomfortable seat till all my tests were done and I could get to see the doctor. In all three cases, I had numerous tests done to assess my condition. In 2 of the cases, I was able to end the Afib episode without being cardioverted. Still, the tests were done and a thorough review was done by the doctor. I feel that the doctors and nurses provided excellent care even though they were under obvious stress. The wait times were excessive and very uncomfortable. In the last case, I was still testing positive for COVID-19 yet was sitting with over 100 other people in the waiting room. During my visits, I was able to talk to the nursing staff. The younger nurses are struggling not only with overwhelming working conditions but also large debts from training and struggling to find accommodations within their budgets. The older nurses were approaching burnout due to the exhausting workloads. This being said all the nursing staff were very pleasant and thorough in their work. On the other side of the coin when seeing a doctor they have a full understanding of the patient’s history when they meet. During my visits, the doctors were very thorough and prepared to answer any questions even though they were heavily backlogged.