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The sound of kindling snapping

It's a pleasant sound when you're starting a fire, but not so good when you slip on some ice and break two bones in your leg. Mike Ball reports the only thing worse was the sound of the orthopedic surgeon and an aide snapping the bones back into place - at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Ball, who lives in Jamaica Plain, also explains why, when the ambulance came, he refused to go to the closer Faulkner Hospital - not that he needed to worry:

Immediately, the EMT shot back, "I wouldn't take my dog or cat to the Faulkner."

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Comments

I just took my daughter to Faulkner the other day. Admittedly, it was Roslindale Pediatrics, which doesn't have anything to do with Faulkner. Apparently.

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I nosed about for Faulkner material and see they changed a lot since becoming a Brigham's child. It's quite possible that ambulatory care is as swell as swell can be.

Faulkner had the space to park real money-making features, like a foot and ankle facility. B&W got to offer more profitable operations and Faulkner went from a smallish community hospital to one bringing in the bucks.

The family, friends and I who had awful ER experiences might well be pleased by the other services. Although, knowing I had serious bone surgery, having the best at a teaching hospital cut me up and put in the leg-length rod seems sensible.

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The EMT might've been speaking cavalierly to calm/distract/cheer the patient. I bet the EMT didn't expect to be quoted, dissing a hospital. :)

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Id tend to agree, it seems like one of those situations where you just go along with the person to keep them in good spirits.

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I wouldn't take my dog or cat to a human hospital either. Nor would I take my kids to Angel Memorial.

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Angel memorial doesnt have the resources to deal with your precious goats? ;)

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Well, they do spend a fair bit of time calling each other "jackass".

You are really brain-on today, Shady.

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Both my mother and father were treated at the Faulkner over many years, so I have a lot of experience with them. The cardiac physicians my father saw were superior - top notch in the profession locally. My mother had multiple issues cared for there, including surgery and week-long stays. She was very happy with the way people treated her. I took her to the emergency room last fall, and all the people were caring and professional.

That's about thirty years of experience under extrordinarily trying circumstances. That EMT can blow it out his ass. There's always a low-lever worker who thinks he knows how the company should be run.

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I've been really happy with Faulkner and MGH and Brigham and Women's, both as a person with 92837489872349823 medical appointments per year and as a clinician who often talks to others with whom I have patients in common.

Then there's that other hospital, where the staff are condescending to patients and professionals alike.

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I sat for four hours in the ER at the Faulker one night with a deep cut. I don't know why it took four hours, there was just one other person waiting. The care was fine once they got around to it.

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From every anecdote I've heard, four hours sounds like a typical wait to be seen in an ER, if one doesn't arrive in an ambulance.

I've wondered why ERs don't have more capacity. Though I've also wondered whether the long waits were something of a deterrent to using ERs for non-emergencies.

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It would be nice if there were web tools to gauge the wait at various ERs, given how close together the hospitals are around here. For emergent but not lethal situations, you or your regular doctor or pediatrician could check the wait and pick accordingly.

This would also steer patients away from crowded places and toward ones with available space.

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Somehow , short of massive govt oversight, I see hospitals managing to manipulate the wait times as to deter visits.

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