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Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
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Patient: Clinic, Hospital Have 'Great Services'

Dear Source:

Quite often we see health care providers advertise their seeming favorite words: dignity and respect.
Well, this month I found the quality of emergency room care at Schneider to value those words far more than as catch phrases.
You'll never appreciate what they have 'til you actually need it. I had a traumatic fall on St. John and went to the clinic there. Superb and capable staff. They do have a dilemma, though.
The night I was there, the staff explained that they had all the necessary X-ray equipment on site but had lost the position for the X-ray technician. Up until that night, I had always thought that one of the main functions of an ER doc was to triage cases to avoid unnecessary services and individual insureds' personal medical expenses – which are, as we know, evaluated by insurers in hindsight only. The ER doc strongly suggested to me a multi-vehicular transfer to the Roy L. Schneider Hospital on St. Thomas, due to the Doc's inability to see if bones were indeed broken.
In hindsight, there were three bones fractured and I would have gone to Schneider sooner or later, but the suggestions of doc – based on some symptoms and clinical instincts – could have been the subject of a lot of insurers trying to weasel out of their obligation based on what limited knowledge we had at the time, if the X-rays had proven negative after the transfer.
Well, once at Schneider I received a quality of care with staff who have traits and qualifications that rival many here in the "medical mecca" of Boston. Anyway, strive to get the St John X-ray tech reinstated. Care for what you have in such abundance – great services.
Joseph W. Lyons
Quincy, Mass.

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