Jerry Weathersby

Review of Arrowhead Regional Medical Cen...

Very bad experience for my brother. My brother ha...

Very bad experience for my brother. My brother has Arrowhead as his medical provider. He has had several symptoms gait (shuffling of his feet, falling down), diminishing memory capability, and loss of bladder control. We went in to see a Dr in the neurology department at Arrowhead for possible tests and solutions. The neurosurgeon heard our input around symptoms and input we got from another neurologist (who indicated my brother had Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH) or water on the brain) and did a quick check of my brother. After his examination he suggested that my brother had Alzheimer s disease and probably not NPH, even though my brother is only 59 years old. We pushed him for him to do a test, lumbar puncture, that would drain fluid off the brain and have a 4 day observation to see primarily improvement in his gait. This test would definitely prove one way or the other if my brother had NPH. He refused, indicating it was an intrusive procedure, even though, my brother and I agreed to it. He pushed back to get another evaluation from another neurologist. Thus delaying again help for my brother (we had already waited 6 weeks to see him). He scheduled something 3 weeks out.
While we were waiting for the next appointment, my brother fell and was transported to Arrowhead emergency. ER doctors ran some tests and saw the condition of my brother and schedule a series of tests, even though the same neurosurgeon from the appointment above questioned him being admitted. He was admitted, and the lumbar puncture was done and the results were NPH and surgery was done to implant a shunt mechanism to drain fluid from his brain. The neurosurgeon did not have the courtesy to talk to the family after the surgery or anytime during the recovery. We had to talk to the nurses to get information about my brother. The nurses and other staff were very good during the week long stay there. Unfortunately, my brother has neurological issues now, among other physical issues. He was released without any mental evaluation and sent home for us to deal with.