When Randye Carter, patient of JRMC Cardiologist, Ayman A. Alshami, M.D., went in for a routine appointment, she had no idea she would be staying at the hospital for the next four days. However, in the days that followed, she experienced JRMC in a way she never expected.
During Randye’s appointment, Dr. Alshami took her blood pressure and found that immediate action was needed to keep her from having a serious cardiac emergency. She was admitted to the hospital, and despite the fear of an unexpected hospital stay, Randye said the attention and care she was given completely exceeded her expectations and put her at ease. “I was totally amazed,” she said. “From step one – from the time I got there until I left, I had nothing but perfect care.”
“I was sent straight to the hospital, and by the time I got to registration, they already knew that I was coming,” she said. “The transport aide was one of the nicest young men I’ve ever met. He was smiling, and I knew I was his focus right then. In fact, every time I had to be transported, the aides were absolutely wonderful.”
Dr. Alshami performed a cardiac catheterization on Randye the day after she was admitted, followed by extensive testing to make sure nothing else was going on. “There was no leaf unturned with my care,” she said.
For the majority of her stay, Randye was cared for by the JRMC Cardiac Department. “I just can’t say enough about how wonderful I was treated there – the cardiac department was the best I’d ever seen,” she said. “If I rang the buzzer, I never had to wait very long for someone to come to my attention. The PCTs made such a huge impression on me that I even kept a list of all their names. The staff – the RNs, house keeping – all of them totally amazed me. I’m really picky about hospitals, and I’m so pleased that we have that kind of facility here.”
Although Dr. Alshami treated Randye’s heart issue, she was also treated for several other areas of concern during her stay. She had shortness of breath, a headache and a lump was found in her chest.
Because of these symptoms, Randye’s hospitalist, Dr. Jamal, ordered CT scans of both her lungs and her brain. “My whole family was amazed to find out they actually found a brain,” she said, laughing. “But there were no tumors in it.”
Randye was sent to radiology for these tests, and one employee in particular made an impression on her. “I was there on a weekend, and the man there was named Ivory – I’ll never forget him,” she said. “He wasn’t mad because he got called in. He was friendly and made me feel at ease – he was just wonderful.”
Randye said she was also incredibly impressed at how JRMC Nutritional Services responded immediately to her feedback when one of her meals wasn’t what she preferred. She sent them down a note to let them know and a representative called her without delay. “The Dietary manager called me and asked what they could do to make my experience better,” she said. “I just told her I wanted a fruit plate or a tuna plate with cottage cheese, and they brought me a feast – it was exactly what I wanted.”
In addition to being pleased with her meal, Randye was incredibly impressed with the service she received from the nutritional department. “The employees that came in to bring my orders were just as nice as they could be,” she said. “It was like they were going out of their way to be extra nice and to make my stay as pleasant as possible. I might not have been their only patient, but they treated me like I was.”
To Randye, being cared for at JRMC felt like being cared for by family. “I felt like I was being cared for like I was their grandma,” she said. “When you’re scared and in the hospital and people are kind and care, it’s tremendous.”
Randye said the treatment she experienced at JRMC made all the difference in her choice to stay closer to home for her care. “Now that I know how amazing JRMC is, I’m so comforted,” she said. “My husband is 71, I’m 69, and if I had to go in the hospital for an extended period, that would have meant my husband having to drive back and forth to Little Rock. I was going to Little Rock for just about everything, but I have totally changed my mind. Now, if the circumstances arise again for me to have to be hospitalized, I’ll come to JRMC. I am just overly impressed with our hospital.”
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