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Reviews and Complaints

Last month, I found myself in the unfortunate situation of needing emergency care. I went to WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital, and despite my anxiety, the staff there made the process as smooth as possible. The wait time was shorter than I expected, and the doctors and nurses were attentive and professional. They quickly assessed my condition, provided the necessary treatment, and made sure I understood the follow-up steps. It wasn't a place I wanted to be, but they made sure I was taken care of. I left feeling reassured and on the path to recovery.

My name is Barbara Blank, and I am the mother of the patient.
On December 16th my daughter Shawna Pride [protected] was scheduled by Dr Dorf for bilateral tubes in her ears. Shawna is a 36 year old woman with Downs Syndrome. She has had many sets of tubes.
We were waiting for her eardrums to heal from the prior set to have new ones placed.
At our last visit I was told that the holes were healed and surgery for a new set was scheduled for December 16th. Shawna was extremely nervous about the surgery and obsessed about it days ahead of time.
We followed all the pre surgical instructions and arrived for the surgery. The usual pre-op procedures were done, and she was taken into surgery and anesthetized. When Dr Dorf came out for the post-op consultation he explained to me that tubes weren’t needed after all as there were holes in both eardrums which automatically act as a tube. It took me totally by surprise. I was shocked actually. Before surgery Dr Dorf felt that her hearing loss was more of a conductive loss and tubes would change that. I brought this up to him and he said the most off the wall thing to me. “You and your daughter have an interesting relationship”, again throwing me off. In hindsight I would have asked several more questions.
Having holes in her eardrums is obviously something that should have been seen in a routine office visit. NOT in an OR after anesthesia.
Dr Dorf and I had a discussion about another upcoming surgery being done on January 8th
Anesthesia always presents an opportunity for problems. In Shawna’s case even more so. Having anesthesia given for 2 separate procedures in such close proximity makes it even more dangerous.
First and foremost there was absolutely no reason for her to have undergone any of it as it was completely unnecessary. It was negligent for Dr Dorf to have not recognized the holes were already there in his office. His off the wall comment about my relationship with my daughter was rediculous and I felt it was used to redirect the conversation. Quite frankly I found that to be rather insulting and completely out of line.
Shawna has Medicare and Highmark Wholecare. I don’t feel any charged should have been billed for and will be contacting both companies.