Mad River Community Hospital: Emergency Room - Arcata, California

Nick W.

I have a lot of respect for the care providers who work here, they're doing the best they can with the resources provided. Unfortunately this ER is too small and not being invested in.

Wait times can be upwards of 5 hours and they simply don't have the time or tools to do anything beyond minimal care. They will keep you from dying but that's about it.

Lee L.

The hospital itself is pretty bad, but the emergency room is the worst. I am not in a place to share details but some basic competence and compassion would have gone a long way in keeping someone I love safe. Isn't that the point of an emergency room, to keep patients safe? We, as a community deserve better. This place needs to be shut down and rebuilt with folks that actually care about their patients.

Lee L.

The incompetence and apathy at Mad River is just shocking for a place responsible for keeping other humans alive. I don't know anyone that has had an experience here that doesn't end up being botched in some way. Especially if you have kids, it is worth the extra few mins to bring them to St Joes.

Jason S.

The doctors, nursing staff and specialists have been a blessing. They are professional, kind, and willing to answer all my questions.

Dragon420

The worst doctors and burnt out nurses work here. I’d say 80% are burnt out and have little to no compassion left. If you lose your passion to help people, you should quit working in healthcare, PERIOD. Your staffing issues have nothing to do with our care. Get it together

Sara V.

I went in for gallbladder pain and Doctor Luu wrongfully told me I had an ulcer without running anything other than blood and a CT then said he can't diagnose me, only a primary care doctor can. When I said I don't have a primary care doctor yet cause I just moved here and I'm on a waiting list, he said that doesn't mean I can just come into the emergency room for an ulcer. Went in again a month later with even worse pain and the same doctor said "stomach pain is not an emergency" and that I had to try harder to get a primary care doctor because "this is not what emergency rooms are for, ulcers aren't a priority". The nurse that came in after him said she didn't doubt I was in pain but that it couldn't be serious medically cause my vitals came back perfect. The intake nurse tried to get me to fill out an application for different insurance while I was crying in pain on the hospital bed and then told me to go home. Went to St Joe's instead and it turns out I had so many gallstones I had to be given morphine for the pain and my gallbladder had to come out in emergency surgery same day. Save your time, save your money, save your health just go to a different ER.

Anthony D.

I have an abscess and it’s extremely painful. After hours of waiting, and still grateful they saved my life from infection, I was told it isn’t ready to drain which would give me great relief. I said I was disappointed they aren’t draining it, because this hurts a lot, and the doctor transformed into a child before my eyes and started speaking to me sarcastically throwing a fit. I tried to explain that I understood she did everything she could, and that being disappointed about not getting surgical relief wasn’t a direct insult to her, but she walked away and didn’t even properly discharge me. I just had to call back because I’m already back to being as incapacitated as I was when I got there, asking when I can be reevaluated for surgery and they’re arguing with me on the phone about how they did everything they could. Come to find out the doctor didn’t tell me I can call the surgeon in the morning. She was too distressed by my personal disappointment to do her job as a medical doctor. This is unacceptable and I hope she considers some personal communications training so she can be the bigger person next time and compose herself like a doctor should be able to. Besides from the doctor losing her temper at the end, the staff took good care of me.Things might be easier for them if they had more people and more ER beds, always super packed here.

I called surgeon in the morning and was told the ER doctor said I didn’t need my abscess drained, when clearly I did. The surgeon had to come in on his day off to relieve me of pain by draining my abscess. I will be filling a formal complaint against the doctor who nearly forced me to suffer for a week and get the wrong procedure.

Susie S.

Although arrival is confusing since there is no receptionist and only a bell on the wall to ring, we were quickly checked-in and after a brief wait we were escorted back to a room and promptly seen by a Dr. Nick. We were in and out within an hour!! Great job!!