Los Robles better than UCLA hospital in his experience

Any visitor to the UCLA Hospital is constantly reminded that their hospital ranks as "Best in West" or "No. 5 in the nation." The hospital has plastered its rating on its elevators and elsewhere.

Don't believe the hype. I've had the unfortunate experience of being a patient back-to-back in these two hospitals. Based upon my experience, Los Robles is an infinitely superior facility. Let me elaborate.

Many patients enter a hospital through the emergency room. UCLA's emergency consulting rooms have no monitoring equipment, so a patient is moved into a crowded and very noisy "bullpen." There are no private rooms in the "bullpen," and you are conscious of all the misery about you.

By contrast, Los Robles has private rooms for all ER patients, with curtains and closing doors, monitoring equipment and no incessant and repetitive questioning. One physician is in charge until your doctor appears on the scene and assumes responsibility for your care.

My room at UCLA had a defective thermostat that maintained a heat of about 90 degrees.

I pleaded in vain to have the temperature adjusted, without success.

I understand that the building is old and that UCLA plans at some point to move to its new building. That may correct some of the mechanical problems, but it will do nothing to fix the dysfunctional medical and nursing staffing problems.

The nurses at UCLA are the worst I've ever encountered.

They behave like automatons with no caring, human inclinations. Medical care by the attending doctors is laced with confusion and second-guessing.

One doctor will tell you something, only to learn from another doctor that the advice I got from the first doctor was wrong, and a different course of action will be followed. This confusion seriously affects the treatment you get and leaves you totally confused as to diagnosis and remedy.

For the five days at UCLA, I was not bathed even once, whereas I had a body bath daily at Los Robles.

Many more tests were conducted at bedside at Los Robles, making it unnecessary to wheel my bed around the hospital or making frequent transfers between the bed and a gurney.

The food was of infinitely superior quality at Los Robles.

UCLA is plagued with traffic congestion, limited parking and high parking fees.

By contrast, traffic is light in traveling to Los Robles, and there is unlimited free parking. John Buckley Malibu