Name:   Firefighter - Subject:   Russell Medical Center Date:   6/4/2020 8:01:03 PM

My wife collapsed - could not move and lost her memory. I called an ambulance who took her to the Russell Medical Center Emergency Room. The doctor examined her and said her collapse and loss of memory were not a medical problem but was a social issue and I was to take her home. This was impossible. They tried to get me to sign the release papers which I refused. I left the area for a few minutes and was told my wife signed the release papers. Yes, they forged her signature. At this point two people pulled her off the bed, put her in a wheel chair, took her out of the emergency room and left her in the hospital lobby. By signing the release papers I could not get her into the hospital and not having a medical problem she lost her insurance coverage. I finally got her to a nursing center where she spent two months recovering with therapy. I talked to the hospital CEO to discuss my wife's situation. We had a pleasent conversation and he said he would review the incident and call me to discuss his findings. Well, he never called back after a few months so he didn't care either. This is the worst hospital I have ever been to. Others who heard my story said they understood and then told me their disasters at this hospital. I filed a police report against the individuals that forged my wife's signature and after the police investigation they told me that forgery is not a crime if the individuals who forged my wife's name did not benefit financially. Here we have a CEO that is not capable of evaluating his doctor staff and taking any corrective action. The speech theripist that evaluated my wife wrote a report that said my wife didn't respond to her questions and therefore didn't answer any questions on purpose. It never dawned on her that my wife most likely had a stroke and was unable to answer the questions. I decided to write this summary to let people know the risk of going to this hospital.