Juan Luis Hospital Victims Speak Out

As the fallout continues from the 112-page CMS report issued last week outlining a long list of serious violations and countless instances of sub-standard care that took place at St. Croix’s Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital (JFL) from 2011 through August 2014, dozens of posts have surfaced online of both residents and visitors recounting, mostly in an unfavorable light, their personal experiences while visiting the hospital.

But by far the most significant platform used in the telling of a patient’s JFL experience came in the form of a lengthy, seven-paragraph essay that appeared on the popular, vacation-planning website, tripadvisor.com.

In a post titled, “Hospital Care 2014 – Not good news” and uploaded on Sept., 29, Jenn G., who vacationed in St. Croix, detailed a harrowing emergency room experience she endured at Juan Luis. Could this have been the longest emergency room wait ever?

She writes:

This hospital has serious changes to make in order to maintain trust with its customer base-the Christiansted and surrounding communities as well as area visitors. In the time I took waiting, I could have flown back to Boston, been seen and treated.

Below, find Jenn G.’s account in its entirety. However, it may be necessary to consider an even deeper discussion than Jenn G. has put forth — how does a broken hospital/healthcare system affect the tourism industry on St. Croix?

Hundreds of thousands of people rely on sites like tripadvisor to give them honest feedback on the conditions of destinations across the globe. At a time when St. Croix is already reeling from a weakened economy largely brought on with the shuttering of HOVENSA in 2012, the island cannot afford another blow that would further cause would-be visitors to stay away from its shores…or send residents packing.

In the VI Consortium’s continuing coverage of the stories of Luis Hospital patients in light of the CMS report, later this week we will bring you the story of a young mother who recounted her near-death experience after giving birth at JFL.