El Campo Memorial Hospital

Pros

• Dr Belew and the surgical team and nurses were great.
• The young lady was very sweet, and Tom and Suzie were kind and attentive to questions.
• Dr Courtney Skow is awesome.
• The surgeon and nurses were awesome.
• The patient has been transported and is awake and responsive.
• The doctors and nurses at the hospital were great.
• The doctor who treated them that night was good.

Cons

• The ER experience included a long wait and minimal doctor contact, described as terrible service.
• The father's ICU transport decisions were blamed for worsening outcomes, including a collapsed lung.
• Day-shift nurses were rude and only seemed there for a paycheck.
• The ER staff dismissed a knee injury as a sprain, delaying proper treatment.
• EC provided a half-hearted evaluation and downplayed the seriousness of the condition.
• The billing department was horrible, with inflated charges and repeated requests for itemized bills.
• Bills were charged multiple times for a single morphine dose and for an injection, suggesting billing errors or fraud.
• The hospital facility was dirty, with black mold, blood-stained blankets, running faucets, and leaks.
• Nurses and staff were rude or unhelpful, and pain medication was not provided promptly.
• Front desk staff were unprofessional and always on their phones, hindering service.
• Communication about patient care was poor, with miscommunication and unreturned calls.
• The hospital environment was old and unsafe, with bugs in rooms and general neglect.

Review

A collage of patient experiences paints a hospital that prompts a wide range of responses, from relief and gratitude to frustration and alarm. Across many reviews, the ER is described as slow, impersonal, and sometimes ineffective, with patients feeling unseen by doctors who visit for only brief moments and with waits that stretch for hours. One patient recounted sitting in the emergency room for two hours before a doctor appeared for just a minute around midnight, leaving them to decide whether to stay or leave to seek faster care elsewhere. Another review told of a knee injury that appeared dramatic enough to require urgent attention, yet the initial ER assessment offered only one or two X-ray views and diagnosed a sprain, later proven wrong when a different facility identified displaced fractures requiring surgery. In these accounts, the pattern is not merely about delays; it's about the sense that the care delivered in the ER was insufficient to match the severity of the patient's pain and the visible signs of injury.

The experiences of family members add another layer of concern, particularly around critical decisions and transport. A patient's father, for instance, deteriorated while in care for pneumonia, culminating in a lung collapse after a procedure intended to remove fluid. The ICU experience was marred by a conflict over patient transport: an insistence that transport be avoided due to "family preference," followed by a transfer to another hospital after seven days with little demonstrable progress. Social workers offered conflicting information about who should authorize transfers, leaving the family unsure and frustrated. These stories emphasize the perceived fragility of critical decisions and the emotional toll on families trying to navigate complex medical situations.

Beyond the ER and ICU, the reviews portray a hospital ecosystem strained by patient load and inconsistent bedside manners. While some frontline staff are praised, a number of reviews describe day and night nurses who act annoyed or seem unfriendly. In one echoing sentiment, the daytime staff are painted as overwhelmed and sometimes rude, capable of turning a routine interaction into a tense experience. Yet there are bright spots: individuals like a young nurse who was "very sweet," and names such as Tom, Suzie, Riha, Alyssa, Eileen, Katrina, and others surface repeatedly as examples of compassionate care or attentive communication. The mixed tone suggests that patient experience is highly variable and may depend on the crew on duty, with some teams delivering genuine kindness and others falling short of empathetic standards.

Billing, administration, and facility condition emerge as recurring sources of frustration. Several reviewers report an arduous path to obtain an itemized bill, with multiple requests required before documentation arrives. When bills finally arrive, there are alarming inconsistencies: repeated charges for what appears to be a single morphine dose, duplicate charges for injections, and charges that blur lines between IV administration and a simple poke with a needle. The ask for clarification often meets resistance, and some reviews allege that the hospital's billing practices amount to improper or deceptive billing behavior, with references to level-based charges and a sense that the system is designed to extract more money than the patient's care warrants. The billing department is described as unresponsive, with disputes frequently unresolved and debt collection looming as a threat. This financial fog adds layers of stress to patients already dealing with medical concerns and, for some, contributes to a decision to seek care elsewhere in the future.

Facilities and maintenance also attract strong complaints. A recurring image is of an aging hospital that feels dirty and poorly maintained. Reviewers describe mold in corners, blankets stained with blood, running faucets, and a general sense that cleanliness and upkeep are not prioritized. There are even mentions of bugs in rooms and leaks in ceilings, painting a picture of a space that feels neglected. These environmental concerns compound patient anxiety, particularly for those who require ongoing care or extended stays. The sense of physical decay in tandem with administrative and clinical challenges creates an overall impression of a hospital that, in places, feels overwhelmed, under-resourced, and outpaced by the needs of its patients.

Amid the criticisms, some patients report positive outcomes and gratitude for specific individuals or moments of good care. One reviewer highlights excellent surgical care and a supportive team, including specific compliments to a surgeon and several nurses who made a difference. Another recounts a family member surviving a difficult illness after care in the ICU, with praise for particular nurses who maintained communication and provided professional, compassionate attention. These instances remind readers that not all experiences are negative, and that committed clinicians and empathetic staff can still deliver high-quality care even in a challenging environment. The overall message, however, is that these positives are unevenly distributed and can feel inconsistent to patients seeking reliable, uniform excellence.

Taken together, the reviews present a hospital that evokes strong reactions across patients and families. The ER's pace and acuity handling, critical decision-making about transport and care levels, interactions with staff, the complexity and responsiveness of billing, and the condition of the physical plant all contribute to a spectrum of experiences - from relief and gratitude to frustration and alarm. The themes that recur - delays in care, perceived misdiagnosis or under-treatment, inconsistent bedside manner, opaque and painful billing processes, and maintenance concerns - suggest a need for systemic improvements. Patients are asking for timely, accurate diagnoses and interventions; respectful and consistent communication from clinicians and support staff; transparent, fair billing with accessible disputes processes; and a cleaner, safer facility environment. In the meantime, some patients and families will continue to find value in the compassionate care of a few dedicated individuals, while others will seek alternatives that better align with their expectations for efficiency, dignity, and protection during vulnerable times.

Physicians

• Mid Coast Medical Clinic (0 miles)
• Gulf Coast Nephrology (0.1 miles)
• Dr. Melissa Kainer Erwin (0.1 miles)
• Robin Ferguson MD (12.8 miles)
• El Campo Memorial Hospial Medical Clinic (12.9 miles)
• Regent Family Practice (12.9 miles)
• Dr Nathan Nguyen - Regent Adult and Pediatric Clinic (12.9 miles)

Hospitals

• El Campo Memorial Hospital (0.1 miles)
• Gulf Coast Medical Center (12.9 miles)
• OakBend Medical Center - Wharton Hospital Campus (13 miles)

Places of Worship

• El Campo Mennonite Church (0.4 miles)
• United Praise & Worship Church (1.4 miles)
• Christ Lutheran Church (1.4 miles)
• Memorial Baptist Church (1.4 miles)
• Memorial El Campo (1.4 miles)
• First Baptist Church of El Campo (2 miles)
• Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church (2.3 miles)

Restaurants

• Burger King (0.5 miles)
• Chicken Express (0.5 miles)
• Uptown Grill (0.8 miles)
• Sonic Drive-In (1.1 miles)
• Golden Phoenix Chinese Restaurant (1.2 miles)
• Whataburger (1.4 miles)
• Emil's Place (1.7 miles)

Pharmacies

• El Campo Professional Pharmacy (1.2 miles)
• Walgreens (2 miles)
• South Texas Medical Clinics PA (12.8 miles)
• South Texas Pharmacy (12.9 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (13.9 miles)
• Affordable Pharmacy (14.1 miles)

Transportation

• U-Haul Neighborhood Dealer (1.8 miles)
• U-Haul Neighborhood Dealer (2 miles)
• Texas Trophy Taxidermy (2.4 miles)
• Bus Station (3.3 miles)
• Stuffing Critters Taxidermy (5.2 miles)
• Oa Enterprises (13.8 miles)

Theaters

• El Campo Theatre-Showplace III (1.8 miles)