Select Specialty Hospital Elias Noel Amador, MD Negligent, incompetent staff, poor care Lake Worth Florida

My Mother was a patient at Select Specialty Hospital in Lake Worth, Florida from January 17, 2014 until January 28, 2014.  .  She was transferred there from another hospital after she had hip surgery due to a fall she had at home about a week prior.  She was supposed to get physical therapy and rehabilitation.  Her surgery was successful and I thought she was on the road to recovery however, what transpired over the next couple of weeks was horrifying.  My Mother passed away suddenly at Select Specialty Hospital on January 28, 2014.  The experience I had with this hospital was nothing short of a "nightmare".  My Mother had several pre-existing conditions which included COPD (severe emphysema).  She also came down with Shingles (on her face and eye) about 2-weeks before her fall and surgery.  

Each time I went to see or my Mother, her health was deteriorating and every time I would ask the Nurse on staff how she is doing, they would tell me she was stable and resting.  She had to be put in ICU because she had low oxygen levels and she was lethargic.  She had to have a blood tranfusion prior to her surgery, but they did tests and said everything was "normal".  

Every time I would speak to one of the Nurses and ask them how my Mom was doing, their answers were very vague and they did not tell me much.  My Mother's treating physcian, Ellias Amador only spoke to me once, and very brief at that.  He never indicated to me that my Mother might not be around much longer.  I saw my Mother the day before she died, and she was not the same person anymore.  She was laying in bed in almost a comotose state and was not talking much.  This was a shock to me and so heartbreaking to see my Mother in this grave condition, yet no one said anything to me.  The lack of compassion and care Elias Amador and the Nurses showed me and my family is unacceptable.  

The day my Mother died, the doctor was nowhere to be found.  He did not even have the decency to talk to me and my husband to express his condolences or to explain what happened.  Also, after all this happened, I did a lot of research online about Select Specialty Hospital and what I found was very disturbing.  There are alot of horror stories about this hospital and had I known this sooner, I would have never allowed my Mother to go there.  I was also shocked to find out that there are no doctors on staff during the evening.  Yes, you read that correctly.  No doctors after hours.   

I can't even describe how upset and disgusted I am with Select Specialty Hospital.  The Nurses that were caring for my mother acted like a bunch of "space cadets" and did not show much care or compassion.  I did not see much in the way of "rehabilitation" for my Mother.  The day before my Mother died, a physical therapist came in and did about 10-minutes of leg excercises with my mother and left.  My Mother was left to lay in bed all day.  That to me, is not good healthcare.  I got the impression that they just did not care because they figured my Mother would not have much longer anyways.

The day my Mother died, me and my Husband asked the Nurse what had happened.  She said my Mother was doing fine that morning and ate breakfast.  She said she had oatmeal.  She said my Mother was agitated that morning.  When we asked her if her monitor alarm was going off, she did not answer.  She said that it happened as she walked into the room.  I found this very disturbing and it will haunt me forever.  She said my Mother was vomiting and there was blood (trauma) as they tried to revive her for 45-minutes with no success.  She then went on to say to me that she tried to give me "hints" the day before that my Mom would not have long.  Well, I was in such a state of shock at that point and could not believe she said that to me.  No one said anything to me, nor did the doctor or nurses give me any kind of hints.  All she said to me the day prior was that my Mom was not asking for pain meds.  What am I supposed to do with that information?

I tried to reach Elias Amador and of course he would not return my phone calls or respond to my correspondence about my Mother's cause of death on her death certificate.  My Mother's primary physician and pulomonary doctors told me she most likely died from respiratory failure.  Onset to death my mother had End Stage COPD, which none of her doctors ever used that term, "end stage"  I knew she had severe emphysema but I was told by the Nurse that my Mother had Stage 3 COPD.  My Mother also had atrial fibrillation.  Dr. Amador also noted "gastrointestinal bleed" on her death certificate and I still don't have any clarification on what the cause was.  I understand my Mother was in poor health however, I don't think she died from COPD.  I think she died from pulmonary aspiration.  Which is considered malpractice.  Unfortunately, the state I live in has laws that protect doctors, not the families.

I could go on and on.  What I experienced with Select Specialty Hospital and Dr. Elias Amador I would not wish on anyone!  This has been a nightmare for me and my family.  I have filed complaints with the medical board and with medicare.  I am doing all I can because my Mother is no longer here and I have to be her voice.  My family deserves to have closure and my Mother deserves to rest in peace.  

If you havea  sick of injured loved one and you value your loved one's life, please, I beg of you, do not allow them to go to Select Specialty Hospital.