Visiting Nurse Service New York, NY

suzieq6824

VSNY Hospice was not the experience that we thought we would receive when our loved one caught covid 19 and was declining at a very rapid rate. The initial contact that I had with the person who sends you paperwork to sign, Yolanda, was quick and helpful. Additionally, the intake nurse who came that night was very nice. They ordered the medicine right away since my grandmother couldn't breathe, this was Tuesday April 7th. 2020. On Wednesday, April 8th. I was called by a nurse, Elaine, who stated she was on her way to visit my grandmother. Then she contacted me on a conference call with her supervisor by the name of Roxanne who stated that she is concerned about her staff and they can set up video chats instead of visits. My grandmother was dying, what are video chats going to do. She then, told me the family must be there. I explained that we couldn't be there cause we had the virus. She was condescending and inquired when did I first get the virus, did I get tested for the virus, she told me I was fine to go there meanwhile my Dr. told me I couldn't go out until 2 weeks. She said, "Your grandmother needs you now, she's dying, why don't you want to be there. Then she said if you aren't going there then neither are we. She said perhaps it's time to put her in a nursing home. I told her that her wishes were to die in the home and that's what hospice is supposed to provide patients with, in home care. I told her she had some nerve saying these things to me cause I have been very active in my grandmother's care and I felt terrible that I came down with the virus and couldn't be there in her last days. I called her supervisor, Casandra, the medical director and she apologized and said she would train her better. She also stated that she will make sure someone visits my grandmother that day, which was Wednesday and then more frequently since her decline was so rapid. I felt better after speaking to her, but then received a call from Elaine, the nurse, stating that since Roxanne put a "hold" on my grandmother's case, they sent her elsewhere and now it was past 4:00 PM so she is off. She said she will visit my grandma first thing in the AM. Well my grandmother died at 3:20 AM and this makes me livid because not only did Roxanne make me feel horrible after judging me and saying terrible things to me, but she spitefully put a hold on her care and having a visit from the hospice nurse which could have made her more comfortable. Additionally, once the aide called me to say that she isn't breathing, I called hospice and asked if someone clinical can visit to make sure she died because they were giving her medicine and it was so quick that I wanted someone clinical to confirm she didn't have vital signs. They told me they were sorry but the on call nurse don't have full protective gear so they can't come in but they can do a video call. I said forget it. Called the funeral director and asked them to please just make sure she doesn't have a pulse or vitals and he said they check for that. NO ONE from hospice even called to share their condolences. I had hospice dealings for my grandfather and they were wonderful so my advice is to not use this hospice service.

mmom

Manhattan office is disorganized, long waits for phone inquiries. Many scheduling errors, little information to patient.

PH427

VSNY provided excellent services for my mother. After a year-long battle with cancer, my mother became terminally ill. They were so helpful throughout my mother's last days. The doctor, nurses and social worker were always available and very helpful. Within a few days of setting up hospice homecare my mother passed. I would recommend these services to anyone looking for hospice home care.

JP314

Truly terrible experience. We used VSNY for home hospice care for my wife, who had terminal cancer. One of the so-called health aides VSNY sent was completely baffled when asked to help with a sponge bath and later with a bed pan. She'd never encountered either of these things, nor did she seem particularly inclined to learn how to handle them. When my wife's death was "imminent," the nurse gave us instructions and left rather than stick around during these critical final hours of her life. The only way we got through this stretch was through private aides we hired at our personal expense to supplement this "service."

SimplyMadue

My dad was receiving hospice care from VNSNY winter of 2015. The service was horrible. He never received his medication or supplies on time. I would have to call it in at least three times to finally receive it. The vendors delivering supplies were very rude. The social worker was never available or returned phone calls. The list of things that went wrong was endless. This service brought our family more stress on top of the pressures of creating a peaceful end of life transition. It was very disappointing to see the lack of respect, professionalism and understanding the entire hospice team displayed. This was not hospice care more like a nightmare. They were never on the same page. Please save your family the stress. There are great hospice services out there please do your research. My mom experience with her hospice service was so different. ( I don't recall the name) I have a great respect for hospice care. My mom received excellent care (16 years ago) from another agency. I don't know what my family would of have done with out the help of the hospice team. Best of luck on your search. Hang in there!

Winston284777

We have been using Visiting Nurse Services for about a month. They do a little bit of housekeeping once a week. Mom is comfortable with the caregiver. Billing is through Medicare.

d. anglund

I was given 2 days notice before being released from VNS hospice! No social worker to help move me to post hospice care. Partners in Care, the VNS home health provider, then ended all home health, no warning just no more. Narry one social worker ever! Ethically and professionally no care for the patient. I went from hospice care to having all care stopped. Beware VNS they are falling apart.

C2

The aides from Visiting Nurse Services of New York were not working. They were just sitting on the couch, watching TV, on their phones, not interacting with their patients, and things of that nature. In terms of their Partners in Care Program, they were not good at all. When we requested another aide, they did not send a replacement; they kept sending the same aide that just sat on the couch and did nothing. They are not doing the right thing.

Heavy heart

My experience was mixed. My husband was in hospice care for five weeks before he passed away. His condition had deteriorated suddenly and was changing daily, so we had no experience with how to cope with his new and worsening disabilities. I was expecting instructions and assistance on how to help him, and that someone would take an active interest in how he was managing. I felt I was left on my own in figuring out how to care for him. It was very difficult. The nurse visited once and then was on vacation the second week, when we needed the most help. We saw her again after two weeks. She was nice but didn't seem to take a very active interest in his symptoms or condition. The social worker did not apply for additional home health aide hours like I thought she had said she would do. We did get a lot of supplies and equipment, though some were broken. Phone response was mostly good, a bit spotty. The nurse who came out (after 2 1/2 hours) when I called to report shallow breathing was very good. He told me my husband was in the process of dying. The nurse who was sent to be with us overnight on his last night was very good.

Provider Response

RHJ NYC

The Visiting Nurse Service of New York(VNSNY) failed to provide me with timely, high quality, residential post-operation Nursing, Physical Therapy and Personal Healthcare Assistant services during the period 21 December 2014 - 10 January 2015 per the earlier Agreement which was based on compliance with the instructions of my Surgeon. VNSNY was supposed to meet with me(the patient) at the Hospital after surgery but prior to discharge to establish a services delivery schedule that would begin immediately upon return to my residence. VNSNY did not show up for this planned meeting with me at the hospital. The VNSNY Nurse first met with me at my residence TWO days after my hospital discharge. My surgery was major, I was non-ambulatory, taking strong pain killer medication, and I was a senior citizen living alone. No check of my health condition was made however during the first two days after hospital discharge by VNSNY. The VNSNY personal healthcare assistant first showed up at my residence FIVE DAYS after my hospital discharge. Since I was non-ambulatory I was unable during this FIVE DAY period to perform a number of daily life support tasks. I experienced many other problems with VNSNY. The perfunctory nurse examinations missed detecting several health issues. A significant number of scheduled appointments for the respective services were cancelled/rescheduled by VNSNY. There were several cases when the VNSNY service person simply did not show up for their scheduled appointments without even calling me beforehand. The medical and administrative information provided by VNSNY was inadequate and I had to (extensively) call my Surgeon's office and my Health Insurance provider to answer questions about my case and treatment. VNSNY actually at one point cancelled all my services(without telling me beforehand, because they erroneously determined that my health insurance had expired. I was/am a 30 year client of the Health Insurance provider in good standing and had to call them regarding the VNSNY coverage cancellation claim. My health insurance provider then advised VNSNY of their error and my services were restored after a lapse of time. My health insurance provider then told me directly that they had assigned both a case manager and one of their nurses to frequently monitor my VNSNY treatment activities and that I would be contacted regularly by these two individuals. This further demand on my time was directly caused by the VNSNY performance failures. I made many attempts to resolve these problems with VNSNY as they occurred. These were uniformly unsuccessful and I found VNSNY extremely difficult to deal with. There were extremely long telephone wait times, and I was unable to find any VNSNY staff that were knowledgeable, willing to become involved with the problems, and empowered to solve the problems. I have since filed formal written complaints with the chairman of VNSNY , the president, two senior vice presidents, and a vice president. My formal complaints however have been ignored to date.

Review of VNSY In Home Hospice Care

The Visiting Nurse Service of New York In Home Hospice Care provided by the Visiting Nurse Service of New York is a third class service. Most of the staff lacked experience required to provide quality service. I had the experience with threedifferent vendors and VNSNY comes in at a distant third. The visiting nurse administering the care did nothing. She couldn't even keep up with the medications required to keep the patient comfortable. the aides lacked had no experience with the patient's condition. The call center was unresponsive. The response time from the visiting nurses was unacceptable.

Caring 1358

Visiting Nurse Services of New York checks on my mother once a week. They've been with her for over a year now. They're good people. I don't have any problems with them. The nurses administer my mother's medicine and take note of any changes in medication. They also take her vital signs, and they work with a young lady from another office. If they see anything that needs to be reported to the doctor, they make a note to do that.

Boop1

I have had the pleasure of using their services twice for my Mom. Mom's blood sugar level dropped and her blood count fell the first time and the visiting nurse service was suggested to me at the hospital. I accepted and they were great. They gave us a nurse who checked her blood pressure and gave me valuable information. A therapist was assigned and helped Mom with exercises. We received help getting a rolling walker and travel chair. The social worker visited and assisted with getting a phone alert unit for Mom in case of a fall. The second time, Mom fell and required nine (9) stitches again the service came and offered the assistance of the nurse and therapist. As a daughter/caregiver, who desperately wants to get this caregiving stuff right, I really appreciated the assistance.

caring8201

My brother has Alzheimer's. He has a nurse that comes in every two days and give me supplies and everything. Right now, I'm looking for an apartment for him. I've been taking care of him since 2007.

Caring548

After dealing with all the patients in a rehab, we decided to just get a private nurse for my father who will provide a 24-hour care for him. Everything is going so well. We found a care-giver who is a good match for my father and we are really satisfied with the service. It feels right and the over all care is wonderful. They are a good match.

Seung

My mother has used this agency before so that's basically the reason why we got them. My mom was in hospice before and they referred VNS to her. They clean the house, watch over her, take her out to walk and accompany her anywhere. The caregiver works for us 6 hours a day, 5 days a week. We find their service good and efficient.

CaresForMom

I've needed to use Visiting Nurse Service of New York a few times for my elderly mother. Last year, they sent a nurse that helped us find options for my mother's care that I hadn't known existed. They also sent a wonderful physical therapist. This year, when I needed to use them again, they sent an even better physical therapist, and my mother actually looks forward to PT. I would never trust the in home care of my loved ones with anyone else.

debcall64

My father had two provider for two classes of service from the VNS after his four-week hospital/rehab stay: a home care nurse to check his vital signs as well as his foley catheter as well as change it if necessary, and a physical therapist to help him regain strength in his lower extremities. The nurse assigned to his case was wonderful. she took a keen interest, obtained supplies he needed and delivered them even on days when no visit was scheduled. The physical therapist, on the other hand, was erratic in his scheduling. He made appointments but called on days he was not scheduled and tried to come saying he was in the area and it was nore convenient for him to come now than the appointment he originally made. since it was not convenient that he come NOW, we said we wanted him to come as scheduled. He was a no-call/no-show. He called the next day and was apologetic. he made an appointment for the following day, but by then, my father was not willing to work with him. At 83, he's a bit ornery. He sent the PT on his way when he got here. that was the last we ever heard from VNS regarding at-home PT, and we did not call them to try and get another PT.