Carl R Darnall Army Medical Center

The ER staff at Darnall is great! Everyone I encountered was friendly, knowledgeable and did a great job in helping me get better.

In regards to the women’s clinic I have never felt more taken care of. My every need has always been met and anytime I’ve voiced a concern the doctors and nurses has gone the extra mile to put my mind at ease. I am so thankful for these people and their servants hearts.

Horrible ER.
You could be dying on the floor the receptionist care more about gossiping and texting then helping patients. They are super rude also.
The woman’s health center is awful. I’m lucky my doctor was good or else I probably would have went to seton or metroplex. Dr Shannon was the only good doctor darnall ever employed. I couldn’t stand half the nurses or staff. They were all nice but one nurse asked my name 4 times. They are always a mess. I only go for Shannon and I won’t let other doctors see me.

This review is based on a lot of different areas. Internal medicine, Laboratory & Nuclear Medicine have been the better departments so far. The people at the info desk are sweet too. But the bad would have to be the patient’s advocates. Complete waste of my sweet time & the person helping was repetitive & not very informative from the way she was beating around the bush. So the deal is, we walked out, no results. Parking lot is decent but it could get crowded very fast especially during the middle of the day. Honestly, no one actually enjoys going to a hospital unless they are required. Nothing about this place is fun & games unless you have a great imagination.

As someone who just moved here recently, I was looking for an environment I could feel comfortable and secure in but sadly, this was not the case.
Never before have I been treated so badly by the staff at a hospital. I understand they are busy and have alot to deal with but when a girl comes in with her husband, in obvoius pain, I expect the professionals who work at this hospital to treat me with a little decency.
I didnt ask for any perks, I was very kind and tried to provide helpful information about my issue but I either got ignored or dismissed. When we finally got help, I was told I would not be given any pain medication for my problem, even though I had a doctor’s note from my previous neurologist that said I needed that medication. Instead they offered me Advil, which by the way does not help chronic pain.
They also said they needed to take a urine sample to make sure I was not pregnant. I asked what my urine sample told them and they replied, «Oh.uh…you’re fine.» 2 weeks later I found out I was 3 months pregnant, so they obviously didn’t really check the urine sample.
Very unpleasant experience and I truly hope they will improve this area of the hospital.

Quick Notes for TL;DR… 1) If you get Dr. Bybel as your doctor, DEMAND another doctor. He was the most disingenuous and incompetent doctor I’ve ever come across. 2) my SIL’s water was broken, meconium was discovered but did not deliver the baby until 6 hours later. 3) a grapefruit-​sized knot was discovered in the umbilical cord upon delivery which complicated the baby’s condition. 4) The baby was airlifted to Scott & White the following morning. 5) Only through the grace of God the baby survived.
My experience with this hospital was with a family member and her labor. Dr. Bybel was her doctor. Never have I experienced such brazen incompetence. My sister-​in-​law went into labor and we were there overnight. The nurses were attentive and did everything they could to keep my SIL comfortable during her long labor.
The following morning, Dr. Bybel decided to break her water. He found meconium in the placenta. This did not seem to concern him. The baby went into further distress, according to the monitors. When she had a contraction, his heart rate went down… way down. This did not seem to concern Dr. Bybel either. Me and my SIL’s best friend talked to the nurse about that and the meconium the baby was now inhaling. She said she’d tell the doctor our concerns. He was only concerned about an hour later when he came into the room looking for his stethoscope.
Six hours after breaking her water, he decided to perform a Cesarian. When the baby was born, the doctor discovered the umbilical cord had a knot in it the size of a grapefruit. This caused the baby’s heart rate to drop and the meconium further complicated matters.
After the baby was born, Dr. Bybel did not tell us how the procedure went. In fact, we were given the runaround for two hours about where she was. We didn’t know how she or the baby were doing. When I finally talked to a nurse in triage and demanded she find my SIL, she said «she’s in recovery.» I said, «so she gave birth?» The nurse snapped back and said, «well, she IS in recovery.» I told her that no one has talked to us about her condition or the baby’s.
Then a guy at the back of the nurse’s station said over his shoulder, «oh, she’s okay and the baby was delivered.» I was about to ask who he was and noticed it was none other than… DR. BYBEL. My mom and I were beyond stunned. My mom asked for clarification, «so she had the baby, and he’s okay?» Again, over his shoulder, he said «yeah, she had the baby.» We were both so furious and exhausted (we’d been awake for 27 hours) we went to the waiting area to calm down. I went outside to call my SIL’s best friend. The nurse who attended to my SIL told my mom where she was and that we could see her soon. NO WORD WHATSOEVER on the condition of the baby.
Later, we found out that the baby was taken to NICU. The next morning, the baby was airlifted to Scott & White in Temple, and my SIL followed soon after. Word was sent to my brother and he was granted emergency leave to come home. The baby remained in NICU for weeks. He was discharged last week and is doing well, no thanks to Dr. Bybel. This doctor and this case needs to be reviewed by someone outside of Darnall — according to the other reviews I’ve read and other stories I’ve heard first hand.

I am newly assigned to Fort Hood and had my first Darnall Emergency Room visit last night.
This is by far the worst Army Medical center I have had the misfortune of stepping foot in. From the moment we entered the facility and met the receptionists and security guards we felt like we were in for a bad experience. They didn’t disappoint.
There were three to four hospital staff at the front desk and as many security guards roaming around. In the three hours we sat in the waiting room the reception staff took more breaks than a UAW Union employee in Detroit. No one smiled, no one had any sort of customer service skills whatsoever. Not only were they standoffish, they were insulting in the tone of voice they used with patients and family, as well as the body language they used when addressing you.
Once we were moved into a room, we were left for an hour before a doctor saw us. Once she came, she was polite. You could tell she was very frustrated, but she seemed to be trying to make an effort to deal with us. She ordered some pain meds for my wife and left only to return an hour later and see that no one administered the meds she had ordered.
The nurse who came in to administer the meds did not wear gloves, and actually contaminated the examination tools the doctor had requested be set up; then tried to use them! When my wife protested she was very combative and obviously upset that someone called her out, but after continued arguing opened additional sterile instruments.
The new doctor at shift change ordered a CT scan, and blood work. About 8 hours after we entered the ER
, he informed my wife that he was not a Gynecologist and she should make an appointment with one. That as far as he could tell she didn’t need surgery. My wife had to argue with the doctor for him to even tell her what was wrong with her. When asked if he would give her anything for pain he said «I don’t prescribe Narcotics.» With that we were dismissed.
Total time wasted at the ER, Nine Hours. Result, she is back home and in pain as if we had never gone in the first place.
Take aways:
1.) No bedside manner, or common courtesy.
2.) Inept nurses that endanger the lives of patients.
3.) Useless doctors that just want to get you out of the ER.
I will take my business off base for all future Emergencies.

People have mixed reviews regarding this hospital. These are my opinions regarding certain departments.
Women’s Health Center
–This is the newest section of the hospital that caters toward pregnancy. If you are having a normal pregnancy than you will see a midwife. If you have a complicated pregnancy than you’ll see a doctor or a specialized midwife. I had the opportunity to see both midwives and doctors. I did NOT have a personal experience with a specific healthcare provider since I didn’t see one healthcare provider consistently during my entire pregnancy. Your appointment usually last less than 15 minutes. Always come 30 minutes before your appointment since the ladies that check you in sometimes take forever to check you in.
Labor & Delivery
— My birth experience was awesome! I had an awesome team. A midwife I’ve never met before delivered my baby. I was a little sad that it wasn’t any of the midwife or doctors I’ve seen throughout my pregnancy. My nurse was very attentive and friendly. The room I had here happen to be the largest room. Try to request for Room 7 if they are not full.
Mother Baby Unit
–I was a little disappointed with how attentive the staff was here. I almost felt like I was forgotten. The room I had here was drastically small compared to the large labor and delivery room that I was in.
Lab
–The Asian guy is the best. I wish it was only him that drew my blood. I was bruised up a few times by the other staff.
Parking
–Parking is limited here. I would recommend coming 45 – 60 minutes before your appointment time.