I am a person who suffers from mental health. For the very first time ever, On Feb 9th I had a complete breakdown on life. I decided to reach out which to my surprise seemed like a good idea at the time but turned out to be a very big mistake. I found out RVH is not a place that cares about people who need help. People who need help seem to be their time of entertainment to abuse and belittle them.

I voluntarily walked into emerge feeling helpless and in need of some kind of assistance. I don’t do drugs, or drink alcohol. My life has always been clean from any kind of substance abuse. They quickly assessed me clearly seeing I was at a very low point in my life.

As they quickly attended to my situation, being empathetic and all at first, it quickly took a turn for the worst. After seizing my belongings, they made me change into red scrubs and was literally placed in a room with little to no information as to what will happen next. There I sat, in a room for hours on end….with 4 walls, a bed that was as hard a prison concrete fixture bolted to the ground, a pillow the size of a chicklet peice of gum, no access to proper sanitation, completely stripped of all my medication and any access to necessities of life. I Wasn’t even aloud to have access to my phone to call someone to tell them where I am. It’s like I was being kidnapped. It was like being incarserated for committing a crime I didn’t commit.

Every time I tried to step out of the room to wave down a nurse to ask for a simple glass of water or my every day medication, I was approached by a nurse and a security guard yelling at me to stay in the room. It was hours before I gained the courage to ask for a tooth brush and some tooth paste so that I can brush my teeth. I had to beg to even take a shower or ask for a clean mask.

The feeling I was feeling is hard to describe. Alone and abused. No empathy, no sympathetic guesture from any of the staff, just cold hearted gutless actions from every angle. So there I was, sitting and waiting in a very dirty room that appeared to be like a jail cell. Cold, hungry, and disgusted by a big ball of hair floating in the corner of the room by the window. Clearly that room had not been sanitized or cleaned properly before throwing me in there.

48 hours passed and I was told I would be released soon after my Covid test came back, which I was not… I was later transferred to another room.. smaller, more dirty than the last one I was in, holes in the wall and much colder. It was so cold in this room I could see my breath as I was breathing. It started to click in on where I was because I seen a girl walking by in the hallway talking into a styrophome cup. It was obvious I was in the phsyc ward.

Again up to that point still no real information of what was going on. Begging to make phone calls. After a nurse finally gave me a phone, I scrambled to call people to get me outta there before I really go nuts.

On a whole the nurses were very mouthy and belittling on all levels. So how are nurses our hero’s? In this particular matter, They are not. It’s hard to believe we pay these women $80k-$90k a year for what? To sit behind their desks? Huff and puff when they have to move to do their job??? Constantly lie and try to intimidate patients? This is what makes that kind of salary to take care of us…??? This is not an atmosphere I want to be around ever again and if I ever feel like I did on Tuesday Frb 9th, I’d rather die instead of putting myself into a situation like this again.

To top it all off the illegal search and seizure of my belongings without a warrant was uncalled for. Not only did they seize my phone, my jacket and the rest of my clothes, but they went through all my pockets without my consent. They asked me from the beginning when I checked in to emerge if I had anything sharp in my pockets I said no. Yet they still went through everything when I was unaware. When my clothes were returned to me I noticed everything smelled like they were worn by a homeless person and $75 cash went missing from my wallet. I couldn’t even pay for parking after checking out.

Three full days of hell I would not wish upon my worst enemy.

So I say to anyone who has mental health issues stay away from this disgrace of a hospital because it’s not a hospital, it’s a prison, with wanna be prison guards who are nurses.

May god have mercy on all your souls. This is not over…. those nurses responsible will be stripped of their licences permanently. No union will be able to save them from their negligence.

For those who don’t know, Negligence is defined as doing something or failing to do something that a prudent, careful, and reasonable nurse would do or not do in the same situation. 2. It is the failure to meet accepted standards of nursing competence and nursing scope of practice.