WWYD? Injured while at Disney?

[DWFan4Life]

I gotta agree, six months seems like a long time of letting this go and then all of a sudden bringing this up.

The issue could have already been fixed. It seems the only thing that would come out of this is some personal satisfaction on your part. Look at it from their viewpoint, 6 months later someone calls to raise a point about a fall. Outside looking in, this seems very strange to do at this point.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . in Jan 1998 my 14 month old toddler fell into the indoor fountain in the WL lobby . . . a janitor that was cleaning the restrooms gave my husband a towel and shook his head while muttering about the CMs and their "I didn't see a thing," policy . . .

. . . hmmm, I remember that incident !!!
. . . all CM's could have done is called EMS
. . . looking back, I don't remember anyone wanting medical help
. . . and, there was a manager present who limited CM actions

. . . asked two CMs if they had a first aid kit or ice or anything . . . told me they didn't have one.

. . . one needs to understand the WDW accident policy
. . . a CM may never say, "we are sorry", as that implies fault/guilt
. . . many locations do not have a first aid kit
. . . sometimes, all they have are a few bandaids in a box
. . . giving out medical or First Aid supplies has a liability to it
. . . CM's are told that it could even be called giving medical advice
. . . this could lead to lawsuits
. . . the best they could have done is called EMS

 

[Tigger-Lover]

Well I'm glad you're not thinking of suing, because you can't at this point. But why wait 6 weeks if all you want to do is to inform them of the CM problem or to inform them of the sidewalk problem?

If I fell and felt it was the sidewalk that caused me to fall, I wouldn't stop telling CM's until they actually put something there that others wouldn't fall into/onto that spot, especially toddlers/elderly. After 6 weeks and you think it is very unsafe to walk on, think about other people that can fall on that spot. Plus you have to put Disney on notice (inform about the problem) and THEN fall to truly have a real case.

Just sayin. Hope you go to the doctor pronto. Have no idea why you waited this long if you are still in pain. After a week, there's a real problem.

 

[Lynn5700]

Ok if you fall, trip, get sick, or whatever... just go to the first aid centers! That is what they are there for. If you're really that bad, and cat make it to the first aid center.. then it's called an emergency and I'm sure CMs will call 911 for you.

Carry little first aid kits you get for a dollar at Target for minor cuts or whatever.

OP you should have just said something right then and there if you felt neglected by a CM. Now it's a little too late. Sorry you got hurt though, I hope you can make it to a DR and get the help you need.

 

[puntagordabob]

I was at Epcot in January near Japan... saw a perfect photo op by shooting across the lagoon...too bad I was too busy looking through the camera and BAM my bone just below the kneww smashed into one of the jagged concrete benches they have in Japan.... Ouch....bump got to be the size of a pingpong ball.... it was my fault so I just dealt with it (and ended up leaving before Illuminations sadly) as best I could...it was bleeding a little too...in retrospect I suppose I should have asked for a bag of ice from one of the vendors, but to think Disney was at fault would never occur to me... accidents happen and well we all need to just be sure to get ourselves looked at by a doctor if need be and move on.

I hear of people of filing a lawsuit against Disney... I cannot imagine doing that (unless I lost a limb or something, lets be realistic) to someone (Disney) who brings me and my loved ones such Happiness...Not EVER.

In the OPs case where the CMs were not helpful, now that does warrant a letter or email....the CMs were out of line in my opinion.

 

[poohgirl6]

. . . hmmm, I remember that incident !!!
. . . all CM's could have done is called EMS
. . . looking back, I don't remember anyone wanting medical help
. . . and, there was a manager present who limited CM actions


. . . one needs to understand the WDW accident policy
. . . a CM may never say, "we are sorry", as that implies fault/guilt
. . . many locations do not have a first aid kit
. . . sometimes, all they have are a few bandaids in a box
. . . giving out medical or First Aid supplies has a liability to it
. . . CM's are told that it could even be called giving medical advice
. . . this could lead to lawsuits
. . . the best they could have done is called EMS

So you were there when my son fell into the WL fountain? What a bizarre small world we live in.

No, we did not request "medical help". That was not our intention, and if it had been, the complete lack of response to our request for a towel would probably have discouraged it anyway. The desk CMs refused to look up at meet my husband's eyes and just shook their heads No.

We weren't angry, blaming, causing a scene, etc . But the very pointed responsed (or lack thereof) by ALL the CMs present was shocking. I mean, a toddler falls down on his head into a fountain where there is running water, rocks (although they are fake and the water was not a real hot spring) and is laying facedown without moving until his mother jumps down into there also and no one even looks our way?
Seems cold and callous then....still seems cold and callous now after 11 years.

 

[newtodis]

I'm sorry - I really didn't mean to cause such a stir - really I didn't. Didn't think it would lead to such a debate. Thank you all for your opinions and to those who offered helpful advice - I appreciate that!

 

[poohgirl6]

I'm sorry - I really didn't mean to cause such a stir - really I didn't. Didn't think it would lead to such a debate. Thank you all for your opinions and to those who offered helpful advice - I appreciate that!

I did not mean to hijack your thread for my own personal conversation, either. (I was just so surprised to hear that someone remembered that crazy day in our life.) I really just wanted to let you know that I think the CM response you received was not unique and that you're not alone in feeling that some kindness and courtesy would've been appreciated in your situation.
Here's hoping that you're on the road to recovery soon and that you'll be able to return to WDW and enjoy it without incident next time!

 

[bdiddy]

I would go to the doctor but I would say you are out of luck as far as Disney is concerned since you didn't report it or go to the doctor right away. Like someone else mentioned you could have reinjured it.

On another note, my grandmother actually sued Disney in the early 80's and won. She was walking and a CM came from around a corner with some kind of cart and crashed right into her causing her to fall down and get hurt somehow. She actually left the park and went to the hospital. I was was pretty young then so I don't remember the exact details other then our family always joking about how "grandma sued Mickey Mouse".

 

[LilGMom]

So, do I contact Disney or just suck it up at this point? It's honestly affected how excited I am to stay at the Poly in Dec for sure - both the upkeep of the property and the conduct of the staff.

TIA for any helpful advice you could share.

Personally I would go to the doctor, not contact WDW about it (honestly, what can they do for something that happened on their property two months ago and wasn't completley addressed at the time), and start getting excited for the next vacation.

Yes, the CMs could have offered some more assistance or at least pointed you towards someone in the resort with a first aid kit but contacting WDW or the Poly this late after it happened is kinda not even worth the time (IMHO).

Hope you get to feeling better.

 

[WDSearcher]

I agree with the PP who said to let Disney know about the CMs, but to not go into specifics about the injury, blame, cause, how it feels now, etc. If you do, your letter will get routed to Legal and nothing will ever be done to correct the CM behavior. If that CM behavior is what you want to draw attention to, then you need to write. Because Disney won't know of the problem unless you tell them.

Never mind that it's six weeks later -- Disney understands that time gets away from people. It's not a "statute of limitations" kind of thing. But I would put it in the context of, "As I was sitting here thinking about my vacation, I remembered an incident that I wanted to mention..." and go from there. Stress that you feel the CMs needed more training in how to deal with the situation and leave it at that.

 

[KellyNY]

. .


. . . one needs to understand the WDW accident policy

I would like to understand it if I knew what is the policy

. . . many locations do not have a first aid kit

They should, it is a public place

. . . giving out medical or First Aid supplies has a liability to it

really? providing first aid kit is not the same as giving medical help.

 

[Lynn5700]

I'm sorry - I really didn't mean to cause such a stir - really I didn't. Didn't think it would lead to such a debate. Thank you all for your opinions and to those who offered helpful advice - I appreciate that!

I hope your foot feels better soon

 

[Mouseaholic!!!]

I am sending best wishes for fast healing.

I am recovering from an achilles tendon injury - take a long-long time.

Add my name to the "go to the doctor" list...that is what is most important.


For anyone hurt at a Disney Resort....my advice is to head up to Guest Services. In August of 2004 - while vacationing at the Grand Cali with a friend of mine, I finally realized I was horribly sick (pancreatitus - 2 weeks in the hospital!!).

At 3 am when I decided the pain outweighed my horrible health insurance, we headed to the lobby for help. They were WONDERFUL. They offered to find an on-call physician at 3 am, drive us to Celebration Health, arrange for my parmacy to be delivered, and left a wheelchair in our room in case I needed it. My friend had a car so he was the duty driver and off we went for the bad news.

They called the room more than once to check to see if we needed anything.

It was a terribly frightening time for me - but staff were all very helpful.


My advice for anyone who is injured at a Disney Resort.....go right up to guest services....they will make sure you are taken care of.

 

[luvsJack]

Personally, I think you should still contact Disney. Not to get any money or ask them to pay the bills or any of that; but to simply tell them what happened. Let them know up front you don't expect anything but that you think they should know that there was (or maybe still is) a dangerous spot in the sidewalk and that the CM's were not very responsive to your needs. They need to know these problems exist and need to be addressed.

Other than that, all you need to do is go see your dr.

To say that no one at Disney can respond to an injured guest is just ridiculous. No, they cannot say "I am sorry" or anything that may look like they are accepting blame; but they can certainly get you some ice or whatever you ask for (after all that is what customer service DOES, gets the guest what they request) and of course they should ask you if you need a dr. or ambulance or whatever.

 

[BelleWDW]

Personally, I think you should still contact Disney. .

I disagree.

If the incident had truly upset you, an email should have been written immediately after the trip. Just the fact that you won't go to the doctor seems that the injury is not that severe

I have only once written an email to a hotel-last winter.

Several things were broken in our room and then DH got very sick in the night from their upscale restaurant. we left at 5am to go home. In Manager's apology- I got my room bill taken off my credit card, and because we are frequent guests, received an additional one night stay, free of charge(and recieved wine and a goodie basket to boot!)

BUT-i wrote my email the next day

 

[luvsJack]

I disagree.

If the incident had truly upset you, an email should have been written immediately after the trip. Just the fact that you won't go to the doctor seems that the injury is not that severe[/COLOR]

I have only once written an email to a hotel-last winter.

Several things were broken in our room and then DH got very sick in the night from their upscale restaurant. we left at 5am to go home. In Manager's apology- I got my room bill taken off my credit card, and because we are frequent guests, received an additional one night stay, free of charge(and recieved wine and a goodie basket to boot!)

BUT-i wrote my email the next day

Why? If she is not asking for money for her pain and suffering or for her dr. bills, why not let them know? What in the world does the time lapse have to do with it? It seems to me that we cannot expect disney to take action with issues if we do not tell them about it. All she needs to do is say "I only wish to let you know of the situation" and proceed to tell them what happened and maybe how she thinks it should have been handled by the CM's.

 

[ShannonMB]

I am sending best wishes for fast healing.

I am recovering from an achilles tendon injury - take a long-long time.

Add my name to the "go to the doctor" list...that is what is most important.


For anyone hurt at a Disney Resort....my advice is to head up to Guest Services. In August of 2004 - while vacationing at the Grand Cali with a friend of mine, I finally realized I was horribly sick (pancreatitus - 2 weeks in the hospital!!).

At 3 am when I decided the pain outweighed my horrible health insurance, we headed to the lobby for help. They were WONDERFUL. They offered to find an on-call physician at 3 am, drive us to Celebration Health, arrange for my parmacy to be delivered, and left a wheelchair in our room in case I needed it. My friend had a car so he was the duty driver and off we went for the bad news.

They called the room more than once to check to see if we needed anything.

It was a terribly frightening time for me - but staff were all very helpful.


My advice for anyone who is injured at a Disney Resort.....go right up to guest services....they will make sure you are taken care of.

I'm so glad to hear how well you were treated. This is exactly what I would imagine those wonderful CMs doing. This thread is making me super-sad, though.

OP, you should write to Disney and get this off your chest. I would seriously have a bad taste in my mouth if I was treated this way, and you deserve someone to hear you out about it. CMs are usually so great when things go wrong, and at a time like yours is when you really NEED that smiling, helpful face. Not this... I'm sure Disney does train their CMs not to put themselves into a liability situation, but obviously some of them need a "refresher course" on the difference between assuming responsibility for an accident and just showing some common courtesy and compassion!!! It may do no good to let them know, but you'll probably feel better. Oh, and get to a doc about your foot.

 

[DizBelle]

My opinion - for what its worth. I think you need to email/write to Disney and explaine about the CM's not helping and their genuine lack of caring for a guest. I think Disney needs to make sure their CMs are trained on how to help guests and they shouldn't have left you standing there in pain when it was obvious you were hurt. However, I don't think you should be looking for any type of compensation, as accidents happen, etc. I also think you should go get it looked at to verify nothing is broken - sometimes those tiny hairline fractures can be quite painful!

As an FYI, I slipped on the wet bathroom floor in Epcot and tore my hamstring in 2006. I had to go for months of physical therapy. There wasn't anyone around in the rest room when I fell - so no one at Disney ever really knew (except my family who for the rest of the trip had to help me around). At the time, it never entered my mind to tell anyone, but now looking back, I should have warned the CMs about the slippery wet floor so that no one else got hurt.

I hope your foot gets better quickly!

Medical training for all CMs (up to official standard that would be required before they could actually render medical assistance) would be very expensive. Are you prepared for a room rate and ticket increase to cover it?

 

[ShannonMB]

Why? If she is not asking for money for her pain and suffering or for her dr. bills, why not let them know? What in the world does the time lapse have to do with it? It seems to me that we cannot expect disney to take action with issues if we do not tell them about it. All she needs to do is say "I only wish to let you know of the situation" and proceed to tell them what happened and maybe how she thinks it should have been handled by the CM's.

Right! And also regarding the time lapse, it's very obvious that the OP wasn't trying to get into a legal situation with Disney, otherwise she is the worst-prepared plaintiff in history. She just tried to shrug it off. Now it has set in that she is really just bothered by the way she was treated (rightfully so, IMO), and it is sorta souring how she even feels about going back to that resort (which I can see, also!). If I were the manager of the Poly, I would be very sad that a lovely, non-litigious person was feeling this way about my establishment because of the apathetic behavior from some of my staff. I would at least like to know about it so I could apologize.