That was scary... Following last week's screening, I was called in for another series that was much more detailed and extensive. This has happened to me in other cities with other imaging centers... it has to do with 3D mammograms and how they perceive tiny calcifications. According to cancer.org, "Getting called back after a screening mammogram is fairly common and doesn't mean you have breast cancer. In fact, fewer than 1 in 10 women called back for more tests are found to have cancer." I arrived 20 minutes early and walked into a crowded waiting room. Nevertheless, my documentation was immediately updated and I was only made to wait about 5-6 minutes before I was called in. I was handed a pre-warmed robe and allowed to change. After having read the disgruntled reviews by women who have had to wait nearly an hour, I checked the time and realized that my screening was underway several minutes AHEAD OF TIME. Waiting for a mammogram is not easy. I feel for any woman who has to wait, no matter what her circumstances are (especially because some are exponentially bad!). Waiting for the results of a mammogram - especially when you're there for a second screening - is emotionally draining. I only had to wait about ten minutes and thankfully, I was given the all clear. Such relief. My radiologist was so gentle, kind and thoughtful. So was the woman at the front desk who signed me in. Still, I'm thrilled that I won't be seeing any of them for another year. Whew! read more

ARA Women's Imaging Center - Central - Art Bra Austin 2017 - Radiologists Near Me - Austin, Texas

I am experiencing a horrible time trying to get a call back diagnostic mammogram. I received a letter from ARA Women's imaging reminding me to make this appointment and informing me how important it was. After my doctor sent over 2 referrals they still can't find the orders. The office staff is so incompetent and unhelpful. I still haven't been able to make this very important appointment. read more

I don't know if this review will help considering the other reviews and how badly this location has done in the past. The wait is always very LONG. The ladies in the front are not much help. There is always some major problem every time I come. I use this location because it has all the exams I need and I hope that they will get better in the future. I can say that the tech ladies in the back have always been delightful, empathic and make the visit less stressful. read more

ARA Women's Imaging Center - Central - Waiting Room - Radiologists Near Me - Austin, Texas

Long story short--very rude worker who made me feel like getting my money was more important than I was as a patient and human being. Will update review here with details soon. Update: lady in billing was very unhelpful when ARA incorrectly handled my billing. They put my account into collections and was ready to ruin my credit. I had to call the insurance company myself and the people there were thankfully more human. THEY had to call ARA to sort it out because ARA could not get it together. ARA did not want to help either. All ARA had to say was "sorry, you need to pay us. looks like it's already applied to your credit." Seriously, that lady had no compassion. I can't believe ARA hires people like that for a company that handles PATIENTS AND CANCER. Absolutely disgusting. Thank goodness for my insurance company for sorting everything out. read more

I called ahead of time to make sure we didn't need an appointment and to make sure they were open during lunch hours so we didn't have to wait for the crew to get back from lunch. I drove over an hour to get there, due to most locations being closed for observance of July 4th. I get there and I'm told " it would have been better if you made an appointment, and our techs are out to lunch and won't be back till 1 o'clock" ! Frustrated I get my son checked in for a foot xray, we went and got some food, sat in the parking lot, we are currently still in the lobby waiting. Point of this long review.... MAKE AN APPOINTMENT REGARDLESS OF WHAT THEY TELL YOU ON THE PHONE! I spoke to the girl on the phone at the location that I went to. She said " oh yeah.... sorry" WTF! read more

Wow, I've certainly had a completely different experience at this ARA location than some of my fellow reviewers. To make a long story short, I had to go for a diagnostic mammo after my yearly screening (which I've always done at the W. William Cannon location; a very nice facility). The staff here was wonderful; very kind and accommodating. I was called back exactly at the time my appt. was set, taken to a dressing room, given a very nice, soft spa-like waffle robe, then seated in the inner waiting area. Yes, there were other women in there. No, I did not care. It was comfortable, and I was only in there for a few minutes before being called in for my diagnostic. I didn't even have time for one game of cell phone solitaire. The tech explained exactly what the radiologist was looking for, and was it wasn't too uncomfortable (getting your breasts squeezed by a huge machine is never fun). I changed into my street clothes (they gave me a basket to carry my shirt, etc. around in), went back to the waiting area, and soon after, the radiologist called me in his office to discuss the results. He was very thorough and had a nice bedside manner whilst explaining that I would have to come back for a biopsy. Wah. Scary!!! I did, it wasn't fun, but the staff made me as comfortable as possible, and the doc explained every part of the process as it was happening. They called me twice to follow up and make sure I was doing ok, then 48 hours later called to give me my result, which was very good news. No worries. Time for champagne! I will continue to go to this location for my yearly mammy's, and really appreciate the excellent, compassionate care I was given here. read more

I can't believe how unprofessional the tech here is!!!! I'm in healthcare myself so I am reluctant to give her name ... her uniform is a mess and she is quite rude!!! This is my second experience with ARA in the Austin area and as long as I can chose, this will be my last!!! The front staff super nice but the tech needs some training read more

I had the best experience here. The techs and radiologists at ARA are really the best in Austin. This is a busy site but they do a good job of getting you in at your scheduled time. My appointment was at 1:00, that was my arrival time. There's no need to get there earlier than the time that they give you. If you get there at your scheduled time you'll have about 30 mins for paperwork and they should get you back right after that. The skill of the techs and radiologists is so important in imaging, and I wouldn't go anywhere other than ARA. read more

I've been to this imaging center several times because I've had issues with breast lumps (thankfully, always benign so far). I've given two stars because the facilities are nice and I feel like I've gotten good care/explanations about my screenings in the past. But appointments here seem to always be late to start and take forever even after you're seen. On my most recent visit, I had to have a mammogram for something that was too deep against my chest wall for the ultrasound to see. Being in my early 30s, I'm aware that regular mammograms aren't usually recommended for women my age except in certain circumstances (like mine), as unnecessary shots of radiation are to be avoided if possible. I was fine with getting one this time until the tech kept taking images and finding there was a shadow on the edge of the image, "and the doctor won't like it if she sees that." So I got not one set but THREE SETS of images done on one side. At the time I just wanted it over with, but I wish I'd told her to deal with what we got after two tries. That seems like a lot of extra rads because of user error! So, I'm feeling like I'm all mammogramed out until 40, but a new doctor recently recommended I get another mammogram this year to make sure there's no change in the mass I have. Adding to my reluctance to come here again, even though I work just down the street, is the fact that I've gotten no response on two separate appointment requests made in the past three weeks. This place blows...don't bother. read more

If your business model is to make patients wait over 45 minutes for a ten minute procedure, you're doing it wrong. I purposefully scheduled the second available time in the morning thinking it would be unlikely that they were already running behind. Nope. And the tech was so rough. I have never experienced pain before when getting a mammogram but she actually hurt me with all her grabbing and smashing. Luckily my insurance gives me the option of going elsewhere because I won't go back here. read more

I really want to love this place, but over the past 5 years every time I have left here I have been incredibly frustrated. So why do I continue to schedule my mammograms at this location? Because the techs and radiologists are wonderful, and because I have this romantic notion about how they cater to women and that there is a benefit to me having all of my records in one location. And each visit I reassure myself that my long, long wait was an exception, and not typical The spacious waiting area is inviting and comfortable and cheerfully decorated for various seasons/holidays. But the warmth of the decor rapidly begins to wear off with each quarter hour that passes beyond your scheduled appointment time. (My average wait has been 30 mins past my appt.) Then when you are finally escorted to the back, you get to put on a flimsy cape and wait longer in a small room with other women. (My experience has been that this is an additional 20-30 minutes.) If you also have an ultrasound scheduled after your mammogram, you will once again wait in a small room with other women in the back, in your flimsy little cape. (My wait times at this point have been between 30 and 50 minutes.) I have never gotten out of the Women's Imaging Center at the Jefferson location in less than 2.5 hours, and usually I am there just over 3 hours. It is unbelievable. Seriously, an assessment of their scheduling processes and procedures and software absolutely needs to be undertaken. This is not an emergency room - they know ahead of time which procedures each patient is having done months ahead of time - I cannot understand how they are unable to efficiently and effectively schedule their appointments. It really is unacceptable. The other illusion I have (that has been a huge source of frustration for me) is that they will automatically look at your previous films when determining changes, etc. That is not the case. My experience has been that you will start from the beginning and spend a lot of time speculating and guessing before someone will finally go pull your previous films. I really didn't want this to be a rant...the techs are always terrific, I appreciate their sincere empathy and consideration, and the concept is awesome, but that is not enough to overcome the scheduling mess and lack of continuity of care. It falls disappointingly short of even a mediocre experience, and I will not return. read more

I don't know who the ultrasound tech is that the other reviewers are complaining about, but the tech Bonnie, who helped me through my breast cancer scare was a godsend. She was kind and explained things well, and made me feel like I had a friend when I was going in for my biopsy and feeling pretty scared. The woman who performed my diagnostic mammogram was incredibly sweet too. I forgot her name, but she made sure I understood what was happening and asked a lot of questions to make sure I was okay. (It was my first mammogram and I probably looked terrified.) Other reviewers have complained about long wait times, and I did have to wait for a while at one of my appointments. But, I think that like pretty much every medical office, if you go early in the morning, you shouldn't have to wait as long. read more

Here for a second imaging, because they needed additional views that they did not get at my first appointment. So, now I have to pay for the co-insurance since this one isn't covered under preventive care. They run behind and then allow others to go in before their appointment. Very poor customer service. I suggest you choose a different radiology company. read more

I was surprised to see the poor reviews on here because my experience was excellent. I had to come here for a CT scan and this is where my Dr. referred me. Pretty standard stuff for a medical facility. You come in, check in, fill out forms, wait, meet nurse, etc. The clinic was running on time, which pleasantly surprised me. I got changed and was brought back right away. One note about the facility, I thought it was clean but I was most impressed with the new Siemens CT scan. Whenever I've had radiologic tests in the past, there's always a thought in the back of my mind that the exposure to the radiation with the older machines will do my body damage. This machine just seemed technologically advance and highly efficient. My nurses were super friendly and we chatted throughout the process. They were great and so was the rest of the staff. The test results were sent to my Dr. that afternoon. I thought it was prompt considering I've had to wait for results up to 72 hours in the past. The reason for 4 stars and not 5 is they do not validate parking, so there is a charge for that. If I need another CT scan, I'd come back here. read more

I haven't had an appointment with ARA in three years. Previously I had spoken to them several times to ensure that my costs had all be paid by either myself or insurance and I was told that everything had been fully paid. THREE YEARS LATER I have something from them in collections. No attempts have been made to contact me over the past couples years. This is a warning for others trying to use their services. Something is wrong with their billing department. read more

If i could give zero stars I would. I have been here once before and the place in san marcos is filled with the rudest people I have ever delt with in the medical field. Today I called the san marcos office because that is where my dr wanted me to go get an MRI. I called to schedule and the woman on the phone seemed like I was bothering her by asking to make an appointment. Then she had a fit about me not having my new medicare number and was very rude and condicending telling me how if i did not get it to her by the appointment I would not be able to get it done. The woman knew I was driving at the time and I told her I would call her with it latter and she insisted on telling me that 3 times speaking with me as if I was a child. Then 2 hours later after I decided not to schedule with ARA and go with a company that wants my buisness which an MRI is not cheap you would think they would want to make that money, I get a call from ARA and its not even a REAL PERSON its a automated machine. How hard is it to have a person call to schedule an appointment. I have never been robo called by a medical person trying to earm my business. Sure I have for reminders and such but never to schedule an appointment by someone who knows there are 20 other places I could go. Stay away from ARA go to someone who will treat you like a customer worth earning. read more

The one star comes with a condition. This past summer Dr. O'Connell was very kind, compassionate and professional when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Today, I went in for just an ultrasound ordered by the doctor. Dr. Martindale was the doctor there today. First she started with a long explanation of her negative opinion of how I had chosen to do some of my approach to cancer. I have used a combination of surgery and holistic. She was completely discounting the holistic approach and was telling that I should not have the ultrasound. Then she wasn't happy when I was insisting she just follow the request from the doctor. She finally said OK, then pulled the technician out of the room and said to only do a portion of it. After coming back into the room to say it was inconclusive (what a surprise coming from her perspective.) When I asked if she was refusing to do the other she said yes. She was only doing what was "best" for me. In my opinion, she was doing a power play and not was was "best" for me. even if it is only psychologically. MY recommendation is ONLY go to this clinic if you can see Dr. O'Connell. IF NOT, avoid it. read more

I called for an appointment and was made for 1:10 the same day but they asked me to get there by 1:00 pm. I arrived a few minutes after one. At 1:30 p.m the x ray technician walked in the front door obviously just returning from lunch. 10 minutes later she called my back to xray. It is simply outrageous the complete lack of respect that doctors and most medical personnel have for one's time. I had to take off work and I lost about $60 in earnings because of their gross incompetency. I wouldn't mind it if they were just running behind, but they should have none the tech was going to be taking lunch when they scheduled the appointment. Oh, well. It's going to get a whole lot worse when the government runs health care. read more

Terrible experience with ultrasound service. The radiologist is poorly trained and rude. She complained about not having my prior image and the work she had to do. Given prior reports and instructions, she was incapable locating the two mass in my right breast. After the ultrasound service, I asked her what does she think about the size of the mass. She refused to answer claiming that she doesn't even know whether the mass are the things she look for. Seriously?! Then, I tried to reach their managers to file a complaint but they just never responded. Please avoid this facility. There are much better service elsewhere. read more

Enough already. Been a patient here for 15 years but this is the last time. Remind me again why I get here at their request 15 minutes before my appointment so I can wait an additional 30 minutes after my appointment time to be seen. Gowns for mammograms are ill-fitting and don't cover. They move you from room to waiting room so you can sit in your revealing outfit with other uncomfortable people in poorly fitting gowns. It's an indignity we should not accept as women. read more

I read the reviews on here before I went - and was a little leery based on other people's comments. My own appointment was great though. They called me back on time (despite the flooding rains!) & the ladies who helped me were very nice & very skilled. read more

My wife scheduled appointment and has been waiting over a hour to have a test done. I find that they need to stick with what time they give out for scheduling. I wouldn't have my wife go back to this place ever again read more

ARA has so many wonderful things going for it that you seldom find in any business, much less in healthcare. The Radiologist are top notch in the country and techs are highly trained and skilled. They all follow a rigorous continuing education schedule. As a cancer survivor, where scanning is frequent I have grown to trust the Interventional Radiologist especially, Dr. Pan, Reifsnyder and Poley. As a former long term health care clinical technician in Imaging I am well aware of how fortunate I am to have my scans read by top notch Radiologists, and with the most updated equipment. read more

I recently had a scare with pain in my breast. The staff at the Central Imaging were excellent. They reassured me all the way. I had come from a traumatic experience at home and felt vulnerable. I appreciated the women taking care of women atmosphere. Thank you ladies for your professional and courteous attitude. I did feel like they were under staffed. Get those women some help! read more

See what my surgeon thinks at the end of this review! I'm a cancer patient. I was apprehensive about using this ARA facility due to the negative reviews. But because there were also positive reviews I chose to give them the benefit of the doubt. My appt. was @ 10am with arrival time of 9:45am. I was there by 9:30am. (I wasn't late.) It didn't take long, (about 5 min.), to fill out forms, pay my "co-pay", (which I'm now not sure if their "approval" by my ins. was true). At 10:15am I asked if they knew approximately when I might be seen. One of the receptionists checked and told me I was up next. By approximately 10:45am, about 10 people had gone before me, (not sure why I was told I would be next.) When I was finally called for my exam I asked the aide if I would get my results that day she said yes. I asked the same question of the technician who did the test. She also said yes. The procedure didn't take too long and I was then shown to an inner waiting room for a "doctor" to either give me results or pursue further testing. Long story short, about 15-20 women came and went in the inner waiting room I was in while I stayed waiting-about 45 minutes. The people involved with my exam saw me waiting many times as they were the same ones who brought the other patients to this area and never checked on the status of my test! Finally a technician who hadn't been part of my testing asked what I was waiting on. I told her. She left to check, came back and said I was free to go! She said that what happened to me was unacceptable and apologized to me, (the only one who did), and said she would report it to the manager. So for 45 min. to an hour I sat waiting and worrying about the results-which is extremely stressful considering I was there with a previous cancer diagnosis. Apparantly I could have left about 40+ min. earlier. When I got home I called ARA about this and told Sandra about what has occured. She agreed it was inexcusable and that I should express my concerns to the clinic manager Linetta. She didn't answer her phone so I left a message explaining my experience and requested she call me back. At this point in time I have yet to get a call back, and if she's like the rest of the staff I probably never will hear from her. Saw my Dr. 2 days later and after I told her about this she said that an increasing number of her patients had similar experiences and that she had decided to send her patients elsewhere. She had even previously called the ARA Central manager to discuss the ongoing issue and was basically ignored! Apparantly the clinic manager had no interest in working with my Dr. to improve things for cancer patients! Now I don't even feel confident about the Dr.s who 'read' my test! Hopefully anyone who reads this will go elsewhere...for their health! I've read elsewhere that people have been paid in the past to write good reviews....scary! read more

I normally don't rant but I have got to get this off my chest. Mammogram and ultrasound came back normal but I am a little upset with the ultrasound technician making me feel like I was wasting her time. So back story, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 33 and died when she was 38. My sister was diagnosed at 29 and is in remission. Due to this my doctor started ordering yearly mammograms when I was 33, I am 37 now had my first mammogram in 2012 everything was normal. I found a lump in 2013 that was just classified as dense breast tissue and my doctor just wanted to keep an eye on it. So after pumping breast milk for 6 months for my daughter last year the lump has shrunk. My doctor still ordered the ultrasound as a precaution along with the yearly mammogram. I go today and the ultrasound technician basically asking me what are we looking at the last time everything was normal and we said no follow up was needed. I explain about the lump found in 2013 and how my doctor has been watching it and get told "Why it is just a fat lobule like it was last time.." She acted like I was wasting her time and afterwards when she started talking at me again I had to tell her to stop because she was making me feel like I should not be there and the only reason I was was because my doctor ordered the test as a precaution. Now I am glad my results came back normal but next year I will not be going back to this location again because a woman should not be made to feel like crap about her doctor ordering a test as a precaution. read more

ARA has been doing my mammograms for 6 years. I went in on 8-25-14 for my routine mammogram. I received a letter saying that I needed additional images on my left breast. I scheduled this with ARA women's imaging center. Additional films were taken then they wanted to do an ultra sound. After that they wanted to schedule a needle biopsy. On 9-11-2014 I went in for needle biopsy. Right before they started I mentioned that I had previous surgery in the spot they were looking at. The doctor got pretty excited and said , "you have had previous surgery?" I said yes and then he asked the tech to see if this was in my chart. The tech said yes it was. The doctor then said, "Well this changes everything." I thought to myself, you didn't even bother to read my file before you came in? Let me now say that I suffer from anxiety and take medicine for this. I was so upset about the biopsy that I had an anxiety attack the morning of the biopsy. To continue the doctor started backing off and I had decided there is no way you are touching me if you can't even read a persons file! I left and called my doctor. I went to a breast surgeon. They pulled up my films fro ARA and I had also had an ultrasound back in 2012. They compared the two from 2012 and 2014 and said there was no change, it was scar tissue. Now ARA didn't even bother to read my ultrasound from 2012. I know the saying no harm no foul but there was harm to me and a foul. My anxiety condition is well documented with my cardiologist and primary care. I am going to have my lawyer look into this. This was completely a dropping of the ball on ARA's part. They need to slow down and look at people's files. I now feel I am in vey good hands with my breast surgeon. I will find another place to do my mammograms from now on. If I could give them a minus star, I would. read more

After looking at all the bad reviews here I really did not want to make my appointment here. But I wanted a 3d mammogram and options for 3d in Austin are limited, so I decided to try it. I don't see what everyone is complaining about. I went in for my 8:50am appointment, i got there 15 minutes early like they told me to. I was called back on time, they showed me a personal changing room, I was given the option to put on a gown or keep on my front zip gym warmer jacket. I had dressed in a gym top that was a zip front top (that fully unziped like a jacket) and yoga pants. They said I could leave that top on and just take it off during the mammogram if I wanted. I decided to do that and didn't change into a gown. I was showed into the mammogram room straight from the changing room. The tech was ready for me, she took all the images she needed. No, it was not the most comfortable thing I've done, but it was fine. It didn't hurt. There were a few images that she had to take twice and she did say "the radiologist won't like that." But I asked here what she meant by that and she said that you couldn't see as much of my breast on the image as they need to. They need to see everything to make sure you don't have any tumors hiding int there. So I gladly let her readjust me at a better angle and take more pictures. It's not user error, it's just my angle didn't allow them to capture the image they needed. I want to make sure I don't have any tumors hiding anywhere, so I wasn't upset. Then I was shown to a common waiting room, and I had to wait for about 10-15 minutes for an ultrasound that my doctor requested. I didn't mind the waiting room, there were other women in there but who cares? I just watched the tv they had in there and was fine. The ultrasound was fine. Then I saw the radiologist. Then I was done. It took about an hour from start to finish. Not bad for two procedures. Overall, mammograms suck. They suck a lot. But this place wasn't bad, actually it was good and I would go back. read more

Beware! Appt times are a one-way street. I was late (admittedly) - a misunderstanding with the scheduler. The receptionist also admitted they were also running late - well over an hour behind, but refused to slot me in where I would be because of a '15 minute late policy' that forces a reschedule. Already waited 3 weeks for this appt. Come to find out another women in the waiting room was scheduled for the same test at the same time - so they had no intention of seeing one of us at the scheduled time. One of the receptionists at least had the decency to 'ask someone' - manager had already left for the day - that someone didn't even bother to look in my direction sitting less than 5 feet away. No One wants to have medical tests done - even worse when treated poorly by such a lopsided policy. YOU can double book people and be as late as you like. WE can't be 15 minutes late for a service we then will pay for. read more