I first saw Dr. Galatis a couple of years ago for a routine eye exam and was fine with the service. I was looking for an eye doctor and thought I found someone I could rely on for routine visits; however, my latest experience was horrible, and I will never return.
In mid-March this year, I saw Dr. Galatis for my annual check-up. The first thing I noticed was the office was extremely cluttered and dingy, even moreso than what I remembered when I went in 2019. I explained that I was looking for contacts that I could leave in overnight while sleeping (I am horrible when it comes to removing my contacts). She recommended a brand, but did not have any in stock and said it would take a "few days" to order the trial. Thinking I would have these contacts in hand soon, I did not leave the office with my prescription for my regular contacts or with a glasses prescription. I actually forgot about it, and looking back now, I am surprised that she did not automatically give it to me when I paid, regardless if I was going to use it or not.
A few days came and went. When I didn't hear anything within a couple of weeks, I called. Her voicemail was full. I called again a couple of days later and finally was able to leave a voicemail. I may have even left a second voicemail when no one returned my call. Finally a receptionist got back to me at the end of April, almost two months later! They gave me the option of leaving the contacts in the mailbox outside of the clinic or picking them up in person. I choose to pick them up in person, and boy, am I glad I did.
When I got there, it took awhile to get settled. Dr. Galatis was prepared to give me my regular contacts - not the trial contacts I anticipated. When I told her, she seemed confused for a minute. It took her awhile to find the trial size, and what should have take a couple of minutes to get settled took 10-15 minutes to figure out. She also made me schedule an appointment within two weeks because she wanted to evaluate how my eyes adjusted to the new contacts.
When I put them in at home, the contacts were the wrong size. They kept moving around in my eye and felt really uncomfortable. I chalked it up to the fact that they were new contacts (Dr. Galatis did mention to me in my appointment they are a little thicker), but when I checked the packaging, I noticed the sizing was not my usual. It was an 8.6 base curve. Typically I am an 8.4. Now, I'm not an optometrist, so I can't declare with certainty, but I would assume the base curve would not change among the same brand of contacts (I wear Acuvue Oasys and was looking to switch to Acuvue Night & Day). Waste of $10.
I called the office to explain my concern and as expected, no one answered. I tried again three days later, no answer. I ended up canceling my second appointment; there was no point to see her if I could not even get the contact in my eye. I finally got a call back the day after my second attempt, and the receptionist seemed to laugh on the phone when I explained I had already waited awhile just to get the trial size. When I explained to her that I anticipated I had the wrong size, she went to check if Dr. Galatis was available, but she wasn't. In order to avoid more waiting, I just told her I wanted my prescriptions for my regular contacts and glasses. I explained I was upset it was nearly two months later, and I was running out of contacts. I got an email same day with my prescription.
One thing I wanted to add is that I felt she was milking every opportunity to get me back into the office for an appointment so she could get paid. For example, I expressed interest in laser eye surgery, and she said I had to come back to her for a consult in six months to check to make sure my eyes were okay and if I was a candidate. Uh, doesn't the laser eye facility usually do that?
Never again. I get we are in the middle of a pandemic and certain businesses have staffing issues. But they need a more consistent receptionist and/or an office manager; there was absolutely horrible monitoring of phone lines and the office was extremely disorganized with stacks of papers all over the place. What should have been a two-day ordeal turned into a two-month pain. I am considering redoing my routine eye exam with another provider to consult about switching contacts. Do not go here if you are expecting swift and organized communication. read more
