I'll come out and say it - I am seriously afraid of "the doctor." Always have been, for as long as…read moreI can remember. Being needled, prodded, and possibly being told I have some serious health condition isn't my idea of a good time. So, for much of my adult life, I put off going. However, there comes a time when one has to start making at least a couple mild concessions in the direction of becoming an actual functioning adult who takes care of himself, and do some of the things "serious adults" do, such as going to a primary care doctor every once in a while for physicals/blood work.
Looking for a doctor in Miami isn't easy. There are approximately 10 million choices, but if you read reviews (and let's face it, as a long-time Yelp Elite, you *know* I'm going to do my online research), pretty much every office in town has some horror stories somewhere on the Internet that give one pause. It was tough going for a while. Then, I found Dr. Bango. One-half of the MyCare practice with her partner Dr. Kini, her office is well-located and easy to get to, and has an overwhelmingly glowing online reputation. In fact, the absolute worst thing I read a few times online about this office is that occasionally, the appointments are 15 minutes late. No big deal for me. Anyway, since I couldn't find a good reason to *not* book an appointment here, I sighed, took a deep breath, and booked the earliest appointment possible.
By the way, appointments here can be made using the Zocdoc app, which is kinda fun. It feels like booking a restaurant reservation on OpenTable. At least that's what I try to tell myself to make this feel a lot more cool and fun than it really is.
I arrived early to fill out forms, and it was about.....15 minutes before I was called in to be seen. While this is clearly a busy enough practice based on the number of other patients I saw coming and going, it's not a Grand Central Station-type busy meat-grinder of an office, which seems to be a common complaint I've seen against other South Florida healthcare providers. Appointments don't seem to be overbooked, which is nice.
This office also provides a spiffy online patient portal where you can make appointments, view your records and lab results, make prescription refill requests, and communicate with the doctor (non-urgent questions/requests only). It's simple, but well-done, and appeals to the tech-savvy. My only minor complaint here is that it seems to take a little longer than one would think for lab results to post, leaving me feeling like an anxious college student who just took an important final exam and constantly logs on to see if the professor graded it yet.
I don't weigh "service" all that heavily when considering how to rate a restaurant, as I consider the food itself to be far more important than whether or not I felt a server gave me a dirty look. However, if rating a doctor's office, "service" is pretty much all you have to go on, and I was very satisfied with the high level of friendly, professional service I received, from the receptionist, phlebotomist, physician's assistant, and the doctor herself. Can't ask for much more.