I called CORE on a Monday morning. A loved one had taken a fall the night before & we did not want to go to an ER or Urgent care. We hoped CORE would be able to help and they did. The scheduler who answered the phone on 7/ 27 was wonderful and so very understanding & I can't thank her enough. My loved one got an appt that morning with Dr Hammel who gave us the diagnosis of a ruptured quad tendon. On Thursday of the same week the patient was able to see Dr Andrew Zogby the sports medicine orthopaed. He explained what the needed surgery entailed & recovery time. We were confident that all would go well. The patient received surgery the following week and is on the road to recovery. Thank you to all the staff at CORE and especially to the skilled surgeon Dr Zogby read more

Horrible lack of communication from office, PA and Dr Bremner. Requested and paid for PRP. PA did not write down appt. Showed up and Dr not there. Not told by Dr there would be considerable pain and discomfort afterwards and I was leaving on a trip 2 days later.Still have not received money back. Requested online and by phone my medical records and get a message I have my birthday wrong!! Try to set up an account to use portal and am told email already in use. Change pw to get into portal and am told link does not exist. Cannot relay the total frustration with every part of this practice!! read more

Dr Paul Sousa gifted me a new hip July 2024 1/2 hr surgery , sunset walked a mile in walker....2025 August ,pain in hip Dr Sousa said cement disintegrated! I was not informed that would happen! November 2025 Revision hip, unable to get out of bed alone for 3 days! told hospital Closed for Thanksgiving told me to leave! I didn't! December with cane, then again pain... xray showed crack femur, I did not fall!!!Cane use until March, unable to get out of tub, unable to get up off from floor playing with grandsons ... still sporadic pain. my accupunture Dr Bing kept my hips knees etc very happy for 20 years!!!A doctor must inform a 75 year womyn , who bikes 50 miles every Sunday that The Cement may Disintegrate!!!! Ild said no thanks!!! My joy in life is destroyed by a Revision hip Anne Cridler read more

I fractured my left arm in a recent fall. Monica, the Physician Assistant, was "first class" in every way. She was very competent and assured me that the healing was progressing nicely. She had a very pleasant way about her. Kudos to her style!!! Ivory and Hannah greeted me when I arrived for my appointment. They were very cordial and pleasant in scheduling my next appointment. read more

worst front office ever, impossible to make appointments, never call back, rude when you do get though. Now they sent my last bill to collections when I thought it was paid! evidently the online bill payment system rejected the payment after lo like it when thought. nice of them to contact me. The medical care? I'm still in pain that the doctors have asked... read more

This practice continues to go down hill. Past 15 years I've watched it crumble and they lean on their success in the past for their reputation. Have treated my daughter and myself for multiple injuries. Office staff and communication amongst the worst I have ever seen. No pride or care shown at the office can't get anyway to properly fax a darn thing and Christine Gonzales PA showed no desire to educate or guide my daughter or explain the injuries or MRI. When questions asked very cold and short. Owners of the practice need to work on her bedside manner. If I ran this office I would reset values expectations and listen to the patient who pays the bills. Do yourself a favor find a practice that shows pride and care and thoroughness with there patients. read more

Modern and efficiently ran medical office. Cool surfer and nautical themed art on the walls. Pleasant waiting rooms. I go often for my interpreting assignments and my only complaint is the difficulty to find parking. The rest of all great. read more

Stay Away! I received a treatment but was billed for a different treatment. I tried to reconcile by calling the office, speaking to the doctor, and parsing through the misunderstanding. They've outsourced their billing, refused to reconcile and continue to send me bills and threats to send my account to collections. I've paid the bill to move on with my life but would highly advise to never engage this practice. There are many better options in San Diego. I eventually received treatment from a different practice and am 100% healed AND not looking over my shoulder worrying about fraudulent billing. read more

Dr Chan, the hand specialist and his "team" dont even deserve 1 star. They were absolutly the worst doctors I've ever seen. This is how my hand ended up healing with Regional Complex Pain Syndrom. DONT GO HERE FOR A BROKEN WRIST! They are rotten to the "core"! read more

They never pick up the phone. Worst clinic, and staff are not enthusiastic to do their job. Don't come here.

Where do I start.. don't come here if you have an HMO. They stamp a 3" red HMO stamp on the top of your documents and you get treated like a peasant. The schedules are rude as heck. Nobody can find the referrals from my primary, I have to get my primary and core in a three way call to facilitate the two offices communicating. Oh... and billing, as many people have pointed out. Expect a late fee because they don't send you a bill! I have dealt with late fees three times from this place. After the first one I've tried to square up with them then and there and they won't allow it. I've called in a month after my appointment asking if there's anything due, as I haven't received a bill and they say I'm all good. Then out of nowhere 3 months later a bill shows up with a late penalty. I've been here for 3 injuries and it's the same shit every time. I will be requesting a referral elsewhere next time read more

I've gone to Core Orthopaedic Physical Therapy for many years, for different issues. Most recently I went for post-hip replacement rehab with Lori Tinkle. Lori is exceptional--highly skilled, supportive, and flexible. When I had difficulty with some exercises at first, she was excellent at adapting them to build a solid foundation for recovery. She effectively treated my surgical scar and helped me significantly improve my core strength, balance, and chronic back pain. The PT assistants and front office staff are personable, knowledgeable and helpful. Now that I have "graduated" I will truly miss working with this fantastic team. read more

I was seen by Dr. Hajnik and found him arrogant and literally dismissive, to my on-going history, of knee problems. I was referred to him by my insurance and had no choice. I asked if he'd like to see my MRI results that I had on my phone from 10 months prior and he dismissed that away and diagnosed my problem in 5 mins after moving my knee around and reviewing the xrays they had taken prior, which only showed the degeneration and arthritis in my knee, but not the current cause of the readon I was in there, which was for a new injury and flare up, which I never had before. He said he'd order me an injection (cortisone) and he basically was out of my room, in less than 5 mins, diagnosing my problem as just inflammed arthritis. No MRI ordered? My knee was swelling and sharp stabbing pain when I walked. Never ever had it felt like this. Anyway now, 8 days later, it has been swelled up like an orange, for 3 straight days! Something is not right. Ive had 2 total hip replacements , so Im pretty familiar with my joint issues. I am now trying to get a referral from my past Orthopedic surgeon, who had done the last surgery on this knee. (Its had 2 orthoscopics to date)He is fantastic and his name Dr. Philip Balikian. read more

I saw Dr. Justin Chan six years ago because my PCP recommended him. I had fallen while taking a walk and broken my left elbow and the middle joint of my right pinkie finger. Dr. Chan fitted me with an elbow brace and my elbow healed fine. He also gave me buddy bands that secured my pinkie to my ring finger so it would heal straight and flat. I used them exactly as he advised. He checked on my healing by taking X-rays of both my elbow and finger a couple of times during treatment. Unfortunately, despite the X-rays, my pinkie didn't heal properly and is now permanently bent to the point that I no longer can lie it flat on a surface. (I wondered at the time why he didn't fit me with a finger splint, but I assumed--wrongly--that he knew what he was doing.) I'm only giving him two stars because my elbow is fine, but no additional stars because my pinkie is now quite obviously misshapen. read more

Very bad experience. Prices are outrageous, 580 dollars for a 30 minute consultation with an PA and only 5 minutes with the surgeon. no call back, will not return messages. avoid Dr Zogby read more

Dr. Chan explained what was happening with the small cyst on my thumb joint and what he thought we should do going forward which was to take a wait and see approach. He explained the percentages of the chance of the cyst diminishing on its own and for me to come back in a couple of months. If it did not resolve on its own we would discuss a plan "B" option. I appreciated his conservative and "just the facts" approach. His Physician's assistant, Amanda, was lovely and helpful. The entire staff was helpful. Things went just like clockwork. No problems whatsoever. read more

Some of the reviews on here seem quite off from my experience. From the very first phone call with Tina everything was extremely pleasant, well explained, and very straightforward. I've been dealing with two months of pain and they were able to run my insurance and get me in literally the next day to see PA Kelsy. I initially found the place because the hip doctor there was an All-American fencer at Notre Dame and I like seeing doctors that were former athletes. But since that would take a few weeks to see him, I decided to take advantage of seeing Kelsy after Tina did a great job explaining she could get the ball rolling. So within 24 hours, I had an appointment, X rays, and a very thorough examination with a lot of explanations around what I could be dealing with and how to move forward. read more

Over the years I have seen Core for a broken toe, three knee surgeries, my hand, and a questionable hip, not to mention a hand-full of other injuries sustained by my family members. My surgeries have always been excellent and the result has been almost full recovery for every procedure. If I could rate Core on their medical staff alone I would, but that's only half of the equation. The desk staff is the other half, and unfortunately they're the ones you have to deal with most of the time. I can't get over how rude some of these people are while on the phone...I've paid you tens of thousands of dollars throughout the years, so I'd think I've earned at least a little bed-side manner...if you can call it that from the office staff? But rude phone etiquette, bad/incorrect information, lazy directions, and an overall lack of care for past patients has me really scratching my head. I KNOW they're making enough money at Core to pay for good people and/or provide them with adequate training. But that is certainly the last thing they're investing in. Bottom line- they have excellent doctors who will get you fixed, but go into this venture knowing that anything past that is going to be an uphill struggle. read more

I was very disappointed. My friend LOVES Dr Lauren. However, my experience was very bad with this office. Very difficult to do contact anyone, get basic things like an MRI scheduled. I literally was told by the Office Manager, when I was following up on something the office was supposed to have done and she told me to just keep calling as she laughed. Horrible experience! Do not recommend. read more

Trying to get medical records takes an act of Congress. They use a company called ShareCare out of Dallas, Texas. The process is extremely labor intensive. And when you go to pay your bill, they say that they take credit cards, but they don't have a portal for that. They ask you to download your invoice and send a check via USPSI spent over 1 hour trying to pay my $5.28 billThe doctors and staff are great, but this "after the sale service" really sucks read more

Appointment desk was very unprofessional as she would laugh at things I've mistakenly said. The attitude towards first time patient who was trying to make an appointment was very unpleasant and unprofessional. I would never want to recommend this place. If I could give ZERO star I would. read more

Today I had a meniscus surgery from dr hammel at core orthopedic He recommended surgery and physical therapy. Over just letting it heal because there was Cartilage damage I had a lateral meniscus and a medial meniscus tear I would recommend this 10 out of 10 Waited about an hour and a half to get in the surgery Which is normal. Please see him if you are having knee pain it was the best it could have been! read more

I have been going to Core for the last 10+ years. The PAs Surgeons and nurses are great! I had a total knee replacement done by Dr Hajnik and the experience was obvious painful but recovery was quick. I am seeing them now for the other knee which is experiencing hamstring pain. read more

I had the privilege of meeting Kelsey and Dr. Zogby. Kelsey was so kind and organized I felt safe with this group from the beginning. Dr Zogby was patient and really listened to me. I knew I was in good hands. David in X-ray was great. What a relief. read more

I had a bone spur on my foot.. it's been 8 months now and the pain is worse than it was before .. constant pain from nerve damages caused by the surgery .. my co-insurance for this procedure was around $3000 adding insult to injury .. had I a chance to have a do over I would have NEVER done this - nor would I recommend it to anyone .. I didn't know this was a possible outcome .. the dr told me that can happen after the fact because they do a small cut and use a camera .. he said if they cut you open that's less likely to happen - but they don't give you that option because of possibility of infection.. I'd rather potential infection vs crazy nerve pain that goes on all day every day.. and since they messed up they don't know what to do with you they want to pass you off to a pain management dr. The doctors contact- I can't remember her name exactly but I think it was Delaney - did not care at all - cold and unsympathetic.. so disappointed in Core. I used to recommend them to anyone who needed a recommendation - as I had amazing experiences with Dr Loren for both my shoulder surgeries.. sadly in good conscious I won't anymore :( read more

Update, I was also misdiagnosed by a PA like many a few others in these reviews. She was very kind, but immediately dismissed the idea of my patella being dislocated since "there wasn't enough evidence of that in the mri." Girl, I literally had to pop it back into place. I heard it when it clicked back in and immediately felt relief from some of the pain. Maybe she thought there was no evidence on the mri bc I did so much additional damage to the leg (including broken bones & a torn ligament) the images just looked like bruising and fluid without a lot of patterns... But either way what else is supposed to show when you dislocate your patella aside from bruising and excessive fluid? read more

45 minutes left waiting to see a PA and I had to leave without being seen. No apology. No explanation.

I was misdiagnosed by the PA regarding wrist fracture. she told me that my wrist wasn't broken, don't wear my brace/splint, resume normal hand/wrist activity. My wrist became excruciatingly painful so I wore brace. Wrist didn't improve. Saw actual hand doc yesterday and guess what? My wrist is actually broken. Done with PAs..they aren't MDs. read more

Many fine doctors there. Quality and caring. Good office staff. Recommended. The adjoining physical therapy is top notch!

I had knee replacement surgery, five years ago with Dr. Hajnik. He is extremely arrogant and insensitive, and self-righteous. Since the surgery I have been in constant pain in part, because he did not deviate from his "perfect" procedure, in consideration of the strength of my leg. As a result, there has been considerable muscle and nerve damage, which has not healed, and cannot be corrected. read more

After several bad experiences in this practice I can only describe it as medical purgatory, or a place where your hopes for help from the medical profession go to wither and die. The actual medical staff may be fine or even excellent but the office staff around them range from inept to indifferent. Most recent experience was for hip pain from a torn labrum. The first visit with Dr Hajnik was promising, he felt that some form of surgical intervention would help and wanted an MRI to better see what the problem was and to decide on the most effective intervention - so far fine, and then things went downhill fast. Getting authorization for the MRI took almost a MONTH. Ridiculous. And this is with daily calls to the authorization person that were NEVER returned. Finally spoke to a front desk person about that experience and to her credit she was concerned and got the authorization person to respond and we had the authorization the next day. Dr H read the MRI and said that an arthroscopic surgery was needed to fix the tear and gave a referral to two other doctors outside CORE. Again we enter medical backoffice purgatory - no action for almost two weeks. Daily calls to the referral person (a different person) again are not returned. Finally reach a front end person that gives us the names of the doctors so we can contact them ourselves - this after one of her front desk colleagues straight up refused to give that information a few days earlier. What a nightmare. The medical professionals might be top notch but the support staff around them are for the most part DREADFUL. I see that other reviewers have had similar experiences. STAY AWAY!!! read more

The physicians assistant was great. Spent a lot of time talking about options and starting physical therapy. We are coming up on almost our four week follow up. I have tried to contact their number for the authorizations without success. They say to give them two weeks. I got through to the physical therapy office and they have no record of authorization. What is the point of a follow up when there has been no treatment in between? read more

I waited in the office for nearly an hour before getting fed up and leaving, rescheduled for 2.5 weeks later. Their transition to Athena is awful. There were people waiting for over 2 hrs. I realized that physicians feel that their time is much more valuable than their patients, this is ridiculous. read more

I cannot say enough good things about this Place!!! Just FYI, They are at a new location now (543 Encinitas Blvd #105, Encinitas, CA 92024) which will help with a lot of the confusion/bad reviews. The old location was at the Scripps Hospital off of Santa Fe in Encinitas. it was confusing and frustrating to get ahold of because the phone number was attached to the hospital. Messages, appointments and billing would get lost in the mix. It had nothing to do with the competency of the therapists. I honestly got really lucky that someone I trusted referred me here as I may not have gone due to the negative reviews. Anyway, the reason I love this place... The therapists actually spend the entire hour with you and don't pawn you off to someone else after 15 minutes like a lot of other places do. The facility is clean and it feels welcoming due to all the therapists and receptions being so friendly. Pam Cloud is an extremely knowledgeable therapist and actually truly cares about getting you better. I cried the first time I met her because I finally felt seen and heard by someone. I have a chronic nerve issue stemming from right side of my neck all down my shoulder and into my hand. My quality of life has drastically changed as nerve pain is incredibly painful and almost unbearable at times. It was so sensitive I could barely be touched. Pam helped to calm it down and make life more bearable. She is experienced in cupping as well and helped to loosen up areas in my back that were contributing to the nerve pain. I have also seen her for other issues regarding pain in my lower back, my ankle and my foot. I played basketball in college and have continued to play sports and maintain a very active lifestyle. I started having chronic issues that forced me to start seeing a physical therapist as the things I was doing to get by no longer worked. I wish I would have gone into PT sooner and dealt with some of the aches and pains then as I think I may not have the issues Im having today if I did. I would highly recommend Core Orthopaedic Medical Center to any and all who are suffering from chronic pain or have had an injury or surgery. I see Pam, but I know all the therapist here are wonderful as well. I have witnessed them in action and everyone is kind, knowledgeable and treat their patients with respect. read more

This is my first experience with CORE Orthopedic and the whole experience has been outstanding. I had a mucus cyst removed from my thumb by the surgeon Dr. Chan. The whole process was extremely smooth and the care by Dr. Chan and his team was amazing. Everyone there was very friendly and I never waited longer than five minutes to be seen by anyone at every visit. The physical therapist and her assistant were very attentive and explained everything in detail as did everyone else along the way. I highly recommend this practice. read more

I recently visited Core Orthopedic Medical Center and was thoroughly impressed with the care I received! The staff was friendly, professional, and made me feel at ease. Dr. Hajnik was knowledgeable, took the time to explain my treatment options, and developed a personalized plan to get me back on my feet. I opted to go ahead and have a total hip replacement. Dr. Hajnik performed the surgery in a meticulously and flawless manner. After surgery I also opted to use Orthopedic medical centers physical therapy department. I found the staff there was also very professional and got me back on my feet in no time. Shout out to to my physical therapist, (Winston Purkiss) for his expert knowledge and care. I found both facilities were modern, clean, and comfortable. I highly recommend Core Orthopedic Medical Center to anyone seeking top-notch orthopedic care. 5 stars and grateful for their expertise! read more

My mom had an appt and the scheduling person was very patient and nice to my mom and she speak Spanish

This center is great, I saw Dr Hajnik and he was excellent, saw him for a hip replacement and now I'm able to back to doing what I love ! The staff is really nice and attentive, very professional they make the checking in process and checking out process really smooth and efficient, from the receptionists to the doctors. read more

This is for the physical therapy I received for a Vestibular problem I had as a result of getting vertigo. In three months, Lori and her support staff took me from a place of not being able to walk a straight line or falling over when I turned to where I am back to normal. Their challenging yet measured approach was provided in a kind, caring, and loving manner. I recommend them for anyone who finds themselves in similar circumstances. read more

The reason it's not a five star is because of the parking as it took some time to find a spot. Overall the experience was good with quality customer service followed with face paced work. A nice friendly experience! read more