WARNING: Patient care is not a priority here. Over the last three years, my husband and I have witness this office treat patients like a burden rather than people in need of care. I am appalled by the rigid, unfriendly, and frankly counter-intuitive policies of this office. As a fellow health care professional, I have never seen anything like this: Refusal of Care for Acute Symptoms: In an alarming move for an ophthalmology practice, the doctor refused to treat me when I presented with acute symptoms requiring an exam. Instead of receiving medical attention, I was told to find a different doctor. Hostile Scheduling Policies: Their rescheduling policy is punitive. My husband attempted to move an appointment ONCE providing several days' notice. He was barred from rescheduling into an open slot and told he was "relegated" to a four-month waitlist before he could even call back to try again. Unprofessional Communication: When we sought clarification on these bizarre rules, we were met with hostility from the front desk and told to find care somewhere else. Our experience is not unique. This is how the Dr operates his practice. It truly feels as though this office actively looks for reasons not to treat patients. Between the unreasonable gatekeeping at the front desk and the doctor's refusal to address urgent needs, this practice is a liability to the community. Save yourself the stress and find a provider who actually values patient health and basic professional courtesy. read more

Edwin Chen staff gives contradictory information. Staff member working on Monday gives excellent customer service and information another one on Wednesday (Julie) seems very unexperienced with insurance knowledge or following their own protocols getting information. Julie would not transfer me to supervisor or anyone else but suggested I will find different provider. I'm assuming she is acting like this with Doctor Chen permission. It all came to trying to schedule appointment for September when I'm back in town for recurring "pink eye". She would not schedule appointment unless it is tomorrow otherwise I can call back in September. Then she hang up. read more

Dr. Chen absolutely knows what he's doing and to address some negative reviews, he is fast but only because he's experienced and knowledgeable! Would highly recommend! read more

Dr. Chen was very dismissive while I was explaining my discomfort in my left eye during the exame. He did the basic exame using the equipments and sent me off with a night eye ointment and eye drops for dry eyes. Two days later my eye was very red, burning and light sensitive. I couldn't open them. He was too busy to see me on that day. So I ended up at a different Ophtamogyst by referral who flipped my eyelid and found this "ingrown" skin build up similar to Styes. She was amazing, took the time to listen and investigate the cause. Did I tell you that a month later I received a bill of $224 from Dr. Chen' s office (San Diego Eye Group). Thanks for NOTHING! Very disappointed. read more

I've been looking for a great optometrist in San Diego for the past 4 years. I'd have to say, I never found one- but Dr. Chen is one hell of a ophthalmologist. He's tremendously knowledgeable and a physician! Very personable and caring. You can just tell when a doctor really cares about your well being. The office interior is very modern, more high tech equipment than I've seen in other optometrists. read more

Let's start with this: every medical office could take a lesson from Dr. Chen's! What a great experience. When a close friend told me she LOVED her family's eye doctor, I'll be honest thought the enthusiasm was a bit much. Now, having been there, I totally get it. The office is modern and clean and the staff is very friendly. Then, miracle of miracles, my appointment started right on time! (ahem, cc: EVERY OTHER DOCTOR IN SAN DIEGO!) Dr. Chen came in to see me right away, and was extremely generous with his time and insights. He thoughtfully answered the few questions I came with (bonus points for not telling me off when I hadn't had my eyes checked in 10 years), and made some good recommendations for how to keep my eyes healthy for the long term. Honestly, he spent more time with me than all the doctors I've seen in the past year, combined! Super smart but very approachable. Total win. read more

I have been a patient of Dr. Chen's for a little over two years now. He is extremely thorough and knowledgeable but also efficient and precise in his recommendations and attention to detail. He diagnosed me with dry eye which I didn't even realize I had and he was able to make me so much more comfortable both during the day and especially at night while sleeping. I recently underwent the "TearCare" treatment at his office and he and his staff could not have been more wonderful. I tend to be a nervous patient and they were all so wonderful and kind to me. It was a completely pain free procedure and Dr. Chen explained the process every step of the way. I have so much relief after going through the procedure and am so thankful to Dr. Chen. I would HIGHLY recommend Dr. Chen to anyone looking for a fantastic ophthalmologist. I am so thankful to have found him and his wonderful staff. read more

Dr. Chen and his staff were very friendly and personable. Even though I just had an annual eye exam, I can tell right away how much he cares about his patients because he would take the time out to thoroughly answer all of my questions/concerns and make sure I was comfortable. I bring my whole family here because I wouldn't trust anyone else! I would definitely recommend him! Any problems with billing just means their insurance didn't cover it. Eye exams aren't free--duh! read more

I would highly recommend Dr. Edwin Chen (Ocean Eye) as your go to for any eye issues or routine check ups! I have seen numerous Ophthalmologists in the area, and I can definitely say his level of care is top notch! He is very thorough with his examination and the way he explains things makes it very easy to understand. Under Dr. Chen's care my eye condition is back to normal without having to do anything drastic. His staff is also very professional, friendly, and good about giving appointment reminders. Another big plus is the office has tons of free parking, is very easy to find and central to any part of San Diego. read more

Dr Chen has a very pleasant and efficient office. He sees you at your scheduled time, is very knowledgeable and is clear with his diagnosis and treatment recommendations. I give him the highest recommendation possible. read more

I had been referred to Dr Edwin Chen for cornea issues related to my Keratoconus .... My cornea had torn and the result was water passing and staying in the eye, and swelling. Unfortunately the pain was a 8 on a ten scale (the eye is vulnerable to pain much more than other organs and parts of the body due to its much higher amount of nerves).....and I desired pain rx relief---I had been taking Otc Tylenol and ibuprofen - which did not cut it at all. When I asked him to help, he was not empathetic at all, and refused to prescribe anything --- all he could say was that "the pain from this condition does not "typically" need stronger medication...a very generic response and certainly not accurate at all for me. I was given an appropriate diagnosis and sent home with some prescription eye drops to dilate the eyes and gel to prevent infection and miro 128 salt eye drops. Dr Chen was very accommodating on fitting me in on a short notice. But the main concern I had was having to suffer the immense pain for 10 days+ - and this was while dealing with not being able to see out of the eye. It makes absolutely no sense why Dr Chen refused to do what my other Corneal specialist ultimately did 10 days later (see below) and to have me live with an unnecessary amount of pain during a hard time of not seeing is ridiculous. It has been 10 days now and I saw a much better and much more experienced Corneal specialist in La Jolla who could not believe Dr Chen did not prescribe pain meds, and said while they do not do it all the time ----they certainly do it when necessary and upon looking at my eye - easily understood the need to give them to me. Plus this much better Corneal specialist in La Jolla also noted Dr Chen prescribed miro128 salt eye drops while it should have been gel instead - which lasts longer and much more effective (a rookie mistake for young Dr Chen in my opinion). This Dr also was much more empathetic, listened and took his time to see me, plus knew much more about the condition and how to treat it and took time to explain it thoroughly. Dr. Chen is a poor communicator and was very rushed. When I asked questions, they were briefly answered in a condescending manor....as if I would not understand it. He ignored my pain and generically placed me in a category of others not taking into consideration that every patient is unique. I highly recommend not using him at all. He is young and inexperienced and poor "bed side manner". read more

My wife and I have been going to Dr. Edwin Chen for a couple of years now. He is great! Another doctor recommended my wife see him because my wife's underlying medical condition was affecting her eyes. The referring doctor felt Dr. Chen had the skills, and would take the time, to really treat and manage her condition. And, he has! He regularly examines her eyes and evaluates her treatment's effectiveness - and, thankfully, my wife's eyes have stayed healthy. So when I needed cataract surgery (both eyes), I switched doctors -- to Dr. Chen. He took the time to explain what was happening to my eyes, what to expect during surgery, the lens replacement options, possible complications and follow up care. He did the surgeries at Scripps Hospital -- first the left eye, then 6 months later the right eye. After each surgery, he saw me the next day, and the next week, and the week after that, to make sure the new lens was in place and my eyes were free of infection and complications. And now I can drive (day or night), watch TV and work without glasses! For small print, especially at night, I need over-the-counter readers, but I haven't seen this well since I was teenager ... 35 years ago. Dr. Chen is skilled, efficient and friendly but more than that, Dr. Chen has a medical practice. He is not selling sun glasses, or eye wear, or designer frames at the front desk like a lot of other eye doctors. He is simply focused on keeping my eyes healthy - which I am very grateful for now that I've had some real vision problems. Thanks Dr. Chen! read more

Dr. Chen, and his staff, are easily the BEST that medical care has to offer. The excellence started for me when I woke three days after an eye injury to hazy vision and terrible pain and discomfort. I knew that I was in trouble and needed to move my care from an Optometrist to an Ophthalmologist. My husband and I started calling various offices in the area...but only one took our call immediately, and upon hearing my symptoms, saw me right away! This was NOT because Dr. Chen is not busy. This is because his staff is trained to recognize an emergency, and mine was just that. Upon arrival, I was immediately brought into a dark room while I waited. This was to keep me comfortable as light was practically unbearable. I hardly waited more that two minutes...and each subsequent visit was just like this. No waiting...always as I was walking in...someone was walking out and vice versa. Again...this was not a sign of a staggering practice, but rather a sign of an impeccably run practice. Dr. Chen was unbelievably thorough, professional, patient, compassionate and concerned. I mean TRULY concerned. In fact...because I had to see him every day for over a week, I could actually see his concern lift as I got better! He became more relaxed and talkative...and I realized he was relaxing because i was healing! (thanks to him). All the while his staff is truly as remarkable. Equally as caring, warm, friendly, and VERY supportive of their doctor. They know how he likes his office run, and they take that very seriously. This office is immaculate, clean, and exactly the way you would want ANY doctors office, especially when your EYE is exposed with infection. Lastly, is an example of what I think says the most about Dr. Chen and his professionalism, expertise and quality of care. I was scheduled for an annual family vacation 5 days after I went to see him for my Corneal Infection. I asked him if I could go on my trip...and you know what he said? No. Plain and simple. Not because I would endanger my eye...but because he said "I know the state of your eye. I understand your infection and how your eye is healing. You have been under my care and I would be concerned at this time when your eye/vision is not stable having your care be moved to another doctor. Please remain here where I can monitor you daily and be sure we get you healed." Thank you Dr. Chen!!! Most doctors would be so busy trying to please the patient they may put them at risk. Your assertive care and definitive direction was both comforting and imperative in my quick healing. read more

Terrible experience with Edwin S Chen's office visit: Unprofessional - Edwin S Chen with cold face, unfriendly, very impatient, rush in and out the room, spent less 20 minutes with the patient, and charged over $800. Dishonest - the office told the patient and insurance different stories, so they got double paid from both the patient and insurance. Hard believe: Edwin S Chen has incredible customer reviews. Does he have two faces? Too good to be true ! read more

My wife has been a patient of Dr Chen for years now. He is always available for questions and emergencies. He really cares about his patients. His front desk people are friendly and competent. We have also never had any billing issues which is a rarity in San Diego medicine. read more

Dr. Edwin Chen saw me on a Saturday for emergency. He was very thorough and patient. After that visit, he called to check on improvement of my eye. The office is nice, high tech and with nicely decorated interior. It doesn't feel like a traditional medical office. A week after my emergency, I got a phone call from my two-year old son's preschool at 4:30pm that one of his eyes was swollen and he almost couldn't open his left eye. I called Dr. Chen right away and he told us to go in. He was there waiting for us past 5pm. It was my son's first eye exam. Dr. Chen took time to play with my son until my son let him examine his eyes without crying or fighting. He is very good ophthologist who is also good with kids! I am glad that I found Dr. Chen. We really appreciate Dr. Chen's help!! read more

Honestly, Dr. Chen and his staff are the best. He is highly professional, thorough, kind and excellent. He also has a dry sense of humor, which I love. His front staff are always lovely and enthusiastic. I drive an hour to see the guy and he's worth it. I even got my physician husband to change eye doctors, which wasn't an easy task. He was so impressed with Dr. Chen. Both of us highly recommend him. read more

Dr. Chen is a consummate professional. He is incredibly thorough, and absolutely takes all the time necessary to do a thorough history and physical examination of your eye, and any recent concerns, whether they seem to be eye related or not, as some times things that don't appear to be related can all go together. His staff is professional and polite, and works very hard for him. A sure sign of a good boss and a good person. I have been to this office at least 3 times over the last 3 years, and have recommended that my wife go as well. It is interesting to me that some of the other reviews on here are so negative, as I had absolutely none of these experiences. I would recommend Dr. Chen to any of my family, friends, and everyone else I come into contact with. You can't go wrong with a detailed, intense person who truly wants to help everyone who comes through the door. We all know that people who are displeased tend to express themselves much more than those who are happy. I am one of the others, a very pleased customer who will definitely be returning. read more

This was my 3rd and last visit to Dr. Chen's office. This doctor's bedside manner is atrocious. He storms into the exam room (mind you, I was the only patient in the entire office) and conducts the exam as if it were a relay race. His directions are so quick I almost make a mistake when ordered to look left, right, up and down. To top it off, when I asked for advice on managing difficulties I'm having with the treatment he said, "I'll let you figure that out yourself." I expect a doctor that is being paid for his time to have a little more time and patience. I was in the exam room with him about 4 minutes. If he doesn't care about or value his patients he should at least learn to pretend to. read more

Dr Chen is one of the most thorough, caring, and attentive physicians I have ever seen as a patient. His knowledge base is impressive as he spent quite alot of time explaining the problem my eye was having and was able to make a diagnosis that others had missed. I have also sought references on his surgical skills which I have been told to be exceptional. The issues with insurance and billing are simply a reflection of booking error or front desk staff mistakes. Do not let the other reviewer's comments deter you from getting a top notch examination and care by an exceptional doctor. And if you need a corneal transplant, go no further. Dr. Chen has written over 40 manuscripts on the topic and is considered THE expert on DSEK or partial corneal transplantation....that's an impressive resume!!!!! read more

Because of the 5 star ratings above, I and my family decided to visit Dr. Chen's office for our prescriptions three months ago, and my visit turned out to be extremely unpleasant (although I hesitate to say nightmare). With Dr. Chen's prescription, I purchased a pair of glass from LensCrafters. Because of the prescription, during the past two months, I have been going back and forth between Dr. Chen's office and LensCrafters, and I have revisited Dr. Chen's office three times (Dr. Chen made a minor adjustment on my prescription later on), but the glass never fit due to the visions blurring. Dr. Chen insisted that his prescription was correct and said that the problem could be due to the lenses themselves and the nature of progressive lenses, and of course Lenscrafters carefully examined their lens during my revisits. Finally I had to get a second prescription from another eye doctor. I don't judge which doctor is right and which is wrong, but the fact is the glass based on the prescription from the second doctor works very well for me now. The unreasonable and unacceptable truth is, Dr. Chen's office charged me for the three office visits, and these three office visits were solely due to the prescription! I had the experience of revisiting doctor regarding prescriptions before, and none have charged me a penny for the revisits over the past nearly two decades. Not only did I pay extra to Dr. Chen and have to pay the second doctor for another prescription, it took me THREE MONTHS to get a pair of glass because of the prescription issue. This is just incredible and ridiculous. I will never go back to see Dr. Chen, nor my friends, ever. read more

I have recently experienced 2 office visits with this ophthalmologist... he is a combination of medical expertise, knowledge with communication skills, and genuine concern for patient care along with a bedside manner - these attributes are tough combination to come by, and he is it. I highly recommend this physician to anyone in need! read more

COLD, UNSYMPATHETIC, ALL ABOUT MONEY. I was referred to this doctor by my primary care for migraines...until now, I still don't have answers. Dr. Chen speaks to you in a very demeaning fashion. In my last visit, the doctor didn't even say hello or how are you...and at the end, he didn't even explain how his findings related to my migraines or advise what follow up care is needed. What upsets me the most is that 2 months after my last appointment with them, I received a bill in the mail for a co-pay that they forgot to collect and was now "past due" with a late fee...now how is that my fault that they didn't tell me I had a co-pay at the time of service and now they want me to pay a late fee for them forgetting to collect on time...it feels like they are all about getting your money, and not so much taking care of your needs. read more

I have had eye issues for about 10 years now so I've seen a fair number of opthamologists. Without reservation, Dr. Chen is one of the best doctors I've seen! My experience at his office was a very pleasant one to say the least. His front desk staff was super friendly and nice. Dr. Chen was able to see me promptly after I filled out the paperwork. He was very meticulous with his exam and explained his findings thoroughly and in layman's terms. I appreciated that he took the time to address all my concerns. What a professional, caring, and knowledgeable doctor! I would definitely recommend Dr. Chen to anyone who is looking for an opthamologist in San Diego. read more

Dr. Chen is a great ophthalmologist. Very professional, thorough, and an all around nice guy with very friendly staff. I had a terrible cornea infection that I originally thought was pink-eye. When it didn't go away with basic antibiotics I was referred to him. I was pregnant at the time and worried about being on a bunch of meds, but the infection got really, really bad. He took wonderful care of me and monitored me very closely, always keeping in mind my concerns and answering all of my questions. He genuinely cared about my progress. Also, I rarely waited more than 5min to see him. read more

Dr. Chen is terrific! I have been his patient for more than five years. He has treated me successfully for glaucoma, cataracts (cataract surgery went perfectly) and blepharitis. Dr. Chen is clearly highly knowledgeable about current developments in ophthamology. He answers questions patiently and always asks if I have any questions. His staff is very friendly and helpful. I enthusiastically recommend Dr. Chen! read more

Dr. Chen and his staff are fantastic! New to this area, I needed an ophthalmologist for urgent eye care. I was seen right away and recieved excellent and kind care. Dr. Chen is very knowledgable and thorough. He is the perfect blend of professional and personable. His staff was also so friendly and helpful. I recommend Dr. Chen highly!!! read more

Fantastic staff, exceptional doctor! Wish he could be cloned for other specialties. SO much better than the Shiley Eye Center. Don't even think of going anywhere else! read more

Dr. Chen seems to be young and capable, but he has some learning to do in terms of treating people well so that they'll be return customers. I decided to give his office a try since I was due an occasional, thorough eye exam. It so happened that there was a temporary problem with one eye, so I figured I could get that looked at and get new glass and contact lens prescriptions - in one office visit. Well, during the FIRST visit, Dr. Chen did a very thorough exam and I was pretty impressed. At the end of the exam, he gave me a clean bill of health and said that the temporary problem was just that and needed time to clear-up, but it did cause swelling so that I would have to come back in a couple weeks after it cleared up before checking my prescription. After receiving the explanation of benefits for that first visit, and before the second visit, I called their office to make sure I knew what I would be charged if I went in again. The receptionist talked about the fee for the "refraction", which would probably be out-of-pocket; implying that it was the only cost to be concerned with. Long story short, I just received the insurance statement for that second visit and there are more charges on it than just the refraction item. I called their office to protest and was kindly told that they apologize for the miscommunication and that my concerns would be passed to the doctor. My response to that: don't worry, I won't be returning. read more

Old fashioned medicine! Dr. Chen is the kind of Dr. we all want and need. He is warm, friendly, thorough, and extremely knowledgeable. have a chronic problem that is not very common, and Dr. Chen was very well educated on what I had and needed. He explains everything in a clear and understandable way. He is a breath of fresh air in the medical community. From my first visit, I felt like I was a long standing patient. He and his staff knew who I was, again, like it used to be with a family Dr. Shannon and Amy, are equally as warm and caring as Dr. Chen and make you feel like you are truly a valued part of their practice. It is a pleasure to go to their office. In all my years wearing glasses, Dr. Chen is the only Dr. that understood the difficulty I had having a stigmatism in my prescription and made an adjustment that made wearing them effortless. I have nothing but the utmost confidence in Dr. Chen and am so thankful that I found him. His office is easy to find and very accessible to anyone in San Diego. read more