B*U*Y*E*R * B*E*W*A*R*E!!!
I wanted to get lens replacement surgery and Eye Specialty Group was recommended by my optometrist. I must say that EVERY step of the journey was an exercise in frustration.
INITIAL CONSULTATION: I called to make an appointment. The receptionist forwarded me to a message machine, and I left a message. I heard nothing for three days, so I called again and left a second message. No word for three more days, so I called again and left a third message. On the tenth day, when the receptionist said she was going to forward my call yet again, I complained. She said she would call the department directly herself, and she connected me. They were very apologetic and friendly.
CONSULTATION APPOINTMENT: I went in for my consultation on a Wednesday, and they told me that someone would "contact me tomorrow to give me the cost and set up dates." Thursday and Friday came and went. I waited until the following Thursday and called in the morning. The receptionist transferred me and I left a message. I heard nothing on Thursday or Friday. On Monday morning I called an complained. Someone called me later that day. They were very apologetic and friendly. She gave me a quote, and told me she would personally drop off the forms at my house.
THE FORMS: A dozen pages were delivered to me that evening. My name was on ten of the forms. Four times it read "Michael," which is my name. Six times it read "David." I have no idea why. But red flags are starting to go up. Why should I trust a company that is so overworked and understaffed that they make such mistakes?
THE TESTS: They made an appointment for me to get my eyes measured. I showed up at 9:45, 15 minutes early. They promptly saw me at 10:05. The tests took about 10 minutes, and they told me to wait for someone who would schedule my surgery. I waited and waited and waited. At 12:00 noon, I went to the desk and asked if they'd forgotten about me because I'd been sitting there for 2 hours. The receptionist looked "put out," but she got up to check. She told me they were aware that I was waiting and they'd get to me. 15 minutes later they called me back. She calculated the cost, and I told her that someone else had already given me a quote (which was a couple hundred dollars more than the quote she just gave me). She then said she would schedule the surgery. I told her the other woman had scheduled it. She called the other woman and I was told that I didn't need to stick around, that I could have left after the tests (2 1/2 hours earlier!). The left hand doesn't talk to the right hand. I thought, "What if the nurse who took my measurements transposed two of the numbers? What if she wrote David's measurements instead of Michael's?"
THE DAY BEFORE THE SURGERY: I went to the bank to get cashiers checks for the surgery which had to be paid on the day of the operation. I made sure I had the right amounts, and I noticed a line that said "Anesthesia would bill me separately." I looked through the papers I'd signed, and nowhere did it say this was a separate charge. At 10:00 am I called the person who gave me the original quote, and I didn't hear from her until 4:00 that evening. She said anesthesia was an additional $600, on top of the $4300 per eye that she'd quoted me several times.
CANCELLED: Every step of the way was disorganized and filled with miscommunication and mistakes. If this is the support staff that leads up to my trusting a doctor to cut open my eye, then there is a problem with the system. And I am not going to trust such an organization to perform an important, life-changing surgery such as this. I cancelled the surgery, and I'm going to look for another place that will give me the peace of mind and patient care that ALL patients deserve. read more