dr johnson replaced both knees and dr mease just replaced my left shoulder. all three procedures were perfect. zero pain on all. highly recommend this group. they care about you. read more

Horrible experience. Misdiagnosed the issue, was incredibly rude, displayed a clear lack of care for patient safety, was misinformed about medical practices in general, and so forth. Reprehensible display for a medical practice, and horrible behavior for any human being. read more

I've been going to them for a few years. Liked at first. But after my two sugeries i don't think they cared that I was still in pain. Just said to take some arthritis pills and call it a day. Meanwhile, I'm still in pain. read more

The ladies on the phone and in the office are very rude and unprofessiona! there is no transparency and they over schedule on purpose so expect long wait times. Very concerning office practices at this facility. BE AWARE before you make an appointment with them. I will not be coming back read more

The quality of work that the Dr. Smucker performed was not done properly needing another knee revision within one and a half years!! Very disappointing. read more

Saw a Dr. SanToro on Feb 13,2026. and again in March. If he had ordered an MRI like I requested my husband would be further along in treatment for metastatic prostate cancer that caused back, hip & leg pain. Thank you to PA Alex for taking care of that. The cancer didn't show up on xray only on the MRI. Santoro had preconceived ideas as to the cause of his pain & that set us back. read more

Extremely unprofessional receptionists who are miserable & curse behind patients backs. The doctor who intervened, Dr. G, laughed it off and then spoke poorly about me. I was not the problem. I called his office staff out on their defamatory remarks against us-his patients. It was a very hostile and uncomfortable situation for me. read more

A bit confusing with the overall location in Newark. Kinda felt like a shot factory when waiting in the lobby with a ton of people. Shot in the back reduced the lumbar pain but tore up my sciatica. NEVER felt that kind of pain in my life..All the way down my left leg, the shins - feeling like bone spurs - to my foot. EXCRUCIATING!!! Did not help that I NEVER conversated with my actual doctor who performed my procedure. read more

Extremely unprofessional front office staff. Not friendly and not helpful, actually it was almost like they were all on break and me signing in was a hassle for them. Had severe knee pain and sent for an MRI. While waiting for 3 weeks to get an MRI I called to ask a question regarding my knee and the Doctor never responded. Once I got the MRI I immediately called Delaware Orthopedic Specialists and got a quick appointment. Front end staff were great! Doctor was great, and I am scheduled to get arthroscopic surgery. So glad I found someone else. Will never go back to 1st State Ortho. Beware. read more

First State Orthopedic's has been vital in my health care. I see 2 orthopedic specialist, Dr. Brady and Dr. Sharpe. Both are amazing doctors in their skill set. They are both professional, friendly, has great, listening skills, gentle, and empathetic. I'm so glad to have them as my knee /hip & ankle/foot doctor. I know I'm in good hands.! The staff are friendly & professional. Office & bathroom are always clean. I recommend Dr. Brady & Dr. Sharpe highly for anyone in need of orthopedic knee/Hip or foot & ankle care. 20 stars in my book!!! read more

Another Corp owned business. They were having a good time.could hear tgem.laughing and what seemed like meeting friends. Naturally don't get actual doctor. Then she simply lightly presses on my wrist and makes her diagnosis based on that. If you expect a proper diagnosis and treatment, look for an established practice with experienced doctors. If your injuries are from an accident, good luck. It is hard to find doctors that are concerned about your treatment and not the corp read more

I had shoulder surgery 4 years ago in September 2020 by Dr.Jeremie Axe. I had a cortisone shot in February 2021, which did absolutely nothing. I also had 8 months of PT. I went back to him in June of 2021. I told him my concerns, I couldn't even put my shirt over my head w/out it hurting a-lot. The appointment lasted like 5 minutes, with Dr.Axe not even getting off his seat to look at my shoulder, do strengthening test, nothing!!!! He said I could get another cortisone shot or PT. That was it!!!! I left, went to my car & cried. How can he not care? So, went to another Doctor & he fixed it. He said it was a mess!!!! With my profession, I will have another surgery in September. New Doctor has been very compassionate to my needs. I will always talk about how Dr.Jeremie Axe messed my shoulder up, & never refer anyone to him!!!!! All he had to do was care!!!!!!!!!! read more

I was disappointed in my visit to 1st State Orthopedics. I saw George S. who I found to be cold and condescending. In giving a bit of my medical history, I mentioned that I had been treated for female cancer. For some reason he needed to know which type. Which had nothing to do with my hip. Secondly, I need a hip replacement, but wasn't even offered the opportunity to see a Doctor, because I am overweight. When filling in the medications I take on their info sheet, I informed George that I know the names of what I take, just not the doses, George quickly told me that, he doesn't know what doses I take and he wouldn't know what dose I took just by the name of the drug. It was pretty obvious he was not interested in my business. I couldn't leave that place fast enough. Now if your a young man, I'm sure you will have a better experience. read more

had a job related injury on my right shouleder after two phases of failed therapy i had shoulder sugery after the surgery went to therapy again i have nerve damage from my shoulder up the rigjt side of my neck down to my hand i have knubness at my wrist constant pain and limited range of motion did not have any of these problems prior the surgery i did two phases of therapy after the surgery failed forced back to work went back to see the surgeon and totally shuned me out i will be going to another doctor to hopefully help get better than this this surgery did not help at all taking pain meds and topicals i hope i can find an answer to help me better than this read more

I have to say, I was shocked at the poor bed side manner of at least two of the doctors I've seen in this practice. Their attitude and comments were appalling. Basically in no fewer or less exact words they basically told me I should be glad I'm alive from my cancer treatment and should learn how to live with and deal with my pain and immobility from the treatment. He literally said "but your alive" at least 4-5 times. Whether or not I was a functioning "live" person with severe pain made no difference to him. I would'nt suggest waisting a co-pay here. read more

not that great. got a cervical x-ray. barely got an explanation of what happened after car accident. MA gave me a poorly written note. people have an apple or microsoft issue, not a neurology issue. read more

Dr. Zaslavsky and Dr. Newell are the 2 best orthopaedics. Dr. Newell helps me manage my pain, without drugs. Dr. Zaslavsky did surgery on my back L4L5, then he did my neck c8 T1. They are very intelligent and compassionate. I consider them both part of my family as they take the best care of me ALWAYS. Their staff is always reliable and professional. They all are my heroes! read more

very unprofessional will never be back, 830am appointment it's 10am still wasn't seen, they claiming they don't know when i will be seen, and wasn't seen, oh you can reschedule 3 months from now! smh i will never be back to this place read more

Office staff is anything but patient (customer) focused. One review mentions a good culture. I have not seen that in the 4 office visits that I have had. Expect to be treated like you are a nuisance. I have had to contact the office by phone both prior to surgery and to change appointments. The last time I was in the holding pattern for 30 minutes. Every minute or so I was asked to leave a message so that a call center employee would call me back by the end of the day. What the Office Manager and Staff don't seem to understand is that I am the customer and contact should be at my convenience and not whenever THEY have time. Too busy? Hire more scheduling clerks. 2 different times I was called back and it was not a good time for me. I can't take notes while I am driving and can't always drop what I am doing to answer the phone. This seemed to annoy the call center clerk. My Doc is fine. He is a specialist with a good reputation. He's not good enough to cover for a bad business office though. There are also other specialists with equally good reputations in the area. I'll be shopping for another Doc with an office that is easier to work with when I have my next surgery. read more

I had an appointmet for 3/29. I have having severe pain and numbness in my leg I called to try to move my appointment up. I was given an appointment for today. I waited for almost 45 minutes to be told they weren't sure the doctor was coming in and I needed to reschudle. They rescheduled me for 4/5. I am so upset right now. read more

Unfortunately, a pretty bad experience with Dr Lingenfelter. Followed his every recommendation these past 6 months which included over $14,000 for 4 injections, an SI joint ablation, numerous x-rays, MRIs and 14 days off of work. To date, nothing seems to have relieved my pain and I'm back to square one. Lingenfelter is not worth the wait (often over 45 minutes for appointments), has wasted my time and now my money. Rating him low as he completely failed as a diagnostician, which I think is critical part to being a successful surgeon. Headed to another practice to start over. read more

Despite have a positive surgery experience I was very disappointed with the scheduling /billing office. It was refused service for my final post op appt when I refused to pay a copay. This appt was set by the staff for later date because my surgeon was out of town. This pushed me out of the "90 day window" for post-op follow up. This is another example of the commercial focus of our healthcare system. I advise everyone to confirm this window before you make post op appts unless you want to pay extra for cara read more

This place is a joke. After a 2 hour 15 minute wait 'past' my appointment time I saw a very efficient (not caring-just the facts) nurse. Then, when Dr Lingenfelter came in he was reading and dictating his findings from my MRI to that nurse. I then heard the words 'serious' and asked a question. - I got 1/2 an answer - then Dr. Lingenfelter received a cell phone call - it was lunch time - he took the call mid answer to my question - said he had to take that call and for me to get a CTScan and come back again. I guess the person on the phone was more important than the patient in front of him bent over and using a cane to get around. Oh, I have recently within 4 months had an MRI, CTscan, X-RAYS, EMG, and a bone density and Dexa scan plus bloodwork. Dr Lingenfelter almost ran out of that exam room and never did finish answering the only question I asked. Then, as I told both him and the nurse, I already had a CTScan 3 months ago. I actually showed them a phone picture I took of those printed results to that CTScan. The nurse could not find the CTScan results in my file. Myself and my PCP a week or so later could only figure out because my CT scan was under NM CTScan because it was an N M ctscan standing for nuclear medicine CTScan nuclear test she just did not look anywhere other than alphabetically no matter how many times I was trying to tell her I had that test 3 months ago. Plus she was just pushing me out of the place since the doctor left and just trying to get rid of me. I guess she needed lunch too. She kept going back to a CTScan I had on my lungs back in 2014 and like my ill tempered 4th grade NUN she kept telling me I had the tests confused. Like I, after 2 neck and 2 back surgeries and 4 other surgeries around my body she was saying I do not know the difference between a test on my lungs and my lower back. What a joke. No chance I go back to them. Tell me a doctor worth his weight who will take a phone call while in front of a patient and leave that patient who is in dire need of care. So a wasted 3 hours and my back is still killing me. Go somewhere else. read more

Horrible front desk service and call center. I had an appt at 11 am today. I 95 south was a complete mess shut down at 202 entrance had to back track and turn around and get on at another entrance and dead stop shut down on i95 south for 15 mins . they weren't letting anyone on i95 s. i called into the call center main number waited for them to answer after 20 mins they finally picked up but i was ok with that. i called to say i was going to be 15 mins late was that ok they put me on hold and then said yes thats fine. I couldn't find pavilion 1 in the hospital compound . i arrived at 11:17 at the front desk and they said i would have to reschedule. i explained the situation never saw the doctor which was recommended Tried to give me a late july appt. Just terrible customer service . I'm not going back not worth it read more

Awesome group of top Docs.Very professional and knowledgeable. I've been a patient for nearly 20 years for multiple issues and it has always been a positive outcome. read more

I m so frustrated today . My appointment time was 9:30 am they didn't call me till 9:52 am and when i ask to receptionist said that thry dint have room . If there is no room why they are scheduling appointments. read more

I had an appointment with Dr. Sowa for my right shoulder. I must say that his bedside manner has greatly improved. Now as for his medical assistant, I think her name is Sara but if not here is a description of her: she's short, wide and chunky. She has the worst personality ever, she's rude abrupt. As I was asking a question she was walking away as if she could care less. I know she has worked for First State for many years but I think she needs to retire. She is not people friendly at all. This was my worse visit at First State Orthopedics and I use to work for them. Dr Sowa is a great doctor but I will never recommend anyone else to him as long as she's a part of his team. Very disappointed and irritated. read more

I have been sitting here for 50 minutes with ABSOLUTE no regard for anyone's personal time. There were dead cockroaches in the bathroom. I still have pain with little relief. Find someone new. read more

First State Orthopaedics - Horrible! - Orthopedists Near Me - Newark, Delaware

Lackluster experience here that left me cold. Saw a doctor on first visit who spent only a couple of minutes with me and didn't go into any real discussion of my issue which is causing considerable pain and lack of mobility. He recommended a follow up appointment in a few weeks and when I went in for that I saw an associate who recommended a very different procedure than first doctor or my chiropractor had been speaking of. I relayed this experience to my chiropractor who'd recommended this practice and asked for them to explain the vast difference in opinions. To date nobody from this practice has contacted me to discuss how I essentially wasted months and received no treatment or relief. Patients may want to be wary of them. My insurance got billed for two visits and I got nothing but aggravation from them. My overall impression of this practice is that the patient is merely a cog in the works and no care or time is spent with them as they hurry to get to the next appointment so they can bill more. The receptionist has blue and pink hair. The office is in a rather run down area outside of Dover DE. I have since spoken to a few other people who have not had the best experience there and, like me, have decided to seek another opinion / practice. Others may have had a different experience with this practice but sadly I have nothing good to relate about them. read more

If you have a lot of free time on your hands, this is the place for you. Dr.s are consistently late and do not acknowledge you've been waiting an hour after your scheduled appointment. Very disappointing. read more

Unfortunately for me I have had to use their services several times in the past 4 years. My initial issue was a right shoulder problem. I was seen by Dr. Michael Axe and his initial impression was a rotator tear. After all the protocol required by insurance he was correct. I had the surgery to repair the tear. I followed his recovery plan and within a year was back to full speed. I went back again with pain in the opposite shoulder and saw Dr. Axe again. We did the required testing and it was determined to be a small tear, but not to the point he felt required surgery. I was impressed that he did not automatically want to schedule surgery. At the beginning of 2019 I had a bicep injury and went to see Dr. Jeremy Axe. I was familiar with him as he assisted with my previous rotator surgery and recovery. Quickly it was determined I had a torn bicep. Dr Jeremy Axe did the surgery and it was very successful. 7 months later I am on the road to full recovery. Most recently I had a bursa issue with my elbow. The doctors Axe were not available so I was seen by Dr. Pushkarewicz. He diagnosed the problem, drained the bursa, treated for infection and within a month I have full recovery. I can not say how pleased I am with all of my experiences at First Sate. I have been treated by 3 doctors and had great results. I am near 60 years old and very athletically active. No Dr has told me to stop doing anything I do. They all caution about risks and advise to be smart about training. I am very pleased with all aspects including the results of all treatments I have received read more

Dr. Michael Pushkarewicz saw me for my thumb. I had stiffness and pain so I came in to see what was wrong with it since it had been going on for a month. He took an X-ray which only showed the bone (I obviously did not have a break) and felt around for a minute. Then told me that he did not see anything wrong. The pain is still there and the stiffness and popping persists. He had no answer. So instead of ordering more tests, he sends me home. I paid him a copay and drove 20 minutes there and back to see him all to find out that I should just live with this recent problem. Something is obviously wrong and different than before but he did not care to find out what it is. It's very frustrating as a patient to be thrown aside when they can't figure out what's wrong. Guess I wasn't worth his time. That's ok though, he isn't worth mine anymore either. I won't be coming back to this practice, that's for sure. read more

Had a little bit of a wait this time but they were apologetic about it. Dr Axe is the bomb!

I've been patient for quite a few years with 3 doctors At First State. After my original doctor retired, I was pushed toward two others. Last few months my legs have been very painful, being scheduled for knee replacement. Due to civid, cancelled. Late 2021, pain had gotten so bad, i was sent to emergency room with recommendation to contact my orthopedic physician. I phoned the office to make appointment with Dr. Johnson. Staff took my information to "try and schedule me asap". I waited week, no call. Called three times in next two weeks. His secretary and scheduler apologize for message "getting lost", would call back. After two weeks of no response and excuses, I called to request my medical records. Two calls later, I spoke with their downstate facility handling records and gave my request. I asked could it be rushed so that I could make appointment elsewhere due to unresponsive communication. Her response to me "I really don't care". So it seems no one at that office cares, so I' made appointment with another office. read more

Dr. Axe is the man. He operated on my broken collarbone and had me back and ready to go really quick. He knows what he's doing and him and his whole staff are super friendly! read more

I came in for my first time 15 minutes early, got my paperwork done by the time my appointment was scheduled and they had me right back immediately. There was virtually no wait from the initial nurse to the doctor to the X-ray tech. I was out within about 20 minutes - a very efficient and refreshing doctors office visit. Thanks! read more

I have been a patient of a few doctors wirhin this practice. I have nothing but good to say about all of them. All of the staff I have dealt with are worth more then five stars. I have not once had to wait to be seen. I often arrive alot earlier then my appointment time and have never had to wait. Thank you goes out to all I have dealt with. read more

10 sites they have and was only offered an appointment in 2.5 weeks. In pain and they said they would call me back and "get me in." 4 days later still no call back and was seen and relieved of my pain by another group already. read more

Dr. Bodenstab, from First State Orthopedics is one of the best surgeons and doctors I know. He replaced my left hip and both of my knees since 2000. He's very dedicated and also a very caring physician. His staff is dedicated. I value his opinion highly. read more

In terms of Dr. Axe, he is an awesome doctor. He's truly a sweetheart and one thing that a lot of people may not like about him is that he's completely blunt. Personally, I'm paying for a service and I've had too many doctor's in my life sugarcoat certain circumstances. I rather go to a doctor like Dr. Axe who is straight to the point and will tell me his complete and honest opinion based off of his expertise. Sometimes there is a little bit of a wait time and other times there is not. Either way, however long you're in the waiting room it's worth it if you have an appointment with Dr. Axe. Now, moving on to his team- I am not a fan. From his administrative assistant to his medical assistant who assists him with each patient, they are both unprofessional in my opinion. To me an administrative assistant is a reflection of the entire company and I do believe this person could use some training in not being snippy. I've noticed the same phenomenon from his medical assistant as well - a lack of professionalism and a very snippy demeanor. I still recall being in the exam room and his medical assistant did not ask me how my day was or did not care to address me in a friendly manner what so ever . There's this thing call bedside manner and it's what keeps patients coming back. Other than these 2 concerns - I will continue coming back to Dr. Axe for him and only for him. read more