Don't waste your time like we did...
I generally don't write these types of reviews and thought long and hard before writing this one.
For anyone that is looking for competent, compassionate, attentive, pro-active care, don't waste your time going to the Infectious Diseases Associates at 729 Grove Ave Suite 4 Southampton PA 18966.
My Mom was sent there by her pulmonologist for diagnosis of a lung infection in the spring of 2022. Since she's a little up in age I decided to go with her and meet her doctor, Dr. Richard D. Tepper, and started worked on trying to determine what type of infection she had. During the initial visit we filled out all of the paper work requested and provided a list of additional contacts, like myself and other siblings, to be able to contact the doctor and discuss her diagnosis and treatment.
At first everything seemed fine as they ran some tests, took a biopsy and we where waiting for cultures to grow, which we were told could take months. While we waited for the results they would schedule an appointment and then cancel them without notice. Often time we would only find out they were canceled when my Mom called to confirm the upcoming appointment. They would try to blame her for being mistaken. After several canceled appoints and no feedback on the test results we spoke to her pulmonologist and he called the head of the practice, Dr. Donald K. Marcus, to see if he could discuss the case with Dr. Tepper and have him be more attentive. He assured him that he would speak to Dr Tepper, but I didn't see any change to be honest.
Before she was diagnosed my brother and I would call the office and call the doctor on the number they provided, or he would call us on our cell phone to discuss what was going on and when to expect the test results.
After four months of waiting we finally had a diagnosis, but then when it came time to come up with a treatment plan they dropped the ball again. When we started to discuss a treatment plan they only had one option that included a nurse coming to the house twice a day which was cost prohibitive. We later found out that the same treatment could have been arranged at an infusion center and may have been covered by her insurance. They never took any steps to see it was possible, or provide us with any direction to see for ourselves.
The last straw came when my mom called them to verify the appointment she had scheduled for Nov 1st. They told her that the appointment was canceled and the doctor was not going to be in the office. My Mom told them, "You guys really have your head up your asses over there." and was abruptly hung up on, more than likely by Donna, the person that answered the phone when you call.
I called the office myself and asked to speak to the office manager, Irene Rosenburg, about the problems my mom has had in the past with the appointments and the general care she was getting from the practice. I was assured she would call me, which never happened. I called the office again the following day and asked to speak to her again and they stated she was working from home and provided me with her number. I called and spoke to her and had her on speaker phone for my wife to listen in. You could hear in her voice she was not in the mood to listen to our concerns and was instead addressing us in a harsh tone while saying she was not upset. She hung up the call and when I called back she blocked my number. Obviously she didn't want to hear any of our concerns.
I called the office back to them to see if there was anyone else we could speak to about their office manager and our treatment while under their care and Donna started saying we didn't have the right HIPA paper work filled out for them to be able to talk to me about the problem she was having. Now remind you for months my brother and I have been calling the office and having the doctor call us or calling him back on his cell phone to discuss the case and now suddenly that we have a complaint about the care my Mom was getting "they don't have the right paperwork" seems very suspicious. I even tried to ask Donna where the link was on their site to get the paper she needed to fill out and she told my Mom and I stop calling the office.
Several days later they sent my Mom a certified letter stating the following:
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Our office is no longer able to provide care to you. Therefore, I request that you find another physician within thirty (30) days of the date of this letter. The practice will provide medical care for emergencies only for thirty (30) days.
A copy of your medical record will be provided to either you ( at your expense ) or sent to the physician of your choice with proper authorization.
Please contact your primary care physician or your health insurance company for assistance in selecting another physician.
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Please don't waste your time like we did, especially if you think your life, or the life of a loved one depends on it. read more