I have had numerous experiences visiting the CHC urgent care office in Arroyo Grande on Grand Ave. Admittedly, none of these visits were by choice - but I really didn't expect each visit to be worse than the last. I generally give people the benefit of the doubt, (more than the average person, actually) but Dr. Kramer and several staff members at this office are a shining example of why many people are angry, disheartened, and disappointed in the health care system in America. I really respect and appreciate the work that CHC attempts to do in my community. Indeed, my own children and myself have had to rely on the generous low-cost health care that CHC offers. However, more often than not, the experiences have left us feeling like second class citizens who, because of a financial disadvantage, are assumed not to deserve the time and compassionate care that should come from any practicing doctor.
In particular, Dr. Damian Kramer is rude, arrogant, and has a terrible bedside manner. His terse, insensitive comments are very off-putting (to say the least). He was rude to both myself and my five year old daughter on two separate occasions. He makes his patients feel as though they are a nuisance for being ill and bothering him to DO HIS JOB! I actually overheard him in the hallway speaking to the nurse practitioner about my daughter (with whom he spent all of five minutes examining) say with disdain when asked for a second time about the dosage of medicine to administer to my child: "Ugh, we're STILL on that case?!" RUDE RUDE RUDE.
The second encounter with Dr. Kramer left me feeling just as angry and badly treated as the first. I have private insurance now, for which I pay a lot of money. This added to my frustration, no doubt. but regardless of the insurance coverage we pay for out of pocket or not, I think we deserve to be treated with respect and given at least more than the standard "5 minute Kramer treatment." My daughter got strep throat on a day that her regular pediatrician is out of the office. Because of this, we were directed to urgent care. Dr. Kramer made us once again feel rushed and made no effort whatsoever to make my daughter (a child!) feel comfortable or at ease during the examination. In fact, he chided her for not responding to his satisfaction (apparently) to his first request to open her mouth wide enough that he could examine her throat. In my opinion, Dr. Kramer should not practice medicine. He is the kind of physician that gives the "clinic" setting a bad reputation. This CHC office, in particular, treats its patients like cattle, herding them hastily through a broken bureaucracy. The first bad experience I chalked up to "well, everyone has a bad day..." even the second and third experience I refused to believe were the norm! But this final experience with Dr. Kramer left me feeling like I simply cannot go without expressing my disappointment and anger. I will not be visiting this office EVER again, and if the emergent need arrises for me or my children to be forced to do so, I will INSIST that I see anyone but this rude, insensitive man. read more