First, I'll say the surgery itself by Dr Lonstein, went well. They (Dr Office) seemed to have gone out of their way to get a surgery scheduled quickly. That's about all I've got to say in a positive note.
Now for the rest of the experience. Dr Lonstein has certainly been in the profession for a long time, it seems as though he is very knowledgeable. With that, he's not one to listen. In every appointment I've had, it was hard to get a word in at all, being cut off or being talked over whenever I had something to say.
The communication from his office/office staff is sub-par with not only me, but the hospital as well. I was kept overnight following my surgery, Dr Lonstein came in the following morning, 9-10am to check on me. After a very brief visit, he gave me the okay to be discharged. Fast forward to nearly 5pm, I get word from a nurse that they've still not received any discharge paperwork from the Dr Office. I'm then told that this isn't the first time his office has dropped the ball, but they were aware of 6-7 other patients of the office, who experienced the same.
My 10-day follow up was surprisingly brief; a couple x-rays, reviewed by the Dr, a brief back and forth about how recovery was going, then he was ready to cut me loose. I made mention of pain in my right pec/lat/shoulder, as well as pins/needles in my right arm/hand. His answer was basically, it could go away, but we'll see with time. I basically had to request physical therapy to see if we can get ahead/address my concerns.
Billing has also been a hassle. After having the surgery approved by insurance, I went to SMH for my pre-surgery Appt as instructed my the Dr Office. I use the term 'instructed' loosely. I was basically given a piece of paper by office staff with a date/time, to show up to the hospital and to follow up at the Dr Office immediately afterward . At the hospital, I go through all the necessary steps, one of which was paying my insurance deductible, among others.
Upon completion, I return to Dr Lonstein's office. Once there, I'm checked in. The Dr comes back, asked how my appointment went, I told him it went well and did everything on the their checklist; Covid screen, MRSA screen, labs, UA, etc. He very briefly listens to my heart, then says he'll see me in two days for the surgery. When leaving, one of staff at the front desk said I owed a $50 co-pay, I asked for what, she said for my visit. I asked if she meant the 5-min where he listened to my heart then let me leave?She ended up only charging me $5, only to get a call after leaving that she made a mistake and will get the remainder after surgery.
Fast forward nearly two weeks after the surgery, I get a call from a woman at the office stating there's an issue with my insurance. She states that I have a balance of ~$1000 because the hospital took my deductible payment. I informed her that no one at their office said who to pay, that they sent me to the hospital for everything I needed to do, pre-surgery. She tells me that I'll need to call the hospital to get payment refunded because they shouldn't have been paid that portion and that I should get on the phone soon, as it'll probably take multiple calls. I informed her, as a Veteran, I followed their instructions, though vague, to the letter. She then gets short with me, mumbling something under her breathe, then something to a co-worker as she's hanging up. I've now received a bill in the mail, coincidently enough, is almost identical to what was paid to the hospital prior to the surgery. When trying to contact the office during regular business hours, I'm forwarded to an answering service, who informs me they're having issues with their phones. So I guess I've got a fight on my hands with regard to being unjustly billed.
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