Dr. Sam Goldstein is a complete hypocrite!!
My daughter was being treated and seen by one of the associate clinicians at this center. She was being treated for anxiety and other behavioral issues.
I brought her in for her regular appointment. We were a few minutes early and waited in the waiting room for our doctor to finish up her other appointment. My daughter began to act out and proceeded to throw a tantrum and attempted to run outside to avoid going to her appointment. My concern was that she would run outside and get hurt. Which is why I wanted to keep her confined to the office waiting room. I did my best to calm her to no avail. I should probably mention at this point...that THAT was the whole reason I sought out their assistance in the first place. The sole purpose for me being in that office that day. I'm not an expert in this field of study. I didn't go to school to study child psychology. They did! I was just a concerned parent who needed tools to better understand and help my child. I was trying to be proactive. I could have turned my nose up at the notion of mental health. But instead, my goal was to offer the best care for my child.
As she and I were waiting for our doctor, Dr. Goldstein happened to be escorting his patient from his office and getting ready to see his next patient. He happened to see my daughter (who was 5 at the time) acting out in defiance in the waiting room. Without a moments hesitation or any attempt to see what the matter was or whether our doctor could intervene...he immediately looked at me sternly down his glasses, pointed in the direction of the door, and with a wagging finger, told me, "You need to take her outside. NOW!"
I was completely humiliated and embarrassed! We left immediately and did not return. Dr. Goldstein treated me like some sort of an idigent parent. Like, how dare I not be in control of my child. The audacity! In that moment, as a professional, he had several choices to offer assistance. But ask us to step outside of the office in front of a room full of parents and children?? He neither fostered "strength, hope, or optimism" in me as he professes to do on his website. His behavior was unprofessional and showed a complete lack of empathy on his part. Nevermind the fact that I was there to seek their help and guidance with my child. My goodness, one of the moms in the waiting room offered me more assistance with my daughter while we were waiting than Dr. Goldstein ever did. That mom (thank you whoever you are?) looked at me with more kindness in her eyes than the Dr. Goldstein did. Almost like she understood and could sympathize with me. She even tried to talk to my child and offered comforting words to me while we waited. I should also mention...my daughter wasn't hurting herself or anyone else in the room that day. She was just crying and kept trying to run out the front door of the office.
Our doctor (I can't remember her name?) that we saw while my daughter was a patient there was good.
But in my humble opinion, if Dr. Goldstein can treat a patient in his office the way he treated us that day, while touting himself as one of the most distinguished leaders in his field. Hmmmm...well, the proof is in the pudding folks! read more