I do not usually leave reviews or share my thoughts on individual businesses. I worked in retail and restaurants for most of my 20's and am from the mindset that a poor experience is not necessarily reflective of the overall business, but likely specific to that day or that person. Unfortunately, I have now been proven wrong multiple times by Oakland Eye Care and for the health and convenience of every client and patient out there, I feel that I must warn everyone of this terribly run, inefficient, and borderline damaging practice.
My story, in short, is that in order to start a new prescription for an autoimmune disease I have, I needed to have some eye tests done. Because of this autoimmune disease, I have been in about a dozen different doctor's offices in the last two years and never has one been run so poorly as this one.
The day of my exam started out fine. Normal intake paperwork accompanied by a friendly greeting. After a very short time, I was met by a technician who brought me over for a few of the basic exams. I sat in the chair and put my chin in all of the miscellaneous machines as they beeped and lit up and everything went fine. The tech was friendly and I explained how I need certain tests for a new prescription medication and she understood. Then things got a little dicey.
The technician explained she was going to dilate my pupils. Something I've had done several times over my 20+ years wearing glasses. The thing that stuck out to me is that she specifically told me:
"We do things a little different here and we are going to give you two drops instead of one so they stay dilated longer."
I didn't think too much of it at the time. I didn't know what these tests were that I needed and I assumed that's just what they had to do. She then guided me down the hall to another smaller waiting room. This waiting room was about 10'x12' and had zero social distancing protocols put into place. That was a little frustrating, but I was masked and had my phone for distractions and entertainment, so it was fine. This is when the waiting began. I sat there for 30 minutes. They must be a little busy today. An hour. Wow, really busy. When I hit 90 minutes, my eyes straining from the lights and my phone screen combined with the dilation, I pulled a nurse/technician aside and asked how much longer it was going to be. She explained I had one person left in front of me and that the doctor likes to make sure he spends as much time with each patient as the patient requires. After the nurse/tech walked away, the other people in the waiting room chuckled a bit. They informed me that it is always like this. One lady said she had been coming here for years and it has always been like this. This was just the way it was run.
It was about this time I realized the most disturbing thing of all about this practice and this office. Two drops. They give you two drops to dilate your eyes longer. Not for any medical reason. Simply because they run their office so inefficiently, that they know you're going to be waiting for long enough that they need to give you two drops. Considering the discomfort and inconvenience that dilation provides, one could argue that this is almost directly in violation of the Hypocratic oath. In order to fit their standard of poor time management and maximized income over patient care, they have made the patient pay; with their time, their discomfort, and ultimately, their frustration.
I am writing this review 24 days since that exam. When I called to explain I had never received any call back or information from my tests, I was forwarded to a voicemail and told to leave a message.
Do not go here. This office is a dangerous place with more focus on squeezing as many patients in as possible and maximizing their income, than on actual patient care. Anyone involved in the decision making and planning of how this office is run should be wildly ashamed of themselves and not be allowed to make decisions on an executive level.
Final bullet points:
· Communication: To say there is an issue with communication, both between staff and with patients, would be a gross understatement. They are absolutely appalling.
· Patient Care: This may be the biggest issue and likely a violation of a number of oaths or laws or both. Two drops to dilate to make up for a poorly scheduled and run office is beyond unacceptable. Anyone involved in creating this practice should be fined, fired, and made to attend some form of program.
· Scheduling: It's okay to turn away new patients if you're too busy. If you are sacrificing patient care to bring in more income, you are in the wrong field. read more
