I wish I could give this place zero stars. The only redeeming part of our experience was the…read morecheck-in process--it was fast, and we were seen quickly.
We visited this past Saturday after my 13-month-old had a fall and couldn't put weight on his left foot. After an X-ray, we were told there was no break or fracture--just a possible sprain. The advice? Let him rest, give Tylenol for pain, and follow up with his pediatrician if he still wasn't bearing weight by Monday. We were relieved.
By Sunday morning, he seemed to be improving--no reaction when we touched or rotated his ankle, and he was beginning to stand, though still struggling to walk. Since we were told to wait until Monday, we didn't think much of it.
Then, at 4 PM on Sunday--more than 24 hours later--we got a call. Suddenly, there was a "possibility" of a slight fracture, and we were told to come back for a splint and a follow-up with an orthopedic doctor. This was infuriating. Based on their incorrect diagnosis the day before, we had unknowingly allowed our son to put weight on an injury, potentially making it worse.
Back at the facility, check-in was once again quick, and we were taken to a room within 15 minutes. That's where the good experience ended.
The P.A. who saw us, Robert Cooke, reviewed the scans, explained the fracture, and said they'd apply a splint. I asked what we should do about baths, knowing the splint needed to stay dry. His response? "Figure it out." Completely unprofessional and dismissive. I had to clarify if sponge baths were the best option.
Then came the nursing staff. Instead of treating the situation with the seriousness it deserved, they acted like they were witnessing some fun learning opportunity. One nurse actually exclaimed, "OMG, I've never seen a splint put on a baby before! I just had to come watch!" ...Excuse me? This is our injured infant, not a sideshow.
To make matters worse, the splint was applied incorrectly--it didn't set flat, so our son couldn't get around on it. By the next morning, it had completely fallen off. Thankfully, we were able to get into a competent walk-in orthopedic clinic in Box Hill. They were fantastic and immediately gave our son a proper hard cast up to his thigh. They also confirmed that, given his age, the splint should have been applied the same way--below the knee was bound to fail.
As if all this wasn't enough, before my son could even be treated, I was forced to pay a $109 bill from 2020--caused by their billing department's mistake. They repeatedly filed my insurance claims incorrectly, sending them to my secondary insurance first. I spent months fighting with them before they claimed it was resolved. Apparently not.
Bottom line: This place is careless, unprofessional, and unreliable. We will never return. And P.A. Robert Cooke seriously needs to work on his bedside manner.