I changed this arthritis clinics because I went to a new clinic that puts the patient first . I have been going there for years, but it turned into a business 1st patience, second read more

After going here 3 1/2 months I'm beyond happy with the Dr. I'm seeing and all of the staff upfront. They are amazing people who actually care. After previously going to another rheumatologist for 5 years and feeling unheard, they were very understanding and quick to get me in for a first visit. About a month ago I had some serious symptoms from switching medication, I called the office because it wasn't serious enough to go to the hospital as it is under the realm of my general condition and something I have previously dealt with. The women up front were very concerned for me, and got me in to see my Dr. that day. I am thankful for this office. I feel like I'm coming closer to an actual diagnosis, and not being unheard any longer. read more

So far, Dr. D has been one of the better providers out of the 195, [yes, really, and not all are in AZ, compliments of Tele-Med!] I have seen for my horrible condition that has disabled me completely. Will update review as actions are hopefully taken. read more

I understand the medical profession is a business however Sun Valley came across as being more interested in making money than treating patients. Throughout my experience, there was more then one instance where the provider they ordered a diagnostic test from and the provider wasn't in network then I was on my own to find an alternative without any assistance. The final straw however was when I questioned a charge and Sun Valley went out of their way to be anything but transparent about that charge. I'm sure it's not cost efficient to deal with any coverage outside Medicare. Now if you decide to be treated by Sun Valley please be sure to bring a little cash because if you get thirsty you'll be charged a dollar for a bottled water. The process of getting my medical records only reassured my decision to find treatment elsewhere. read more

Sun Valley Arthritis Center works very well for me. I'm surprised at the negative reviews--not my experience whatever over the past year since I arrived in the Phoenix area. Office staff are consistently friendly, human, and engaged from front desk throughout. Particularly outstanding is Dr. DeLea. She is my idea of an excellent doctor, always straightforward and calm, even when she gives me "bad news" and what I must take in and concentrate on. I do not have a good past set of experiences with doctors through my 86 years, many of whom take my questions as hostility and respond accordingly. Not so with Dr. Delea. She is knowledgeable, thorough, calm, and friendly. She is also a buoyant, lively person with much concern for me as her patient. I would give her 10 stars if I could. read more

Sun Valley Arthritis Center - Rheumatologists Near Me - Peoria, Arizona

Dr Schechtman sees me and is thorough. She told me she would give me a cortisone shot WHEN I WAS READY, as I was not ready to ace the needle. Today I had my first today and a week from today will have in other hip. I don't know what I was waiting for, DID NOT FEEL the needle. Thank you Dr Schechtman! read more

In my opinion, this is a horrible practice. The doctor does not keep accurate records and claimed to have urine test results when none was taken. The office manager is nasty if you have Marketplace insurance. Avoid if possible. I haven't been back since January 2020 because they fired me as a patient. All due to that nasty office manager who got me so upset I was crying because she said they were going to have to reschedule me since I didn't bring proof that I made my monthly payment to BC/BS. I was trying to bring it up on my cellphone but the connection out there was slow. I asked how much an office visit was and when she told me I said "I can pay the f'ing thing!" Yes, I said the "f-word." Avoid if possible! read more

The care here across all boards never ceases to amaze me. Not only do I feel like Dr. DeLea is so incredibly thorough but everyone else who works here like Loretta and Paul with infusions and Misty are so familiar with my situation and provide the utmost care. No matter what news I get and what the tests say, I don't feel worried because I know my treatment plan will be stellar because my doctor and this office is so wonderful. They make these times so much easier to navigate and go through. I came from Banner where I had the worst experience and the care here is such a 180°. I am so incredibly grateful for this office. Highly recommend. read more

I love this office! The front desk staff is friendly. I have had my fair share of negative experiences with incompetent doctors that are prescribe happy and Dr. Delea is NOT one of them. She's personable, and always takes the time she needs with me. I initially had wanted to see the other doctor in the office and was a little disappointed she wasn't accepting new patients but i was so happy be under Dr. Delea's care. She is the best! read more

Difficult to get hold of MED ASST or NP. No voice mail to be able to leave a message.

Seems the only persons in the office that know what they are doing. Are Dr Joy Schectman & Loretta .. The staff seems to be in total confusion, the office manager is rude. Phones don't work right.. Left several messages to Dr Joys asstistant, never get a call back.. today 11/11 & I literally called every day last week. Today I finally called and dialed 0 for operator and spoke to someone, that had to go find someone to help me, she couldn't put me on hold... because their phones hang up on you.. I get reminders for appointments 2 weeks before appointment or none at all read more

Gorgeous lovely office, TV when I was there was tuned to "Germs" (frankly, better than the horrible network TV programs most offices have on) carpeting, doors, walls - everything had a clean, comfortable aspect to it. Extra plush padded wing chairs with tapestry design, dark wood furnishings and so on. Just being in the office comforts one :) The intake persons were quiet and discreet, one's paperwork is taken very quickly, it felt like seconds between sitting down in the waiting area and having one's name called. In and out! yet it wasn't rushed either. Labs, exam and everything was less than an hour, I notice more medical offices are like this now (really efficient). The staff persons leave no questions unasked, and the MD is leaving no test un-taken, that could possibly lead to diagnosis. I would have liked to have taken photos but I felt doing so would make the staff nervous. I could have asked to take a photo of certain un-peopled areas, but the whole time I was there was too short to "dawdle". read more

I have always had difficulties with this office but then today my disappointment hit the boiling point! My specialty pharmacy sent my MS medication to this office by mistake (don't get me started on that) and by the time I got home to call them to see if I could pick it up, it was 10 mins before closing. I realize it's Christmas Eve but I explained I cannot be with my MS medication and I would be there in 15-20 mins. They wouldn't stay. I haven't been there in 3 months and was not expecting any meds to be delivered there so you would think they would have called me to question it or something in the first place. I'm just really disappointed that they don't care about the health of their patients. One should never miss a dose of any prescribed medication but I have been instructed to NEVER miss a dose of my MS meds. Thanks to Sun Valley not wanting to wait 10 minutes I will. read more

My PCP sent over a referral so I could be seen and my dermatologist also sent over her notes. I called and after being on hold for quite so time, the appointment scheduler stated that they are not taking new patients. I told her that the website states you are accepting new patients. I told her do you know how inconvenient and time consuming this is. I have to contact my Pcp and request another referral to see someone else and also contact my dermatologist and have them send my notes to another office. Definitely disappointed and annoyed that it is going to take longer now to get care. read more

Sun Valley Arthritis Center - Rheumatologists Near Me - Peoria, Arizona

Called twice, got hung up on twice before being able to even talk to someone. Moving on to some other place.

I have pretty much the exact sentiments as the review above (Jennifer M.), mostly with the last 2 paragraphs. However, I've only been seeing Dr. Schectman for 6 months and I've already switched providers. My insurance changed and they don't accept it anymore but, I found that out after I complained to an office manager for about 15 minutes. I'm in the beginning stages of psoriatic arthritis. There really isn't anything that can be done besides prescribing me meds. Either way, I never for a second felt Dr. Schectman remembered me or cared about anything I said. She literally talks into a recorder the entire time, looking right at you, referring to you directly as "the patient" or "he" or "him". She isn't very pleasant at all. Always in a hurry. Way more important things to do. Zero bedside manner. I get she has a lot of patients. I'm a drop in the bucket. But it isn't hard to act like your patients matter. The office staff is ok, unless you need something from them. I needed approval to get a vaccine so I could enroll in classes, very time sensitive. It took 2.5 weeks to get someone to find out they couldn't do anything for me. They said they made calls and checked things out but they didn't. The funny part about all that is they have a staff member/nurse that serves as "the muscle". She'll call you and demand paperwork or information immediately, then tell you how mad Dr. Schectman gets when she doesn't have everything she wants/needs before your appointment. Kind of ridiculous. I'm sure she's great at what she does. If you wanna get in there, get talked at, get meds and go, she's great. If you're looking for a more personal experience with your, probably lifelong condition if you're seeing her, there are many other great docs in the valley. read more

Ex employees are forced to sign a gag order and are afraid to comment. Horrid to employees. The goofy Dr. Runs from room to room to see patients and doesn't learn names. They force people to work overtime too. However, it's either unpaid or straight time because they say so. There have been accusations of fraudulent billing practices, altho I can't attest to that. The management folk literally walk the building just to make sure you're working and not-God forbid-saying hello to a fellow employee. They hate hate hate that. The Dr. /owners husband works there and he's very nice. She , however, is not. Patient or employee...I don't recommend . read more

I am so not the person to tear companies up on Yelp, but I'm glad to be the first person to leave a review for this practice and to tell you how disgusted I am. I've been seeing Dr Schechtman for about 3 years. It has been a mediocre experience, but if you have rheumatoid arthritis like I do, good doctors are hard to come by in the valley. So for years I've driven 40 minutes for appointments. I called to make an appointment and was told I had to arrive 40 minutes early because I have new insurance. I do, and immediately see a sign that asks to arrive 15 minutes early if you have new insurance, and they ask me to fill out all new forms. That seemed odd, but attributed it to having new insurance. Then, the lady at the desk says I need to talk to Karen about my insurance. Karen walks over and immediately launches into how they don't take any insurance from the marketplace and that I'm considered self pay. At this point, I let her know that we are now on an $850/mo insurance plan and that I was not planning on spending $90 today, could they please bill me? She says oh, you'll need to talk to Julie, but I already know she's going to tell you they can't bill you because you're self pay. Great. So I say sure, I'll talk to Julie. Julie comes out and has the sour, defensive demeanor of a woman who is accustomed to fighting with patients. The first thing she says to me, with hands in the air is, I'll tell you what's going to happen, if you don't pay $90 today, we can bill you, but it will be for $125. So you will charge me an another $35 to pay this in a couple days? She says yes, because they have to pay their billing company to bill me. I call BS. Even though I've been a patient for 3 years? Now is when they realize I'm a long time patient. Doesn't change anything for them though. At this point I have 2 choices, be billed at the higher rate or walk out and take my chances that I'll get into another specialist who will see me before my current prescriptions run out. I can't take it anymore, I tell her to please let Dr Schechtman know how disappointed I am that they can't accommodate me and that I'll be finding another dr. This place is a patient mill, turning patients out all day as fast as they can. Never once have I gotten the feeling that the Dr remembered who I was. Every visit started with "howdy partner!" and finished with her speed reading chart notes into a tape recorder. Good luck getting a timely call back or anyone there having the knowledge or authority to do anything outside the box for you. But they will complain to you about how Dr Schechtman bought Coach bags for some of the office staff one Christmas, but not for them. Patients are not the priority in this office. Good riddence. read more

I have been a patient for over 5 years now. Do they see a lot of patients? Yep. Do I get to see Joy (Dr. Schechtman) very often? Nope. Despite that, she is in charge of my care and reviews the results regularly. The diagnosis of my arthritis was difficult; even Mayo Clinic failed to identify the type of arthritis I have despite having been bound to a wheelchair for nearly two years. She found the right treatment for me, and when a new drug was available that worked even better, she switched me, with great results. I don't feel that Joy has the world's best bedside manner. I think Joy is better at research and diagnostics. She is very well respected by other doctors in her field. She actually DID call me at home once; something I don't think she does often. But you know what? I get it. I'd rather have a good outcome than a smiley face. Besides, their current PA is really wonderful. I love her. As far as the stuff that Jennifer M said... honestly, I've had a very good result with their billing department. I don't know what that was about, but, I can tell you that insurance companies constantly fight with all doctors and rheumatologists have an even harder time because insurance companies would rather treat the symptoms of the disease with cheap pain meds than prevent the cause and allow patients a better life. Pain meds steal lives, in my humble opinion. As a result, I have been able to return to the workforce and live a normal life rather than living on welfare, disability, or other subsidies. read more

Dr. Schectman is a great Doctor. Its to bad her office is run very poorly. No way to get an appointment or a return phone call. If that's the case what good are you doing the patient? They don't answer their phones and when you leave a message it never gets returned. I'm very disappointed and may have to change to another Doctor. read more

My first visit to Valley Arthritis Care. A friend of mine recommended this place. On first arrival, things were fast, friendly, and efficient. There were tons of patients waiting to be seen and things were moving very quickly. It was like a fine tuned Swiss watch. They held to my appointment time which was awesome!!!! That's very very rare for a doctor's office of this size to keep true to your appointment time. I was most happy "until" I was lead back to the room "(A)" aka "Dash-eLut Desert, Iran." This room would make Satan himself sweat from the heat. It was unholy stagnant heat trapped like an oven! What made it all worth it was the PA Iain Black. Mr. Black was charming, dapper and quick witted. He sets himself apart from other healthcare providers by his gentle demeanor, vast knowledge, and the true ability to listen to me. That was the one thing that made my experience at Valley Arthritis 100% worth it. I've been to doctors that barely look up and make eye contact with you. They give you 5 mins max no matter what and they are out of there. You could be bleeding from your ears and eyes and they are like, okay times up, please schedule a follow-up appointment in 4 months. That's a sad state of affairs, but you will not get this with PA Iain Black. Suffering in the 6th circle of hell was worth it. I'm glad I got lucky to have him take care of me. I felt so sorry for Mr. Black as he was doing his very best in the Dash-eLut Desert. I will definitely recommend PA Iain Black as a provider. But I can't recommend that heat! That's a HUGE patient dis-satisfier!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Whoever is in charge of the AC should have to work in that room for one business day to feel what the patients are experiencing. 5/5 stars for the provider Iain Black 4/5 stars for the process of getting seen on time. -000/5 stars for that Sedona Sweat Lodge room (A) they placed me in. read more

Sun Valley Arthritis Center - Valley Arthritis Care - Rheumatologists Near Me - Peoria, Arizona

I'm not sure if this dr is good or not. I have been trying for weeks to get my mother an appt. message after message after message and have only heard back one time. Left 2 messages to be told she needs a referral. Left 3 messages so far to see if the referral made it yet. Good luck with this dr office if you can get it. Horrible phone system to have to leave a message every time. Can't imagine how hard it is to find out results or make a follow up appt. do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. read more

I wasn't able to get an appointment after making several calls to this office for over two and a half months. I talked to two different staff members who said they would call me back but it never happened. I finally gave up and asked my GYN for a new referral and was able to get an appointment within 3 weeks with another rheumatology office. Very unprofessional! Thank goodness there are other options! read more

I was a patient there for 10 years. But in the last two years it is not the s as me. I have always liked going to see my rheumatologist Dr Schectman she was always a good doctor. But the staff turn over is getting crazy a they all do not know what's going on. I have went there on my two last appointments and have gotten treated very badly and telling me I owe money everytime I go in. To make a long story short on my last appointment that I went with my husband they said I owed $25.00 ,from 8 months ago its frickin crazy so they said they would not see me unless I paid my outstanding balance of $25.00. I thought to myself "wow" just for that you won't see me after going here 10years. So I never went b back again. read more

Called on Monday to at least make an new patient appointment left a message finally able to reach someone Friday. She made a phone appointment for the the following Monday at 930 am. I return to my office look at my phone around 430 and notice two messages to confirm appointment by text. I called and answering service is now available. I immediately sign up for the online portal and the appointment changed to 1130. I can't download any forms to complete their not loaded. I show up at 1030 on Monday sit in my car walk in a hour early and was told my appointment was at 930. I show her the portal and the phone tech states they put 1030 on portal so I need to be there at 930. I hour earlier. What kind of dumb crap is that. Then this black girl comes out and states that I can not even reschedule she will call to see when another appointment is available. No way. I'm out. All these idiots sitting at that front desk and not one could check a schedule. If I ever had anyone to call my health plan and ask for me to recommend an office I would tell them to choose the county hospital before I recommend Sun Valley arthritis center on Thunderbird. read more

I had a referral to see the doctor. I waited for a year until they started taking new people. They where suppose to call me. I NEVER GOT A CALL!!! I call them to make an appointment and they lost my referral. When I asked why I never received a call the manager asked me if I was going to continue to beat a dead horse or wait another 3 months for an appointment. I told her if she was doing her job as a manager how did this happen? I also asked if other people got called back and she said, probably not. She told me to go to another doctor's office and hung up. I don't appreciate how rude the office manager was. read more

This is was one of the worst places I have ever been to for medical care...and a specialist at that! The appt was for my mother who has severe arthritis. We spent more time waiting then then with anyone in the office. We had to wait a month to get in and they had to have her medical records before we could even make an appt. We were told the appt was going to be 3 hours and we were lucky if we got 30 mins total. The doctor spent less then 10 mins with us and knew nothing about my mothers condition...yet the appt was her initial visit. I had to ask for a refill on her arthritis meds as the doctor was leaving the room b/c the doctor didn't address anything. I am being honest when I tell you we spent more time waiting then we did with the medical assistant, NP or the doctor. They billed $400 for a visit that was supposed to be 3 hours yet we were lucky if we got 30 mins with all three people. Of all the meds my mother takes, the NP asked about a pain med that my mother took 3 years ago for her knee surgery but no longer takes. I am a nurse and I can tell you honestly this was one the worst physicians I have met in years. I spend more time with my patients when they are admitted then this doctor and staff spent with us! I would never recommend this place to anyone!! read more

My review is for the office staff. I never got as far as seeing the doctor. I made an appointment and waited quite a few weeks in severe hand pain with bone deformity. I received a voicemail on 14 Feb that my appointment on 17 Feb was cancelled by Katherine because I did not return my health records to her. I called her to question what is happening and she plainly, simply with no compassion in her voice said you didn't provide your records and I called you and you did not respond and your appointment is cancelled. At that point, I tried to explain that this was my first appointment and I didn't have records besides bloodwork. Didn't matter. If this is office policy I prefer not to go there but would have appreciated more notice to schedule with another arthritis doctor. Long story short...Katherine and I spoke a few more times that day because AFTER our first phone call I received a confirm your appointment email or pay the copay of $40.00. What a joke. I tried to call her back twice and left a voicemail and an email.....no response. Finally got someone on the phone to confirm my appointment had been cancelled. Confused and angry to say the least. read more

I have been seeing Dr Schechtman for over 25 years for treatment of my fibermalgia, ostio, and various tendon and muscle problems. She, in my opinion, is the best and most knowledgeable Dr. I have ever visited and I have been to plenty. Many of them recommended by her to address problems with my current state of health which is not so good. My wife, who has had R.A. for 42 years, was seeing a different Dr. for 20 years and liked him a lot. However his treatment plan for her did nothing to help her condition and she was getting worse by the day. I finally convinced her to see someone else. I mentioned her situation to Dr. Schechtman and she told me to get her in to her and I did. Following extensive bloodwork and xrays she prescribed a totally different treatment plan. After only a few weeks on the new plan her improvement with pain , suffering , and mobility was amazing. Her quality of life improved 200 percent. It breaks my that couldn't get her to move sooner. The other revues I read make no sense to me at all. The bottom line is the only thing that matters is "results", period. read more

Do not go here! I went there simply to get my knee checked out but on the first appointment, they said I had to have a bunch of tests done (blood work,18-Xrays of my chest and back and MRI's of my back and knee) all before actually seeing the doctor. I went there for 3 months and never got my results from any of the tests! It seems as if they were just running up a tab on me as I have not returned there for 2 months now and the bills are still coming in. I had to prepay for the shots in my knee from a mail order pharmacy and still received a bill from Dr. Schectman for medication I already paid for. They sent my blood work to some laboratory out of state and out of my network and the lab started billing me as well although I have excellent insurance with BCBS. And let's not talk about her staff, they are very rude and unprofessional. I was in the waiting room, waiting to be called in and her receptionist (I don't recall her name) yelled out to me in front of the other patients in the waiting room, that I owed a balance and if I wanted to pay now. I walked over to her and explained that I had already mailed my payment in and the other receptionist says " I bet he didn't send his payment in". HOW RUDE!!! When I came back on my next visit, she called out to me in the waiting room again saying I had a balance and did I want to pay it. This time, I brought in my cancelled check and showed it to her and she shut up. The check had actually cleared 2 weeks before my last visit. I could go on with the horror stories that I experienced here but I want to warn others "DO NOT GO TO SUN VALLEY ARTHRITIS CENTER W/ JOY SCHECTMAN"!!! All you will get is a lot of frustration, a lot of fabricated bills (which I am still fighting these false charges) and my knee still hurts! It was a waste of my time and my money. This is the worst medical facility I have ever been to. read more

I was referred to this office a few years ago and been unhappy with the services pretty much from the beginning. When I had trouble with the front office staff I was referred to Becky, Dr. Schectman's assistant. Becky was helpful and made things happen. I had to go back to Becky several times to get what I needed. I like the lady that does the x-rays and the lady that has done my bone scans. The lab people have been fine too. A couple of the doctor's assistants who you see now and then have been nice and seem to know what they are doing. The office staff have been horrible. They don't return calls, they don't assist you when you sit in the waiting room, etc. etc. When they answer phone calls they ask you to hold several times and then hang up on you. I won't give all the details of every visit. Let's just say I've finally had it and will not be going back. I am in complete agreement with many of the negative reviews on this page. read more