I really can't give this less than three stars because the doctor's office did what it was supposed…read moreto do - but let me tell you, this is a no nonsense doctor's office that cares more about volume than about making a patient feel valued and cared for. You get basic care here - your issues will be addressed and that's about it.
I chose this particular doctor's office because I had an impact injury that I ultimately knew was not a normal bruise - and this office had several appointments available next day. My injury really couldn't wait, and the other offices in this network had appointments about a week out. So the one positive of this place is that you CAN get in quickly, although that could also be considered a red flag. You see, they take walk-in appointments - which, on a busy street like Bergenline Avenue, is a recipe for disaster. While I was able to secure a next-day appointment, and despite the fact that I came to my appointment on time (10:30), I sat there for two hours and waited for the doctor to see me because of walk-ins. (The company did have a live person call and confirm my each of my appointments here however, which was nice.)
One thing I will say - the support staff here is what keeps this place afloat. They are patient and are as efficient as possible - it's honestly not their fault that this place serves such a high volume. (Although, they told me an hour-and-a-half into waiting for my appointment that before I could see a doctor, I needed to confirm my "coordination of benefits" by calling my insurance AT THE OFFICE and WAITING UNTIL A REPRESENTATIVE gave me the confirmation number, which added another half hour to my waiting time. I understand they were dealing with several patients but it would have been nice to know sooner. That was definitely a mark against them.)
After waiting for two hours, I was able to see Dr. Chowdhury. I am saying this in the nicest way possible - but he has absolutely no bedside manner. I don't think this is any fault of his own - I don't think he IS ABLE TO have a bedside manner with the sheer amount of patients he sees on a daily basis. He is the epitome of 'doctor that is oversaturated and has a billion patients and is trying to attend to as many appointments as possible.' I waited two hours and was with him less than 10 minutes. He looked at my foot (and was genuinely shocked at the bruise/injury) and that's about it - he explained nothing, did not talk about the nature of the injury other than it was likely fractured. He did give me a boot but only after I told him I really couldn't walk on it, and also gave me no indication of how long I should wear said boot. He also gave me an x-ray but only after I suggested that perhaps we should see if it is indeed a fracture. In addition, the extra-strength ibuprofen that he ordered never got to my pharmacy.
That was the first appointment. The second appointment was even weirder. One positive note was that it was raining outside so there were a lot less people in the office because there were less walk-ins - and I actually got into my appointment early, which is a good thing. After speaking with the doctor's assistant (who actually was lovely and way more helpful than the actual doctor), I told her my foot was feeling better and that I was attempting to walk around my house without wearing the boot for a few minutes. Well, apparently she relayed this information to Dr. Chowdhury, who burst in the door a few minutes later and straight-up yelled at me for not wearing the boot. That was basically my follow-up appointment - being yelled at by the doctor for not wearing something that I received no instruction to begin with. Does this mean I should wear it the minute I get out of bed when walking to the bathroom? Unclear, as there was (and still is) no instruction. In addition, I had gotten an xray and was hoping that Dr. Chowdhury would at least read my report. Nope! In the midst of yelling at me, he casually dropped in that I had a fracture (did not tell me where) and that the boot would help and that I am in it for 6 to 8 weeks. (It would have been nice to have heard this timeline during my first appointment.) Then I said to him, "Since it's fractured, shouldn't I have a follow up x-ray to make sure it's healing?" At this, he said no, but then considered what I said and was like, "Ok, ok, maybe you're right but it needs to be after a certain date." Thank you, Dr. Obvious. On a positive note - the best part about this appointment was that I was in and out in about 20 minutes total.
So. After saying all this, would I choose of my own accord to come here again? Probably not. But this is where I started for this injury and I will be continuing to go here until I see this through because it seems silly to switch doctors/offices when I am in the middle of this saga. I think it's a safe bet to say that the other offices in this network probably offer better care, so (as always) choose your doctors wisely.
