Dr. Garro has several strengths as a psychiatrist. He is intuitive, flexible in approach, and helpful during appointments. Those qualities are reasons I remained a patient for two years.
One aspect of his practice that prospective patients should know is that Dr. Garro functions only as a psychopharmacologist. My appointments strictly focused on symptoms and medicinal management. We never discussed the factors triggering me.
My experience outside of appointments was less positive. Regarding medication management, I sometimes perceived frustration from Dr. Garro that felt disproportionate to the situation. Medication questions and prescription issues are a normal part of psychiatric care. Pharmacies make mistakes, insurance companies create obstacles, and patients may need clarification about prescribed medications.
During my time as a patient, I rarely if ever texted Dr. Garro more than twice during any three-month period between appointments. Text messaging was one of his two preferred methods of communication. During one three-month period, one medication issue resulted from my own confusion and the other from a pharmacy error. Given the limited nature of these contacts, I perceived a level of frustration from Dr. Garro that felt disproportionate to the circumstances. More concerning to me was that on two occasions it took more than two days to receive a response regarding prescription-related matters. Because I was depending on him, those delays created significant stress.
Medication coordination frustrated me throughout my time as a patient. If these interactions are burdensome for Dr. Garro, part time administrative support would improve things. Feeling his frustration when navigating medication-related issues made an already difficult process more stressful for me.
I was also disappointed by what seemed like a lack of familiarity with newer developments in ADHD treatment and research. Multiple times I found myself mentioning new peer reviewed studies that I expected would be familiar to a physician specializing in ADHD. While no clinician can keep pace with every development, this informed my feeling that Dr. Garro was not the right fit for my needs. Others may have different experiences. I remained a patient for two years because Dr. Garro has genuine strengths as a psychiatrist. It is entirely possible that the issue was one of fit.
This is the first time I have written a public review of a physician. My instinct was to move on. Relationships between mental health physicians and patients are complex, and I may have contributed to the dynamic. At the same time, I would have appreciated seeing a review like this before beginning treatment. I decided to share my perceptions. read more