Dr. Fishman is everything you would ever want in a doctor. He seems to genuinely care about his patients. His credentials are outstanding. He's incredibly nice. He determined I need cataract surgery (which he no longer does), and he has been with me every step of the way to make sure he approves of the surgeon. (The first one he recommended has a very full schedule) One warning: he doesn't accept insurance. I knew that when I made another appointment with him, but I was willing to pay more, knowing how great he is. I was actually surprised that I wasn't charged more, because he spent around 2 1/2 hours with me. read more

Dr. Fishman is great. You can tell that he loves what he does and takes it seriously. I woke up one morning with a small pain in my eye but I ignored it. As the day went on, the pain got worse and worse till I was basically holding my eye shut and hiding from any bright lights. My boyfriend called Dr. Fishman and saw me that day. He found that I must have scratched my sclera (white part of my eye) while I was sleeping. He gave me a prescription to protect my eye from bacteria as it healed, wrapped my eye to protect it and reassured me that my eye was going to be ok. Dr. Fishman is very friendly, loves what he does, enjoys sharing his knowledge about eyes and takes time with his clients. I appreciate his professionalism and help. read more

Harvey A Fishman, MD, PhD - Office sitting area. - Ophthalmologists Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Genius plus brilliance and thoughtfulness and patience and thoroughness - that's Dr. Fishman! He found the answer to solve our family's daunting eye problems. Deciding to pay for the consultation with Dr. Fishman was one of the best decisions in our lives, and one of the best money we've ever spent - his advice was worth 100x what we spent. read more

FYI as of about a year ago, he no longer takes any insurance including Medicare. An initial visit is $1540!!!! He may be a wonderful doctor, but this is luxury Zipcode medicine! read more

i have been a long time client of dr fishman. allow me to say he is very smart and on top of it he is a pleasure to talk with. unlike other doctors he will spend time with you, explain what's going on with your eyes and does not jump to conclusions without data. an example of his commitment to his customer base is the ongoing investments he makes in his medical instruments. his office is a very impressive laboratory where as the rest of the facility is nothing special. that example says to me he invests in science not in art. when i hire a specialist i want SPECIAL. this fellow is the real deal and has the credentials to prove his speciality. i tip my hat to him! barry read more

My family has been going to Dr. Fishman since 2010. There is not a better ophthalmologist to see for your eye well being or if you have any eye issues. You would be foolish not to see him. He is the BEST. An exceedingly bright Doctor (PhD as well) who is able to explain your eye issues in the simplest way. He has always gone above and beyond what any other doctor would do for you and has made himself available at all hours should you have a problem. Couldn't be a nicer, more pleasant and reassuring Doctor to go see. read more

I waited a long time, over a year, before writing this review to consider and organize all the information and experiences I had with Dr. Fishman and to be fair. My case spanned over the course of almost a year and in that time I got familiar with Dr. Fishman's competence and his manner both of which I found lacking. I went to Dr. Fishman to get a presciption and order a new type of glasses called SuperFocals. These glasses are adjustable by a mechanism that allows them to adjust from infinity to just inches away from your eye. I thought it would be fantastic to have a pair of glasses that does that - if they work. These eyeglasses were extremely expensive, but I concluded that if they worked they would be worth the expense just to be able to see and get rid of all my other reading and computer glasses. The first order of business was to get a new prescription and an updated eye test. In my eye test Dr. Fishman neglected to give me a peripheral vision test. In the time I worked with him I mentioned that to him and still never did he ever complete that. Something I have gotten at every eye doctor I have ever been to so my eye test was never really completed. But I was charged full price. I was also given eye drops and told to take fish oil? In his office, Dr. Fishman seemed like he was always doing multiple things at once, darting in and out of my examination to do talk to someone else or do something else. I was patient since he was busy and I wanted these glasses but I never seemed to have his complete attention. When I got my SuperFocals the distance vision part worked OK, but the far-sighted, close-up component did not work. I had to wait many months to get my Superfocal glasses ordered, and when they first came in, there was a lens that was totally wrong. I had to wait months again for that lens to be replaced. The next set was wrong as well. Again I waited 2 more months - SuperFocal's fault. The doctor tried to re-do the prescription, but that did not help. Finally, after the third try the lens prescription was better, but still it did not work as advertised and the adjustor mechanism was sticky. I finally gave up and returned the glasses after taking them for a 30 day trial period. This took altogether almost 9 months. Impressed by Dr. Fishman's credentials I assumed this was a case of the SuperFocal products not being ready for prime time or my eyes being difficult to correct. Some issues with SuperFocals were not Dr. Fishman's fault, but not all. Dr. Fishman's manner seemed unfocused and did not fully engage in the troubleshooting of my vision problem. I kept thinking there must be something extremely challenging about my case or that I was being unreasonable in my expectations, after all he was the doctor, and he the diplomas and certifications, research and he appeared to be accomplished and successful. Recently I tried again with a new prescription, mandatory after two years. I went to SuperFocus and asked them to refer to me another doctor in the area and tried again. I got a full eye exam with all the latest equipment. The prescription was perfect, and the doctor had a full set of lenses available in-house so I could test that prescription immediately. I got all the tests, and the peripheral vision test as well. I explained to my new doctor the problem I had with my first try at SuperFocals and after thinking about it and examining my eyes my new doctor mentioned that labs and doctors sometimes use different formats, akin to using a plus or minus when prescribing the astigmatism component of the lens. We think this got reversed. This was confirmed When I got my new SuperFocals back, this time in just days, and the prescription and vision was perfect. Dr. Fishman's oversight and lack of focus in troubleshooting made caused me and SuperFocus to go round and around and ended in a sad waste of time for all involved, but Dr Fishman got paid. This should have been his area of expertise, so I wonder what happened. I felt I had to come back and write this review, because I was unhappy in my interactions with Dr. Fishman, who charges premium prices here in Palo Alto, and at least for me delivered below-par care. When something went wrong, or go to the point it did, Dr. Fishman should have sat down and troubleshooted his procedure to find the mistake instead of claiming that was the best he could do or my expectations to see with what is a relatively weak correction were too high. Finally, some time later, I wanted to be sure about some charges Dr. Fishman billed me. I called his office and everyone now in the office was new, and they could not find my records. Whatever this looks like, however many creditials or diplomas someone has, if they are not concentrating or cannot run an office you will have a problem. Quite disappointing - 1/5. I would not return to Dr. Fishman. read more

Dr. Fishman is the real deal. All 5 star reviews for a reason - he simply is the absolute best at helping people and making them feel comfortably and involved in the process. I've been dealing with an eye condition since I was a child, but have never been diagnosed until recently. I went to see a few other people and I was told I could do a patching solution (eye-patch) or surgery. Eye patches won't work for me, I work in Social Media and I need to be presentable. I know, but it's my job and I just can't wear an eye patch for a year or so. So I was resigned to surgery, taking time off and dealing with any potential issues that might arise. My last hope was Dr. Fishman and BOY AM I GLAD I SAW HIM! One visit. That's all it took. He knew what was wrong with me and then came up with a solution that was cheaper than surgery, less invasive and not only fixed the issue with the muscles in my eye, but my motion sickness AND headaches as well. He cured three problems with one special pair of glasses. Even better, Ellen in his office made sure those glasses were super cute. So I'm stylish, I can see and I don't get sick in cars or boats anymore. Oh, and I don't need to take frequent breaks to rub my temples. All this and he is funny and warm and just an awesome doctor. He's like the kind of doctors from back in the day...the kind you want to have in your family for life. read more

Dr Fishman is awesome! He's responsive, super smart, super nice, genuinely interested in whatever's going on with your eye problem, and willing to help when nobody else is. He correctly diagnosed my eye problem, when 2 other drs got it wrong over years of seeing them. It was such a relief to find a dr who was willing to think outside the box. I can't say enough good things about Dr. Fishman. He's a godsend. read more

I was referred to Dr. Fishman's Santa Cruz office by my Acupuncturist for an eyelid problem that was not getting better. I had almost given up on this ever getting better as I had seen a different Ophthalmologist Surgeon who made the experience incredibly painful with no improvement. Dr. Fishman is incredibly professional. Even though he has a full schedule he gave me ample amount of time to answer my questions, get to know me and understand my concerns. His surgery was flawless and painless. I returned to Dr. Fishman when it became evident I had a cataract growing quickly. I had previous cataract surgery five years ago on my other eye by a different Doctor. In comparison, not only did Dr. Fishman provide a better outcome, he put my needs above his own. He provided excellent advise in choosing a lens replacement, one that was less expensive than the first Dr recommended. My vision is far better than it was before the cataract. I highly recommend Dr. Fishman. He is down to earth, very skilled and highly educated. read more

THIS GUY GET's IT! This review is for Dr. Fishman, who is a great guy, and a phenomenal doctor. Specifically, this review will help those suffering from Dry Eye Syndrome, which many eye doctors just don't understand, underestimate it's impact on your life, lack the proper tools to diagnosis it, and will send you on your merry way telling you to buy over the counter artificial tears. Dr. Fishman, on the other hand, is the dry eye Guru, and instantly was able to tell what type of dry eye syndrome I had (there are multiple types). I was prescribed restasis and a regimen of lots of Omega 3's and an eye warmer thingy (hard to describe but check it out its called EyeGiene and helps a lot) and ~3 weeks in I feel SO much better. Still have a little bit of struggles but I'm confident with time and Dr. Fishman's care I'll get this thing dealt with! If you are struggling with dry eye (or any other eye issues) do't hesitate to go with Dr. Fishman. **Staff is all great too! read more

Executive Summary: From the moment I checked in, to the moment I left, my experience could not have been better. Dr. Fishman is one of the best doctors I have ever seen. Color Commentary: My wife made my appointment for me after weeks of her hearing me complain about the vision in my left eye. We just moved to the area, so she used Yelp to find a doctor that had great reviews. Knowing that I am a bit of a doctor snob (more on later), finding the right doctor that can meet my standards is very unlikely, if not impossible. It's not that I am that picky, I just expect a doctor to: 1) treat my time as if it is just important as theirs (in other words, be on time) 2) be personable 3) have a sense of humor and not take themselves so seriously 4) know their craft and diagnose me correctly (after all, I am not there just to socialize) 5) get to know me and address my concerns (in other words, don't be so fast to kick me out) I've been to many doctors over the years and not one of them has ever come close to having the full package. Dr. Fishman blew me away. From him going out of his way to introduce himself to me as I stood in the lobby, to him taking the extra time to examine my eyes thoroughly, to making me feel at home, Dr. Fishman is first class. Speaking of feeling at home, his office looks like one. I suspect it was converted from a residential home as it sits in a very nice neighborhood. The inside is extremely nice and doesn't feel like a stuffy Doctor's office. It feels more like hanging out at a friend's house...there is just no beer in the fridge. Then again, maybe there is...who knows...that could explain why everyone was in such a great mood. Thanks Dr. Fishman for setting the bar so high. You are one of the Best Doctors in the Bay Area! read more

HE IS THE BEST eye doctor you'll see, I did the rounds due to my severely dry eyes and his office was the only one I walked out of feeling better from. Dr Fishman is not only a doctor but your partner in your journey - no matter what you have , he will help you figure it out. He consistently goes out of his way - even acquiring new devices for his office to make sure you get the care you need ( like he did for me). He is as smart as they come , thinks outside the box and is able to come up with a plan that actually works. Not to mention if you have an issue no one else can figure out - he will. I am in the healthcare field, and I personally find dr fishman to have it all (the latest and greatest) and trust my care to him. I'd be happy to be a personal reference so message me for any details on my experience I can share. I can go on and on... read more

Took my 93 year old Mom in. Reception didn't have why we were there. I explained again. Front desk was poorly trained and disorganized. We waited 30 minutes. He came in and then went out for something else. It felt rushed. He spent most of the time entering info in the computer, then told her to wear lower magnification. We bought two for to try. Neither one could she read from. I went back in the office to set another appointment. Didn't seem to know what to do. The other one didn't ask, but assumed why, and I told her no, that wasn't why were coming back. I left feeling uncomfortable and cancelled the appointment. Sorry, but I cannot recommend this place. read more

Love Dr. Fishman. He is the best! He is not on an opthamologist but he is a medical doctor. Yes, he has a PhD too. He has the latest and greatest technology to make informative and valuable assessments. You can tell that he LOVES what he does. Most importantly, he connects the dots... eye health to overall health and well-being. He successfully helped me in several eye issues which I am grateful for. He is always kind, caring, and a wonderful person. It's always a treat to see Dr. Fishman! read more

Dr. Fishman is an amazing doctor. He goes above and beyond for his patients including meeting me after his office had closed to address a concern. I also have to commend his awesome interactions with kids--I took my 7 year old daughter to him after she failed her school vision test and she absolutely adored him. Would recommend him 100% read more

Dr Fishman is a highly competent, knowledgeable and thorough surgeon. But more than that he is the among the most personable and caring doctors I have ever met. The man has a great heart. I had an eye infection that developed into a Chalazion last year. Went to see multiple doctors in different local medical establishments and was given the run around. I was given different dianogstics and wrong treatment options that dragged the problem on and on for four months. It got worst and worst until I realized a surgical removal was inevitable. But I had no confidence in any of the opthalmologists that treated me to no effect so far. Finally I found Dr. Fishman on Yelp. The waiting was a month long but worthy. Within minutes meeting him, I was given the correct dianogstics. He confidently told me that any treatment other than surgical removal was wishful thinking. But I didn't feel any jitters as I already knew I was in good hands. Come the day of the removal, he showed incredible bed side manner. He was even telling jokes to ease my nerve. Before I stopped laughing the whole thing was done in a matter of seconds. What a pair of hands! In a few days my life went back to normal and a year later I have had no recurrences whatsoever. I am very grateful to him. Oh, did I mention his team of wonderful staff also? read more

No one started it so I had to! My boss( not being biased or anything) is one of the best eye doctors that I have ever been to. he is so helpful! I had an allergic reaction to mascara and without even putting me in the chair knew exactly what i needed to be taking in order to make it go away! within 5 minutes my allergic reaction was better and within the day it was completley gone! Hes helped me with glasses hes helped me with family eye problems hes just amazing at everything he does with patients that come to see him :) read more

Fantastic and friendly. Lots of dry eye analyses and suggestions. NOT JUST "USE ARTIFICIAL TEARS". So many options, including simple cleaning of meibomian glands so your own natural oil tears film is optimized. read more

I found the review by Patrick S. very unsettling, noting it was in sharp contrast to the other ratings about Dr. Fishman. As is obvious, I agree with the other 16 reviews and encourage others who evaluate the reviews to note that perhaps Patrick S. is an outlier with some unique personal issue. Dr. Fishman is that rare health care provider who can offer patients both a superior level of clinical, scientific, and up to date competence and also personalized, compassionate humanistic care. I strongly recommend him to any person seeking superior vision care. read more

I was referred to Dr. Fishman by another doctor. I had a pterygium on my eye that was bothering me. My local eye doctor gave me drops and told me to wait until it impairs my vision. Dr. Fishman said he'd remove it. I was nervous about having it done but he made me feel comfortable enough to have it done. I'm happy to say its gone and looks great. My eye feels so much better. Much better than before. He always sees me promptly when I make appointments. I even refered a friend. It's over an hour drive to Dr. Fishman's office from my house but he's worth it. read more

Meeting Dr. Harvey Fishman was one of the luckiest days of my life. I came to him with much concern over a glacoma reading of 30 and now have had two absolutely pain-free Laser procedures in his office and have a very healthy 15 reading! I never met a doctor who is so knowledgeable yet down to earth, supremely happy in his work and so able to make me feel so at home. His new office is technologically the latest and the decor and atmosphere is light and attractive. His staff is perfect. I am so sold on the professional and personal qualities of Dr. Fishman that wherever I go and suspect someone has an eye problem I can't resist saying, "You ought to see Dr.Fishman, like I did". I truly believe there's only one like Dr.Fishman! read more

Dr. Fishman is truly exceptional, both as a doctor and as a person. I recently got a pretty severe corneal abrasion on a weekend, and was supposed to fly to New York Monday morning for something that really could not be postponed. Dr. Fishman came in to see me on a Sunday afternoon, gave me medication that almost immediately solved the problem, and checked in with me using the AppVisit iPhone app he created to monitor my progress while I was out of town. In addition to being a leader in his field, he really cares about his patients and is a pleasure to know. read more

Super smart and very personable! Both my sons and I see him regularly. In addition to seeing patients, performing surgery, Dr. Fishman also dabbles in technology and has a few patents in the ophthalmology area. His practice seems to be exploding as word in Palo Alto has spread. read more

I had Dr. Fishman for a laser procedure in Santa Cruz, CA. I worried about getting macular degeneration after several eye operations. He sugggested flax oil. I started taking it, but suffered from stomach aches. I informed him about the stomach problems. He said to continue it, but put it on as a salad dressing. My acid problem escalated. Don't listen to this advice. I had acid reflux for 4 years because of the flax oil. I'm now suffering from taking a strong acid reducer medication as it has affected my bones. So I'm taking a bone medication. Don't listen to any recommendations of home remedies from this doctor. read more

I just had cataract surgery yesterday by Dr. Fishman at his Santa Cruz office. It was quick and painless and the doctor did an incredible job of making you feel at ease. Today the eye patch was removed and I can see 20/15! It's unbelievable the difference in what I can see. I didn't realize I had been in a cloud for so long. My husband was in the waiting room and said he had never been in a medical office with so many happy people. Everyone was sharing their stories of how wonderful they were doing with their new eyes. I highly recommend him! read more

This is a long overdue review for Dr. Harvey Fishman. I have been a patient of his for the past 3+ years after being referred to him by my physician, Dr. Richard Lee. In all honesty, he is the most knowledgeable ophthalmologist I have ever had in my 30 years of wearing glasses! His exams are thorough and not rushed. He explains what he is doing, what course of action to take, and backs everything up by administering the latest equipment to run the eye exam. I have referred numerous friends to him - all of whom have thanked me later for my referral. I can't say enough about Dr. Fishman and highly recommend him to all. He is simply the best eye doctor out there! read more

An amazing doctor and person!! His whole practice is patient-centric. Dr. Fishman has never forgotten that he is there FOR his patients. Dr. Fishman absolutely knows his stuff, and is continually trying to keep abreast of new technologies, (as well as developing his own-12 patents I believe)! It's just a bonus that he has a great "bedside manner". I called his office (I was not even his patient yet), and he returned my call. He talked to me at length on the phone, and then gave me an immediate appointment. At that first appointment, Dr. Fishman made sure I understood what I was dealing with, as well as a prognosis. Fortunately, my prognosis was good, but there was going to be a journey to get there! I knew Dr. Fishman was different from any other doctor I've had, when he said to me. "I will hold your hand through this." REALLY? In this day and age, what doctor says that??? Dr. Fishman kept his word to me. He has "held my hand" throughout my recovery. When I feel that I need to talk to him or see him in his office, he ALWAYS makes the time. He has a small office, which to me means I won't get lost in a bureaucratic shuffle. His staff is also wonderful. Dr. Fishman has certainly set the tone for "patients come first". Hena and Alina are efficient, patient, kind, and compassionate. I know this sounds trite, but truly count yourself VERY lucky if you have Dr. Fishman for your ophthalmologist. read more

I thought my review was already here, but again just in case. Dr Fishman for me is a total eye miracle worker. I go to his Palo Alto office. I was a referral to him, from another Opthalmologist. He wasa God sent. I am so grateful to him for already giving me life in my left eye and ready to do the right, in a week or so. He takes the time to let you the problem and how he will repair it . I had no pain afterward, surgery was excellent. I now have a 15/20 vision, almost having no vision. it's totally a new outlook on life now. His office feels so comfortable and his nurse and from desk clerk totally awesome. Thank you Lord for putting this wonderful doctor in my path. Tahnks Dr. Fishman. Totally higlhly recommend him to anyone that needs an Eye Surgeon with total honesty and care.. read more

I had cataract surgery on both eyes with Dr. Fishman. I cannot imagine having anyone else working on my eyes. He is an outstanding surgeon with amazing attention to detail. He has a personal investment in the outcome of every one of his patients. I really believe he was even happier with my excellent eyesight than I was! I have amazing distance vision now, and only wish I had done it sooner. I never have to wait in the office for more than five minutes, his staff is professional and competent. I always felt like I was in excellent hands. I cannot say enough good things about him and would recommend him to anyone. read more

a lot of dry eyes can be helped by having the tear ducts closed. Drs like to see you coming back by prescribing plugs---they fall out so more money for the dr for another appt. or they prescribe fish oil which can be dangerous---its a blood thinner and not good for some people. I had severe dry eyes and my opthalmologist closed my tear ducts right off---an easy procedure. Went to the Mayo Clinic and they agreed severe dry eye can many times be relieved by closing tear ducts permanently. A good dr. will mention this at the first appt. Dr. Fishman would rather you keep coming back and take vitamins and put drugs in one's eyes. Why not try the natural method first. read more

Dr. Fishman is the best eyes doctor ever. He is so nice and caring for every single patient. I was suspected of glaucoma, he tries his best to help me diagnose my eyes carefully. He lets all his patient contact him 24/7 if they need any help; none doctor would do that. I wished he has another office in San Jose. Dr. Fishman made me feel super secure with my vision. I cannot thank you him enough for everything he has done. read more

Fantastic doctor. Nice, smart, funny, knowledgeable. He did both my cataracts -- I had no pain or discomfort AT ALL during or after the surgery and was seeing basically 20/20 the day afterwardss when my eye patch was removed. I'd highly recommend him. read more

Dr. Fishman is a true professional. He cares about his patients and listens to their concerns. I came in with a chalazion on my right eyelid that hadn't gone away for months and he quickly took care of it. He made the whole experience as painfree and fast as possible. He is also a complete pleasure to be around. I recommend him completely! read more

He no longer accepts insurance; I guess he gets enough business that he feels he doesn't have to.

Dr Fishman took the time to squeeze me in on short notice on a Sunday morning for a potentially emergent issue. He is very passionate about his field (particularly corneas!), and stays on the cutting edge, maintaining the best possible diagnostic equipment and understanding the latest eye related advancements. A great guy, too. read more

Dr. Fishman is skilled with his hands and is a conversationalist too. He removed a tag from my eyelid last year and the result was perfect: no scarring, a quick and expert cut. And he can carry on a conversation the whole time :) read more

Dr. Fishman is an outstanding brilliant physician. He performed cataract surgery on me. Overcoming some complications, he restored my ancient eyes to 20/20 vision and improved their color perception quality so I can now enjoy my HD TV, read the scores on the sports channel, and the stock quotes on CNBC. He performed this service with tremendous enthusiasm, patiently explaining each step and answering every question with clear intelligence. I strongly recommend him. read more

Harvey is an outstanding ophthalmologist. He improved my eye sight by figuring out that I had been wearing the wrong prescription. He's also a really great guy. read more

I recently visited Dr. Fishman after another physician couldn't diagnose my eye problem. He took the time to run several tests and provided a successful diagnosis. He didn't rush and gave my condition his full attention. He also thoroughly explained the operations I would unfortunately need on my eyes at some point which went a long way in reducing my stress about my degraded vision. I also had been suffering with dry eyes, often requiring me to get up several times through the night to use drops. He recommended a type of fish oil and dosage and said it would help in a few weeks. I was amazed a few weeks later when I hadn't used drops at night or during the day for over a week. I've seen some reviews complaining that you'd pay for such advice, but I have to wonder if they even tried his recommendation. His fees are higher, no doubt. But if I had seen him first, that one visit would have actually been less than the other two that were not successful. I'm also kicking myself for going cheap on my eye exams at the mall over the years. Live and learn. Go see him. read more