My entire family (father, mother, grandmother, and sister) all became patients of Salveo Family…read moreclinic in 2004. While overall the experience was mediocre, something happened recently which really indicated to me that it was time for a new doctor. I'll get to that last. First, the positive: Dr. Le is generally a nice lady. Here are the negatives:
-Wait times are typically long (anywhere from 45-70 mins after my appointment time)
-Dr. Le demands an in-office visit for monthly prescriptions for controlled substances (like ADD medication), but then only visits with you for 2 minutes. According to her, this is mandated by law. My new physician says you must have a hard copy of the script each month and you should have bi-annual wellness visits, but actually seeing the doctor each month is unnecessary. I believe she mislead me so that she could make more money off of me and my insurance company by charging for unnecessary exams.
-My grandmother came in for an EKG screening, and the staff/ the doctor told my grandmother she was having a heart attack. We rushed her to the ER, where they said she was fine. A few weeks later, my mom also had an EKG test, and despite my mom feeling fine, Dr. Le also told her she was having a heart attack. It caused a lot of panic and we also rushed my mom to the ER. Later, my mom contacted Dr. Le to let her know she believed the machine was faulty (what are the coincidences of both of them having heart attacks at the exact moment they were hooked up?) but the office insisted the machine was fine. It caused a lot of anxiety and $$.
-A few years ago, my parents got divorced but continued to use the same physician. At one point, Dr. Le made judgmental comments to my mom about it, stating she "doesn't believe in divorce". She also breached my dad's trust and patient confidentiality by what appeared to be a guilt-trip attempt; she told my mom my dad had made comments during his last visit, indicating he was "very sad" about it. I'm sure my dad would be humiliated to know his physician reported that to his ex-wife.
-In January of 2009, I went to have an exam for my monthly ADD script. Dr. Le informed me that a new law passed in Texas which required random drug tests for patients receiving controlled substances as medication. She would not write me the script unless I submitted to a urine test. I had no reason to believe she was lying, although I found it strange (as I was an adult with no history of drug use, and obviously I passed). I asked my new physician about that recently, and he said no such law has ever existed. I am not really sure what her motivation to lie and administer that test was about.
THE GRAND FINALE (and some TMI)
All of the above mentioned was unpleasant but generally manageable. This part isn't. Back story: I have been suffering from PCOS for a decade. I have been under Dr. Le's care almost the entire time. Because of my condition, I suffered extremely painful as well as irregular menstrual cycles. I was put on birth control at age 15 to alleviate the symptoms and have been on it ever since.
Three months ago, I went to Dr. Le to refill my birth control prescription. After arriving 15 minutes early (why did I even bother?), I waited for over an hour before finally seeing the doctor. Once she asked me what I was there for, I told her, and she said "I can't prescribe you that, it's against my religious beliefs." I was completely dumbfounded. Keep in mind, this is a woman who has been prescribing it to me for nearly 10 years. I said "Um, what? You've been writing me the script for years..." and she said "Yes, but you are not using it for the same reasons anymore." I said "So you think it's no longer necessary to treat my PCOS?" and then she repeated that it was against her beliefs. I left the office crying and feeling very vulnerable.
WTF. Seriously. She never asked me if I was sexually active; clearly she had already made a judgment about me. Secondly, even if I were sexually active... would that detract from the fact that I need birth control to subdue my symptoms?
I felt it was highly inappropriate for her to place my needs as a patient below her religious agenda. I would NOT recommend a doctor who does that to anyone.