North Island Medical, with PA Joshua Sands and his nurse Jason, is a clinic to avoid! After almost…read moresix years of care, I was forced to find a new provider. My issue could have easily been avoided. I have taken the same medications for many years. I lost my job in July and started a new one in November, which began with a new insurance plan in December. This new insurance requires prior authorization for two medications; the insurer has its own portal to complete the prior authorization. Jason refused to use the given portal, and no one else can complete the form, so I am screwed until I can see a new provider and establish care.

I have been a patient at North Island Medical for nearly 5 years. My provider is Joshua Sands. He…read morehas provided me with excellent care. He listens, is not judgmental and offers options for my care. I have several difficult conditions and Joshua has helped me find the best treatments for my needs. Joshua Sands is a knowledgeable provider that genuinely cares about his patients.

This review of WhidbeyHealth Hospital in Coupeville follows several emergency room visits between…read moreOctober 2025 and February 2026. My wife and I retired nearby in 2020 with proximity to an effective hospital being a key factor. Until recently we were extremely disappointed by WhidbeyHealth's mediocre care, unreturned phone calls, incomprehensible and inconsistent information management, incompetent receptionists and frequent staff turnover. (To get an Rx actually refilled two years ago I literally had to sit down and type out a physical letter, drive it to my physician's office and hand deliver it to staff.) We resolved that in a true emergency, the best we could hope for would be that our EMTs...well, would keep us alive until a more professional health system could be reached. We purchased air ambulance coverage. Unknown to us until recently, WhidbeyHealth management changed 2-3 years ago. The improvement observed recently has been nothing short of fantastic. Local emergency services got my wife with a badly broken leg to the E.R., who quickly provided pain relief, arranged in-room X-rays and transfer to an off-island orthopedic surgeon (where successful surgery occurred the next day)...all while providing a genuinely caring demeanor by staff eager to improve her condition. In my case, excruciating back pain was effectively attended to directly by the WhidbeyHealth system in a most coordinated fashion and I have been very pleased with their "whole of system" care. The newer WhidbeyHealth "portal" provides an effective single information hub that all staff--and the patient--may easily tap in to, be it by smartphone, tablet or computer. Appointments are automatically confirmed by e-mail moments after being arranged. Prescription refill requests can be made online. Telehealth contact is available. Medical reports with detailed analyses are quickly posted. Importantly, any specialist with a legitimate need to know has simultaneous and immediate access to patient reports posted by their colleagues. No more "game of telephone" - the patient's info is securely available whenever and wherever needed. No need to recite our situation to every new specialist seen. More local-based specialists are being added and we find ourselves desiring "off-island" care less and less. From our recent very positive experiences, our trust in WhidbeyHealth has improved dramatically. This can be considered especially notable given its status as a smaller, rural healthcare system. Management has clearly made, and is making, extraordinary strides at improving care on Whidbey Island. One more thing--and I can't believe I'm writing this-- but during my overnight stay I had the best hospital food ever. Nothing fancy of course, but fresh, tasty and fully satisfying. I'll also share a few areas for improvement: - Certain specialities remain unavailable or still have very long wait times--often months out--including sleep specialists. - Certain referrals sometimes take weeks or even more than a month to be acknowledged. - The portal does not integrate with Apple's Health app. This is something I came to expect and value in 'big city' hospital software. I miss it, and believe WhidbeyHealth care would benefit from the two-way street of info coming from patients' Apple Watches or other wearables. - To telephone our PCP office we must call a central switchboard, then get a call back. It works (now, not 3 years ago), but isn't terribly convenient for connecting briefly to local staff with whom we actually need to speak. It sometimes forces use of the portal or phone twhen sometimes just a 1 minute call would have saved a lot of work elsewhere. But all our calls eventually get returned, unlike before.

Thank you ICU team. I meant to write this earlier then I got your letter. All of you were so…read morehelpful, getting the food early for me and printing out Google maps for me to get home. I appreciate everything you all did. And I have drank since then. It's a only 12 days but it's a start thanks to all your help and information. Thank you, Ryan Unbedacht

Dr. Brianna has provided the kind of care I've always wished to receive. She truly listens to you,…read morelooks at the bigger picture when it comes to your health, not just rushing you through your appointment and prescribing medication's to mask symptoms like lots of doctors have to do because they simply don't have enough time with their patients. This is not the case with Dr. Brianna. She truly desires to figure out the root cause of your health issues. Obviously, finding the root cause of an issue takes a lot more time to figure out than just masking symptoms with medication or even supplements. She is willing to work with you and provides support in many aspects: such as dietary adjustments, lifestyle and home care. I highly recommend Dr. Brianna- and her practice!

The 2 stars are only because Liz the PA treated me really well. That's where this ends. While Liz…read morethe PA there is great, if you're shopping for your own medical care be ready to feel like you're buying a used car. I recently worked with Liz and she was fabulous, but my experience trying to become a member was no different than buying a used car. I was due in September for a quick blood work phone call to check how my medications were working. I was paying out of pocket, and my appointment for this 15-20 minute call in May was $50. I spoke with Alyssa and she explained if I became a member in September, the appointment would be included. A membership is $65. I hung up, prepared to pay and sign up in September like we discussed. They sent me paperwork to sign up for August, not what we had discussed. I let them know I wanted to start in September because I wouldn't be using their services, and that's when the cold unfriendly emails began. Like wtf. First, they said that since my last appointment was in May, no I couldn't sign up until I had another full patient appointment. (News to me) Then, they told me that their prices just went up so no, it isn't just $50 to go over blood work. The tone of the email was unfriendly and borderline rude and it was clear they wanted me to sign up and pay $65 for a month I wasn't even using their services and I'm not okay with that. It sounded like they were making things up to make it very inconvenient for me to wait. This is not a place I would recommend doing business with. I'm seriously disappointed because I liked Liz there, but the way this was handled was not okay. Be prepared to be haggled over memberships if you bring it up. Just no.

They are no longer taking new patients. I asked him if I could become a new patient because I went…read moreonto Tricare for life and they said sure just have your medical records sent over to us the Navy clinic tried to send my records over to them and then they said sorry we're not taking anyone.

I have been reading with chagrin a lot of negative comments about this clinic and in particular…read moreabout a particular care provider . I did not need to attend this Clinic as I am retired Maybe but once I reach 65 years old and was primarily under that umbrella of Medicare instead of Tricare I searched another Primary Care Facility. I have found this facility to be amazing. I can get an appointment within a week the staff was friendly and caring. There is a lab on site and that is very convenient and your results come in quickly. I would also like to say that my primary care physicians Joshua Sands and if it wasn't for Joshua Sands I might not be here today . Because he ordered a test for me when I turn 65 that I assumed was part of every blood test I've ever had in the military or out . But it wasn't and he specifically asked me if I had this particular test because at my age there was something that should have been looked at I assumed that everybody did it and he informed me that it wasn't . And said I would like to have you tested for this and I'm like okay and I was and thankfully for Joshua Sands I took that test I think some of the criticism was a bit petty compared to the positive aspects of somebody who takes the extra step to ask the important questions that's why I like the facility and that's why I would recommend it to anybody and that's why I would recommend Joshua Sands as your primary care physician.

I was seen in the Island Hospital Emergency Room all morning and into the afternoon last week. In…read moreshort, the care I received was exceptional in quality, compassion, thoroughness and communication. I have a unique cardiac history and exhibited one sign of a heart attack. Thankfully, after testing it was determined I had not suffered a cardiac event, but the symptom I had was the offshoot of an upper respiratory virus. I genuinely appreciated the staff's care and the thorough process they went through to be sure there was nothing more serious going on. It was well worth it for my piece of mind at the very minimum. These are kind, compassionate professionals throughout the house, and they explained everything in lay person terms I could understand. Skagit County is so fortunate to have Island Hospital!!!

E.R. 69 y.o. Female arrives ambulatory at 12:40 on a Wednesday afternoon. ER is empty. Complaint is…read moreleft arm numbness; comes and goes, slight nausea. History of Chronic Heart Failure, pace maker and defibrillator, multiple heart surgeries for genetic heart disease. Gets checked in, has vitals taken and is told to return to the waiting area. Family comes in with a five year old under the weather. Didn't look terribly serious, he was ambulatory and moving around the waiting area. That family was followed by a young lady and her mother. No idea their concern or diagnosis. Both sets of patients were checked in and taken back to the treatment area before any one called me. In fact, after be waiting an hour I drove myself home. An hour and a half after later Island Hospital called to see if I was still in the waiting area. I told them I was not and that I won't attempt to use the ER Department again.

I've been going to the Walk In clinic for 14 years. They are great and listen well…read more Denise Johnson

Pros: Wait time was about 5minutes. Not busy…read more Cons: Caretaker gives her name but NOT her title. It's helpful to know whether you're talking to a Dr. or assistant of sorts. I needed care for simple foot pain. The nurse practitioner recorded notes on scrap paper, no BP check or weighing. She examined and ordered an x-ray. No response about X-ray results after 5days.

Quick service, knowledgeable, quick to answer questions in depth and an overall great experience. I…read morewill be referring to all my CDL holder friends to this clinic, and I will be back to renew my medical card again!

Absolutely fantastic. Fast, effective, inexpensive (10% of what I was quoted at another urgent…read morecare). The PA was incredibly knowledgable and efficient. The best urgent care I've ever been to.

Terrible experience at billing. I wish I could put " 0 or minus star" after dealing with Billing…read moreDept. They do not want to review the bill at all. I visited this clinic in October twice since the young doc could not do I/D at first visit, I had to come back again. Tri care supposed to cover 100% for these visits as my coverage. I got billed couple hundreds dollars for one of the visits. I called Tri-care, and was told that skagit used wrong code, so they need to use correct one to submit the bill again. When I asked the lady from Tricare , she could not tell me the code, Skagit needs to call Tri-care if they have a question. I called Skagit 360-814-7575, the young lady who talked to me at 1134 am on Dec 15, 2025 told me that they did not use wrong code and I need to check my insurance for coverage, if it's wrong code, "I" need to call Tri-care and get the correct billing code to tell her because it's MY responsibility to correct the billing. I am a patient, I am not working for billing at Skagit nor Tri-care. When I asked her to call Tricare to figure out what was wrong, She said, "Skagit will not call insurance company, we already communicated with insurance company. You are responsible for this billing. " She told me to have Tricare contact Skagit or get the billing code by myself. I explained to her the staffs from Tricare cannot make outgoing call directly, but she kept saying no. I am sure they do billing hundreds everyday. Human make mistakes , but how she knows she is not wrong 100% for sure? I was refused to request for the review the bill , not willing to call insurance company. Tri-care staffs I called cannot make outgoing calls. If Skagit cannot help to solve this problem. Who would help? Basically, if they use wrong billing code, patients need to shut up and pay the whole bill?????

I had to go to urgent care for some confusing symptoms and had a really great experience. The staff…read morewere thorough and kind, without exception. I felt silly because it turned out not to be anything serious, but was treated with empathy, got good answers and left feeling reassured. Lisa Kohler was especially thoughtful, and I appreciated the quick follow up with a phone call to explain my lab results to me.

Should be called Slow Care Medical Clinic. We went here early in the morning and waited about an…read morehour. Initially were were told it would be a 20 min wait. Couple of the staff were friendly except for one who had a problem with me tagging along. I would find some place else like maybe across the street.

From the owner: Urgent Care - Walk-In Clinic. Minimal wait times. We treat acute conditions, Allergies, Rashes,…read moreCough, Ear Infection, Colds, Flu, Sinus, Weight Loss, ED, Anxiety, Depression, ADHD, Migraines, Low Testosterone, High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, Stitches, Sprains, Ingrown Toenail, Jock Itch, Insect/Spider Bites, UTI, Pregnancy Testing, Birth Control, Asthma, Acne, Gout, Prescription Refills (If primary care unavailable), TB Testing, TDAP, CDL Physicals, DOT Physicals, Sports Physicals, STD Testing, Drug Testing, On-Site X-Ray. And much more!