Patient First - Lutherville

Reviews 9

MI

Michelle Bridi

I came in with strep throat, which was evident to me from all the white gunk in my throat. The nurse took a swab for the rapid test, which unfortunately was a false negative. I then saw Dr. Birnbaum. He had the negative result before he ever saw me, and I guess because I also didnt have a fever (although I told them I was on NSAIDs for the pain, which also would have kept my fever down; I later spiked a fever and called them but that also got me nowhere) he dismissed the possibility of strep with barely a glance at my throat. I later tried looking at my throat the way he did, with no tongue depressor, and there is no way he could have seen anything. He tried to badger me into saying I was congested, which I wasnt, but he still told me I had some sort of virus and was ready to send me home. I insisted on getting a culture done, which he told me would take 2 days, but nobody called me for a WEEK, even though it was positive. Fortunately by that time I had already been to my primary care provider and gotten penicillin, or else I would have been too sick to go to my brothers wedding. Adding insult to injury, I just got a bill for $100 for the privilege of being brushed off by them. Dont go here.

---

MA

Mary McCarthy

So I have never had any issues when I have come here for my medical care. The staff and medical personnel were prompt and always have been my only issue was when I had to go get records for my insurance. The customer service I received from the woman at the front desk was atrocious to say the least. She was rude and condescending. As I was looking at the paperwork to make sure everything looked correct this woman proceeded to actually take the papers from my hand so that she could staple them and shoo me out. The whole time she was also sighing and acting like I was just such a pain or something. Now I understand that she is also responsible for registering the other patients and I would have waited until she was done, but at the end of day it is part of her job.All and all, I believe some coaching may be in order on some basic customer service skills. Her behavior during the entire interaction was at best totally inappropriate. Without customers, there would be no job. I would like to reiterate though that all of the other service I have recieved has been great I just want to be sure that this person recieves the coaching so that she build on it.

---

SI

Sidney Ford

It was a very uneven experience this time when I took an elderly friend for care. The front area staff seemed pretty overwhelmed -- it was clear they needed more help -- and I was put off by a seeming lack of concern for my friend, whose arm was bleeding profusely. Fortunately, there was a very concerned nurse just coming on duty whom I stopped and who then got another very effective nurse for me to express my concerns to. She (Joanna, I believe) was very kind, and came and wrapped my friends arm so that she wasnt simply bleeding onto the chair. We waited quite a while longer, and were escorted by a medical assistant into the back after vitals. We then waited again, and a nurse practitioner, who seemed unfriendly and didnt bother to introduce herself, took a very cursory look at my friends wound, didnt ask about possible head injury (my friend had scratches on her cheek as well), answered a few questions reluctantly and left the room in under five minutes. Not too impressive.

---

ME

Meg M

Sunday (its now Tuesday) I went in with flu-like symptoms. A strep and flu test were conducted. Dr. Yamamoto in a condescending manner told me that 1) brown/green sputum means nothing, that sputum color means nothing- this is highly inaccurate, ignorant information. 2) that both tests were negative and I was fine to go to school and work (where I work with immunosuppressed, usually chemo, patients). 3) that I didnt need any medication. Between the misinformation and strep test conducted by swabbing the roof of my mouth (you need to swab further back toward the throat) I wasnt confident about the diagnosis. I called my primary care Monday morning. They confirmed with a test that I have strep, my throat was bleeding, and Im now on antibiotics. So all in all that was complete negligence on patient firsts part.

---

RA

Raju Nilkanthache

Went to patient first Lutherville-Timonium. Doctor prescribed amoxicillin syrup for my daughter. They said they can fill prescription because they have on site pharmacy. I came home and checked the expiration on bottle. Expiration on bottke was more than year. Amoxicillin for oral suspension when reconstituted is not stable for more than 14 days. This I knew because I worked in pharma company where penicillin drug was manufacturered. I went to patient first and discussed this issue with pharmacist , she said she copied the expiration date from original bottle to the which contain dry powder of amoxicillin. Pharmacist are paid 55 dollars per hour. I think they need to train their pharmacist to read the instructions properly.

---

KE

Kerry Casey

So my issue isnt with medical care at Patient First, which I think is above average for a walk-in clinic. However, their billing department incorrectly charged me and took months to correct the error. When I finally got the correct bill, I immediately sent in my check. Then I got a past due notice. When I called to find out what was going on, they told me the error couldnt possibly be on their end. To avoid getting the bill sent to a collection agency I had to pay them again. So I have to pay to cancel my check, which in all likelihood they lost. FYI, you can pay over the phone although the bill only gives you the option of paying online or mailing in a check. Wish Id found that out sooner.

---

KE

Kelly Jones

I found Patient First online and decided to give them a try. I had a GI problem for the past few days and knew I had an infection of some sort. The place is really nice and modern (touch-screen sign-in). The staff was friendly, knowledgeable, professional, and efficient. I did wait a little while, but there were a lot of people there and I wasnt in a hurry. They ran some tests and discovered it was an infection and they prescribed me antibiotics. The best part is that they can provide you with the prescriptions right there. It was the most convenient thing ever! I highly recommend going to Patient First when you cant get to your primary care doc!

---

AN

Andrew Worthington

I gave the woman that checked me in two insurance cards because they were new to me and I wasnt sure which one was correct. They copied the wrong one, and now Im in a battle with my insurance company and a collection agency over this. I was taking care of my father with end-stage Parkinsons by myself at the time while teaching full-time, so I was incredibly busy, sick, and exhausted. I didnt have the time to handle this immediately after it happened. I called them when I received notices and was told that this was not their responsibility and that I had to take it up with my insurance company...

---

A

A Private User

Went to patient first, yesterday. Getting through the admission process wasnt too bad, but I ended up sitting in an examination room for over 30 minutes before the doctor (or anyone else) bothered to show up, despite others in the center area (including doctors) not really doing much of anything but chit chatting. The doctor was awful, though. The entire examination took less than 5 minutes, and the doctor refused or laughed off my questions aimed at getting to the root of the problem. She gave me prescription medication - a plus to patient first - and them sent me on my way.

---

---