The LASIK Vision Institute

Reviews 3

SA

Sara Kerr

The Lasik Vision Institute in Edina is not reliable! I received horrible care here. As a healthcare professional myself, I cannot believe this clinic is allowed to operate. Plus, the wait times in the small, dirty, outdated lounge are very long. I kept a brief journal of my experience with them and did not end up having surgery here. Please feel free to read below to find out why. I was initially seen in October and considered a candidate for custom Lasik, therefore, I maxed out my flex spending account during my benefits open enrollment as I would be utilizing this for the procedure. I had another appt on Jan. 5th and surgery scheduled for Jan. 9th. At my appt on Jan. 5th, it was noticed by the technician that my tear production was never tested in October. She proceeded testing my tear production after my eyes were dilated and already had several other eye drops placed in them. I had been dabbing my eyes with tissues during the 15 minutes leading up to the tear production test. My tear production results came back low. I had a different doctor speak to me as the primary Lasik surgeon (Dr. Clark) was not in the office that day and actually lives out of state. The alternative MD stated that Dr. Clark is very strict about patients having adequate tear production as it helps with healing the cornea, but stated if he was my surgeon he would just do the surgery and is not strict about tear production. He also stated that my tear production test results were not affected by having drops in my eyes beforehand. My surgery was cancelled and Sandy (coordinator) messaged Dr. Clark. She called me later that day at home on Jan. 5th and said that I need to use Restasis for 3 weeks and be seen again on Jan 31st. She said that she would contact me on Jan. 7th to set up the time. I understand this clinic is very busy with a lot of patients. Unfortunately, I was forgotten about and ignored. I attempted three times to get in touch with Sandy because I still did not have the Restasis prescription or appt booked two weeks later. Sandy finally was abIe to call me on Jan. 19th and was excited to offer me PRK as early as January 23rd. She explained how PRK is superior to Lasik and that she had PRK done. She was happy that Dr. Clark could do the procedure and that I could be healed for my wedding in Mexico in February. After researching PRK, I found that the recovery time for most patients is at minimum 4 weeks due to symptoms such as moderate to severe light sensitivity, pain, and blurred vision. I am disappointed that Dr. Clark encouraged PRK to be done 2 weeks before leaving for Mexico. I am disappointed that my tear production was never checked in October as I could have been treating that October through January. I am disappointed that I had a lot of difficulty contacting somebody for the prescription and new appointment for two weeks and that I had been forgotten about. Retrospectively, I should have sought a second opinion a lot sooner. I spent a lot of time coordinating this procedure to be done prior to my wedding in Mexico in February. I ended up having to reschedule an appointment with my primary ophthalmology clinic in order to get more contacts ordered because I allowed my prescription to expire as I was supposed to be having Lasik. I scheduled a second opinion after my trip. I had my Lasik performed at Joffe Medicenter. The doctors are local and always available to answer any questions. I received an email and two phone calls leading up to my procedure just to check on me. The doctors explained that in most cases PRK is not superior and there are a lot of interventions available to treat dry eyes. They inserted tear duct plugs for me to help with dry eyes (no extra charge). They also explained Restasis is a long term therapy and not to be used for short term therapy as the other clinic had told me. The day after my Lasik, I was seeing perfectly and am very pleased with my quick recovery from Joffe. Do not go to The Lasik Vision Institute!

MI

Michael Olson

The following is my experience throughout the LASIK process. My insurance provided a link to Qualsight. They wanted $50 to set up an appointment with a LASIK provider of their choice. The $50 is supposed to be applied to the LASIK bill. The appointment was scheduled very quickly which was nice. All testing went smoothly. I thought The LASIK Vision Institute (LVI) was open and professional. My surgery was also scheduled quickly. Payment is due the day of surgery and they do offer 6 months interest free financing. LVI requires you to pick up 2 prescriptions prior to surgery. My insurance covered the meds so after insurance one was $133.52 the second one was $47.04. I was able to use my HSA card. The two prescriptions they give you are Vigamox and Prednisolone. The pre-surgery consent form is enough to shrivel your courage on your best day. A few days after setting the surgery date Qualsight charges an additional $500 on your credit card. NOTE: the $50 and the $500 are in addition to your LASIK costs. The surgery was very quick and painless. There is some discomfort...think...the tense body dentist chair feel. Payment is due pre-surgery. I got custom LASIK for both eyes with the lifetime upgrade for $2790. A note on the Lifetime Care: you have to go in once a year and get your eyes checked the appointment is going to run about $100 so.....  I also got the tear duct plugs (punctal plugs) probably an upsell for a total of $150. They say the plugs are covered by insurance. Well..... Heres the catch on that. The LASIK Vision Institute is more than likely an out of network provider so your out of pocket for that is probably a real dinger. $150 isnt going to be worth the paperwork headache. I thought they were very professional the entire time. Sure it is kind of like a money machine but the process is so quick youre literally in and out. My eyes are 20/20. Its a touch blurry but Im only a week out so you have to give it time. I was very nearsighted with heavy astigmatism in each eye. I can now see without my glasses.  Im satisfied. I dont know if I would recommend it. Its a very personal choice being that your eyes really dictate your life in many ways.   Heres the total itemization: Qualsight $550 LASIK surgery at LVI $2,790 Punctal plugs $150  Prescription medications $180 Its been over a year now. Vision is very good. Night vision is pretty decent. No real complaints. This location is closed Ive been told and they are referring me to Whiting Clinic. I called Whiting Clinic and they said they will honor the lifetime upkeep agreement.

BR

Brittany Ruehlow

Just had my lasik eye surgery at The Lasik Vision Institute in Edina, MN thanks to Qualsight Lasik. What a great experience! I had previously visited another place for an initial exam and left feeling like it just wasnt in the budget. After finding out about Qualsight Lasik and talking to Jeff, I found out I was able to get a discount on the procedure at qualifying locations. With that discount along with The Lasik Vision Institutes great pricing, I was able to feel comfortable about moving ahead with the procedure. My intital screening was very thorough and didnt take too long. The staff was very polite and didnt treat you like just another number. They were very easy to work with as well, especially in finding a day convenient for me as I live a few hours away. The day of my surgery was no different. There was a bit of a wait, but they tell you to expect to be there for 3-4 hours, just didnt realize a lot of that was waiting but the procedure is quick. They do a great job of getting you prepared and taking the time to make you feel comfortable about everything before leaving. Since my appointment, Ive had some questions and had to reschedule my appointment due to schedule conflict. Each time, I was able to speak to someone (I could clearly understand) right away and had no problems finding a different time for me to come. I opted for the lifetime coverage option, so I will be returning to The Lasik Vision Institute for my post-op appointments and expect nothing less than the great service Ive experienced already. I highly recommend both Qualsight Lasik and The Lasik Vision Institute of Edina MN for their services and prices! I took one star away only because of the waiting. As I said, they tell you to expect to be there 3-4 hours which it about what it was, but I just feel like for such a fast procedure, they should be able to manage appointment times and schedules a bit better/faster. Thanks again Qualsight Lasik and LVI of Edina for making my glasses free dream come true!