Callen-Lorde Community Health Center

Reviews 6

MA

marcela gomez

DO NOT GO HERE, TERRIBLE SERVICE Ive been with Callen lourde off and on since 2009 & must say their Phycologists on 6th floor are rude and unprofessional along with the snooty guy whos in charge of that Dept. Hell yell at you over the phone and be rude but then send you these polite letters. Gross! Dr Victor is a Hack and will tell you to look for another provider if youre not satisfied with his incompetence. Oddly my doctor has no phone number or email address therefore its impossible reaching her and when I try and send her a message through their rude operators they will relay distorted totally different messages if they dont hang up on you. This agency forced me to switch back to them entirely once again simply to be able to retrieve needed referrals from a doctor I have there. Their referrals Dept is a joke and their LGBT staff all seem to have received Obamas surgeries in the transgender Dept but they make you wait over a year just to give out of date appointments to doctors that either no longer practice, to wrong doctors not taking your health insurance and some doctors dont even answer or return calls after 6 months. Callen lourde looks great on paper but has to be the rudest clinic ever and its LGBT which is disappointing. Im at a point that I no longer waste my time in complaining as it gets nowhere, I simply contact their doners and complain with details along with dates, names and the rude experience but also contacting HR in Albany along with NY state health Dept helps a bit. In reality Ive no idea how this clinic has managed to get so much help when it treats their clients very unprofessional but I guess contacting state representatives with documented details could help. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS AGENCY IN THE LEAST.

---

ST

Steven Chu

NOTE: Ive been a patient for 8+ years now, so I am well qualified to give an in depth review of it inside and out, having used almost every service long term (instead of reviewing a single great or bad experience). The medical (NOT DENTAL) services are great, especially if you can get a solid primary care physician. Ive been with Victor Inada since 2008-2009 and he is super thorough and takes your health seriously. Urgent care can be hit or miss here, as they are overwhelmed and understaffed. They try their best though. Probably still better than City MD although City MD will def have immediate openings. + Usually takes forever to get an appointment at Callen Lorde FYI and phones are swamped. + Best to make appointments in person. Be cautious of the Dental department. + Its new and completely separate from medical (dont get a false sense of trust and comfort) + the staff they are always swamped 1-2 months out so your poor irreplaceable teeth are on a 3rd world time schedule + Ive given them chances over the past 3 years and I wish I had never done if I had a better dental option. + Not thorough and they dont focus on preventative care. You need to be proactive about any issues you notice. They fix holes and cavities but if you have any issues outside of that they wont be the first to help you.

---

JA

Jackie Pickles

I have been going to Callen Lorde for over 5 years now and I am very thankful that such a facility exists. For the first few years I had to travel 2 1/2 hours to get here but it was worth it. Fortunetly I am much closer now. The staff, altough rotating, is very helpful and friendly for the most part. I have always felt comfortable here and glad that the doctors have experience with people like me. This is very important to me. Its hard to go to a doctor who doesnt have experience with Tg, here I dont need to explain myself I am just accepted and treated like a human being. Its also very nice to have a normal Doctor Check up routine, one less thing to worry about, as with hormones you need to be monitored regularly. As long as you treat this facility for what it is, you should have no problem. This isnt an E.R ward or anything like that. They have added a pharmacy in the facility a few years ago and this helps a lot. The prices are good compared to any other pharmacy Ive been too. Just an example of the price difference.. One of the medications I take is normally around $130 at an outside pharmacy but at CL its $35.. This is great and the sliding scale is helpful as well. Thank you Callen Lorde, you have helped and made my transition as easy a possible. I wouldnt know what to do without you!

---

AE

Aether Princess

So I call in regularly to see if they have any openings for new patients. One day the girl who Im talking with says theyre accepting new patients for trans care. Im trans. Great. So in order to be a patient there I have to change my insurance and my PCP to one of theirs. Great. I make an appointment with one of their insurance navigators, go in, have my insurance changed, wait two month for it to be official, finally get my new insurance card in the mail. Call to make my very first appointment. "Oh sorry were not accepting new patients." Oh really? So I wasted three months of my time without medical care, switched my insurance plan (which I cant switch back anytime soon) only to be told they didnt reserve a space for me even though I was going through this process with their help. So now I have no doctor, Ive been left out in the dust, have no idea where to seek specialized care for my transition and someone to manage my hormones. I live in Staten Island so I passed their offer to go to their Bronx location which would be a six hour trip back and forth (and I was told I would be able to be seen at the Chelsea clinic). Really disappointed and depressed now. The one place where I thought I could count on the people there and that they had my back. Things feel as hopeless as ever.

---

CA

Candy Heart

The workers ive dealt with are really nice but theyll cancel your appointment and not tell you.... Youll make the trip out there just to fond out your appointment has been resedualed for another date.... No one calls you to ask if youre even available at the date and time of the new pointment so you really have to just pray on it. I tried using the home delivery option for my presciptions. Huge mistake. I put them in for delivery and even called to double check that the were in for delivery and then called again to double check my billing information and shipping adress on a monday.... Every time i called to check the status of my delivery i was told that my prescription was filled on a monday and would be delivered within 48 hours. By thursday i still hadent recieved them and called and was told my prescriptions were filled and that they were waiting to be picked up BY ME andthat this happens all the time.... Im actually sick now because i havent had my medications and have to travel like this to go get them so i dont risk waiting all the way till next monday just to find out they still havent been sent out. Honestly i have a ton more i could say about this place but i wont because the rest isnt as serious....

---

JA

Jaqui Cx

Love this place, been going there for years. I saw a few bad reviews that Id like to address. If you call at a busy time, expect to be on the phone for a long time. They are a very busy place because they help a lot of people, to me, this is understandable. As far as gossiping, just tell a higher up. The only people I know might gossip are the interns or new young volunteers. After being spoken with a couple of times, Im sure theyll stop. Ive only seen a couple of people like that. They were always younger and got fired rather quickly, so dont fret too much :) the doctors are extremely friendly and helpful. As far as pricing and insurance, if you dont have insurance and have no money, everything will be free. Any donations would be greatly appreciated, but are never forced and are rarely, if ever, asked for. The most theyd probably charge you is five dollars for something that should cost hundreds, and even then, its optional (from what I understand). Ive never been charged once. Its a very welcoming and friendly environment. So, dont be scared to give it a try. I feel quite comfortable there, even though I have severe social anxiety.

---

---