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| - This will be a multi-part review and I am, at this time, cautiously optimistic that I will add that 5th star by the end.
First Impression/First Visit, 03/19/2018: I was a bit taken back when first trying to reach Dr. Douds office. The number I was given to call for an appointment referred me to a next and then a third, where I was (finally) told to leave a message. It wasn't a great start or first impression... BUT...
Within a couple hours I received a call back from a very nice and helpful Heather. After a brief chat and a few questions she transferred me to another very nice and helpful Elly (spelling?) to make schedule appointment which I got shockingly quickly.
I arrived a bit early expecting paperwork. Parking was a challenge (packed in like sardines), but the waiting area, while absolutely packed, was large, clean, nicely decorated and comfortable. Front Office staff (once it was my turn to receive eye-contact) was polite, efficient and helpful.
Once paperwork was complete I was in a room almost instantly, surprisingly fast for a packed neurosurgeons office. I was probably in the room 5 or 10 minutes before Dr. Douds came in.
I found Dr. Douds demeanor amazingly pleasant and friendly for a surgeon. He was easy to talk to and he seemed to actually hear what I was saying. He took a good long time with me. Let me have my say without interruption, reviewed my MRIs, discussed his thoughts, considered my thoughts, chatted easily and plotted a course.
Once we'd pretty much covered rough-draft-game-plan he walked me to Heathers desk, gave her a quick rundown of our next steps, and made sure we were all on the same page before he departed to see his next patient. Heather and I have continued to communicate as we dot i's and cross t's for the next steps. Honestly... Other than having to hunt down a good phone number I could not complain about a single thing...
If I absolutely had to add a "coulda been better" thought...
1) Having New Patient paperwork downloadable from their website to be filled out in advance would have been nice... (holding a pen can be difficult for me... and there was a lot of writing to do).
2)Clearer instructions upon entering the offices would be nice... But I figured it out pretty quickly where/how to sign in, so... It works... Its just a bit confusing the first time.
Solid 4.5 stars for now... looking forward to finishing this review off soon, pain free and living my life again, with a 5th star. For the first time in years I am cautiously optimistic instead of feeling terrified and defeated. Thank you Heather and Dr. Douds for at least some faith... It's been a long time since I had even that much.
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