My mother underwent treatment at Comprehensive Retina Consultants with the hope of improving her vision, yet more than a year later her eyesight is worse than before. While the medical outcome itself is disappointing, what happened during her most recent visit was even more concerning. My elderly mother was not advised to arrange transportation home despite undergoing a procedure that left her vision severely impaired afterward. When I arrived to pick her up, she was effectively unable to see. Even more troubling, there were several other elderly patients outside in similar condition, appearing disoriented and struggling with their vision as well. It raised serious concerns about whether patients are being adequately informed of post-procedure transportation requirements. Wanting to better understand what happened, I called the office in a calm and respectful manner. Rather than receiving empathy or an explanation, I was met with a defensive response. The conversation quickly became focused on assigning blame instead of addressing legitimate concerns about patient safety and communication. When I pushed back on that characterization, the representative ended the call by hanging up on me. No medical practice can guarantee outcomes, and I understand that. What patients and their families should be able to expect, however, is clear communication, proper preparation for procedures, concern for patient safety, and respectful treatment when concerns are raised. Unfortunately, our experience fell far short of those expectations.
