I am extremely disappointed with our experience at this practice. From the moment we arrived, we informed the doctor that our daughter is autistic and very shy. Instead of showing patience, understanding, or compassion, he was dismissive and disrespectful throughout the exam. At one point, when our daughter said she couldn’t read one of the letters, he stated that he “highly doubted” she couldn’t see it. He also insisted that she needed to speak for herself instead of allowing us, her parents, to help explain her needs, despite already knowing about her autism. He even accused her of “not even trying,” which was incredibly upsetting and completely inappropriate. Rather than adapting his approach to a child with special needs, he made the situation worse to the point that our daughter was in tears. No child—especially one with autism—should ever leave a medical appointment feeling humiliated or distressed because of the way they were treated. Being from a small town, we had high hopes that this would be a kind, welcoming, and family-oriented practice. Unfortunately, that was not our experience. We ended up leaving because of how unprofessionally our daughter was treated. The doctor did come outside after I told him that he needed to come out and apologize, and I appreciated that he acknowledged the situation, but the damage had already been done. I hope this practice takes this feedback seriously and provides better training on how to care for children with autism and other developmental differences. Every child deserves to be treated with patience, dignity, and respect.
