Sierra Orthopedic

Well this is what happen on this morning December 3 2024, I arrived at 1020 and I check in and my appointment was at 1030 and I waited to be called to the back to see the doctor, and as I waited there was people coming in and was seen before me when after I was sitting there way pass my appointment time. When I got up to tell the young lady at the counter that I been sitting here way pass my appointment time and she look like oh let me go check. she came back and I told her to cancel it and then one lady call me to the back and put me into a room and said they will be with you in a couple of minutes, I was sitting there for another 15 minutes and I got up to go check and tell her I have another appointment at 11:45 and it was 11:25, so I was there wasting my time and didn't get to see the doctor so I had to rush to my other appointment to be there on time.This should never have happen for them to forget a patient.I was the only African American sitting in there. And when I walk out I notice the doctor speaking to a older couple which was seen before me and I was there 30 minutes before the couple got there. And they was seen before me. Thanks for not noticing me. Was there yo see Dr Gomez12-04-24 12:23

Replaced both knees (different surgeries). I can't believe that I lived with the pain as long as I did. Sierra Ortho folks were great and walked me through every inch of the process.Highly recommend to all needing help!!

This review is coming 4.5 years after the original surgery. I felt I needed to get to the end of the story before I wrote a review. October 30th 2017 Dr. Gill did a total rt hip replacement. I was sent to him by my pain Dr. I was doing well when 2 weeks after the surgery while walking across the kitchen I felt a very sharp pain in the middle of my rt thigh. I knew something was wrong. I called and because of this being a surgery day I could not be seen until tomorrow. I went in and the x ray didn't show anything so the PA ordered a cat scan. I felt an urgency but office staff didn't see the need. Finally got insurance approval and as I thought I had a spiral fracture starting from the head of the trochanter down the femur to the tip of the hip prosthesis. I was back in surgery Dec. 7th for a revision. The fracture was secured with cables and a new prosthesis was put in. Dr. Gill was not happy with me. He blamed me for the break claiming I was smoking. I had not smoked in years and told him he could test me. I went back to work March 1 2018. All was not well and my hip kept popping in and out. I called to make an appt. I was told that i needed a referral which I thought was odd but not a problem. Went to my primary and he put in for referral. A month went by and once approved they called for appt. My primary got back to me with the appt and it was for Dec. I chuckled and called Gill's office and said to cancel the appt for referral because I had my yearly appt already for Dec. If I tell every little thing that has happened in the last 4 years this review will never end and look more like a novel. I went to my yearly appointment and was told by the PA that my hip was unstable but would not be fixed and sent me on my way with a slip for physical therapy. In the following three years I saw 4 orthopedic surgeons. Three said i needed a new hip. The off set was to much and they would clean the hip up.I was scheduled to get a new hip in October 2021 at Stanford but the surgery was canceled because of other issues. I then made an appt. with Dr. Rajaee at Cedars in Los Angeles. This was the best thing I have ever done. He didn't see what the other Drs did but he knew there was a problem. He sent me to have a special MRI. I was scheduled to have a MARS MRI. It is done because it can separate out the metal and show tendon and muscles around the area. I had the MRI done and he was right. The MRI showed that over 50% of the gluteus medias and gluteus maximus were full thickness tears. He said he has only done the surgery twice and it wasn't very successful. He didn't recommend surgery but said because of the atrophy and weakness I would need physical therapy the rest of my life. I was angry and happy at the same time. This should never have happened. I know you get some tearing during the surgery but Dr. Gill went in through the front incision from the original surgery. The muscle sparing surgery they call it to do the revision. Recommended approach is posterior.The medius abductor muscle is like the the rotator cuff of the shoulder only for the hip. This explains why I can't lay on my rt hip and all the pain and weakness I have. I now use a walker and cane to walk long distance. I went to physical therapy for 10 weeks and now am religious to do at home everyday. My rt leg is shrinking so my GP has sent me to a neurologist to see if some kind of electrical stimulation can help stop the atrophy. I had numerous surgeries during that 4 years. Had a rt knee replacement thinking that might be the issue but didn't help. Spinal fusion surgery but no relief. I have had so many surgeries because of arthritis but I worked as a nurse until March 1 2021. Out of all the surgeries I have had the rt hip is the only one that is disabling me. It has been a long 4.5 years but before I posted anything I wanted to make sure I covered all bases. The MRI showed the hip hardware was good so didn't need another revision but he should have fixed what was torn during the surgery. I am not happy with the outcome but very happy to find the cause of my pain and weakness. The craziness of not knowing and thinking to yourself am I making all this up. I wasn't making it up the pain and weakness are real. My hip pops in and out a lot but hopefully will stay put. For the future I just hope the remainder of the abductor muscles stay attached. I did get another opinion about getting them fixed by surgery but my orthopedic said he did not recommend it either. A very difficult surgery and I could end up even worse off. I guess the part that still angers me is that he accused me of smoking and said it was my fault the original hip surgery broke. One of the orthopedic surgeons suggested I get an attorney because he said the periprosthetic fracture happened because of something done during surgery. I just want to get on.

What a bunch of garbage this place is turning out to be. Every time I try to make an appt they push me off to a PA Used to be top notch quality health care. Now I just keep wondering. Is it because I'm on Medicare now ????Now this is coming from me right now because I'm pissed because my appt. that I waited 6 weeks for to see MY Dr. , not a PA, was just cancelled an hour and a half before my appt. time. An hour and a half before my appt time. And they are like " yeah we are so sorry " So I've cancelled my morning routine, I've cancelled a golf tee time with my group, I've put off other appt's to block out this time and just like that (snap your fingers) it's cancelled. So I call to reschedule as they ask and they tell me the next appt is in 3 weeks. THREE MORE WEEKS !!!!!!SMFHBeen with him for 28/30 years SMFH

Yesenia, from Dr. Schulz's Office has to be the most courteous, professional, helpful, positive, and kind person I ever met in the Health Care industry. She's gone above and beyond to help me. The building itself is really clean, love how everything is in-house including MRI. I'm glad I'm finally getting the correct Heath for my foot. Thank you!

I was sent out from SPO to get an MRI. I was asked to call for an appointment to see the doctor after getting the MRI. This did not work. Staff would not schedule an appointment without a disc form MRI. I was never told to get a disc, but did have one overnighted to SPO that next morning. In summary, I found staff to be rude and dismissive. They were more interested in a form than to schedule an appointment as set forth by the treating doctor. It has been 4 days and I finally have an appointment for next week ( 5 days from now). The old SPO doctors and staff were much more accommodating. I will not return after this is over. I might add that staff managers are not available on any format on-line. How handy.

Last update: So apparently cortisone will do nothing for me, go figure.Either way, the procedure itself with Dr. Kasturi went well. He did 4 injections, 2 in my illiac joints and 2 near my sacrum. I definitely hurt afterword, very sore, but it was light years away from the sharp debilitating pain that I had after Dr.Smith's procedure.The follow up appointment was fine, Dr. Kasturi decided to send me for Physical Therapy, but I am currently tired of being a failed guinea pig so I've put that off.When I am ready to get started again, I will return to Dr. Kasturi.

Thought that this medical practice was the best of its kind in Fresno since they treat the college athletes. So when my husband was having SEVERE back pain this is who we reached out to. He was seen the day after we called. That was very good. He was diagnosed with Sciatica and physical therapy , blood tests and an MRI were ordered. Five days later, had to remind office staff to send order to blood testing lab. The physical therapy department couldn't see him for 3 1/2 weeks and our insurance denied coverage for the MRI. We offered to pay for an MRI out of pocket but they wouldn't schedule that for us. At 2nd appointment Dr Kasturi said "I am not going to discuss your pain". Why see a doctor who won't discuss your issue? We'll find an orthopedist who actually cares and has an adequate office staff.Sierra Pacific Orthopedic is awful. I would give them negative stars if that was an option.

I am very very unhappy with this place. My doctor recently joined this organization and the service is not up to my doctors par. My first called I was on hold for 15 minutes no one answered I hung up, 2nd call another 15, I drove to the facility faster than I could get the phone answered. Spoke with Megan on management stated they were working to fix the problem. Scheduler called to schedule procedure could not get her on the phone has to call through different channels to get that call back. She called me no empathy, kinda attitude voice scheduled my procedure 2 1/2 weeks out. My doctor went from scheduling procedures same or next week to 2 1/2 weeks out. Called back got the voicemail then attitude Betty she would not even work with me needed a letter for work due to pain and barely being able to walk. She was not willing to give info to doctor has to schedule an appointment to speak with dr. Been with this Dr for 15yrs now I'm going to have to find another one outside of their practice. My doctor is a pain management doctor who now has staff that has poor practice and no training. I can't go to a doctor I can't even speak to someone about. My doctor told me he's gotten a lot of complaints since rolling over to this practice one of them is a doctor. I would recommend my doctor but not their practice nothing is urgent to them in providing assistance to clients very very poor.

If you have been told you need rods (Fusion)in your back,get another opinion.I was denied twice by my insurance.I was so mad at my insurance for denying the operation and wondered what would be my next option.I know now,they denied it because they knew it was a totally unnecessary operation.Tim Watson wouldn't do surgery without the fusion procedure.My problem was cysts on each side of my spine pushing on the sciatic nerve.I was in pain for more than 3 months because of denial.This translates into more profit fo Sierra Orthopedics,and 6 months of recovery for me.I was fortunate to get a referral to a Stanford neurosurgeon,not a ortho,but a Neurosurgeon.Had surgery to remove the cysts in January, my insurance didn't hesitate at all to cover the pand have never felt better.One more thing,Diane the scheduler is totally worthless,never could get ahold of of her,never got a call back,just seemed to not care about my situation .