Oncology: Sunnyvale Center: Palo Alto Medical Foundation

Oct 2024

This review is for call center operator. On October 23, 2024, around 10 AM, I called 408-730-4256 to book an appointment for my husband. A male operator asked for my husband's insurance information. I explained that I didn't have his insurance card with me and asked if we could provide the information on the day of the appointment. He informed me that we might be charged out of pocket or that the appointment could be canceled if the insurance details weren't provided in advance. I also mentioned that my son has an upcoming appointment with a pediatrician next week, which I booked online without being asked for insurance details. I asked if he could put my son's insurance on file for his appointment. He told me he couldn't do that and that I needed to bring the IDs to any Sutter Health office for verification, then call him back so he could add my son's insurance to the file. He gave me his direct number and explained that this verification process needed to be completed before the appointment, not on the appointment day. I was confused, as this was the first time I was asked to come to the office to verify IDs in advance. I've never encountered this issue when booking appointments with other healthcare providers. I then called a different number, 408-739-6000, and spoke with a female operator. I explained that my son has an upcoming appointment and asked if she could put his insurance on file. She was able to do that without asking me to come to the office for ID verification. My feedback is regarding the inconsistency in the responses. Why was the first operator unable to put my son's insurance on file while the second operator could? I felt that the first operator made our conversation unnecessarily complicated. When I asked if I needed to go through the same process for my husband's appointment, such as coming to the office to verify IDs in advance, he seemed to misunderstand my question. He even brought a translator on the phone to repeat what he had said, but he still didn't address my question about verifying IDs for my husband's appointment. The entire conversation with the first operator was confusing, time-consuming, and ultimately unhelpful.

Oct 2024

I've been coming to Sutter health for 6 years now and I gotta admit, I don't always have consistent healthcare coverage due to job changes/layoffs. I really don't appreaciate PAMF staff for being so judgmental or even a little off putting/rude when I mention that I don't have health insurance to the staff. I understand that co-pays must be made up front which I'm willing to pay, but I feel that it's a form of discrimination when I'm being treated differently when I mention I don't have health insurance, especially when I'm coming in to get care for something I'm concerned about. PAMF staff definitely need to work on that. I had an appointment with a doctor last year who cancelled my appointment as I was checking in because I was about 10 minutes late, but still paying my copay and filling out paperwork to see him. I also don't like the fact that a doctor I've been seeing since 2018 for cancer care is always fully booked and very hard to get an appointment with which is having me consider looking elsewhere for care. PAMF used to be great, what happened???

May 2024

Poor patient care, unethical and racist clinicians. Some staff and clinicians lie in their documentation and falsify details in unethical ways. Patient relations completely ignored and mishandled my complaint. No empathy, no resolution, no accountability. This location bullies patients and does not provide proper care nor proper referrals. You are forced to be seen multiple times before any action done. I'll inform my insurance company so they can look into from their end too.