BROKEN ANKLE
Sorry in advance for this long review, but I wanted to be clear on why I think Dr. Wolfson is a 5 (and it’s not b/c it’s all perfect)…
After breaking my ankle last summer, while away from home, I had to have emergency surgery and get plates & screws put in. Since then, it’s been a terrible – oftentimes depressing and very frustrating – series of months of rehab in hopes that I will one day be able to walk normally like before, not even to mention being able to run or workout. My simultaneous weight gain and loss of muscle mass over the past 7 months since has been especially horrifying, too. Gross.
When the time came to get a 2nd opinion (after going to a different orthopedist here in SF – who was fine but too conservative in treatment for my tastes), I learned of Dr. Wolfson and his recent arrival to N CA. What I really liked about him was his willingness to answer all of my prepared questions (I’m the type of patient who literally comes in with a long list so I won’t forget to ask anything) and more importantly, his willingness to take a more aggressive approach to my rehab, which was based upon my age and healthy, active lifestyle.
He lamented that the prior ortho had me immobilized for way too long (i.e., doc #1 was too conservative – and no, he was NOT slamming doc #1 in any way), which basically delayed my recovery, contributing to limiting my range of motion and increasing joint stiffness & muscle atrophy. Regardless, he truly preached the power of the mind and positive thinking, and consistently reminded me of mind-over-matter and the simple things I could do to accelerate my recovery.
Anyway… fast-forwarding to the present, he ultimately removed my hardware, even worked to fix my ugly scars from round 1, and carried an outgoing, kind personality along the way. Dr. Wolfson is exceptionally experienced but is new to our area, so he’s just making a name for his practice out here in SF; nevertheless, I’m sure his reputation will quickly establish itself nicely.
And, the Not-So-Perfect pieces about this practice:
1) He only does clinic on Mondays, which can be inconvenient for scheduling.
2) He is one of the docs at SF Multi Specialty Medical Group (SFMMG.com), which means a shared – and very chaotic – front office atmosphere, staff and waiting room.
3) He’s really busy and oftentimes hurried. He will answer his cell phone for surgery prep calls during your appt, so just a heads up on that. It doesn’t seem to distract him, but I hadn’t experienced that before, so I was surprised when it happened during one of my appts where we were reviewing X-rays.
4) The office does not have in-house imaging, so if you need an MRI or X-rays done, you have to go offsite and then remember to bring your disk in. This is really inconvenient, esp if you’re elderly, on crutches, or otherwise having difficulty moving around.
I still anxiously await the ability to run again one day, but I do feel I’m under great care with Dr. Wolfson.