Reviews of Pat Walker Health Center (Psychiatrist)

Sarah Brady

Had multiple bad experiences with phone-calls and psychological services are not great.

Stephanie Garza

well i could’ve died (it really felt like i was) bc of how one of the doctors didn’t prescribe me the medicine i asked for back in October. Dr. Susan Raben-Taylor seemed to listen to me until i asked for prednisone, which treats bronchitis. i always get prednisone when i get really bad bronchitis and need it for bronchitis especially since i’m asthmatic. i’d had a really bad cold that turned into severe bronchitis and when i asked for the prescription she said “no, we’re not going to do that.” and that was the end of that. she ended up giving me a regular rescue inhaler and a corticosteroid inhaler that she said would help the inflammation in my lungs. well it didn’t bc as an asthmatic would know, corticosteroid inhalers take weeks to start working so it was pointless to begin with. i got it anyways and as expected it didn’t work, but gave me minor oral thrush on my tongue so that was a wasted $60. Fast forward to fall break and I ended up getting pleurisy (which is basically one step away from pneumonia) and it hurt to take deep breaths, cough, laugh, sneeze, move around when trying to fall asleep, etc. When I say hurt I mean INTENESE PAIN. It felt like someone was stabbing me over and over again when i would have to cough (since the bronchitis was still there.) When I coughed, I couldn’t do it standing up, I had to sit down or kneel over because of how bad the pain was. The lining of my lungs was severely inflamed WHICH COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED had I been prescribed prednisone. But noooo, the doctors “know best.” Umm excuse me but have you been in another person’s body and know it like the actual person does? I know my body and knew I needed prednisone. Anyways, the pleurisy lasted all of fall break, and I went back to PWHC, this time to Dr. Deborah Deere, who was an angel and felt my rib cage and lungs and ordered a chest x ray to make sure i didn’t have pneumonia since i was complaining of pain so much. They didn’t see pneumonia but wrote me antibiotics just in case and Dr. Deere told me to take ibuprofen since there wasn’t anything much else they could do since I was far into having pleurisy already. I ended up having the pleurisy for about 2 weeks before the pain finally went away. Lemme tell you when i had it i was scared to even go to sleep bc i was terrified of waking up and not being able to breathe, that’s how bad it hurt. Long story short (lol apologies for how long this rant ended up being) this all could have been avoided if the first doctor had given me the medication i asked for since it is after all my body and i know how it works and its limits and breaking points. People know their own dang bodies, don’t try and act like you know better bc you have the title of doctor on your name. Needless to say, be careful choosing your doctors at PWHC. I recommend Dr. Deere or Dr. Howerton. Both are angels and seem to genuinely care about their patients.

Audrey Timmerman

Went two separate times in my freshman year, first was because I had fractured my wrist but they said they couldn’t get me in for two weeks, I had to get an Uber off campus to get treated. The other time my friend had a bad case of the flu and everyone is always saying to go to pat walker so they can treat you/get an idea of the flu prevalence on campus. However they were closed at 5:00 sharp on Friday and were not open all weekend so, be sure not to be sick past office business hours. I was a stupid freshman and luckily have a car so that I can get real medical treatment in the future.

Naomi Larsen

Went in for a CAPS meeting, my Dr. Told me all the things I already knew on what to do. She didn't seem understanding and there was nothing gained from the apt. at all.

Anna Clayton

Dr. Acosta is wonderful! I have had mixed experiences here and I was worried to go back, but my last visit changed how I viewed Pat Walker for the better. Dr.Acosta was very knowledgeable and I would highly recommend him

David Martin

I'm guessing that all of the reviews are from bratty "special snowflakes" - but this place is great. Shultz and Sharaf have LITERALLY saved my life! I've never had a problem getting an appointment, and rarely have to wait once I sign in.

Vince Capps

Friendly and knowledge staff, and easy and fast check-in. Literally the most convenient doctor's appointment I've ever experienced. Dr. Schultz and Nurse, Wendy, provided outstanding help, and the wait time for an x-ray was short. I admit it was a rainy day and early morning, but I could still gather the clinic is sincere and diligent.

Morgan Bailey

This place is a complete JOKE!!!! I have been there 3 times. The first time I went there they would not give me medicine and when they did blood work they didn't know how to draw blood and stuck me 4 or 5 times. I actually wound up in the hospital a week later due to the lack of proper treatment and help for what I had. The most recent time I went was this Wednesday. I went up there because I woke up with my voice completely gone, dry coughing, very sore throat, upset stomach, temperature of 99.6, body aches, head ache, and felt very weak. The "Doctor" I saw refused to do test on me to make sure it wasn't something else saying it was the common cold. I fought with her telling her I know my body very well and I know this is not the common cold. Long story short I left with no help. You would think that they would do everything they could to ensure a student isn't contagious so it is not spread to the whole college. I left a message with the supervisor and have yet to receive a call. My mom will be calling the university to complain. This is unacceptable of a doctors office and I along with many other people I have talked to said they will not be back unless something is fixed. I ended up getting an appointment at another doctors office and when I went in the doctor immediately knew it was strep by looking at the back of my throat and were in shock that a doctor didn't see that. He did a test to ensure it was and they came back positive. He also said I am having flu like symptoms and to be resting, drinking a lot of fluid and take my antibiotic for 10 days so my strep does not get worse as well as taking medicine to keep my fever down.

Claire De Léon

The normal medical staff is fine, and they deal well with normal and conventional medical problems. But I had bad experiences with CAPS, particularly their greediness and lack of really understanding. Not to mention their use of grad students as counselors. Find good mental health counselors can be hard, and CAPS is not the place for it. Edited a year and half later: I discovered I'm trans and there were plenty of chances for the 3 different counselors I met with to help me figure this out. Instead I went through a hell of suicidal thoughts and depression before finally figuring it out for myself. Shout out to Ryan Burchfield and Meghan Werner. These two community counselors (in Rogers and Fayetteville, respectively) helped me a ton. See one of them if you think you may be non-binary or trans or in the lgbtq+ community and need counseling.

Kristi Orr Dagenhart

I went to Pat Walker after complete dissatisfaction at Med Express, so clearly Pat Walker was better in comparision. I'm giving 4 stars because the MD had good bedside manner, was thorough (still waiting on a referral however), and checked up on me through the patient portal website. The phlebotomist did a good job- he drew 5+ vials of blood and I barely felt it since he did a pretty good job making chit chat to distract me. My service at Pat Walker included more tests- EKG, eye exam, lab work, etc- and was CHEAPER than my med express bill. Granted, I had to make an appointment and I waited a loonggggg time to be seen, but I was much more comfortable with the competency of those around me.

Dene Wamsley

I've had very mixed experiences with Pat Walker, but I haven't felt the urge to leave a review until today. The only reason I am giving them more than 1 star is because of Dr. Acosta. He is a fantastic and friendly doctor, and I am extremely grateful that he thought to test me for Celiac disease. I came to Pat Walker several times over 2 years due to strange and chronic symptoms, and tried a few different doctors. Until Dr. Acosta, none could put the pieces together. One doctor even told me it was just anxiety, and that I should "lay off the energy drinks" (which I don't drink). It was extremely condescending and disheartening. Turns out I just need to lay off the gluten! Today, I had an appointment with the Women's Clinic at 1:30. Being an off campus student, I left my apartment an hour before my scheduled time and drove 25 minutes in a torrential downpour. Pat Walker only offers about 6 patient parking spots, which were all occupied. From 1 pm to 1:30 pm, I drove all around searching for parking to no avail. There were no available spots on the street, nor in the Garland parking deck. I was forced to cancel my appointment. While this was unfortunate, the woman who handled my phone call was even more unfortunate. I was extremely stressed when I called her to ask her to cancel my appointment due to no available parking. Rather than being sympathetic at all, she came across as incredibly annoyed. Exasperated, I asked if Pat Walker was planning on adding any more patient parking spots (since they have been continuously doing construction for almost a year now). She responded "No, our parking is LIM-I-TED," as if I am hard of hearing. She told me I should have tried arriving earlier, as if leaving an hour before my scheduled appointment is not enough? My issue is this: I am a stressed client, trying to seek medical help, and I was unable to find parking. I was treated like a nuisance by the staff. Even IF the staff feels that it's normal and justified for a clinic to offer only 6 measly parking spots for off-campus clients (which personally, I don't), the least they can do is respond in a sympathetic manner. Pat Walker's staff exacerbated an already stressful situation.

Paul Knightly

Set an appointment and was told to be there 30 minutes early to fill out paperwork. I showed up 25 minutes early because I had to jump start my car to find out that my appointment had been canceled because I was not there 30 minutes prior to the appointment. I asked the receptionist if I really needed the full 30 minutes to fill out paperwork to which her response was "I don't know if you're capable of that or not." She offered to reschedule for the next available appointment, even though there was not another soul in the waiting room. I declined as I had already waited 3 weeks to get in for this appointment. In 27 years of going to different doctors offices, I've never had an office cancel an appointment for showing up 25 minutes early. I will not be using the Pat Walker Health Center for the remainder of my time as a student and will try my luck in the Healthcare Marketplace as soon as I'm eligible for open enrollment. Not worth it.

Cheryl Engelkes

Please do not let your U of A student go to this clinic!!! My daughter went there her Freshman year 2 days in a row. The first day they told her she had a cold. She went back the next day with a high fever, and was told that her white blood cells were elevated, but they didn’t know where the infection was so they gave her a general antibiotic and told her to rest. Luckily her sister was in town that night and stopped in to see her. She took her to the emergency room because she was concerned. Long story short, we spent the next 29 days in the hospital fighting bacterial meningitis! And after all that, they sent us a bill for their service! Had to pay because they will hold your grades, and you have to turn in your grades by a certain date to keep your scholarship! 1 Star is too high for this place, but you can’t leave a review without giving them that!

Matthew Barnes

Been many times. They've always been quick and extremely kind and helpful.

Diablo Smac

Don’t go to CAPS. I was left completely unsatisfied by the care I received from my CAPS psychiatrist during my senior year. I left her care in worse shape than when I first saw her. I was condescended to on every occasion I met with her, and goaded into taking medications that I was unsure about. The way they run things is borderline draconian. When I voiced concerns about the medications I was treated as though I was being irrational and uncooperative. If you miss appointments and don’t give any notice, (particularly if you miss multiple in a row) they will likely never agree to meet with you again. The only positives were Nurse Patty (very nice lady), and some of the counselors are great. If you really need help and CAPS is you’re only option for whatever reason, I would meet with a counselor and have them refer you to a psychiatrist not affiliated with the University. I promise you will be better for it. (CAPS absolutely deserves one star, but because this is Pat a walker as a whole and I’ve had less problems elsewhere in the building I am giving it two stars.)

Christina Mitchell

Horrible service. Complacent staff ensured job security regardless of if the patient is helped. They didn’t have anyone to provide medical treatment for my scheduled appointment. Update: Came back the next morning, had a great nurse who got her supervisor to listen to my experience. Head nurse said the lack of treatment I received was ADEQUATE! She said the steroid shot wasn't safe (JAMA article proving this- she didn't have evidence). Also said Dr. Beck hadn't given a shot to anyone in 15 years! Is an MD seriously qualified to practice if he can't administer a shot? Transferred to Parkhill Clinic and have never been happier. Avoid this place at all costs.