UC San Diego Health Urgent Care– Villa La Jolla — Attraction in San Diego

Here is the comment I wrote in the UCSD-Medical survey:

The problem is with the admin staff (like it seems to be at all UCSD facilities.) When I went to the urgent care desk, (at 11:05am for my 11:15 appointment) no one was there. The pediatric care receptionist directed me to the lab desk near the main entrance for me to register myself. The desk clerk registered me and expressly told me to wait in the area directly in front of her. I wasn't sure why I should wait near the lab, but I complied.

During the wait, I thought I hear someone from the interior call my name out, but I wasn't sure. So I sat where I was, waiting. At about 11:40 I asked the lab receptionist if I was waiting in the right place. She curtly said I was, and told me to sit and wait.

Then I received a phone call from the urgent care department to find out if I was in the facility, and if yes, I should go to the urgent care area. The nurse there recorded my vitals and told me to wait in the waiting area as one more person was ahead of me.

I waited for 25 more minutes while I saw others being called in, leaving me out. I was angry and complained to the pediatric receptionist about it (because there STILL WAS NO ONE at the Urgent Care reception desk.) She again asked me to go to the lab receptionist about it. I thought better of it and stayed where I was.

Finally, I saw someone at the Urgent Care reception desk and complained to her about the delay. She said if my name were called before, and I didn't show, someone from Urgent Care would go around all the areas looking for me. I told her that it did not happen in my case.

As she didn't seem to believe me, I got MORE ANGRY. She also told me that there were TWO PEOPLE ahead of me, so I had to wait more.

While I was having a heated discussion with her, I was called in. (This was after more than one hour and 15 minutes after I first walked in, WITH an appointment, not a walk-in.)

The nurse who took me in and the urgent care receptionist treated me like a petulant child, being unreasonable. They tried explaining to me that things like this happen at urgent care, and I should be patient. NOT ONE OF THEM would consider even the possibility that the delay might be due to their own incompetence; they seemed convinced that I was a jerk, trying to raise a stink.

Finally, after further delay, I got to see Dr. Leslie Mukau, who treated me with care and respect.

Here is my request: Discipline - or at least reprimand - the Lab receptionist who was rude to me from the start and gave me wrong information CONSISTENTLY.

Get someone to be at the Urgent Care reception desk at all times. Don't palm off your patients to some other department, like Lab.

This is the most important thing that you should know about: Your corporate culture is ATROCIOUS. It is not just at this facility, at the Encinitas facility also I experienced the same incompetence and arrogance on part of the staff and nurses (including even my PCP, Dr. Anderson.) Apparently, they are all scared to death about being judged by their management and they go so far as to shortchange the patients to escape the bad review from their superiors.

I teach business management at grad and undergrad levels, with over 45 years experience in semiconductor industry management and in the teaching profession. I can confidently say this:

You need to immediately discard your corporate culture and thoroughly upgrade it to a better one. Understand that you can not run a successful organization by keeping your employees under the threat of discipline. Instill among your employees that caring for patients is more important than trying to suck up to and look good in the eyes of their superiors.

UCSD is a good educational institution and it has a great business management program. It confounds me that UCSD-Medical, an organization managed by the school, could be so insulated from what the school teaches and can be so shamefully...

Priscilla is a rude front desk receptionist and shouldn’t be working with UCSD thats known for great service from their very kind and generous workers. My boyfriend is a cancer patient at UCSD Moores cancer center, I called ahead of time to ask how long the wait usually is to get labs done since we were on a time crunch filled due to other doctor appointments but labs are needed urgently. We were referred by one of the nurses before that it’s much quicker here. We ended up coming and my boyfriend immediately had a bad impression by the front desk lady for the way she was helping a patient in front of him, it was an elderly lady who was confused obviously on her own and needed help with understanding where to check in. It was clearly her first time there, and she was very kind no reason to be given attitude, the front desk ask if she has an appointment with annoyance, God forbid she has to do her job right? And then the elderly lady clearly has bad hearing so she kindly asked her to repeat her question, and of course the receptionist aggressively says “can I just get your phone number.” The whole interaction had to be witnessed because her energy and her attitude was just very unprofessional. We are very much used to kind and patient workers at UCSD and this was a very first bad experience. Not to mention our own personal experience my boyfriend had asked how long the wait is for blood work and she said “i don’t know” very rudely like it’s not her job as a front desk receptionist and then he kindly asks “do you at least have an estimate?” And she says “all these people are waiting so” As if it thats any help. We understand one can’t predict a time but the workers always know an estimate. Let’s say if she really didn’t, she could have communicated better and not acted like a teenager who hates her job and forced to be there. The bare minimum is she should never start her interactions with patients like it’s an inconvenience. How is he supposed to know how fast they go through blood work patients? Especially after we were told they are much quicker here. The UCSD number we called was for all locations and they told us that this building is pretty big and they are quick with labs and just said that they can definitely help us here and be more informative. Clearly that’s not what PRISCILLA did. I don’t think this work etiquette matches your guys standards. All kinds of patients who are already going through the worst with their health have to go helplessly to these appointments, I think the last thing any patient needs is a very immature and rude person who hates her job and clearly doesn’t enjoy being there to...

I will never return to UCSD Urgent Care.

I scheduled an appointment because I’ve been struggling with allergies that I believe turned into a respiratory or sinus infection. On the morning of my visit, I woke up with chest congestion and a burning cough. I mentioned all of this when booking.

The front desk staff was kind and helpful but unfortunately, that’s where the positive experience ended. After my blood pressure was taken, I was brought to an exam room where a male nurse told me to undress from the waist up, put on a gown, and prepare for an EKG. He performed the EKG, printed the results, and then told me to flip my gown around for chest X-rays — all before I had even seen a doctor.

I understand there are protocols when someone mentions chest pain, but no one even asked me what I was feeling, what my symptoms were, or gave me a chance to explain anything. I hadn’t been evaluated or spoken to by a provider at all, yet testing was already underway. At no point did anyone listen to my chest, check my throat or ears, or do any basic clinical evaluation. I wasn’t given any explanation about why these tests were being ordered, and it felt like I was being pushed straight into extensive (and expensive) testing with no medical discussion or consent. I told the nurse I wasn’t comfortable moving forward with X-rays and that I already felt uneasy about the EKG being done without first seeing a doctor. He simply said X-rays were “protocol” and left the room.

I sat there in a gown for over 30 minutes without any communication or update. Eventually, I got dressed and decided to leave. On my way out, I informed the nurse, and only then did a doctor step out and say I was next on her list. I voiced my concerns about the lack of explanation, the absence of a basic exam, and being left alone without any follow-up after testing began. The whole experience felt unprofessional and careless.

I would not recommend this location to anyone. Please save yourself the time, money, and stress and seek care elsewhere. This was an extremely disappointing and...