Spruce Medical Walk-in Clinic & Family Practice — Local services in Waterloo

I went early one afternoon to see this doctor. I'd woken up with a high temperature and tonsils swollen, chills etc. I didn't go to work and went to see the doctor at this new place that was under construction. The older lady in the front was so pleasant, really enjoyed her customer service. They only accepted cash that day cause I wanted a doctor's note. I got called in to the room about 20 mins later (I was the only one there) after waiting a short time to my surprise is was the young lady who had been outside leaning on the dusty wall laughing and carrying on hysterically with a friend. I figured she maybe was learning at the clinic and was on a break but nope it was the full on doctor. Still I gave the benefit of the doubt. She walked in, did not introduce herself, I said hi doc and proceeded to explain my symptoms....her phone went off and so as I'm talking she's texting, no eye contact, no professionalism. After I was done she wrote up a note saying patient said she didn't feel well. She never checked me, when I asked aren't you going to check my Temp etc? This very young inexperienced lady said you look and sound fine and she walked out the door to make a phone call which I heard her laughing as I was leaving. She clearly wasn't focused on work that day. I was extremely livid 😠 I returned to the front and withdrew our names from the list of her being our family doctor. She's lazy, inexperienced, walks around dragging her feet....just not very professional at all, I will tell anyone to never ever go there. Terrible terrible doctor, where I come from my mother has worked in the health field for years and so this kind of service really shocked me. The only thing nice was the new building and the receptionist. I went to a different clinic the same day right after and that doctor diagnosed me with tonsillitis. It sucked. Never take your...

Extremely rude staff at the reception. I am a mother of a toddler and I simply needed a note from a doctor about my child’s allergies as I had to travel outside of Canada on a short notice. The lady at the reception simply denied to even entertain me and kept on saying the child needs to be present in the clinic. I requested multiple times almost like pleading that all her allergy related information are available on the system in her file. This lady didn’t even put any efforts the understand my situation. I was concerned for my child’s safety and simply needed a note from a medical expert listing her allergies for her safety during flight travel and my stay abroad. Their staff really need to acquire basic knowledge about healthcare services and develop skills on how to communicate with patients/caregivers of patients. This lady was almost putting my child at a risk when she is already immuno-compromised !! In my 10 years in Canada, I have never experienced such level of apathy and complete disregard for children’s safety, from any clinic here!

I checked with Ontario Health Services and there is NO such rule that a child needs ro be present in the clinic to get a note for allergies! In fact, it is recommended to avoid bringing immunologically vulnerable patients straight to the clinic where they risk themselves by catching infections from other patients sitting in the waiting area, if the issue can be resolved without their presence. Clearly this person at the reception has no knowledge about the system and throws off negative attitude! It was appalling for me as a mother to have denied a note for the safety of my child! I would give a Zero star if I could!

I then went to the other nearby clinic (Waterloo walk-in) clinic and I got a note from the doctor instantly...

Amazing looking place, inside and out. The waiting room is well kept, clean, and quiet. Same goes for the checkup rooms. The pharmacist is very nice and understanding, too.

However, keep in mind that this place's hours fluctuate quite frequently and they do not update their website as much. It is extremely frustrating when you go for a walk in and find out that it's closed, but on their website it says they should be open. On top of that, you can't even book appointments in advance in order to counter this issue, since it's a walk-in clinic.

Occasionally, there will be no one at the desk and you won't be able to enter the clinic. I had to wait 20 minutes for someone to open the door for me as they have a stupid door sign in procedure that doesn't even work half the time. I came early and couldn't get a spot because no body opened the door.

The receptionists at the desk are also very unkind and are not understanding. If you call their number, 9/10 times they will not answer nor call back. They also stop taking patients 45 minutes before they close, so their operating hours are very misleading. I was told on the phone that I could come in at 3:50pm because they would be open till 5pm, but when I showed up they said they closed at 4pm. Not a great experience, wouldn't...