Texas Center for Lifestyle Medicine — Local services in Houston

Started going to clinic in August. I’ve had serious health issues for many years. The medical community simply puts a bandage using drugs to treat the symptoms of disease and not cure it. While some disease may never be cured I believe our bodies have the ability to reverse the progression of many disease with proper nutrients our body is lacking. Dr Ruan understands the “whole body” approach to target disease. Meaning that if a disease is affected by lack of or too much of a hormone, vitamin or enzyme it causes a chain reaction in our body contributing to certain diseases and complications. I have complex autoimmune issues and through the extensive testing of my bodies chemistry it’s clear what I’m lacking and what I’m producing too much of. I didn’t get to my complicated health situation over night so I understand it will take time to improve and possibly reverse the complications of my diseases. The body is immensely complicated and MD’s do not have the answers to why, how and when disease start and progress so mostly just prescribe drugs to ease my symptoms and severe pain. I am at the end of available treatments for my severe Rheumatoid arthritis with conventional medicine so for me Dr Ruan and great staff are showing me how my body is affected chemically and how we can balance out the levels to improve my illnesses.

I’ve been able to stop using my insulin pump and use insulin pen which I thought would never happen! They are helping me (thru high quality vitamins and nutrients) improve things that were so low the lab couldn’t even detect or get a reading. Inflammation is so high that I’ve suffered for years and now I’m on a good food and vitamin regiment that is helping me. We are targeting my leaky gut which has been giving me so many problems with IBS, inflammation, immune issues, etc that’s improved already so I’m not taking anti-acid stomach medication and my gut feels better already so I feel better. I realize the complexity of my bodies functioning and my lifestyle choices of diet and medication like antibiotics and other prescription drugs have damaged my bodies chemistry causing severe issues for many many years. Now I am very hopeful for improvement and consequently I will feel better and possibly reverse much of my complicated health history. The blood work and testing they do is extensive and shows me exactly what my body is doing so I can see for myself ‘cause and effect’ making sense as to why I have so many serious health issues. I have been amazed what these tests have shown and baffled as to why my previous doctors never even considered testing these normal body functioning levels of blood chemistry to better diagnose disease and offer me solutions instead of strong drugs that they themselves have so many adverse side effects. I’m very thankful to my health team at Dr Ruan’s Group. Cassie, Kathleen and Dr Ruan are my hope for a better healthy life that I was feeling was hopeless is now hopeful and exciting to my future...

In an ideal situation, I would've completed my 1st office visit at this office and return to Google raving about the Dr. Instead I've sadly not even seen the good Dr. and likely never will.

Had set an appointment 2 weeks prior to confirm a medical diagnosis to start integrative treatment, and had fasted since the night before as instructed. On the very day of the appointment, I was still waiting for a call regarding my benefits and hesitant to come in until getting a definite green light (due to several reviews here stating how the office would accept an insurance plan but would bill as out-of-network). I called the office early in the morning of the appointment (as had previously done 2 wks ago, and twice the week before) and was told once again by Jessica that I would get a call back in 30 minutes regarding my co-pay. She oddlly also suggested that I call my insurance, BCBS, on my own to get the benefits info. This would be a 1st-- how does one exactly know what exam procedures, lab tests the Dr. would run to ask for prior approval and co-pay for the unknown service(s)? Due to not knowing my benefits info up until the 11th hour ON THE DAY of my appointment with a 45 minutes drive ahead (after leaving 4 messages already with a staff at this point), I ended up canceling a service booked over 2 weeks prior, not only wasting my time, and fasting for no reason, but delaying medical treatment. It could've been worse I suppose if I had come there to be told the fees weren't as expected.

As a healthcare provider myself, I understand that the office can become shortstaffed/busy and cannot return all calls on the same day, but no replies over 2 weeks later, despite my repeated messages is unacceptable and reeks of pure laziness and/or apathy and lack of sense of urgency on the insurance verifier's end. Front desk etiquette is the 1st impression of any business; judging from this incident, the receptionist team is doing the Dr. a great disservice. Hope the Dr. modifies his staff training manual or risk more negative comments about his front desk team.

I'm certainly not the 1st (nor the last) to comment on this, and have already taken my business (and potential family referrals) elsewhere as I'm sure other have similarly done per the reviews here. Had so looked forward to his treatments....

They don't pick up the phone or answer emails. The doctors and NPs are at least 30 minutes late every single time. I'm supposed to have lab work done and they won't submit the request. They will not answer the phone. Will not return messages. Will not respond to emails. Will not follow up from submitting online paperwork. It took me 2 weeks to speak with someone to schedule an appointment.

The first time I went to the their office, they scheduled me for lab work at 10:30am before my 11am appointment with the NP. They called me at 10:26am to tell me that they can't do lab work without speaking with doctor/NP first. They told scheduling at 8am that they could not perform lab work on me at 10:30am, but the woman didn't call to let me know to cancel until 10:26 after I already arrived. Then the NP was a full 30 minutes behind schedule. They wanted me to wait over an hour to be seen. I walked out.

Perhaps the doctors and NPs know what they are doing, but the management in their office is ineffective and absolutely pathetic. I had to cancel a 2nd appointment for lab work because they never called it in. Now I won't have my lab work ready for my appointment with the NP in two weeks. But I can't reschedule that appointment, because they do not pick up the phone, return messages or answer texts or emails. How do any type of medical office get away with being so poorly run in the city of Houston with top notch doctors on every single corner? I'm amazed they are still...