I was apprehensive about surgery in general. After my first visit I was comfortable with the Dr. Assessment and plan of action, however it was time to dig in! I saw great credentials and some mixed reviews. Now I’m very intuitive and read between the lines. I can not speak for anybody's situation but my own. Bedside manner was the the main cause for low review score in most of what I read. With an open mind and my research of the surgery suggested, pros and cons, I came to a decision. Move forward with the surgery based on on amount of damage and length of time with injury. Also confidence in the professional opinion of council. Mind you that this is a powerhouse team of individuals that spent and dedicated the majority of there lives to be educated in their perspective fields, respect to them and all that do, plus the experience acquired along the way. Was the Dr. Warm friendly and charming? In my opinion he was likable and very direct, to the point pull no punches kind of demeanor. I get it, a lot of people, patients, patience and there is a lot of moving parts in a medical operation ( buisness) such as this. I noticed the day of surgery the Doc was focused and calculated, physical in a way I understood, I’m a very large guy on a table positioned on my side getting ready to be put under. He is a physical and fit guy but unless you put hands on someone to get a sense of the way they carry themselves you may be in for a big surprise if suddenly it’s on you to be in total control of manipulating what’s referred to as dead body weight. Again was he conversational? No and that’s not what he is there for, it’s game time! Focused and intent to get to work, that’s the vibe I felt. This was not poor bedside manner, quite opposite, there is nothing left to say time to get to work. My apologies to anyone with an experience, like I said no disrespect, that you had. I really wanted to review because it’s unsettling to read pre-op yet they (reviews) do help overall. My summery is simple: experienced, educated, powerhouse team performing services in a professional manner not trying to make friends but providing better health.

Submitted Nov. 15, 2022

Anyone looking for a competent surgical practice should look somewhere else, as my review would be zero stars if possible. I don't know how to begin to articulate my total disgust with this surgeon but here goes. Its long because I really think anyone looking for a surgeon should understand what they are choosing if they become a patient of this doctor.

My mother suffered a workers' comp injury and was referred to this doctor because he is one of the few providers in the desert with the specialty practice needed to remedy the injury. I accompanied my mother to every visit with this provider.

At our first visit we waited about 2 hours before being placed in an exam room (this was fast by comparison to subsequent visits). The appointments were clearly overbooked as there were more than 15 people already in a waiting room that can fit 10 comfortably. The staff is extremely rude, dismissive, and incompetent based on our experience. When the doctor finally came in the room, our first impression was one of arrogance and smugness. Somewhat expected from a surgeon but there is a threshold and he definitely crosses it. For as long as we waited to see him, the "exam" was over in less than 10 minutes from when he entered the room.

The next few visits were more of the same. We waited a minimum of two hours and for one instance, it was closer to 3 hours. I don't even know what purpose the additional appointments served except so he could bill the insurance. We also needed to get some paperwork for the WC administrator on one occasion and the experience was horrible because his office has no organization or structure.

After a few visits it was time to submit his findings so we could get surgery approved by the WC admin. He never made himself available to the evaluator by phone or any other method so, not surprisingly, they denied the claim. We had an appointment scheduled shortly thereafter and during the visit he couldn't care less about the situation. He also lied and said he spoke to the evaluator but the report provided by the WC admin recorded that he did not. He informed us we would need to appeal and that we should probably hire an attorney to help get through the process. This seemed like it was going to be a pain but my mother was injured and it needed to be corrected because the injury was getting worse over time.

For the next few weeks I began to research the issues involved and look for an attorney. A few days before our next appointment I received a call from his office that the surgery was approved and we scheduled it. When we arrived to the appointment I asked why his office did not inform us of the news because, last we spoke, I mentioned I was upset and going to appeal the decision. I told him I wasted a lot of time unnecessarily and I wanted an explanation. He was curt, appeared annoyed that I would suggest that he wasn't perfect, and abruptly got up and ended the visit. This was the last visit before the surgery so my mother was anxious and had a lot of questions to ask. Instead, he rushed us out and went to go hide in his office.

Now comes the truly disgusting part. On the day of the surgery, we arrived at the surgery center a half hour early. As they checked us in they informed us that they double booked and that they could not provide an open room until 5 hours later. When I spoke to the surgical center director he informed us that they had to push the day before and that he personally spoke to Dr. Ahmad's team and they were going to call and tell us. No one did. The surgery center could have called us too. The director agreed, and provided a sincere apology. We had no choice but to wait because at this point my mother was very anxious and extremely upset. She wanted to get it over with. The director said he would look at the schedule and see if he could do anything to get us in sooner.

The director spoke to me 15 minutes later and said that he had secured another room by getting another surgeon to push one of his cases a little later. Good news I thought. Unfortunately he spoke to Dr. Ahmad who refused to do the surgery. He told him we would need to reschedule because he was unavailable. This was not an appointment it was a surgery. We were horrified.

To add insult to injury his assistant called me a few hours later. She flat out refused to answer my question why we were not told of the time change so we did not get up at 4am for no reason. Then she went on to be totally disingenuous about what occurred and offered no sincere apology. It was the last straw.

My mother did not want to change providers after the first visit even though my instincts told me that this surgeon was going to be a problem. We gave this office every opportunity to provide decent care and they did nothing but disappoint. Absent drastic changes, I would be extremely surprised if any patient did not receive similar treatment. Consider yourself warned.

Submitted Nov. 12, 2015

Submitted Aug. 6, 2014

My 3 year old son was not seen until 2 hours AFTER his appointment. No apology was ever given for the delay. There was nowhere for us to sit, we had no choice but to wait outside in 115 degree weather as other patients waited in their cars. When we were finally taken into a room, the doctor walks in nonchalantly, chewing his food, sucking his fingers and never washed his hands. Didn't greet us, and tells me my son didn't need a cast w/out any explanation. When I suggested to Dr. Sohail Ahmad that overbooking may be the cause for the back-up, as the patients time should be taken into consideration he quickly got agitated and said he did not need to see me, I was in his office, and if I did not like it I could go elsewhere. He then stormed out of the room and I could hear him yelling at another employee telling them send anyone that doesn't want to wait to Hemet. Another woman came in telling me I should be grateful he was helping me, and he will run his office however he wants.

Submitted July 25, 2014

15 mintues office visit for an ankle injury. I was sent on my way with a prescription and a plastic ankle brace. Several months later I get a bill from these guys for my share of the deductible of $240 which is half the retail cost of the ankle brace. Keep in mind this is an ankle brace you can buy for $10 at rite aid. I then call the dr office for an explanation of this this issue. The office manager was not there and I would get a call back. Well some I call "punk" called me back. Right off the bat, he was very defensive, when I asked for the breakdown. He stated If I dont like it I should go to school to be a orthopedic dr. then he continued to state I want stuff for free. All I said was I was never told about the brace costing $450. Which my insurance company pays half. He then said Im looking for free stuff and I should go rob a bank. To make a long story short they made a $1000 from my insurance company and me and still trying to get another $240 for a stupid plastic brace.

Submitted June 22, 2012