No person has the right to decide my values. I was not allowed the disability i deserved for actual Catatonia and a phq9 of 27. I was required to work when it was impossible for me to do so and it was his word that denied me income for all of 2022. I finally received the SSDI disability i deserved as of 8/13/2021 the last day i was even remotely able to work and he refused to let me have it - he even told me to simply do the bare minimum which was impossible for me - he said if i did not continue working while disabled i would get zero money that prophecy was fulfilled. I got zero income from 6 weeks after my THR surgery. Now that i have my SDI disability i am safe and i am going to go back for the actual disability i deserved that he denied me. I am beyond livid - i told him my truth in my last appointment "I would rather die than follow your advice anymore" That is my truth and now that SSDI has granted me permanent disability i do not have to sue him. I will simply put my experience in my memoir - "Finding My Voice"

Submitted Aug. 15, 2023

TL/dr: Do not recommend for anyone who is not a neurotypical white man.

I left Dr. Hoiness' practice because I got the feeling that he's low key racist and misogynistic and had basically given up on me after throwing a few unhelpful anti-depressants at me. I now have a diagnosis of autism. This explains my lived experience and my other mental health issues are significantly alleviated. My new psychiatrist was surprised that Hoiness had missed what she considers to be obvious autism.

Submitted March 1, 2021

Relationships between providers and patients matter in all of medicine, but this is especially true in mental health. During the four years I saw him, I never had a real relationship with Dr. Hoiness. I dreaded our appointments because I felt like I was entering an adversarial situation where I was being judged from on high as a hopeless case until I could prove otherwise. (In fact, I privately started thinking of him as "his Hoiness.")

Like so many mental health patients I grew up in an abusive home, and I was accustomed to being treated as an object instead of a person; so none of this struck me me as problematic at the time. Then Virginia Mason sent me an letter saying that he was moving on to a new practice and that he wasn't going to take me with him as a patient. There was no personal word from him or sense that he cared about the patients he was leaving.

When I did find a new psychiatrist, I was surprised by her warmth and interest in my whole self. I realized that psychiatrists can and do treat patients with dignity and respect, and that the problem was more with Dr. Hoiness' approach.

If you have a garden-variety chemical imbalance and you're looking for someone to manage your medication, I'd recommend Dr. Hoiness. He knows his stuff on the meds side. But he's not a relational guy, so if your mental health issues stem from trauma (especially of the childhood variety), steer clear.

Submitted March 12, 2018

Dr. Hoiness has really helped me many times over in so many ways. Often I have been dissorganized, stressed out, or generally in a bad way, but he is happy to see me at those times as well as when I have made progress. A previous psychiatrist once insisted to me that I would never become a writer. Under Dr. Hoiness's care, I worked and worked on my writing goals and just published my first book. It really helps when a mental health professional believes in one's dreams. There are SO many things a crazy person can accomplish. Dr. Hoiness is an excellent doctor and very professional. Also, he always looks like he takes good care of himself, which I think is important. The psychiatrist before him in a different city didn't. Dr. Hoiness is wonderful.

Submitted June 16, 2015

Uncaring, uninterested psychiatrist, something of a hall monitor. No creativity, no attempts at goals. Bad apple.

Submitted April 17, 2014

Just seemed very uninterested felt like I was taking up his time.

Submitted Jan. 9, 2014

I had never left a doctor's office in tears before today. At least I have the poor folks lined up in the waiting room as my unwilling witnesses; Dr. Hoiness did not wait until his door was shut...he proclaimed from all the way down the hall that I would not be his patient for much longer! I was late five minutes, after all. And with depression and severe ADHD, I am not quite sure why he would expect much mor. Perhaps those five minutes really were crucial, and he truly was offended enough on a personal level to challenge my self-care, respect, and even self-worth once we were in actual privacy. That was why I scheduled the emergency appointment after all...his medications were no longer working. I wish he would have listened rather than chided me like...well, like a mentally incapable patient. Now I have no medication, no doctor, and, to be quite frank, not a whole lot of hope that I'll find either any time soon.

Submitted July 11, 2013

I've been seeing doctor Hoiness for 3 years. My insurance doesn't cover him, but every time I've tried a "covered" psychiatrist I have immediately come back to him. It is worth paying a little extra. First, he really listens to you, unlike many doctors who barely look away from their computer or their notepad. In fact, I have never seen him write anything down. Yet 3 months later, I come in to my next appointment and he asks me all minds of questions about issues or events I me talked about in our last appointment. He helped me through trying various medications, patiently listened to my issues with side effects, and eventually we found the right one. I will definitely continue seeing him and would recommend him to anyone seeking help from a psychiatrist.

Submitted May 15, 2013

Dr. Hoiness was treating my wife for MDD. After several months, my wife decided to see a different psychiatrist that was closer to our home, and had been treating her through an out-patient group class. After we informed Dr. Hoiness that we were going to another psychiatrist and came for a final appointment, he was extremely rude to my wife and made her cry. He asked what she was there for if she was going to another psychiatrist and acted completely unprofessionally. I was shocked that a medical doctor would behave like a 8 year old child that didn't get its way. For the four months that my wife was seen by Dr. Hoiness, I was not impressed. The direction of treatment seemd to be more medicine in higher doses.

Submitted June 20, 2011

He seems like a smart guy. He also seems totally uncaring. His interest seemed to be getting me out of his office as quickly as possible. The visit costs $300 so that's $1,200 an hour. Yes, I'd have to say his is a smart guy.

Submitted June 7, 2010