Scripps Vs. Sharp Healthcare (San Diego, Chula Vista: dermatologist, health insurance, live)

[RosieSD]

My family has used Scripps Healthcare for close to 20 years. We've always been pretty satisfied with the service and quality of care we've received....until the last year or so.

It seems like quite a few of their primary care doctors have either suddenly retired or left in the last year (including the doctor we've seen for 15 plus years). We've noticed that the primary care doctors we see now seem very rushed and stressed. And, it is becoming really difficult to schedule appointments. Yesterday, I was on hold for 45 minutes waiting to schedule an appointment with a specialist, and when I finally got through to a real person, I was told that the earliest available appointment with any doctor in that specialty was 4 months from now.

My husband has experienced similar issues with scheduling at Scripps, not just with specialists, but with getting appointments with primary care doctors too.

Questions:

If you use Scripps Healthcare, are you noticing similar issues with scheduling appointments and doctor availability? (It's possible that my husband and I are just having bad luck).

We are toying with the idea of switching to Sharp Healthcare. Can anyone using Sharp share your experiences with them -- good, bad, etc.

Sharp Grossmont is close to home, and they have a large clinic there. If you've had any experiences with Grossmont or the Sharp Clinic there, please let me know.

In particular, how hard is it to get an appointment in a timely manner with doctors (primary care and specialists) in the Sharp system?

Thanks for any input!

(P.S. we definitely don't want to use Kaiser)

[elchevere]

Though it has been 7 months, Scripps was head and shoulders better than Sharp in every category. I called recently for a dermatology appointment (visiting next month) and was on hold for maybe 5 minutes and was given an appointment 3 weeks out.

Almost every appointment at Scripps (Torrey Pines) was on time whereas almost every appointment I had with Sharp was 20-30 minutes late. The billing department was much more organized at Scripps. You can call to make an appointment for blood work with Scripps. My primary care physician, Dr William Land, will respond to you via email. Being with Scripps was like having a semi concierge doctor at no cost. My last physician at Sharp actively tried upselling me to his concierge service at additional cost. No comparison between the 2. Scripps is to Peter Luger as Sharp is to Outback.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by elchevere

Though it has been 7 months, Scripps was head and shoulders better than Sharp in every category. I called recently for a dermatology appointment (visiting next month) and was on hold for maybe 5 minutes and was given an appointment 3 weeks out.

Almost every appointment at Scripps (Torrey Pines) was on time whereas almost every appointment I had with Sharp was 20-30 minutes late. The billing department was much more organized at Scripps. You can call to make an appointment for blood work with Scripps. My primary care physician, Dr William Land, will respond to you via email. Being with Scripps was like having a semi concierge doctor at no cost. My last physician at Sharp actively tried upselling me to his concierge service at additional cost. No comparison between the 2. Scripps is to Peter Luger as Sharp is to Outback.

Thanks, elchevere. That's how we've always felt too. Perhaps we are just having a string of bad luck with Scripps now that our long term primary care doctor has retired.

[CNYC]

I think it's like the airline industry. All the same more or less.

I have Scripps primarily because the locations suite me better. My ER experiences have also been pretty decent.

Scheduling an appt with any primary care doctor is a chore....ANYWHERE. It's not their fault its just how things are in regards to healthcare right now. I expect to wait a week when I call, although I have been offered to see other doctors in urgent situations which worked out for me.

My gripe about Scripps is Billing. I pay around $600 a month for health insurance and when I go to the ER I get ROBBED even with insurance coverage. I am debating whether to give my name as Mickey Mouse and say that I lost my ID. I received a bill pertaining to my ER visit under " North County Coastal Medical ". Who the heck are these guys ? Weird billing issues like that.

Scripps also has a tendency to bill you in several installments. You get one bill then think it's all over then a few weeks later another bill and another. I fear opening my mailbox after a visit to Scripps.

I had a friend that stayed at a Sharp Hospital for a week in Chula Vista and said it was ghetto. Who knows it looked normal to me.

I pay for dental insurance but get work done in TJ because its easier to book an appt there and the cost is less....even with insurance. I also just found a good dermatologist in TJ. Cost is just a little less than SD but the ease of booking appointments is more attractive.

Rosie....it really doesn't get any better....give or take a few things. With the system already strained and the increasing number of added strains to the system it will take a miracle to fix it.

Good Luck...eat your veggies and live a healthy life.

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by elchevere

Though it has been 7 months, Scripps was head and shoulders better than Sharp in every category. I called recently for a dermatology appointment (visiting next month) and was on hold for maybe 5 minutes and was given an appointment 3 weeks out.

Almost every appointment at Scripps (Torrey Pines) was on time whereas almost every appointment I had with Sharp was 20-30 minutes late. The billing department was much more organized at Scripps. You can call to make an appointment for blood work with Scripps. My primary care physician, Dr William Land, will respond to you via email. Being with Scripps was like having a semi concierge doctor at no cost. My last physician at Sharp actively tried upselling me to his concierge service at additional cost. No comparison between the 2. Scripps is to Peter Luger as Sharp is to Outback.

I've only ever waited beyond the appointment time once at Sharp, and it was clear that department was simply crunched - they had several unscheduled emergency issues that day. All (I think) Sharp physicians are available by email, for maybe the last seven years. You can call to make an appointment for blood work with Sharp. I am not aware of any concierge service offered for additional cost by any Sharp physician, so that must have been of his/her own devising.

I do have an issue with getting appointments at Sharp. If it's not an active issue, it can be a few months. Sharp simply doesn't have enough practitioners to keep up with their work load, is my conclusion. We've found this to be true in family practice, dermatology, and ophthamology.

My experience with Sharp has been mostly at Rancho Bernardo. I was seeing an opthomologist at Sharp Grossmont while my usual guy was out on medical leave, and had no problem getting appointments or being kept waiting.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by CNYC

I think it's like the airline industry. All the same more or less.

I have Scripps primarily because the locations suite me better. My ER experiences have also been pretty decent.

Scheduling an appt with any primary care doctor is a chore....ANYWHERE. It's not their fault its just how things are in regards to healthcare right now. I expect to wait a week when I call, although I have been offered to see other doctors in urgent situations which worked out for me.

My gripe about Scripps is Billing. I pay around $600 a month for health insurance and when I go to the ER I get ROBBED even with insurance coverage. I am debating whether to give my name as Mickey Mouse and say that I lost my ID. I received a bill pertaining to my ER visit under " North County Coastal Medical ". Who the heck are these guys ? Weird billing issues like that.

Scripps also has a tendency to bill you in several installments. You get one bill then think it's all over then a few weeks later another bill and another. I fear opening my mailbox after a visit to Scripps.

I had a friend that stayed at a Sharp Hospital for a week in Chula Vista and said it was ghetto. Who knows it looked normal to me.

I pay for dental insurance but get work done in TJ because its easier to book an appt there and the cost is less....even with insurance. I also just found a good dermatologist in TJ. Cost is just a little less than SD but the ease of booking appointments is more attractive.

Rosie....it really doesn't get any better....give or take a few things. With the system already strained and the increasing number of added strains to the system it will take a miracle to fix it.

Good Luck...eat your veggies and live a healthy life.

Thanks, CNYC. We have wondered if the changes we're experiencing are related to the wider issues in healthcare right now. Our old primary care doctor, who we saw for 15 years and know well, was pretty frank that she was taking early retirement because she was sick of the increased paperwork. I think you are right in that there probably isn't going to be a major difference (in a positive sense) anywhere else.

I do feel a little better about things right now because the office of the specialist I was trying to get an appointment with yesterday just called to say they've decided they can now fit me in two weeks from now instead of November.

[mauialoha]

Hi Rosie,
My wife works for Scripps and we've been with them for 14 years. I had very succesful treatment a couple years ago at Green Hospital and I am not impartial, I think Scripps is the best

That said, Scripps has just recently switched over to an entirely new copmputer system software, called Epic. My wife is dealing with the transition and it has not been smooth. So these issues could very likely be involved in what you are experiencing. Hope it works out for you - personally I haven't had any trouble making appointments.
Dave

[cruitr]

I've been using Scripps since I moved to San Diego in the early 2000's. My PCP is at Scripps Rancho Bernardo. If I need a specialist I go to Scripps Green or Scripps La Jolla which are closer to home. I have no problems getting appointments when needed. My PCP always answers questions and refers me to specialists within 24 hours using MyScripps.org.

Luckily I have no major medical problems but I can't say enough good things about Scripps. I rarely talk with my peers about healthcare, but when I do their complaints are usually about Sharp.

[AADAD]

Stick with Scripps Rosie. That's my .02 after working there for six years. I also had the proverbial hold times but once you are there resources are better organized and imho stronger.

[loveautumn]

Been with Scripps for decades, from their humble beginnings to what they are now and I wouldn't switch.