Online reviews increasingly play a big role in making the decision about which plastic surgeon to choose for your breast augmentation, tummy tuck, or other procedure. However, with the multitude of review platforms available, which often allow for anonymous reviews, it can be difficult to know how to really read reviews to get the best sense of a practice.
Dr. Ali and Dr. Tamir value feedback from their patients and encourage them to leave reviews. While word of mouth is often the most reliable indicator of a plastic surgeon’s office staff and bedside manner, and results speak for themselves, online reviews are often where people turn when they don’t know anyone personally who has been to a practice.
Here are some tips for reading reviews that will hopefully help you in your decision-making journey.
Read Reviews, Don’t Just Look At Overall Ratings
When looking at review sites, you should take the time to actually read the reviews instead of just looking at the overall star rating and moving on. A single one-star review can drag an average down, and often people will lower their rating due to factors outside of a doctor’s control, such as parking or the weather.
Taking the time to read a number of reviews will give you a sense of what people liked and disliked about a particular practice. If people are consistently raving about their results, chances are that you can be pretty confident the doctor knows what he’s doing. Conversely, if you see a consistent pattern in the reviews of people complaining about a particular receptionist, maybe you should brace yourself for a rude phone conversation when you call.
When reading a review, you should look out for the following:
- Details: Generic reviews that don’t go into much detail could mean that the patient just doesn’t want to share, or it could mean that there was nothing really memorable about the practice. Look for details about bedside manner, results, office staff, and follow up care.
- Consistency: Look for patterns across reviews. If many people are complaining about one thing, it’s probably a legitimate problem with the practice. If one person leaves a review saying it was the worst experience of their life while five other reviews go into detail about why it was amazing, the person with the poor review is the outlier.
- Things that matter: If bedside manner is really important to you, look for reviews that mention it. If you don’t care about parking because you’re just going to Uber anyway, discount reviews that complain about the parking situation.
Beware of Fake Reviews
Many review sites allow for anonymous reviews, which can skew a practice’s rating as anyone can leave a review, even someone who has never even been to the practice. Some ways to spot fake reviews include:
- Overly generic reviews with zero detail
- Reviews that get the name of the practice wrong
- Reviews that mention practitioners or staff that no longer work there (or never did)
- Reviews that complain about absolutely everything – this review might not be fake, but this reviewer probably can’t be trusted
- Reviews that are internally inconsistent or simply incoherent
In addition, watch out for reviews that mention the reviewer never even got past the initial phone call or consultation. People might leave negative reviews because they couldn’t get a convenient appointment within their desired time frame or because they cancelled last minute and couldn’t get a new appointment the next day.
Schedule Your Consultation
If you’ve read our reviews or heard about us from a friend, don’t hesitate to schedule your consultation by calling 602-513-8133 today. We serve patients in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, and other nearby areas of Arizona.
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A breast cancer diagnosis is overwhelming in so many ways. There are a lot of emotions. Dr. Ali Mosharrafa and his entire staff put me at ease at every step. After surgery, I was very self conscious, and the way I was treated with each visit helped me as much as the excellent medical care. Whether it is for an elective procedure or a surgery due to illness, I cannot endorse Dr. Ali more as a physician and human.
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Dr. Ali and Dr. Tamir understand that you have made an important decision by choosing to undergo plastic surgery, and they are committed to delivering the exceptional results you expect and deserve.