Appledore Family Medicine and Pediatrics - Portsmouth

Can’t not recommend this practice enough. As an existing patient with alcoholism I requested a med to help with cravings. They don’t want to fill it until I came in for a visit. I scheduled a visit for the following day but pleaded for help. None came. I spoke with the practice manager that had a chip on her shoulder from the word hello. These people don’t want to treat you they want billing codes for your insurance. I felt like she had a stigma for alcoholics as well. A disease is a disease.

11/29/2023. Back to 1 star and taking my family elsewhere. There is still 40 minute wait to get a receptionist to pick up the phone. Looks like an ongoing problems with staff retention. When I came in they were training 2 receptionists. Access to records still had not changed - if you need to get them to fill out a medical form for school, learn to use a fax machine again or drive to the office. There are modern medical practice software tools that are HIPAA compliant and are used by other doctors and insurance companies. But it was the experience with doctor, S.H. that was absolutely offensive and inappropriate. I came in with an issue with a child. The doctor spent the entire meeting focusing on unrelated topics and as we were leaving, we were given a referral to see a specialist on a matter unrelated to the issue and NOT MENTIONED AT ALL in the meeting. Condescending at best, negligent at worst. This was not a trivial matter we came to see her on and got completely inappropriate treatment. The resident was attentive as they always are but they do not make medical decisions. Nov 2022. The front office is managed badly and billing is just awful. As several reviewers had mentioned, the wait lines on the phone can be upwards of 45 minutes and more. They don't believe in secure email and communicate secure info by physical mail or fax. Patient portal is not helpful. With two kids in sports, annual exams, and seasonal allergies, we are there almost every month. We had an outstanding $20 co-pay bill from one of the visits. No one in the office said anything about but simply passed on to collections agency. It's impossible to get the practice manager on the phone. In summary, someone seems to be checking the reviews and commenting but positive changes are yet to be made. Will be happy to update this review, if there is any new information. 5/5/22 There is new information. Appledore tried to get a hold of my husband while he was out traveling. I've called in on his behalf. They refused to talk to me. When he returned he called and asked why they did not talk to me. The initial response was that I am not on the HIPAA form. He asked to look it up. "Oh yeah, they said, here she is." So there we have it. Too busy to look things up and to bill you co-pay while you are in the office. 5/6/22 Spoke with the practice manager Jen. She acknowledged ongoing efforts to address the back office staff issues & limitations of the practice management software & partner portal, which is outside of their control since the practice is owned by a large hospital system. Added a star to reflect awareness & effort to address.

Posting this on an alt with a different name to prevent any potential retaliation as I am not currently in a place where I’m able to switch primary care offices. Myself and my immediate family have been patients here for almost 10 years now, and this place went from good primary care to a total nightmare very fast. Had called trying to get a sick appointment once to get a note for work and was told I’d be better off going to urgent care. Yeah thanks, double the price. Also: do not expect any phone calls to be returned in a timely manner, do not expect your medications to be refilled in a safe and timely manner (thanks for the seizure by the way guys), do not expect any level of decent communication. the staff’s usually fine but wow is this place a complete train wreck and a half. If I had the ability to switch primary care offices currently I would do so with no hesitation. All the professionalism left this practice with Dr. Marvinsmith by the looks of it.

We started a Appledore Newington a few years ago and from the beginning it has been a horrible mess trying to make appointments and being able to get through to the office. My 17 year old has spent more time at Urgent Care than he has seeing his own doctor because we have not been able to get through. Now, we have just found out he is leaving for a different practice and we have no one. It's been one disappointment after another. We really enjoy his primary care doctor but he will only be available 3 days a week at his new practice, which is also Appledore. We need better communication, better service, and the ability to actually see a doctor. This is awful. Unfortunately, other providers are not accepting patients. We need help.

Update Oct 2023: I’ve changed my rating from 5 stars to 1 star. All the physicians mentioned in my previous review have went to other practices. The number of patients on each physicians panel became untenable. The schedules became so packed I could never see my PCP. The environment became churn and burn. Staff at the front desk, who were once happy and pleasant left the practice out of frustration (this was shared to me by someone who worked at the front desk). Post Covid things sadly went downhill resulting in my family moving to another practice. I hope they are able to figure things out and once again create a positive experience for patience and staff. Previous review: Despite having some initials operational challenges with this practice, I have found the physicians to be outstanding. Dr. Marvinsmith, Dr. Richardson, Dr. Grover have been wonderful. They have taken my health care concerns (and of my family’s) seriously. I highly recommend.