Dr. Howard Arthur King, MD

I went to Dr. King years ago for a consultation regarding my Harrington Rod surgery I had in the early 80's. An x-ray was taken in his office and while I was waiting for the Dr. King to enter the room to discuss it with me I over heard him and his nurses viewing my films in the hallway. One nurse said something along the line of "how do you fix that?" and then laughed. I heard others laugh and and then someone suggested that each grab a limb and stretch me in different directions. Dr. King was involved in the conversation with the nurses. Normally, that wouldn't bother me if I was part of the conversation, but I was just part of the joke so it did sting. He told me PT was my only option. I explained I wasn't sleeping well and had migraines. He seemed to think I was drug seeking and rudely told me to go to a pain specialist. When I received my records from his office his notes did state he thought I was drug seeking. To be clear, I have not ever, nor am not currently on anything… stronger than over the counter pain medications, to the detriment of my kidneys unfortunately. I have since had a corrective surgery by a much more compassionate doctor. I would not recommend Dr. King.

Dr. King was my spinal surgeon and did a Harrington rod surgery for my scoliosis when I was 13 years old. I am now 31, with two children and living a very productive life. I have had no back pain and zero complications in the past 18 years. Dr. King saved my life and gave me a bright future.

My child, now an adult was left Grotestly and Horribly disfigured!! after surgeries preformed by Dr. King and his staff. She was being treated for club foot, both feet by Dr. King. He (after two previous surgical proceedures) planned another surgery. A second opinion revealed that if she were to have another surgery at that stage in her growth, that my child would never walk again!! While we are Grateful that she can walk short distances before the horrible pain sets in (& @ all), she suffers with EXCRUCIATING PAIN! ALL DAY, EVERY DAY!!! & was left with nerve damage that causes her feet to sweat abnormally and profusely!! Along with all of that, this Beautiful, Young girl has to live with these grotest scars on her ankles!! No cute shoes or sandals for her! : ( Don't let him be your child's ortho- Dr. for club foot related issues, especially if your insurance poor or a person of color. Thanks!!! Dr. King for caring about your little baby patient who is now all grown up now… and still suffering the effects/ affects of your "work" Signed: The family who loves her

Dr. Howard A King did my surgery on my back when I was sixteen yrs. old at Seattle Children's Hospital. He did such a good job that I am still walking and am still alive.

It has been almost twenty years since Dr. Howard King did my surgery and all I got to say is that he was one of the nicest doctors I had seen as a child growing up with scoliosis. He always was respectful and had a kind voice. I had a quick recovery. I was back to myself walking and doing my normal routine in a month! I know people complain about waiting time BUT here is the deal I have learn lately with excellent doctors: when it is a serious condition and the attention is needed right then and there they are there for you. You don't know when it is going to be your turn but being understanding that doctors cannot control those situations or times. Yet it is better being with a good doctor than a bad one who miss diagnoses you for two years! I am so grateful I had Dr. King as my doctor growing up and helping me establish the bar high when I have had to select doctors afterwards as I moved away. I never had any issues with my back at all and have been able to live a completely… normal life. Thank you so much!

After a routine back surgery I awoke in the recovery roon with servere back pain. This was caused by a damaged nerve. Dr King will not answer my letters or help me in any way. My advise is don't go near him.

It seems as if Dr. King is more concerned with his paycheck than his actual patients. Not only was the front desk lady rude but I only saw Dr. King once out the 5 appointments I had with him. The other times were his assistants. Also the staff also did not follow protocol to obtain medical records to the insurance company or my employer. If I had the money, him and his rude staff would be in a court room for the aggravation and stress they have caused me through this whole process. Which is something I have never done or thought about ever. When it comes to your health, I don't think they could care less. Save your money and go somewhere else.

Dr. King diagnosed my low back issue accurately and performed surgery. Everything was great in term so care until I was pushed off on his assistant, Angie. She was condescending, rude and uncaring. I had also been prescribed pain medication before and after surgery. I had never taken pain medication before and found myself addicted after the surgery. Angie treated me like I was an addict and a bad person. I only took what was prescribed. Luckily, my supportive wife is a nurse and she recognized that the care I was getting to deal with the pain meds was not right. I ended up working with another doctor who helped wean me off the medication properly. The whole experience with Dr. King's office was upsetting and horrible in general. I think Dr. King is simply too busy to properly monitor his patients. And, Angie makes it clear they want you off their patient list. Very disappointing all together, although the ultimate outcome was good. I no longer have a low back issue. But… the whole thing came with a lot more pain due to lack of caring follow-up.

Howard King is one of the best surgeons around, but keep in mind he is really busy. Follow-up care is poor because it gets pushed to his staff. This includes phone call returns and general patient management. A number of people (including myself) have also had issues with pain managment. They prescribe a lot of drugs and do not do a good job of helping people understand what they are taking and when to stop. If I did it again, I'd go to a smaller practice to get the highest level of care.

Dr. King refers out to be the best surgeon in town, but you need to be aware that he is generally too busy when it comes to follow-up care which is unfortunate. This is especially important as it relates to pain management, specifically medication. I was prescribed a lot of medication by his clinic in general and then after 6 months they decided I was addicted and completely cut me off with no plan or direction and it was obvious they wanted me off their books once I was addicted. I totally agreed that I was addicted, but expected to be educated and helped through the "weaning" process. There was NOTHING. His nurse acted like it was my fault I was an addict and treated me like a low-life. Their clinic prescribed every ounce of my pain medication and I never once called and begged for pain medication. When I was in pain, I called and they prescribed me more. I never shopped around (with other doctors) for medication either. And most importantly, was not educated or helped… through through the process to get me off the medication (which, again, I definitely did not want to continue taking). I luckily had an amazing general family practitioner who spent the time needed to help me get off the medication and be honest with me about my situation. I rarely drink and have never taken narcotics before my surgery, so this ended up being surprising for me and a very awful experience. So, in general when you are selecting any doctor make sure they have time for you in terms of follow-up care and have a pain management education process. Also, the clinic staff was often rude to me throughout the process - but, because Dr. King was so nice when I did get to meet with him - I overlooked it. One day I was in the clinic and two employees were fighting in the front lobby about their work space in front of patients and other employees. It would also take the clinic staff 1-2 days to return my phone calls (one per day, so I was not calling and calling them) and the schedulers often had a wait time of 10 minutes and then were rude when you did get to talk to them.Overall, I was very disappointed, embarrassed, humiliated and went through some very painful days until I enlisted the care of my primary physician. Since my experience, I have talked to a number of other patients who have had the same experience. I was told by several employees Intermountain Ortho was being sold to St. Lukes Hospital and I'm hopeful they will do a better job taking care of their patients. Be clear that I'm not saying that Dr. King is not the best. But, I do think a great doctor like Dr. King would make sure patient care is higher on the list of priorities and make sure there is a drug education program in place.