Dr. Craig Jon Vine, MD

I was a patient with Dr. Vine for five years. He did a fine job maintaining medication, and I never had a problem with him or his immediate staff. Unfortunately, he practices at Pscyh Recovery, Inc. on University Ave. in St. Paul. The billing department there, led by one Laura Zachmann, Clinic Administrator, is unconscionably incompetent. When they make a mistake, they treat you sanctimoniously, and insist that it must be your fault. The therapist I was seeing at the clinic in conjunction with Dr. Vine for meds was forced from her practice at Psych Recovery because her income and ability to carry on with her patients there was so badly damaged by paperwork mistakes. While I would recommend Dr. Vine, I can't recommend seeing him until he leaves Psych Recovery, Inc. for a competent practice.

Dr. Vine has been treating me for a number of years and he has always taken the time to adjust medications and try different variations of the medications to see if they may work a bit better. His old nurse and new nurse are both very caring people and they have done everything in their power to make me feel better. Some of the conditions we patients suffer from are not going to go away - all they can do is try to make us feel better, and Dr. Vine and his staff have tried to do this for me. Those who have a negative impression may think there is a "silver bullet" for our condition and he isn't finding it. This is an incredibly complex area of medicine

I am not sure why some people choose to practice psychiatry when they obviously have neither the calling nor the passion for the profession. Unfortunately, Dr. Vine is either burnt out or never had a calling to provide quality psychiatric care in the first place. My first visit to this provider was very disappointing, to say the least. The nurse who did my intake was very matter-of-fact, no sign of compassion, and Dr. Vine -- even more so. I felt as though I were a non person who was being hurried through an assembly line. It appeared my concerns were not heard or given consideration. I felt no sense of compassion, empathy or warmth from Dr. Vine and the whole experience was quite sterile. There was no eye contact. I was quickly evaluated and written a prescription. I waited a month and a half for my appointment and my entire time of face to face contact with Dr. Vine (if you can call it that with no eye contact) was no more than ten minutes.

Dr. Vine spent very little time with me. There was no patient-doctor relationship. It is very doctor driven care with little concern for questions. I brought a friend with to an appointment and their comment was, "He doesn't see you as a person." Exactly. He's always in a hurry, rarely makes eye contact and believes in quickly prescribing drugs rather than helping people find their way back to optimal health.

Making the appointment was easy. I was not given instructions to come early and the staff at the front desk did not provide clear instructions as to what they wanted when I arrived. Rather than sending paperwork in advance or having it available online like many other clinics, they give you a stack of paperwork to complete upon arrival.They then ask the same questions in the sit-down interview. Everyone's time would be much better spent if this paperwork could be completed and submitted in advance. When a nurse finally called me back, she disciplined me for being late, although I was on time for the appt. I told her no one informed me to come early, but she was cranky nonetheless. The nurse did a thorough interview and eventually warmed up a little, but I still felt guarded, which is not the way to feel when approaching psychiatry. I did get in to see the doctor, Craig Vine. His manner was fine, but I felt like my thoughts were not considered and the visit was so short I didn't get… time to establish a rapport with him. In the end, I left feeling like I had been through an assembly line rather than a medical care plan. This is a physician-driven practice, not a patient-doctor approach. I would not recommend this facility to others.

Dr Vine and his nurse, Doreen, have been extremely supportive and professional. I started seeing Dr Vine in 2006 and he has been able to stabilize my bipolar disorder and I have not had to be inpatient since then

Dr Vine does an excellent job. I have complete trust in his judgement. He has always taken the time to listen and he has been very patient with me even when i have been incompliant and difficult. I always know that even when i have not liked his recomendations he always has my best interest in mind.