Dr. Daniel Paul Mirda, MD

While I have found Dr Merda very articulate, and attentive, I find the office staff demeaning, dismissive and block my access to care. Interesting times in healthcare.

I am not one to post a negative review but my experience with Dr Mirda was one of the worst I have ever had in my life. Three days ago was the second anniversary of my younger brother's death and unfortunately Dr Mirda was his physician. I accompanied my brother when he first saw Dr Mirda and he was convinced it was possibly Multiple Myeloma. My brother had been on pain medication for two back surgeries and the pain was getting worse. My brother had requested anesthesia for the biopsy Dr Mirda wanted to perform because he was concerned about the pain due to his level of medication he was already taking after back surgeries. Dr Mirda promised to have an anesthesiologist standing by. They took my brother in for the biopsy and returned him to the room and he was awake and in excruciating pain and he told me they didn't put him under and he could feel the pain of the needle into his bone and was screaming and they put pressure on his back to hold him down. When the results came back,… there was inefficient material to diagnose, so they had to do a second biopsy and this time he was given anesthesia and he was able to get a sufficient sample. What he told us was that they couldn't make a diagnosis as to what it was, but it wasn't Multiple Myeloma, so we should just give it time and see how things progressed. Shortly thereafter, when he didn't appear to be thinking clearly and his feet were so swollen, I took my brother to Napa ER. They were so professional and caring. Since I had been his primary caregiver, they were appreciative for all the information on his medical history I could give him. They said it appeared he was in kidney failure and was hospitalized. Dr. Mirda saw him the next day but was not communicating with me and I got information from the hospitalist and our primary care Dr. My brother continued to get worse and was having difficulty walking and continued to have blood in the urine. I kept asking if he could rule out prostrate or bladder cancer and I was dismissed. Fast forward, he was released to SNF in our town and I took him to his urologist who examined him and determined he had advanced bladder cancer. Prior to this appt, I obtained all my brothers medical records from Napa Valley Hospital and to my shock and horror as I read through those pages, it showed that Dr Mirda had ordered a Pet scan when my brother was first hospitalized which showed he had cancer in every bone in his body and possibly in the brain. He never disclosed this to either of us and led us to believe that it could be some other kind of bone disease and they would monitor it. My brother thought he had a reprieve and so did I. After the visit with his urologist who is a wonderful Dr, he referred me to an incredible oncologist in Petaluma/Santa Rosa and she was so kind and so honest and she took over his care. She did other scans that confirmed bone cancer everywhere but not in his brain. She gave him perhaps a month. As he was so far advanced in the cancer, he opted at that point to not do treatment, but to make him as comfortable as possible. Managing his pain was awful and he died shortly thereafter at his home with Hospice, myself and my kids by his side. He was only 60 years old. Had he known about that PET scan, he might of considered treatment to give him more time, especially to get his affairs in order and say goodbye. The topper to all of this was a phone call I received from Dr Mirda who had the audacity to say "if I had known he had bladder problems, it would of helped! No you dismissed me when I asked you to rule out bladder or prostrate cancer. I told him that he took away his opportunity to get his affairs in order and say goodbye and his response was "With his overall medical issues, if he didn't have his affairs in order by now, he never would of". He was arrogant, cruel and it had been obvious he had resented being asked questions and my being an advocate and spokesperson for my brother. As long as Dr Mirda is fully in charge and not questioned and you accept his diagnosis, everything would probably be fine. However, I would ask to see tests and records so you know he is telling you everything. The irony was a former client of mine. who was in his office the first day I took my brother to see Dr. Mirda, also ended up in the same SNF room as my brother after being hospitalized and released. This man had advanced lung cancer and was clearly dying and yet he told him "he would be fine". I knew his wife too and she had difficulty when she pressed Dr Mirda for answers as her husband was deteriorating in front of her eyes. I helped the wife obtain her husbands most recent reports that indicated he was terminal. He died a few weeks later. So Dr Mirda took it upon himself in these two cases to play God and not allow the patient to know the extent of their illness or that they were terminal. I know he has helped others and when you have cancer, you trust your doctor as feel your life is in their hands. I seriously considered suing him, but was so devastated by my brothers loss and the way he was treated and died, I didn't proceed. Be forewarned. Obtain copies of all your tests and reports because he may determine for you that it is in your best interest not to know. Believe me, that couldn't be further from the truth and caused so much pain and grief for our family.