Dr. David Preston Shaw, MD

I am a female patient with an extensive history of abuse, and I only recently became fully aware of the extent of the trauma I endured due to dissociation. I initially sought treatment from Dr. David Shaw in my 20's for what I believed to be depression. After 10 years of prescribing me drugs of little help (without ever asking if I had a history of trauma), Dr. Shaw began injecting me with Ketamine (a dissociative anesthetic) starting with 80mg and then quickly moving to 120mg per injection of Ketamine weekly. I weigh 120 lbs and every injection caused complete loss of consciousness and amnesia for the duration of the session afterwards. After asking him to reduce the dosage, he eventually injected me with 100mg of Ketamine on one routine visit and then proceeded to allow me to leave his office (unconscious) 18 minutes after injecting me. I have ZERO recollection of this. I "came to" IN JAIL, after the drug he injected had worn off, and after being charged with a DUI - all due to him… injecting me with Ketamine and neglecting to supervise my recovery. He does not supervise patients that are under the effects of this dissociative drug and has no one in the office to do so. This is extremely dangerous, and proved to be so in my case. After this incident, I researched Ketamine administration and most clinical standards dictate that a patient is not allowed to drive for the entire DAY of Ketamine administration. The patient should be monitored for the duration of the drug administration and both be driven to and back home by a responsible adult. Dr. Shaw allowed patients themselves to drive both to and home from his office at their SEVERELY IMPAIRED and UNCONSCIOUS discretion after injecting them with Ketamine, dismissing them, and moving on to the next patient. I am not sure how I made it home all of the other times he dismissed me and let me wait alone while I decided (again, impaired) when I could drive the 45 minutes home. I have dramatically regressed since this incident - my PTSD and anxiety are unmanageable. The trauma of being arrested and put through the court system for over two years while I waited for the blood test to come back, the stigma and shame caused by his unsupervised Ketamine administration and resulting arrest, night in jail, and prolonged court procedures have been utterly debilitating, detrimental and have severely harmed my quality of life. The harm caused by Dr. Shaw's negligence still has a devastating impact. Prior to this event, I was transitioning careers, had just completed a rigorous continued education course and earned a certification, was interviewing, and fully capable of functioning at a high level. Since that day, I have been unable to function normally and have undergone intensive therapy to address the trauma caused by this incident. I am now thankfully in treatment with two very compassionate and safe female therapists and beginning to work on my ability to trust healthcare providers. Another incident of note: I also "came to" during one of his ketamine injection sessions (prior to the incident I described above - I have not seen him since) on his couch with a large bleeding gash on my forehead, and upon touching my head and seeing blood, I asked Dr. Shaw what happened. He then proceeded to tell me I "fell over" during the session and "hit my head on his rock crystal," and grabbed a paper towel and sprayed it with an alcohol based antiseptic and started blotting at my head without my consent. Looking back, this was a huge red flag. I had a large laceration and egg sized bump on my head and have no recollection of how it got there, other than him telling me I fell on his rock crystal. And then sprayed my head (yes, he also sprayed my head) with antiseptic, blotted it with a paper towel, and let me go. My hair was covered with blood near the gash and I had a very painful shower and a painful two weeks healing after that. AVOID THIS DOCTOR. I do not want any other vulnerable person to be

After having a literally impossible time finding a psychiatrist who could meet the needs of my complex situation, I found Dr. David Shaw. He is kind, extremely talented and generous with time when very necessary.Dr. Shaw is the best possible person to help me through complicated conditions and medications when others here in WA were unwilling or unable to do so.

Dr. Shaw is extremely knowledgeable in his field. He is one of the few psychiatrists who not only prescribes mental health drugs but can work collaboratively with his clients in therapy. His ability to listen to clients and respond in a way that is helpful is extraordinary.

Very easy to talk to, seems genuinely concerned with patient welfare.

Most comfortable pdoc I've ever met. Listened closely, made some changes and I've been much better in the last 2 years than in the last 10.

The first psychiatrist I felt I could trust!

After interviewing several psychiatrists for my son we found Dr. Shaw in Issaquah. After our first meeting with hime we could see that Dr. Shaw was a very compassionate and understanding person and had extensive knowledge in pysychiatry. Our son had suffered an adverse reaction to an anti depressant prescribed by another doctor and Dr. Shaw was able to determine this immediately and has helped him immensely. He has a calm and caring demeanor and never comes across as being judgemental. We are so thankful we found such a wonderful doctor!

This is a very caring and compassionate doctor as well as very knowledgable. I have a very complicated condition and he stuck with it until he found the solution.