Dr. James Amos Savage, MD

I was one of Dr Savage's first patients when he moved to Memphis 10+ years ago. I was transferred to him by another doctor in his practice. Once his group went "corporate" several years ago, things have gone downhill. He no longer can control many factors, primarily number of scheduled patients and thus time available to spend with patients, which became sparse due to over scheduling. There has always been a long wait time, as there is in many BUSY doctor's offices. If you want a bubbly, friendly bedside manner, chew the fat type of doctor, search elsewhere. He is pretty much strictly business by necessity. But he knows what he is doing and has never steered me wrong. As to the terrible reviews, I have found over the years that you can take them "with a grain of salt." There are people who are unhappy or feel slighted for whatever reason - real, imagined or assumed - who then feel compelled to savage (pun intended) the doctor and/or his staff beyond reason with punitive motivation.… I would like to ask the woman who complained about his not wearing gloves as to why that upset her. He rarely if ever touches the patient, and if he does I have no doubt he would glove. After nearly 50 years in practice I'm confident he knows "sterile procedure." Any equipment he touches that touches the patient is either discarded or sanitized between patients per protocol. Moreover, the part of the equipment he touches does not touch the patient, and he probably washes his hands between patients per protocol, and this should be done where the patient can see it. So he should wear gloves why? To assuage an uninformed patient and further irrational fears about how the virus is spread? Lastly, I know cases where when the "no gloves" accusation has been made through being "misremembered." One in particular where there was VIDEO evidence of gloves being worn but the patient insisting they were not. People can and will say whatever it takes to harm somebody they want to harm. Just look at the "news".....

I took my 91 year old mother to see Dr Savage. He was rude, no bedside manner, and unprofessional with my mother and the staff that assisted him. He used no gloves . He yelled at her, his assistant and me. My mother stated “I don’t want to see him again. “ I am writing this so no one else will have to experience what we went through.

Please be aware that Dr. Savage did not wear a mask on my recent visit, was abrupt, and arrogant, and ran out of the room.

I left my first visit with Dr. Savage (I'm new to Memphis) with a bad taste in my mouth due to his bedside manner. I left feeling belittled. I want to preface my review with this background information: 1) I have been seen by an ophthamologist every six or eight months since ~2009, and been told repeatedly that the diagnosis of glaucoma is in question. I always have low ocular pressures. That's why the visits have been recommended twice/year. With multiple visual field tests. Over those years, there have been three ophthamologists. All have recommended the same thing, "Let's keep an eye on 'em." 2) I am a retired medical social worker. I am accustomed to language used in medical settings. And I have worked alongside many many doctors over the years, primary area of medical care being neurology. Here is why I will not see Dr. Savage again. For every question of his that I answered, and he asked very few questions, he grinned as if my answer was silly. The message I got over and… over was that I had not understood what I've been told previously. I have to presume he thought me dumb, uneducated? He would then turn immediately to his two doctoral students and explain to them that my answer wasn't REALLY what I was told by my last ophthamologist. That what I REALLY would have been told or what I REALLY MEANT was thus and such...Essentially, he repeatedly told me that everything I said was useless to him. He laughed at one point, and said that "Oh, you DEFINITELY have glaucoma. There's DAMAGE there. Then he had each of the students look at one eye to "see" the damage, apparently. What a way to give a diagnosis! With a chuckle and then out the door. Whether what he diagnosed was right or wrong, the way he treated me was poor patient care. He did not listen to me. He had a jolly time with his students though. Both of the students were more respectful of me than Dr. Savage. Oddly enough, when I saw him for a follow-up appt after starting on an eye drop (without his students present), he did a quick exam. Said, "Ohhh, you'll be JUST fine. Cuz you're taking your drops." Then quickly exited the room. No time to ask him a question or ask for clarification....So, are my eyes both damaged? To what degree? But now I'm just fine? Years ago I was assigned to provide training for doctors in hospital Grand Rounds. The topic was on listening and interviewing skills with parents of chronically ill children. Dr. Savage could have really used that training.

You wait an hour to see him and then he gives you maybe five minutes of his time as he is rushing off to his next patient. Very rude and uncaring about you and your needs. So glad I found a better doctor that is actually friendly I can talk with. Plus I found out he was wanting to do more surgeries that I didn't need!!!!

Dr. Savage is the best Glaucoma doctor ever, he takes his time to talk with you and really answers your questions. I am so glad he takes care of my Glaucoma, I feel safe being treated by him and his staff!!!!

Dr. Savage is an amazing Doctor, he explains Glaucoma and the severity of the disease in a way that makes you understand it. Glaucoma is irreversible and so I like how he is unwilling to let my pressure remain elevated for any length of time. I feel comfortable with him so I can ask any of my questions. He is an excellent doctor!!!

Blinded my left eye!

Dr. Savage operated, put my eye out without any remorse. He did wrong procedure on me, did not even say that he was sorry. Bad, bad, bad doctor.

Dr. Savage is an incredible doctor with years of experience. He always makes me feel so at ease with a disease that can sometimes be scary to navigate through. He is a great surgeon and I wish everyone had an opportunity to be a patient of his.