Dr. Jon Terence Toussaint, MD

A number of years ago, our then teenaged daughter had a fracture in fibula with a large chunk of tissue that had been blown out by force of impact. Pain kept increasing, accompanied by temperature changes, altered hair growth, etc. He consistently and patronizingly dismissed our questions and concerns. On our last visit, by which time pain was intense stabbing, burning, electrical and had spread up leg, he whipped out a tape measure, encircled each calf, pronounced them both equal in circumference and concluded that there wasn't a problem. As he exited the exam room, I called out to him. He turned, impatient, and I asked, "What about all of this pain? She's actually whimpering in her sleep, and she's a stoic kid!" His insightful response? He actually said, "Tell her to bite her lip." and turned on his heel and left. Much later, the Head of Orthopedics at Albany Med examined her, listened to her description and told us that this was, simply and obviously, a case of Reflex… Sympathetic Dystrophy (name has since changed to Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome) caused by the fracture. Again, he said that the description of symptoms made the diagnosis obvious. He made referrals and recommendations. Naive that we were, we pursued treatment, but didn't think to address the incompetence of dr. Toussaint. Only years later did an attorney tell us that this was a clear case of malpractice, but that the statute of limitations made it too late to pursue. Which I will always regret. His behavior was unconscionable.

Daughter was injured in an accident resulting in minor fracture and some surrounding tissue damage. After fracture healed, she experienced persistent pain, skin temperature changes, altered hair growth. We made multiple appointments. Each time, Toissant dismissed her symptoms and our concerns. At one visit, he whipped out a measuring tape, measured the circumference of her calf and told her that her calves were approximately equal and she was fine. We made one last appointment weeks later because she was in such severe stabbing, burning, pins and needles pain, which radiated to her back. I explained that she was having trouble moving at work and was actually whimpering in her sleep, and that she was not the type to whine. He dismissed this and said that she was fine. As he quickly exited, I stopped him and asked, "but she's in a lot of pain and actually moaning in her sleep?" His appalling response? I quote exactly. "Tell her to bite her lip." Some time afterward when the… symptoms and pain worsened, we ended up in ER where Dr. Dana Mears, head of orthopedic surgery, quickly and matter of factly diagnosed her as having what was then called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, resulting from the fracture. Years and multiple surgeries and treatments later, we were told by a lawyer that it would have been an easy malpractice suit. I wish we'd done that because Toussant's attitude and ineptitude were among the worst examples of a physician's care.

For some 35 years Dr. Toussaint has cared for members of my family. My daughter was an infant when we first became acquainted with him, he then cared for my grandmother who was in her 80's, and now I am his patient. He is honest, and unlike many doctors today, he personally spends time with his patients to explain medical conditions and options.