Dr. Patrick J Ward, MD

I happen to be doing some research for a friend and needed some information on Dr. Patrick Ward, Oncologist with OHC. In the information I found I was astounded by the characterization of Dr. Ward, the office staff and the OHC Center. I am sorry to hear the comments of the previous reviewers for this is not the Patrick Ward and staff that I know appreciate and respect. I tried to read between the comment lines to see why their treatment was so much different than mine. I believe that the underlying motivation for such negative comments have to do with the concern the reviewers had for their family member that were experiencing the tragedy of dealing with a devastating medical problem. Comments of these reviewers reveal the anxiety they themselves are dealing with and tend to blur the actions and care being taken for their friend or family member. I have been a patient of both Dr. Ward and the OHC staff for over four years. Having not only to deal with one variety of Cancer but… another more critical. than the first. We must stop and think about the Physician and staff whose job daily is to deal with patients that already arrive with little hope after being told they have a serious life threatening issue. Most Doctors in this field have the most unpleasant task of offering straight forward answers that are not well received because we have all believed that every Doctor will "fix" every problem, which is a lie we have been telling ourselves for longer than I can remember. Good Doctors are honest with their patients. That honesty in many ways is not what the patient wants to hear. What can we ask of these good people who have to deal every day with knowing that many of their patients will not fare well in their battle with Cancer. How difficult is it for all of them to know that they will win some but will not be able to save all. An incredibly difficult psychological challenge for all who deal with Cancer patients. I have known Dr. Ward for approximately five years. He has always treated me with great care, honesty and concern. I consider him my partner in my personal battle against health issues that he did not create but will fight the good fight with me. As to the staff in the office and the OHC staff in general, I have never met a finer group of people. I am still being treated there every other month. I am always greeted by friendly faces and tender care. The registration staff treats everyone with kindness and efficiency. The Nurses are truly wonderful and make every effort to see that treatments are professionally administered with not only precision but compassion and care. Volunteers support their efforts with kindness and offer their time to make the patients treatment experience better. I am truly saddened that the previous reviewers feel that these people and services did not meet their expectations but I challenge them to find a better place, staff and Doctors that would provide better hope for the patient.

This doctor Diagnosed my mother in-law with Stage 4 cancer, proceeded with treatment which started to work or at least hold it off for a while but then it didn't When the doctor realized that she wasn't worth his time anymore he told her she might have 6 months to a year and has been ignoring any ailments that pop up blaming the cancer. Not even bothering to check it out to see if its something that can be managed so she can be made comfortable. She has had to go to her PCP for help and found several things that couldn't have been managed with the proper care to make her comfortable. She is now having to do more radiation on 2 spots on her body again because he ignored it. I have never been so disappointed in how a doctor has treated a patient. No compassion. He made his money off all her treatments and now is throwing her aside when there is nothing more he feels is necessary to be done. I would suggest getting any doctor but this one if you happen to get an opinion from him.

Office Environment: From the moment you walk into the office, the environment is cold and caustic. The reception staff is most unpleasant...in fact, I've never seen anyone smile. I am unclear as to why an ONCOLOGIST's office would not be approachable and many patients are terminally ill and facing the end of life. Dr. Ward and his nursing staff is unprofessional to say the least. He tries to impress his patients with using SAT/ACT vocabulary, but it misses the audience as in our situation, my father had difficulty hearing. This is not the audience to impress with sophisticated language as the patients are scared and not in a frame of mind to have a doctor pontificate during the appointments. Appointments are dreaded as the usual wait for the doctor or one of his nurse practitioners is well over an hour. It is very dissatisfying to have a doctor rarely see his patients and sends in his unfriendly, inconsistent nurses to send mixed messages. After spending about 2 hours for an… appointment, you get to spend several more hours in the chemotherapy area. They are slow and not friendly as well. It can take another hour or so to begin the pre-medication for treatment and several minutes to hours in between IV bags. It is an ALL day appointment. They are not apologetic or empathetic. In fact, Dr. Ward is only interested in giving you his chemical concoction as he serves as a bartender in his spare time. He is NOT interested in the overall care of his patients!!!! Communication: There is virtually no communication between Dr. Ward and his patients. He NEVER returns phone calls no matter what the situation presents. We were told we would see him weekly, but may have a nurse practitioner from time to time. That is a farce because you will wait an hour to see his flunky staff who take their cues from the doctor. What a disgrace to medicine; especially for an oncologist. Do not enter, Pass go, or place your loved one in his care.

Office Environment: From the moment you walk into the office, the environment is cold and caustic. The reception staff is most unpleasant...in fact, I've never seen anyone smile. I am unclear as to why an ONCOLOGIST's office would not be approachable and many patients are terminally ill and facing the end of life. Dr. Ward and his nursing staff is unprofessional to say the least. He tries to impress his patients with using SAT/ACT vocabulary, but it misses the audience as in our situation, my father had difficulty hearing. This is not the audience to impress with sophisticated language as the patients are scared and not in a frame of mind to have a doctor pontificate during the appointments. Appointments are dreaded as the usual wait for the doctor or one of his nurse practitioners is well over an hour. It is very dissatisfying to have a doctor rarely see his patients and sends in his unfriendly, inconsistent nurses to send mixed messages. After spending about 2 hours for an… appointment, you get to spend several more hours in the chemotherapy area. They are slow and not friendly as well. It can take another hour or so to begin the pre-medication for treatment and several minutes to hours in between IV bags. It is an ALL day appointment. They are not apologetic or empathetic. In fact, Dr. Ward is only interested in giving you his chemical concoction as he serves as a bartender in his spare time. He is NOT interested in the overall care of his patients!!!! Communication: There is virtually no communication between Dr. Ward and his patients. He NEVER returns phone calls no matter what the situation presents. We were told we would see him weekly, but may have a nurse practitioner from time to time. That is a farce because you will wait an hour to see his flunky staff who take their cues from the doctor. What a disgrace to medicine; especially for an oncologist. Do not enter, Pass go, or place your loved one in his care.

He is very nasty. Does not like his patients to learn about their diseases and how to manage it . Writes snarky comments in patients charts ( like a school girl would) and when asked reasonable questions about treatment options makes notes impermanent records that patients was non complient with treatment and numerous other embellishments.

While Patrick Ward may be a good doctor technically, he has absolutely no idea how to deal with patients. Likewise, the staff seemed to take their cues from him. My wife has been a patient for over 5 years and in that time the soonest we have seen the doctor,r after being taken to the exam room, was 45 minutes. Most of the time it has been well over an hour. We now are having concerns about reoccurrence and have been getting horrible treatment form Ward and his staff. The last appointment we waited almost 90 minutes to be seen and still no doctor. We left upset. His office called and said they would reschedule. When we showed up today we waited ten minutes in the waiting room and then were escorted to an exam room. We were told he was across the hall with a patient and we were next to be seen. After waiting over an hour, with no contact from the doctor or his staff, we decided to leave. As we told reception to refund our co-pay, we asked where the doctor was. We were told he was… sitting in his office. That was the last straw. When people are dealing with life threatening illnesses and have legitimate concerns, the last thing they need is to be treated like this. His response as we were leaving was only "I understand." Seriously? I asked him if he understood, then why did he continue to treat people like this? He just stared with a blank look. We turned and walked out. If you care about your loved ones as they go through this difficult time, do not subject them to this type of treatment.

Dr. Ward's bedside manner is unprofessional. On the day my brother found out he had lung cancer, he asked Dr. Ward what should be the next step and he replies,"Call your clergy and write your will." Needless to say I attempted to have him find another doctor but he "stuck" with Dr. Ward and at the end of my brother's life he just sent him home and told him there was nothing he, Dr. Ward could do.My brother was in the process of finding another doctor, whom he had visited and had another follow-up appointment when he died unexpectedly from a hemoptysis that had not even been discussed with my brother or any other family member. I wonder if a pet scan may have picked up this condition and my brother may have lived longer. My brother was scheduled to have a pet scan the day he dies. The "other" doctor had ordered it, not Dr. Ward!

Dr. Ward is arrogant and not attentive to my needs. He does not spend any time with me, misses things and frequently does not pay attention to what I am saying. He does not examine me when I tell him about a problem and he fails to address my concerns when I bring them to his attention. In fact once, when asked by his nurse for my chemo visit if I had any problems and if I needed to see the doctor, I said yes and listed these problems. Dr. Ward had his nurse tell me "I will not see her now and I will not call her later. She can see me at the scheduled appointment on Thursday". I recommend strongly that no one see this physician. I have changed doctors.