Dr. Thomas James Westwick, MD

Over the past many years, I and my husband have always found Dr. Westwick to be courteous, soft-spoken, kind, and very competent. He pays attention to details, focuses on and analyzes the lab data, carefully and clearly explains the data’s implications and then offers his informed professional recommendations. We both appreciate and respect him…see him as a dedicated, competent doctor who genuinely cares about and for his patients!

The reason the rating is so low is because this doctor is not friendly at all. He might be a good MD but he is not good with people. When he walked into the room he stated his name walk to the computer and sat down. He was very cold and not looking at me, he asked questions very apathetic way the whole time. We moved to this area from out of state and trying to find a good doctor and one that likes people. Maybe after all his years as a doctor he is burned out, maybe its time to retire. This might not be a good reason to give him a poor review but hey I like my doctors to be friendly, experienced and show that they care about their patients.

The first clue to a bad doctor is when they admit they are having a "bad day". I didn't need any doctor to bring his problems into the exam room and make them my problems, particularly when I was already there with my elderly mother to address her health problems. Actually, the first clue to a bad doctor is when they are over an hour late for the appointment and fail to apologize or even mention their delay. He did not speak upon entering the room. My mother introduced herself, then she introduced my sister and myself. He did not even acknowledge that she spoke. Briefly reviewing the computer notes, and without even using a stethoscope or performing any visual examination, he declared that my mother showed no symptoms of cardiac distress (she actually was determined by the associated hospital staff to have atrial fibrilation and congestive heart disease) and asked abruptly why we were there. I can only assume that he totally discounted her extremely swollen legs and… ankles and couldn't be bothered to listen to her heart and lungs. I mentioned that she was there as a prescribed follow-up visit following hospital discharge and that the doctor at her rehab facility had not made any effort to treat her excessive swelling or shortness of breath. I also said that if he couldn't help us, there would probably be some bad consequences. He stood and said that no one was going to threaten him. To be honest, my words were meant to convey that my mother's health would be compromised if he didn't perform a full examination. I was not threatening him, just stating what I saw as a fact. Dr. Westwick finally did perform a full examination and made some changes in medication. He told us that he missed getting lunch and had been dealing with some very demanding patients, thus having a "bad day". I also pushed his "hot button". These excuses didn't even merit discussion. This doctor is just too frustrating to justify whatever level of experise he has. Not a good choice.