Dr. Sievers' RHHC Medical Practice - Operations & Website

[wondering25]

I agree Knowing what little we know, I certainly don't believe she was deliberately oblivious to anything. My point is that service providers can be insulated or protected from having to be the perceived "bad" guy or only concerned about money. They can have the backup to be able to say something like "I'm sorry I don't handle that part of it, don't know anything about the billing. You need to talk to my husband or the the manager.". The doctor and the practice mgr can discuss it later and decide to under bill or reimburse, but it really is unfair to ask the doctor anything other than can we discuss a payment plan or something like that. In actuality, that conversation should never happen at a practice like this where it's cash at time of service rendered, prices are pretty much spelled out clearly as far as general charges, I imagine the patient signs something like I do at the doctors. Similar to a contract, if not an actual contract. Doctors have bills to pay. If patients don't pay, the doctor can't serve.

As far as donating services for indigent people, that's a completely different thing going into it up front not expecting payment and I suspect that it's more like regular doctor visit rather than a treatment course of supplements, massage, acupuncture unless those docs volunteering their services, too. I don't know anything other than to treat without payment in this case was her choice upfront. I imagine she expected her patients to pay so she could continue to donate her services.

This all kind of stinks, imo. This is like good cop/bad cop. The doctor knows very well what they accept and what they dont. they may not know to the penny but they certainly know (in these "alternative" practices exactly what they are going to bill that PATIENT BECAUSE THE PATIENT HAS TO PAY THE BILL BEFORE THEY WALK OUT THE DOOR.

First and foremost this was a business.. the business was engaged in wellness for a price. They chose to not participate in traditional insurance programs because traditional insurance just doesnt cover this type of care. I do not think there was any money shenanigans between MS and CWW involving the business. That is just my opinion. Whatever the reason for TS being murdered, imo, has nothing to do with the daily running of the office and money being skimmed or run through the books illegally.

Anything i write is just my opinion.

 

[FelicityLemon]

I guess I'm speaking from real experience. If you're sitting with your doc for an hour, it's not unusual for the doc to answer questions about payment, etc.
With that being said, I cannot see her NOT answering patient's questions re: payment/billing and just referring them to the Office Mgr.(MS).

Eh...what? LOL, I think I get what you're saying, but I feel pretty safe saying that all of us speak from "real" experience in regard to our doctor visits.

We all relate our own "real" experiences, but those of us who were not patients of TS can only speculate. She may have answered some questions, but still refer the client to the office/practice manager.

My doctors/dentist/whatever will answer some questions, but still refer me to the manager. I don't want to waste valuable doctor time having them try and justify their charges. I'd rather discuss my health. I can discuss anything else with the manager. If I'm unsatisfied, I will let the doctor know and the doctor can address it with the manager and I'll get a phone call, email or letter following up for clarity.

Not all practices are run the same.

 

[villager]

My grandfathered BC/BS was only good UNTIL I changed to a different BC/BS plan at the end of a year. I had a telephone discussion with MS about this when he told me I would now be a cash patient. I had gone to TS for years. I explained that the new fee schedule would cost me a lot more money. He said that her services were worth it. Not sympathetic at all.

 

[FelicityLemon]

I reviewed the Patient Intake Form located on Dr Sievers website - file:///C:/Users/Owner/Downloads/IntakeForm.pdf

In the beginning narrative section of the Intake Form, there are so many issues addressed which makes me wonder if they had problems with patients who are...

RUDE:
We reserve the right to discharge patients who are exceptionally rude to our staff as it creates a hostile environment that may compromise your relationship with office.

NO-SHOW:
We also have a ‘no show – late cancellation fee’ equal to the cost of your appointment. Unfortunately, this has become necessary in order to ensure that the allotted spot is utilized as other patients are waiting to see Dr.Sievers.

DISRESPECTFUL:
. . . making repeated phone calls in a short period of time to the office will only delay a response and we ask that you be courteous of people who have scheduled appointments and how you would feel if your appointment was interrupted.

PUSHY:
You may see Dr. Sievers or Sanda in the front office and you will want to ask them a ‘quick’ question. However, they are taking care of another patient at that time and discussion interrupts their thought process which affects the quality of another patients’ care.

OH, how I recognize the frustration that must have caused this to be published in writing! Yes, there are patients and clients who are exactly as described above and many times I wished I could have this painted on my office wall. :/ At first blush, I briefly had mixed feelings that it was actually put on the a new patient intake form, but on second thought: I applaud it. I've been appalled hearing a patient ream an office employee for something that had nothing to do with anything.

I bristle when I hear someone treat an employee with rudeness, condescension and a manager does nothing. I applaud the practice for standing behind and supporting staff as human beings.

There exist elitist, clueless, narcissistic people who think nothing of the behavior described above. Some people need to be hit on the head with a 2x4 before they recognize what they're doing and how it affects other people and even then some will think "well, that doesn't apply to me."

LOL, this was obviously necessary.

 

[CeaElle]

1-Frank was there during the 2 years I saw Dr Sievers. Great guy! He actually gave me my RECORDS when I needed them for a new specialist. He hit the print button and handed them to me a few minutes later....Just so I wouldn't get to my new appt without them because (he said) sometimes it can take awhile for them to be sent. Frank was great!
2- Sandra (SH) is not a nurse...it would be more appropriate to call her the "nurse" I was surprised to find that out here on WS. I too was a patient, It never occurred to me that Sandra was not an RN/LPN, as she was always described as "the" nurse and gave injections (flu shots, vit b-12), dispensed and instructed on meds & supplemants. I am pretty sure even their phone system referred to her as "leaving a message for the nurse." However, today when I searched the FL Medical License Lookup, there were two SH's, one is a nurse (RN) in Stuart FL, the other is a Basic X-Ray Machine Operator (BMO).
3-I can't tell you how many times Dr Sievers suggested cheaper ways to get certain supplements (at Whole Foods), cheaper food alternatives etc Buying the supplements in the office was quick, no shipping and she had the Gluten Free products I needed....also some sublingual choices that are hard to get I felt no pressure to buy anything. I agree, she was very sensitive to those of us who pinched pennies. When she found I quit taking some of the supplements, she loaded me up, free of charge with a six-month supply. She told me that I should call the office if and when I needed more, regardless of ability to pay. She allowed me to choose where I filled my compound meds and she was the one who informed me that Publix began to carry a particular medication that I previously purchased thru her office, saving me $$$. She was such a positive force, even when I didn't follow through with recommendations (gluten free, not a problem- but we laughed over my deep seated love of cheese and butter.) She would say "okay, what can we do to get you back on track"
4-I never saw Mark in the office either..not once in 2 years. I did periodically see the top of his head over his computer screen. I also spoke with him a few times on the telephone. I did not find him to be rude or offensive in any way.
5-That whole section that we are all finding so offensive on the patient info...was not on the website when I began with her. I doubt she saw and approved it...if so...it tells me whole lot about what she was dealing with in an office manager/husband. I worked in the medical field for quite some time, and can understand on some level why they wanted "Rules of Civility" in place. I have seen and dealt with some pretty intrusive, snarky, entitled people.
6- Dr Sievers was reading test results one night and called me to check on me from her personal cell phone..it was 9:15pm...How many Doctors do that these days...just saying. She was one-of-a-kind </3

I am an unverified patient of TS, and of course the bold blue statement are JMO

 

[Helper9693]

OH, how I recognize the frustration that must have caused this to be published in writing! Yes, there are patients and clients who are exactly as described above and many times I wished I could have this painted on my office wall. :/ At first blush, I briefly had mixed feelings that it was actually put on the a new patient intake form, but on second thought: I applaud it. I've been appalled hearing a patient ream an office employee for something that had nothing to do with anything.

I bristle when I hear someone treat an employee with rudeness, condescension and a manager does nothing. I applaud the practice for standing behind and supporting staff as human beings.

There exist elitist, clueless, narcissistic people who think nothing of the behavior described above. Some people need to be hit on the head with a 2x4 before they recognize what they're doing and how it affects other people and even then some will think "well, that doesn't apply to me."

LOL, this was obviously necessary.

I suspect the words rude, disrespectful, and pushy are projections on the patients regarding these behaviors...which is pretty interesting. People really do show us who they are if we listen...JMO

I never observed anyone being rude to Dr Sievers or her staff (not sure about people being rude to MS)

A no-show is a loss of income for the day...since appointments lasted an hour. No problem with that...

Pushy..interesting choice of words. Here is the deal folks...the office was VERY SMALL...after meeting with the Doctor she brought you to the front area where you interacted with Frank, Sandra and the Doctor ALL AT ONCE as you were "checking out"...paying your bill, getting supplements. asking SH questions about supplements, asking the Doctor clarifying questions about her recommendations, etc. While this was going on the next patient was walked down the hall right past this area...so for someone to jump into the middle of that "chaos" would be counter productive for sure. Once you were a patient though...and knew the drill...it all ran pretty smoothly. Maybe they had some repeat offenders in the phone calling or interrupting questions dept....Once you are established patient though...who goes back and rereads the website...not me.

 

[CeaElle]

OH, how I recognize the frustration that must have caused this to be published in writing! Yes, there are patients and clients who are exactly as described above and many times I wished I could have this painted on my office wall. :/ At first blush, I briefly had mixed feelings that it was actually put on the a new patient intake form, but on second thought: I applaud it. I've been appalled hearing a patient ream an office employee for something that had nothing to do with anything.

I bristle when I hear someone treat an employee with rudeness, condescension and a manager does nothing. I applaud the practice for standing behind and supporting staff as human beings.

There exist elitist, clueless, narcissistic people who think nothing of the behavior described above. Some people need to be hit on the head with a 2x4 before they recognize what they're doing and how it affects other people and even then some will think "well, that doesn't apply to me."

LOL, this was obviously necessary.

Thank you for stating this, I was torn on whether to address the posts about their "RNDP" policy. While I agree that the wording could have been softer, it was in place because each of the issues addressed likely happened more than a few times...JMO

 

[FightTheOstrich]

I'm assuming SH was a MA (medical assistant) then? It's pretty common these days for the doctor's "nurse" to actually be an MA.

 

[Scout]

SeeSeas post is being misread. The Rude, Disrespectful, No-Show, and Pushy headings are not part of the patient intake form; they were added by SeeSeas as part of the commentary. The paragraphs quoted are not a stand-alone bullet list. They're take from various portions of the form. In SeeSeas' context they appear worse than they are.

 

[Helper9693]

SeeSeas post is being misread. The Rude, Disrespectful, No-Show, and Pushy headings are not part of the patient intake form; they were added by SeeSeas as part of the commentary. The paragraphs quoted are not a stand-alone bullet list. They're take from various portions of the form. In SeeSeas' context they appear worse than they are.

Oh interesting...Thank you for that clarification.

 

[Scout]

Oh interesting...Thank you for that clarification.

You're welcome.

 

[Webjunkie]

I reviewed the Patient Intake Form located on Dr Sievers website - file:///C:/Users/Owner/Downloads/IntakeForm.pdf

In the beginning narrative section of the Intake Form, there are so many issues addressed which makes me wonder if they had problems with patients who are...

RUDE:
We reserve the right to discharge patients who are exceptionally rude to our staff as it creates a hostile environment that may compromise your relationship with office.

NO-SHOW:
We also have a ‘no show – late cancellation fee’ equal to the cost of your appointment. Unfortunately, this has become necessary in order to ensure that the allotted spot is utilized as other patients are waiting to see Dr.Sievers.

DISRESPECTFUL:
. . . making repeated phone calls in a short period of time to the office will only delay a response and we ask that you be courteous of people who have scheduled appointments and how you would feel if your appointment was interrupted.

PUSHY:
You may see Dr. Sievers or Sanda in the front office and you will want to ask them a ‘quick’ question. However, they are taking care of another patient at that time and discussion interrupts their thought process which affects the quality of another patients’ care.

I wonder if this was only Mark's personal feelings about certain patients or if he was reacting to TS/Office staff's complaints about certain patients. The frustration level of one team member can affect a whole group, maybe he was trying to help because TS or someone was telling him they were having these problems, and he created "rules" trying to alleviate those problems. The problems cited didn't seem like they would have been directly related to his job, except the no-show fee, which would come from TS losing income for time allotted those patients. The others are not money related. But as they say: If Mama aint happy, then nobody's happy!

 

[Webjunkie]

Sandra was her nurse. Frank, the receptionist/front office guy, is Sandra's husband. It was pretty much a 3-person office for many years.

I think that shows a lot of how new-age and cutting edge the Sievers were. Both females in that office were the more dominant/professionals, and the males more supportive/administrative types. I don't think I've ever seen a male receptionist at a Dr's office before. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that in my opinion. I think it goes right along with everything the practice stood for.

 

[PandaJ]

Just wanted to jump in here and thank all the "insiders" who have joined WS to discuss this case and TS' practice with us.

The fact that there are so many of you here just furthers the point that TS must have been such a lovely, caring, and well-respected woman who is undoubtedly gone too soon. I hope and pray that justice is served.

Carry on...

 

[Dmacky]

I got the impression from Madtownbucky's post that Sievers' office reimbursed her, not Medicare. It did not sound like Medicare was billed. Maybe Madtown eventually file a Medicare claim on her/his own.

It t has been a long time since I was an insurance biller for a hospital but even back then, when things were simpler, the whole process could become very confusing for the patient.

We are all anonymous on this forum.

I think Medicare was billed by the office because the patient was told that the office would submit the paperwork after she paid. But TS did not actually accept Medicare anymore, so the claim was denied and the patient was out the money she had paid for two appointments. I think TS had to reimburse the patient.

IMO The fraud was taking the patient's money under false pretenses, knowing she would never be reimbursed by Medicare. Doctors have to be truthful about their relationship with Medicare. It's unlikely this patient would ever have come to her if she'd known that Medicare was off the table. It's not clear who eventually reimbursed her, but I assume TS did. It's quite possible that Medicare somehow pressured TS to reimburse the money the patient had paid or they would charge her with fraud. I can't imagine TS being happy with MS about this attempted fraud, if she ever found out. JMO

When I called the office for appt., I was told that TS accepted Medicare[/u]. My appt. with TS was very pleasant and she spent a lot of time with me. After appt., I was told I needed to pay upfront and they would submit paperwork to Medicare for reimbursement. Saw TS for another appt. Before 3rd scheduled appt., I became aware that Medicare would not reimburse me since TS doesn't accept Medicare assignment. This totally blindsighted me since both office staff & website stated that TS accepted Medicare. At this point, I had already paid out close to $1,000.

Contacted TS office about why I was provided false information about Medicare. I was told that I needed to speak with office manager (MS). Set up appt. with MS to discuss the Medicare issues. Arrived at office and was sent to MS office. Showed him the office bills and rejection statements from Medicare. MS told me that TS no longer accepts Medicare and I was responsible for the charges. At this point, I became very upset and asked MS why I was not informed of their policies when setting up appts. or even when I handed over Medicare card.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...June-2015-*ARRESTS*-8&p=12041918#post12041918

To me, this does not sound like Medicare Fraud. It sounds more like a lack of communication within the office. If Madtown called and asked if they took Medicare, wouldn't the receptionist be the one who told her yes? And the receptionist would be the one who took her Medicare card? Since this was "about three years ago" maybe this was around the time that Dr. Sievers was in the process of taking cash only.
I have Medicare and I have never been asked/told to pay upfront and then wait for Medicare to reimbursement me.

 

[atthelake]

SeeSeas post is being misread. The Rude, Disrespectful, No-Show, and Pushy headings are not part of the patient intake form; they were added by SeeSeas as part of the commentary. The paragraphs quoted are not a stand-alone bullet list. They're take from various portions of the form. In SeeSeas' context they appear worse than they are.

THANKS :hug:

 

[Dmacky]

I swear I read a news article that was titled something like Dr. Sievers murder investigation may take awhile to solve Anyone? Nin!!!!
Anyway at that time, the article was talking about how all the computers in her office being seized, and patients files vs. hippa...
At that time, they were thinking it maybe was one of her patients?
I can't find it and I've been searching all the livelong day.

 

[dmac55]

I swear I read a news article that was titled something like Dr. Sievers murder investigation may take awhile to solve Anyone? Nin!!!!
Anyway at that time, the article was talking about how all the computers in her office being seized, and patients files vs. hippa...
At that time, they were thinking it maybe was one of her patients?
I can't find it and I've been searching all the livelong day.

Solving Sievers case may take time - WFTX-TV Fort Myers/Naples, FL
http://www.scrippsmedia.com/fox4now/news/Solving-S-322010141.html

 

[Dmacky]

Solving Sievers case may take time - WFTX-TV Fort Myers/Naples, FL
http://www.scrippsmedia.com/fox4now/news/Solving-S-322010141.html

:bow:

 

[observation]

Solving Sievers case may take time - WFTX-TV Fort Myers/Naples, FL
http://www.scrippsmedia.com/fox4now/news/Solving-S-322010141.html

Just important to point out that this is OLD news and before CWW and JR were both arrested for this crime. Would not want to see TS previous patients become fearful to post and share their experiences after reading the article.


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