Kaiser Permanente Interstate Medical Office Central

I have been with Kaiser for close to 21 years now. First in Northern California, then in Southern California, mostly from the Irvine locations, and now here in Portland Oregon and in all three geographical locations they have been AMAZING! The staff, the doctors, having everything under one umbrella and everyone having access across the board from my past appointments, to all of my past imaging to past medications, tests, etc. just AMAZING. Oh, and having easy access to email any one if a number of my doctors as well as reordering medications and having them ship to your doorstep in two days. WOW.
Than folks on top of all that… I was a couple of hours from dying on November 6^th 2015 at the Ontario California hospital due to extensive blood clots which required a Faschiotomy surgery to save my life. The have my wife a ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ chance of surviving the surgery and a 10% chance of surviving at all. I was in ICU unconscious for 18 days. Then ten days later they found my left leg to be necrotic and had to amputate my left leg. 70 days total in the hospital getting out January 14^th 2016. Well I was a huge fan of Kaiser’s before this happened and on top of that they saved my life!!!
God Bless everyone at Kaiser everywhere!

Kaiser in Portland (not just the Interstate office) has a few good doctors, especially their walk-​in care and ER, but their services in general are are the worst I’ve encountered. Getting to your doctor, the email system, the lack of response, no one getting back to you about test results (I know how to do computers and believe me, it is not that I can’t use
it is that it doesn’t work well), the lack of time allowed for SERIOUS health issues all point to a bean-​counter facility. I’ve had a doctor make a mistake and cut me, and the so-​called review boards dropped it so I am now going to find a lawyer. I’ve had serious tests not ordered when they were discussed. I’ve had, in short such terrible care there. We will be looking for a new place. We went to them because they were rated #5 in the country (Portland’s KP) and if that is true, then our medical system is the worst on the planet.

I’ve had Kaiser on and off for about 10 years. I know a lot of people either love or hate them, but I was just kind of «whatever» about it as a whole. The old facility I used to go to was older and not a «well-​oiled machine», so to speak. My hopes for this visit were low since the bar had been set as such.
I arrive to my appointment with my brand new doctor and LOVED her and her assistant. They were kind, concerned and funny. I don’t normally leave medical offices joking with medical assistants, but this was a whole new world for me.
Anyway, I had to get several tests, including labs and some imaging. Dropped my rx off and had planned to return once done with imaging, but they told me to hang tight and 5ish minutes later, I had my prescription in hand. What did I just experience?! It’s a small thing, but huge for someone who is likely already spending too much time somewhere they would rather not be.
Imaging was done after and off I went. Every single person I encountered was incredibly pleasant and helpful.
One thing to keep in mind if you haven’t been: The campus is HUGE so pay attention to where you park, what elevator you take, what building you wind up in and what corridor you take.
Ask for directions if you’re unsure. Trust me.
Well done Kaiser. This facility doesn’t suck.

First of all, I haven’t had entirely terrible experiences with Kaiser. The care I received after my spine surgery was good, and my current primary care doctor is really sweet.
However, recently I have had a list of strange symptoms that I was told by my doctor outside of Kaiser (I have Kaiser Added Choice so thank God I can go see someone outside of the system) that it sounded like thyroid issues. I went in and they tested my heart, to make sure it wasn’t heart issues. I then asked for a thyroid panel, and the woman I saw (not my primary, my primary was out that week) out right refused. She said Kaiser has been training their doctor’s not to do the full panel for thyroids because people «don’t need it.»
Really? Then why is it my friend’s thyroid cancer would not have been detected had it not been for a full thyroid panel?
Again, I have Kaiser Added Choice so I will be seeing someone outside of Kaiser to address the possible Thyroid symptoms. But I am PAYING for insurance, and if I ask for a service I expect that my doctor will deliver.
Also in a blood test my MCV level was high. I called (because no one called me to follow up on the results of my lab) and I was told that «MCV is not a concern if my B12 level is ok.» They then said they would run a B12 on my blood as well. Nothing. Never heard back from them.
All in all, I think Kaiser cares more about getting your money than making sure you are well.

I know the individuals at Kaiser are working hard to meet my needs. It’s very difficult to make EVERYONE fit into their «bell curve» system. It’s a painful fit at times. Sometimes, I just sit and cry when I’m at Kaiser because while I think the products are good quality IF and only IF you want the product they have. If your needs deviate from the average at anytime, they merely shave the program to try to fit you. If it doesn’t work, you just have to tough it out. It has inspired me to study patient-​centered care and EBP to see if they are in the ball park.

I am generally a satisfied member of Kaiser Permanente health plan. In particular, I think the KP optometrists are terrific. Unfortunately, my effort to purchase glasses from the in-​house eyewear shop, Vision Essentials, turned out to be a bizarre and frustrating experience.
First, the good:
1) The glasses here – both lenses and frames – are cheap. I got my glasses for less than half the price of the glasses I purchased at a local boutique some years ago.
2) They have a return policy under which you can return the glasses within 30 days of picking them up if you’re not satisfied with them. It’s good they have this policy, because you’re going to need it.
The low monetary cost comes at a steep price in terms of the customer’s time and sanity. Getting my glasses required a total of 8 trips, due mostly to the disorganization and poor service of the Vision Essentials staff. Here were some of the problems:
1) It’s not clear that you need to sign in when you get there. This creates needless wait time, as I stood around during my first 2 visits trying to figure out why none of the opticians or salespeople was offering to help me, as they do at every other optical shop I’ve ever visited (including the one attached to my previous HMO).
2) I was buying two pairs of glasses. One optician charged me twice for the more expensive of the two pairs. When I called to correct this charge over the phone, she said she couldn’t find the less expensive frames and asked me to come in to find them myself. When I did so and brought the frames to her, she asked me to put myself in the queue to meet with her. I then waited for 45 minutes so that she could correct her mistake. As my credit card information was already on file, I don’t know why I was kept waiting.
3) Soon after I got my glasses, I felt that they didn’t fit properly. I brought them back to exchange them, and optician #2 told me that they hadn’t been adjusted and that’s why they didn’t fit. Why hadn’t optician #1 adjusted them in the first place?
4) Soon after I brought the newly adjusted glasses home, I STILL felt that they didn’t fit properly. I brought them back again, and optician #3 said, «those glasses aren’t the right fit for you.» If these glasses were so obviously not the right fit, why hadn’t opticians #1 or #2 pointed that out? Virtually any glasses feel like they fit when you try them on for just a few minutes in the store… I rely on the opticians’ expertise to tell me if they’ll feel like proper fit in the long term. Optician #3, at least, was helpful in assisting me picking out two new pairs to exchange for the previous ones.
5) I got a call telling me that the two replacement pairs I had ordered were in. I took time off work to drive to KP and get them. Lo and behold, optician #4 brought out 2 pairs… one of the pairs I had selected with optician #3, and one of the pairs I had sought to return at that same visit. Looked like another long drive to Interstate was in my future!
6) It was actually good that I had to go back to Vision Essentials yet again, because it turned out that the adjustment on my first replacement pair had been way, way too tight. I finally picked up the second replacement pair, 2 months after I had first tried to purchase glasses at Kaiser Permanente. The second pair doesn’t really fit right, but I’m loathe to make yet another trip up there.
7) At the visit described above, the optician took my favorite glasses case with her when she went to adjust my glasses and never brought it back. I only realized this when I went home. A minor thing, but it kind of added insult to injury.
8) All the inconveniences described above were all the more frustrating because the Vision Essentials shop is only open M-​F 8 – 6, which makes visiting the shop difficult for people who work during the week. And since you’re pretty much guaranteed a wait, you’d better leave at least an hour for your visit.
Lest I sound like a drama queen, please note that I’ve never returned a pair of glasses before in my life, and I’ve had a lot of glasses. Lest I sound like I’m being uncharitable to an under-​staffed operation, please note that if the staff were more careful, organized, and thorough in my initial visit, I wouldn’t have had to make so many repeat visits and wouldn’t have taken up so much of their time. Lest I sound like an all-​around complainer, let me note that I created this Unilocal account expressly to post this review. Buying glasses is a pain, and I want other buyers to beware. The 2 stars here are for the low prices. If you can possibly afford it, go elsewhere.

I was going to have my first appointment at the optometry office with Dr Borok. They sent me multiple emails and reminders leading up to the appointment for a couple weeks. When I got there, the appointment was canceled by the doctor. I received no notification of this happening. All I got was an unknown call with a dial tone, which was apparently their way of telling me the appointment was canceled an hour before?!

I selected Kaiser through my employer to try them out (I used MODA/​BCBS last year and had no complaints.) It is March and based on trying to schedule an appointment alone, I cannot wait until open enrollment to dump Kaiser.
Two months ago I had a terrible experience trying to schedule an emergency appointment. Today I tried to take some time to establish a primary care doctor, thinking this would ensure better service in the future. I got bounced 3 times, landed in scheduling only to have her bounce me to plan administration to explain to me that a physical is free and saying something is wrong is not (the scheduler bounced me unceremoniously after I asked for a physical and would NOT tell her anything was wrong through she tried and tried.) I finally was able to make an appointment for tomorrow with a primary care for a physical (I’m terrified to see how it goes.)
I then asked to make an appointment with a psychologist as I have generally always been in some form of mild outpatient therapy since I was 9. I was bounced FOUR times, placed on hold for over 30 minutes to have a therapist named Theresa try to rush me off the phone promising someone will call me in an hour «or tomorrow» to do an assessment before I can be placed with a therapist. I told her I had been on the phone over an hour now and could we do this now? She got impatient and said «Yeah. Fine. Why do you need a therapist, what are your symptoms?» I told her I felt uncomfortable sharing personal information with her after how I was treated. She said «Ma’am I’m a therapist, whatever you say is confidential — now what are your symptoms?» I labored through that conversation for 15 minutes and at the end told her what therapist I had carefully selected off
doctor locator — Theresa told me this doc is at a Portland Clinic and does not go through them. She was pretty sure I didn’t need a referral and pretty sure I would be covered and assured me the doctor was accepting new patients. (I didn’t want to get off the phone without an appointment after such an ordeal without some assurances.)
I called the Portland Clinic and you guessed it! No doctors there are accepting new patients out of the downtown Portland location.
Reluctantly, I called Kaiser mental health again, was bounced three times and got a therapist named Rick on the line. Rick would not let me get a word in edgewise and treated me like an idiot. It took several minutes just to explain why I was calling and that I had already spoken to Theresa. He made me shut up so he could read my file before I was allowed to speak. He was very pushy and did not listen to me. I spoke clearly and patiently (though inside I was very frustrated at this point.) I carefully selected another doctor before I called Rick and he told me this doctor was at another Portland Clinic, in Beaverton — and so they do not work directly with them either. This time I was determined not to hang up until I was sure if I called this Beaverton location I would get an appointment. He again assured me I would be covered, did not need a referral and the doctor was accepting new patients and was certainly a different location that the downtown Portland Clinic who just told me no doctors are accepting new patients. (
confirmed she was accepting new patients.)
I called the Beaverton Portland Clinic and you guessed it again! Not accepting new clients, and it was the same woman I had spoken to 30 minutes earlier about the downtown location doctor– two different phone numbers route to her in central dispatch. She laughed and said she felt sorry for me in this phone battle. (I was in this for over 2 hours now.)
I had also asked Rick why I do not see any PsyD psychologists listed on
in the Kaiser offices (there are only 3 within 10 miles of my zip code and I see now they are all at a «Portland Clinic»). He told me Kaiser only typically hires LCP or LCSW therapists. I asked why, to which he defensively said «Why do you think it’s so important to see a PsyD? LCP or LCSW therapists have just as much schooling as PsyD.» Which, is literally not true. I explained that I have personal reasons for wanting this degree for the therapist I am paying and he told me to «call the Portland Clinic and good luck to you.»
Needless to say, thanks to Kaiser I am now more depressed than I was when I started looking for a therapist and I will absolutely not try to schedule another appointment until I am out of the Kaiser health plan. Thanks, Kaiser.

Urgent Care: I would advise you to go elsewhere if you have another option for Urgent Care Services. I was having an issue with blood in my urine and persistent abdominal pain. The first time I went in for the issue I was told by the doctor that there was not an obvious cause for the hematuria (blood in urine), but that I was showing signs of constipation, and the doctor recommended that I do a… erghm «cleanse.» I followed the doctor’s orders over the weekend (and felt terrible!!!) and waited to midweek to go back, as I was still experiencing hematuria, constipation and the abdominal pain is now worsening with added symptoms. They ran more test, which I appreciated, and these came back negative for the usual causes, based on this the doctor prescribes me pain killers and a referral to the urologist, with a note to come back if it worsens. Next day I end up coming back with increasing pain, hematuria still, swelling/​bloating and still no answers. This time the doctor that I see doesn’t ask about any of the changes of which I reported or the past issues, but rather just says that previous doctor’s test were sufficient and that, therefore, I am «perfectly healthy,» despite the lack of any improvement from the previous days and that I should just wait until Urology calls me to book an appointment – in approximately two weeks. She completely disregarded what I had spoken about as concerns, and the issues that are still present – in favor of the few objective tests that don’t show an obvious cause, even though there are some obvious symptoms still present, yet no one can even offer me a plan of action or even a recommendation. All I’ve received were pain killers and a rude and condescending attitude from the last doctor I saw, and still no resolution to the health issues yet.

I got a new job which means I got new insurance! The new job part was cool, but not really going through the hassle of dealing with finding a new dentist, optometrist, and physician.
I came to this Kaiser location for a long overdue eye appointment. Getting here isn’t too bad via transit as all I needed to do was hop on the yellow MAX line and get off at the Overlook Park station.
After paying my copay (you can use your FSA on it!) I visited Dr. Gibbs and he was pretty good doing the usual standard eye exam. I’m alright, everyone. My vision is thankfully the same after the puff of air test on my eyeballs and determining the random tiny letters that showed up on the projector.
Their frames selection is very bare and not the ideal selection for the mid-20’s crowd. I’ll probably look elsewhere for those. They were kind enough to order a year supply of my contact lenses (included in my bennies) and have it delivered to my house! That’s great service and saves me the hassle of heading back over there for just that.

One star is generous. Absolutely the worse health care I’ve ever received in my 43 years of life. My company I was working for switched us and for me one month after giving birth. I never had the follow up care I needed and now I fear there is something very wrong going on. I just moved to southern Oregon and now can only go to urgent care or emergency. That is all they will cover me. Urgent care said I need to see a specialist OBGYN but kaiser said I have to drive over 400 miles to be seen. Horrible care, horrible insurance. And pharmacy has hour waits. Just the worst. They are basically refusing me the health care I need.

After attending 3 weeks of intensive outpatient for depression I am at a loss as to what Kaiser’s mission is concerning mental health. I became suicidal and was enrolled in this program Kaiser offers. After the day of my «graduation» my therapist abruptly cancelled my appointment. Fortunately, I had another appointment the following week. Well, this too, was unceremoniously cancelled at the last moment as the therapist is no longer with Kaiser. In the meanwhile I had a scheduled appointment to see my psychiatrist (whom, incidentally is leaving Kaiser as of January 2015). This too was CANCELLED. Obviously Kaiser Permanente does no follow up on mental health patients. Very dangerous. Stay clear of this place…

As R.D. explained in another review, there seems to be little concern about quality of life, or thriving here. Unfortunately I always thought that meant that they must be good with life or death situations. From listening to my family member’s experiences they appear to now be lacking for both. There is always a lot of waiting, warehousing as it were.
I really resent the fact that Kaiser is my only choice for healthcare and that in order to get services which work for me I have to come out of pocket! Understanding the CHP program has been a total nightmare so I just look for services which are a little cheaper. I am loathe to think about the services I may need in the future, including giving birth. My friend had a horrific birth story from Kaiser but was really treated well and listened to with her other baby at OHSU.
I guess I am getting what I pay for in that the monthly cost is low and I won’t be penalized for not having insurance which is great but … I just don’t think they have what I need. And looking at the reviews here they are missing the mark for many. If anyone understands the CHP thingy please advise!

It’s a blessing to have health insurance, but it seems like every time that I schedule an appointment to be seen here they are always running behind. In fact, I arrived to my last two appointments and they were running about an hour behind and once again today I am scheduled to be seen at 11:20 only to be told that they’re running behind and that there are two other patients in front of me. *Sigh*
Besides the fact that they’re always running behind, the service is good.

First off, as far as corporate goes, kaiser is by far the best. Great employees, efficient and affordable. Of course the phone system is a pain as you usually have to call the main kaiser and go through the prompts, even to get to you primary doctor.
I have always had great care with low cost copay and I’ve really enjoyed each doctor I’ve seen from primary to allergist. I would highly recommend them.
I would give 5 stars if I could, but the phone system costs them a star ;)

I started out having good experiences here, but in the last year it’s really gone downhill.
I always wait for at least 30 minutes to be seen including my most recent visit when they called me and asked if I could come in earlier because they had no one to see… And I waited for 45 minutes…
The waiting is frustrating, but the biggest annoyance was when they mixed up my records with another patient (same name) so that I was receiving phone calls and letters about their personal medical information — and I’m assuming they were about mine. The person I was being mixed up with also owed money to the hospital, so I was receiving debt collection calls for them as well. After repeated attempts to get our information untwined, I am now only getting the phone calls once every few months… Woo-​hoo.
The people I’ve encountered here are all very friendly, but there are some major organizational flaws that keep the place from being enjoyable.

I would NEVER personally select Kaiser as my health care provider. I am stuck with them because my employer selected them. First of all, I have had many issues with nurse practitioners and physician assistants that have ZERO bedside manner. I had a PA make me cry because she started talking cancer when there was almost no chance that I actually had cancer.
This review has more to do with their billing and lack of customer service. I just recently made a payment for over $ 1500 for a previous surgery. After checking my bank account I saw that they took the payment out twice. As a young, single person $ 1500 is a lot of money and $ 3000 is A LOT of money to me. After calling them and speaking with a representative they told me that they did make a mistake and they were issueing a refund request, but that it was going to take 2 weeks for the money to be returned to my account. It’s hard for me to understand why they can take it out of my account in less than a day, but can’t put it back in for two weeks. This is putting me in financial hardship and while the representative was understanding, I was told there is nothing they can do to speed up the refund.
If I could change HMOs I would do it in a second.

I am new to the world of Kaiser and HMOs. I have a surgery coming up so I went in for my consultation yesterday.
I was nervous and unsure of exactly where I needed to be. I was greeted with a very nice reception and then met with two nurses or aides.
They were all very nice and provided an excellent level of service. I didn’t feel rushed and felt comfortable asking questions.
I have been very happy with Kaiser and I’m thankful that they are my health care provider.

I’ve only had Kaiser for about 2 months, but I do frequently go to the doctor for labwork and such, so it’s great to have such an amazing policy through my just over min. wage job. First off, my policy only costs me $ 70 a month. That is a steal in today’s health insurance market. I was a bit hesitant about Kaiser because I’ve heard some horror stories and well, it’s so cheap. The best part is I get free labwork, because I have to get blood drawn every couple of months.
My first encounter with Kaiser was via telephone, I had a phone interview with a nurse who was extremely helpful in telling me all about Kaiser and gathering info about my pre-​existing conditions and setting me up with a Dr. Next a pharmacist called me and discussed my current medications, which I had run out of about 2 weeks prior. He made sure I would have these filled that day, I didn’t even have to wait to see my doctor first. I also asked a ton of questions about what brand of generics they used, etc and he did a great job of giving me the exact info I wanted. I spent almost an hour on the phone with him discussing my conditions. He definitely knew his stuff.
My first appointment was at Cascade Park in Vancouver. I was set up with the «first available doctor» though I had a feeling I would have to hunt for a good one. I was right. This guy was crappy and arrogant and I called membership services afterward and asked for someone who knew more about my conditions, and was referred to a new PCP at the Interstate facility.
The facility is significantly nicer than the one in Vancouver, and I found all the staff to be extremely helpful, and wait times were not long despite how many people seemed to be there.
The doctor I saw there was wonderful and on par with the doctor I had before I joined Kaiser, who was the best doctor I’ve ever had. I’m extremely pleased with her and she talked to me for about 30 – 45 minutes and answered all my questions and is continuing with the plan of care that my old doctor had for me, instead of wanting to take me off meds to do extensive and unnecessary testing.
I have been so impressed with Kaiser and so glad that I’m not paying $ 600 a year in lab fees and random crap that my old insurance, which cost more like $ 500 a month, decided not to cover.

Kaiser Permanente is spending 53 million dollars on its 7^th «Thrive» campaign — the annual bullshit fest wherein they try to market themselves as a holistic health institution focused on preventive care, with a team of doctors ready to aid you at a moment’s notice! On a recent bus ride home, I read over her shoulder as a KP executive reviewed some annual reports painting a different picture, that of a failing institution that scored poorly in nearly every category.
But I already knew that.
I’ve been with KP for over a decade. The norm is rude, incompetent staff struggling with out-​dated and often broken equipment. Communication between units is non-​existent. There is a 6 – 9 week wait for nearly everything, and currently the Urgent Care is only open a few hours every day. You rarely see the same staff person twice, and no one reads your history, ever. Basic diagnostic methods are not used, instead they favor the «stall them til it goes away or they do» approach. They often prescribe medication without a clear diagnosis, and with no regard to your history or circumstances, and with no follow-​up. They don’t perform age-​appropriate baseline tests. In fact, they don’t do any kind of big picture tracking of your overall health.
There is no one handling your «care» except you, and you will fight tooth and nail every step of the way. Some people will call that «advocating for yourself». Those people are deeply blinded by their own coping mechanisms.
What’s worse is that you are paying for this, and you will pay a lot more when you end up paying out of pocket to go to a private doctor. Which you will. Because that’s the only way to get any problem properly diagnosed and treated in a timely manner.
If you have a choice of health care provider, do not choose Kaiser! It was the biggest mistake I ever made.
*Update* My sense of fairness compels me to add this: In the dull brown rainbow of crapitude that is Kaiser, it is true that some rare times there is a momentary glimpse of stunning color. There are few people — a couple of membership services staff, a scheduling nurse, a technician, et al – who do try their best under the circumstances. I sincerely thank them.