Shady Grove Opthalmology

Nine months later, I couldn’t be happier. My vision is ²⁰⁄₂₀ or better, and Dr. Roberts’ office has been good about following up. If I’d known it was this easy, I’d have done this years ago. Amazing.

My long-​awaited 1 year update!
While I think I can still see what I consider to be 20/​20, I can’t say that for sure. After my appointment, I was told that I had a series of 4 – 5 follow-​up appointments and that the office would schedule them with me. I had the first 2 – 3, but after that, I never heard from Shady Grove Opthalmology again. I believe I was supposed to have a 6-​month follow-​up and a 1-​year follow-​up, but never received any calls. This is particularly interesting since SGO used my previous review on their website «testimonies» section — you’d think they would want to take better care of me.
I’m a younger guy and am iffy about going to preventative doctors’ appointments as it is, so if I feel like I can see fine, I’m not going to call them and try to set these appointments up myself, but that being said, there are plenty of things that can probably go wrong over the course of a year that I might not even notice (e.g. micro-​abrasions on the surface of the eye, increased intraocular pressure, etc.). At the very least, I should have been called and told that an appointment was due. The touch-​ups for deal I paid for covered 1 year with the requisite check-​ups. At this point, I’m flying solo since I didn’t pay the extra for the lifetime touch-​ups.
Everyone I’ve ever talked to that had LASIK says that they use eye drops to help moisten their eyes. I’ve never really had to do that except for a few times on particularly dry days in the winter. Again, maybe I should be doing this for the first year whether my eyes feel dry or not — I wouldn’t know since I didn’t have my follow-​ups. I do have to say though, my eyes feel good the vast majority of the time.
Bottom line, I’m 16 months in and I CAN STILL SEE! I can’t begin to tell you how awesome that is. I definitely should have gotten LASIK sooner, whether with Shady Grove or some other reputable place. I still think I got my money’s worth.
I’ll try to check in again in 5 years or so, if I remember. If I don’t, then someone send me a direct message asking me to.
PS: Be sure to read my initial review from 12÷18÷14 below — it’s all about the LASIK process and experience I had initially. The above is just my 1-​year (16 month) follow up. The information below is still very pertinent if you are considering the procedure.

I was a ball of nerves before my appointment at Shady Grove Opthamology but the warm, knowledgeable staff and expertise of Dr. Roberts quickly reassured me I was in good hands.
I was evaluated and recommended the LASIK procedure, same day. The procedure itself was quick and, surprisingly, rather painless. The only discomfort I felt during the procedure was the pressure of the clamp that is put in place to keep your eyelids open. That’s it. On top of that, the results are almost immediate. There is some pain a few hours after the procedure, but if you are sleeping, as the Dr. suggests, you might not notice it.
Another thing I really appreciated about this place — everything happened in the procedure exactly as they said it would — even in the post op. They tell you everything, about what’s going to happen, how you’re going to feel, all of that. So, if you’re a bit of a control freak — like me — you’ll love this place.
As someone who has struggled with nearsighted vision for 15+ years I am happy to say that I no longer have to fumble around with contacts or glasses. woot!

Dr Roberts is great doctor
Very informative friendly and cares to listen. Staff is very friendly and explains the test there performing. Best doctor ever

It’s been about 4 months since I had LASIK. Probably one of the best decision I ever made! I love waking up every morning and being able to see clearly. Dr. Roberts is also the cheapest place in this area to get LASIK ($ 2500). However, the process itself is pretty scary and no one really talking about it. You are awake the entire time and your vision becomes complete dark at one point from a suction put on your eye. This is what creates that flap, then your vision is blurred. The procedure itself took less than 10 minutes. But plan to be there the entire day! I spend 3 hours waiting in the waiting room for the procedure. After I spoke to other friends who had LASIK, they said I should have been given something to calm my nerves during and after the operation. But nope, I was conscious and freaking out the entire time! Following the operation I was in a lot of pain and the doctor recommended taking pain killers or trying to sleep. Again, had I been giving something to calm my nerves that wouldn’t have been an issue.
During your consultation I recommend finding out if your qualify for unlimited lifetime retouches. This cost $ 500, but totally worth it. This means if your prescription changes in the future, you can get LASIK again at no additional cost. I would hate to have to do it again, considering how scary it was. But it’s good knowing you won’t have to pay more!
The next morning I had to come back so the doctor could check how my eyes are healing. Coming back is probably the worst! Prepare to spend at least 1 hour waiting to see the doctor and actually speaking to the doctor for no more than 5 minutes. Absolutely ridiculous! How about stop overbooking your appointments!!! I get it, the doctor wants to make money. But how about actually valuing ur clients time? The second time I came in, I waited 1 hour and a half to see the doctor. When I asked an receptionist, they just kept telling me «You are next» or «the doctor will be right with you.» This is outrageous! After my first year of free visit that came with my LASIK, I will definitely be seeking another eye doctor!

Dr. Anthony Roberts — LASIK Consult, Procedure & Follow-​up
PROS
–Easily accessible office
–Parking validation (you pay only $ 1)
–Honored Groupon pricing
–All providers very informed and took time to explain/​answer all questions
–No consultation fee
–Same-​day surgery is possible
–Dr. Roberts is great! Very friendly and knowledgeable; takes his time; very approachable; very soothing during procedure if you are nervous
CONS
–Very long wait time (every appointment I had was not on time; the least I had to wait was about 10 minutes over; the most was 30ish)
–Broken-​up schedule of testing/​seeing providers during consultation — makes you feel like a number instead of a person
–LOTS of room switching sometimes — seems they are a very busy practice and move you from room to room to not only complete all testing, but also to accommodate patients — gives the impression that they have not created/​thought about how to run a seamless clinic process
–No name introductions by nursing/​medical staff, though everyone was nice
BE AWARE
–During your consultation, your eyes get dilated (so bring sunglasses!)
–It is recommended that you remove your contacts for at least 5 days prior to consultation & procedure
BOTTOM LINE
–Dr. Roberts is wonderful and he himself gets 5 stars for sure! He is an excellent provider in all aspects. While the negatives are present (hence the 4 star review), so far I feel it’s worth enduring them in order to have my care through Dr. Roberts. If you can endure the cons yourself, there’s no question Dr. Roberts is the one to go to for your Lasik/​eye needs.

Dr. Roberts performed Lasik on my eyes and did a solid job. It’s a scary procedure so it’s important to have a doctor who you trust. He has a pleasant bedside manner and I’ve had no complications from the surgery (which, by the way, is totally worth the $$$).
He does indeed call you after the surgery to see how you’re doing — a nice touch.
He runs a busy office so prepare to wait to be seen. He appears to be the only physician on staff.
Bottom line: it’s worth the waiting to have a skilled, personable surgeon operate on your eyes.

Dr. Anthony is a great doctor! The whole experience was really smooth and easy. He even called me personally to make sure everything was okay the night after the surgery. His whole office is friendly and professional. I recommend Dr. Anthony for LASIK without any reservations.

My experience with Dr. Robert’s was absolutely amazing. A friend of mine called me a week after her LASIK surgery just raving about how I just had to get mine done with Dr. Roberts. My vision was –5.75 in both eyes and since I had been thinking about getting LASIK for about four years I made an appointment immediately for a consultation. They gave me the option to sign up for same day surgery if I choose to do my surgery with them and so I made sure to keep my soft contacts out for a week just in case.
My experience in the waiting room was wonderful as everyone I encountered there were so friendly and they all just seemed so happy. During my consultation Dr. Robert’s explained my options and the percentages of the risks and did not pressure me in anyway when I was choosing between PRK and LASIK. I decided on LASIK because of the quicker recovery time and that I would do my surgery that same day.
I was very very nervous to get my surgery done and since many of the ladies who worked in the office had theirs done with Dr. Roberts, knowing this really eased my nerves. The procedure was very quick and Dr. Roberts explained everything as he was doing my surgery.
I had my surgery on September 30^th, 2015 and I couldn’t be happier. Everyday my vision gets better and Dr. Roberts has made himself available for any questions that I have had. I would highly recommend Dr. Robert’s for your LASIK! You won’t regret it!

Dr Roberts is great! The only problem is that I waited an hour and a half to see him. Ridiculous!

My brother and a friend of mine got lasik done by Dr. Anthony Roberts so I decided to make an appt with him as well. I got my surgery done in July, so it’s been about a month and I freaking love how I don’t have to wear contacts or glasses! :)
During the consultation, he was very thorough and knowledgeable with explaining the different procedures: LASIK vs PRK along with the precautions and temp side effects. Honestly, I was immediately comfortable with getting lasik done after talking to him for a few mins so I didn’t even bother looking at other doctors. Also, his front desk staff are always welcoming and helpful so that’s a plus! On the day of the surgery, I was pretty nervous, no lie. But throughout the surgery, he talked me through it step by step, which helped calm my nerves. I would say the price at his office is very fair in the area. I would definitely recommend Dr. Roberts to all my friends and family!

So with the 5 star reviews and a first time patient I was confident I would have a good experience here.
I came in to have a skin tag in my eyelid examined. Arrived at the office a few minutes early for my 11:15am appt. took 5 minutes to fill out appropriate paperwork and sat in waiting area.
5 min, 10 min, 15, 20, 30 min pass. Finally after waiting 45 min I ask about why the wait was so long. Not only did they have me down to be seen as a routine eye exam (which is a longer appt), they were short staffed. Ok I get it. Stuff happens. But at least have the courtesy to let me know the wait would be longer and give me the option of rescheduling at the beginning of the appt instead of having me wait almost an hour when I start complaining and wasting my time. My time is just as precious as the staff’s. It’s just common courtesy and a respect all offices should give their patients.
So I left and decided to not reschedule. Unfortunately I cannot review based on services rendered. Only my experience with the front office. But as a whole it is a bad practice to be so blasé about your paying patients time.

I got a few incredulous responses from friends/​fam when I told them I was using a Groupon deal for something as delicate as my eyes but I had done my due diligence and a ton of research so I stood by my decision and I’m really happy I did. Dr. Roberts performed my photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) laser eye surgery back in January and I’m just now writing my review because I wanted to be sure I gave a truly accurate account of my surgery, recovery, and progression. But really I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t giving props to SGO if, in the highly unlikely but still terrifying chance, I went blind.
Needless fretting, from the beginning Dr. Roberts and his staff proved to be knowledgeable and efficient. When I made my call for the LASIK consultation-​not only was I booked for the following week but I was also told I could get my surgery same day and go to work the next day if I was up to it. Whoa! You mean the doctor isn’t going to need a few days to mull over my case, consult others, pray, meditate? Nope, it could have gone down just that.
Unfortunately, during my consultation it was discovered I was not a candidate for LASIK but prime for the PRK procedure. Boasting a painful 2 – 5 day initial recovery and gradual progression to optimum eyesight, I wasn’t quite prepared to commit so I booked my surgery for a later date.
Procedure day, again pleasant. Everyone there moves with such confidence it’s borderline nonchalant – I had to take a few deep breaths «they do this. They’ve got you Kera. Relax» lol And they did! Surgery was smooth and my check ups all went well. I’m not going to lie – for me recovery was painful, I slept for 3 days straight. I was light sensitive for quite a while and my progression was slow but I’m super excited to report that after years of being glasses/​contacts dependent I went from ²⁰⁄₄₀₀ in one eye and 20/​counting fingers in the other to ²⁰⁄₂₀ at my 6 month check-​in. We’re keeping an eye on (pun!) a possible floater in left eye but hopefully I’ll stabilize here in perfect vision for a good long while!

Excellent experience with my PRK procedure by Dr. Anthony Roberts. I knew I wanted to get vision correction surgery for a while now, but waited until it was a good time for me to get it done. Of course I was nervous & scared because eyes are one of the most sensitive parts of your body. I went to consultation and Dr. Roberts explained the procedure to me & explained to me what was going to happen since PRK has a longer recovery time than Lasik procedures. I made my appointment for PRK two weeks after my consultation. The procedure took exactly 5 minutes each eye and I was able to see better than what I was use to immediately. The procedure is painless. I didn’t experience any pain post procedure, although there may be mild discomfort to pain for PRK clients. I was so happy with the results (still in recovery as i’m typing this review) but my eyesight is amazing. I can see very clearly besides tiny details (which is what I could basically only see before the procedure) but its going to take a few more weeks to reach 100% of my eyesight. Very happy with my procedure. Dr. Roberts is very professional and did a great job. (Sat in the waiting room longer than I would’ve wanted to — but honestly its so worth it for this eyesight).
I shopped around for where I was going to get my vision correction surgery about a year before I actually got it done. Shady Grove Ophthalmology offered the best price for the procedure and the quality is outstanding.

I bought the Groupon and had my Lasik done at the end of May. It was such an easy and awesome process. Dr. Roberts is extremely professional and very friendly. He even called me the evening I had the procedure to make sure I was ok. I would recommend this to anyone who wears glasses or contacts and wants to be liberated. My only recommendation is to buy the Lasik package directly from them, not groupon, I would have if I knew it was an option. The money goes directly to the practice and they deserve it rather than groupon taking their cut. Just my 2 cents let me know if you have any questions!

I had my Lasik eye surgery done with Dr. Anthony Roberts. This was one of the best decisions i’ve ever made in my life! I’ve been wanting to do Lasik for a few years now, and I finally made my decision to go with Shady Grove Ophthalmology.
Amazing! Everything about this office is amazing. From my first office visit, to my post op appointment, every single staff member has been super nice, helpful, and attentive. The office is clean and proffessional. They walked me through every step of the LASIK procedure and eased my worries.
Although I was extremely nervous the day of surgery, the staff and Dr. Roberts gave me a sense of comfort, trust and confidence. They even stayed passed office hours to do my procedure which means a lot and goes to show how much Dr. Roberts cares for his patients!
Ever since I got Lasik, I’ve been telling everyone of my wonderful experience with such an amazing doctor. It makes me very happy to know that Dr. Roberts performed my Lasik surgery, and did a superb job — above and beyond my expectations. It was quick, painless, and I had the biggest smile on my face immediately after the procedure.
Overall, the whole Lasik procedure was a nice experience from A to Z! I couldn’t be any happier with my decision. Highly recommend Shady Grove Ophthalmology with Dr. Anthony Roberts!

I visited two other ophthalmologists before entrusting my cataract problem to Dr. Anthony Roberts. I selected him, because he was willing to discuss my condition with me, rather than talking at me. The procedure was surprisingly uneventful. My trust was richly rewarded with ²⁰⁄₂₀ vision, full color, and brightness in an eye that had been basically useless. The staff was very helpful and pleasant as well.
PS: the post-​operative eye drops are extremely expensive. Try to get free samples or cheaper substitutes.

Buying the Groupon and getting Lasik by Dr. Anthony Roberts has been one of the best decisions of my life. I wish I’d had gotten it sooner, as to not have wasted so much money on glasses and contact lens. Could not have asked for a better doctor or experience. I was pretty miserable after the surgery and was afraid that since my eyesight was so terrible, I wouldn’t get to ²⁰⁄₂₀ vision like other people who went through with this procedure. But here I am, less than a month later and can see perfectly, with zero irritation. Had no trouble using my Groupon and there were no surprise extra fees (just need to pay for prescriptions [eyedrops and painkillers] which costs less than $ 20 for me using insurance!)
100% satisfied with my whole Lasik PRK eye surgery with Dr. Anthony Roberts!

Dr Roberts is amazing! He’s incredibly caring and friendly and shared his knowledge to help me better understand what I was getting into: the risk and benefits of Lasik surgery. Unbiased! My surgery went very well. It took only a few minutes per eye and I did both. In a few days after the surgery I could see a pigeon far across the street in the park. No more glasses while driving and watching TV. It was fantastic to watch Noah on IMAX 5 days after the surgery.
His office staff members are very efficient and professional. Like Dr Roberts, they don’t give you any pressure. On my first visit, I got the test to assess if I am qualified for the surgery. They gave me all the information I needed and the price, at no charge. They trust you and that’s a good thing! I paid half of what my wife paid years ago in Connecticut.
Went for my follow up, and I am very happy for the results. I can now relax my face muscles and look much much happier. A big change! I have always squinted my eyes frowning the face and my friend used to think I was mad. It’s a life changing experience. I recommended my daughter to check it out as well. I highly recommend Dr Roberts and this place.

I went to 2 other consultations with top Lasik centers in the DC area and I’m so glad that I went with Dr. Roberts instead. I purchased the Groupon deal for $ 2500. The other centers charged almost $ 4000. I researched Shady Grove Ophthalmology before deciding on them — who wouldn’t be wary of discounted eye surgery. But, they’re the real deal. And no hidden costs for follow ups, etc…
Dr. Roberts made me feel comfortable. I was pretty anxious about Lasik since I flinch when anything comes near my eyes. I was hoping for Valium, instead I was given a teddy bear to hold (or squeeze to death in my case lol). Turns out I didn’t need the Valium. Dr. Roberts talked me through step by step and within minutes it was done. They also have a cool playlist of music that plays in the room while you have your procedure.
I’m a week out and I feel great. As soon as the next day I felt like I didn’t have anything done. Hopefully soon I’ll stop reaching for my glasses when I wake up each morning :)