Carolinas Center For Advanced Management Of Pain

"First I have to say I can't complain at all about Dr.Westrol. He was very pleasant and I was very satisfied with the injection he did to help relieve some hip and back pain I was having from a spinal cyst. He was able to drain some fluid from the cyst and surround it with a steroid injection to help shrink it to help avoid or postpone surgery to remove the cyst. The office staff however will be the reason I choose to go elsewhere. They are never friendly and act like they don't even want to be there much less help you. They have canceled multiple appointments last minute or made me reschedule once I have already made it to my scheduled appointment. It should have been a red flag when I showed up for my first appointment and it had been canceled prior to my arrival even though the letter they mailed to me for my first appointment had the date and time written on it yet I was told it had been canceled and they couldn't give me a reason why. I've wasted multiple hours taking off work for them to cancel or reschedule me. The doctor recommended a second injection which i was never able to get. After showing up to the appointment for the injection I was told my injection would have to be rescheduled because my insurance had not given authorization yet only to be told when I tried to reschedule the appointment that the type of injection I was getting didn't require a prior authorization. Just sharing my experience in an effort to save others from wasting their time trying to be seen at this office. I've worked as a medical assistant for 20 years and from my personal experience it seems like this office is just poorly managed and their front office staff needs better training."

"They are awful please save yourself Amy she act as if she is on meth or something her mouth is always twitching and teeth are always cringed together. Ever since Dr. Sakla left all of the good nurses left. They do not take you serious I plan on pursuing further actions against this clinic they take you for a joke now!"

"This is the worst pain management I have ever been to a really don’t care about treating your pain and the doctors don’t listen or take your concerns and issues. Seriously I was sent there after rotator cuff surgery, and my surgeon could only prescribe so much for so long, and said that they would be able to take over and help with options the very first doctor I met with sakla seemed on interested in my needs, and my chemical DNA that I brought in, which shows I am at immediate risk for non-response to opioids, and would require more than the normal person. He had absolutely no interest in this scientific data and told me as much he doesn’t care, I was taking 10 mg oxycodone four times a day, and that was not helping, partially why Surgeon sent me to pain management, for some reason after explaining this to the doctor, he decided cutting the dose down to three times a day was a smart thing to do , extremely upsetting because that for a day weren’t working and you’re supposed to help me with my pain relief yet instead you cut it down then after being 10 mg three times a day I kept informing him I was in tears or had to put myself to sleep because of the pain and that obviously I had built a tolerance and was there a way the medication could be increased the answer was it very joyful nope, he said, but I’ll switch you to morphine 15 mg three times a day, then proceeds to tell me that oxycodone is one and a half to two times stronger than morphine , so why are you gonna put me on something less when what you’ve been giving me has not been working thankfully, he left and met with the new doctor hopeful, he would listen, Dr. Hutchinson, hard to even imagine, but I think he was worse than sakla. Again had no interest in scientific data and I told him the only medication that has ever worked to relieve my pain was methadone, but I need to get off the Valium first, which I have no issues with because the methadone takes care of the issue of why I take the Valuum in the first place, but that discussion would have to take place in four weeks, so his solution was to put me on 5 mg of oxycodone with Tylenol, how does that make sense when the 10 mg immediate release without the Tylenol wasn’t working, now you’re gonna cut that dose in half, and I was so annoyed, my legs were jumping with aggravation, and he’s like why are you so jumpy like cause I’m really aggravated I’m definitely going to be switching pain management because this place and the doctors really have no interest in controlling or relieving your pain, it’s really important, they should not even be in business’!!!!!!! really unbelievable !!!this is is just getting so ridiculous. None of the doctors there care.!!!! Sad, VERY SAD!!!"

"Dr Sakla is the best doctor I have met in over 20 years. Even after having surgery on my back didn’t work. I was in severe pain. He helped me. I wouldn’t trust any other doctor except Dr. Sakla and his whole staff. He is kind and listens to me and helps me to manage my pain. His injections and medicine have helped me when no other doctor would. Him, his nurses and receptionist’s make me feel like family. I have had issues in the past where doctors didn’t care, but him and all of his staff are truly amazing. If it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be able to even function on a daily basis. I am truly blessed with Dr. Sakla and his whole staff. They are wonderful people!!! God bless them all and thank you from the bottom of my heart for caring so much!!"

"About two years ago, I called the office because the prescription I received from a PA was not valid. I had made two round trips in a day from GA to SC trying to get the script filled and ended up with nothing. When I called the office about it from a drug store with the pharmacist standing next to me, the lady who answered was very rude to me and hung up the phone. I went without medication for the second time in a year. So, I submitted a review that stated the truth about what happened. Soon after, I received a letter from the pain center stating that I had been dismissed because I left a negative review. So, I sent a letter to my doctor with a list of complaints with documentation and soon received call from a Practice Manager. She was very nice, apologized to me, and assured me that "These matter would be dealt with." I can see from recent reviews, that nothing has changed. I am seeing a wonderful doctor in Athens now and the difference is like night and day."