EyeHealth Northwest

I’ve been to many different clinics to get my eyes checked over the years, around Portland and elsewhere. This place is definitely my favorite. Very professional and friendly staff. I can’t say I agree w/​the negative comments here…

I had Lasik surgery back in March I would 100%recommend Dr. Graelish and his staff, in fact I have!
I was a little nervous but Dr. Graelish put my mind at ease, he is so calm and knowledgeable that you can tell that he has done this procedure a 1000 or more times.
His tech Nataly was also great she was with me every step of the way including at the actual surgery, she and Dr. Graelish hardly had to talk which means they have been working together as a team for a long time.
He also has a great surgery coordinator named Michelle who is also with you every step of the way and was also at the surgery center the day of to make sure that every thing was organized and ready to go. She was always available for questions and never seemed annoyed to answer the ones I know that she hears on a daily basis.
I also had a great experience at the surgery center where the RNs give you medication to help keep you calm.
All in all a great experience from beginning to end!

After cataract surgery I went to their optical for my glasses. The assistant argued with me about my insurance benefit and was not very professional. I told her that my insurance paid so I had no out of pocket on the lense and frame after cataract surgery. I checked my contract and my insurance verified that was correct. She continued to argue with me instead of checking. Most providers call for benefits so you pay the correct amount. After what I paid and my insurance paid they were very over paid. I called the manager and now I have to wait for a refund. I purchase new glasses every year and I have never had a provider charge me up front for more than I owed. Per the manager this is common practice for them so needless to say next year I will be going somewhere else. What is sad is the medical side of my treatment at the clinic was awesome.

I just went to Eye Health Northwest as a new patient. I had read previous reviews, and was a little daunted because of hygiene concerns. I am so glad I went in! The staff was wonderful and very professional. Dr. Meier checked my eyes and discussed options with me. I thought my eyesight was getting worse, but it turned out my last doctor had prescribed contacts that were too strong. I am so near-​sighted that I wear contacts for distance but have to wear reading glasses for up close. Dr. Meier put me in the correct prescription, and I am now wearing multi-​focal contacts that are great! I no longer need to wear my reading glasses most of the time and only need them when I am working on the computer. For me, this is a very big deal!
I appreciated all the staff, especially when I was a couple of minutes late and felt bad. Very glad I found this clinic!

I normally visit the Happy Valley office, but since I had follow-​up consultations after cataract surgery, I was scheduled for the Oak Street/​Milwaukie offices. From start to finish, the reception staff and medical staff were top notch. During my visits I noticed that EVERYONE was treated with professionalism and respect. I am not sure about the other reviewers, but the tech I had made sure that the equipment was clean and ready before my chin met the pad. I recommend Eyehealth for all vision needs. The doctors and staff are extremely helpful and professional.

Every time my husband and I have gone for our eye examinations at least six times at this particular SE Oak St. DOES NOT PRACTICE ANY HYGIENE PROCEDURES on their EQUIPMENT!!! It is sad when I have to insist to a tech to CLEAN THE MACHINE BEFORE I PUT MY FACE AND CHIN RESTING ON IT.
I sit and watch from the front section as they call names and have the individual come up and sit down to lay their forehead and chin on this contraption for first testing. NEVER DOES THE STAFF EVER CLEAN OFF THIS MACHINE. One after one patient goes up and sits down and does not notice it was NEVER STERILIZED FROM THE LAST PATIENT THAT SAT DOWN! WHAT KIND OF BAD GERMS, VIRUSES OR DISEASES can one pick up from UNCLEAN HEALTH PRACTICES THIS SITE DOES EVERY DAY? If they are not cleaning that particular machine how does one know if any of the other items that are put in their hands to put on their faces or put their faces up against WAS EVER STERILIZED from the last patient? If they don’t know good hygiene from the start I don’t trust anyone bothers to clean anything as it takes time and thought!
This is just what I’ve observed at this particular site, what about the others??? Don’t they receive the same training and hygiene instructions???
Watch the next time you go to see if any sterile procedures are done.

This was the WORST experience I’ve EVER had with any medical practitioner, anywhere. The staff was short tempered, sighing audibly when I called to advise them I’d encountered unexpected traffic and might be late. When I arrived, only 5 minutes late, I could hear various staffers discussing how this was a «Day from Hell» and they couldn’t wait to get out of there. When I was taken to the examining room, I could see my doctor walking around in the aisle casually, chatting with staffers light-​heartedly, definitely not discussing patients. He kept me waiting that way for nearly 20 minutes. When he did enter the room, he was accompanied by a young, unidentified woman. I never did learn if she was a nurse, student, wife? She seemed to serve no purpose, just observed. When I advised that the procedure was hurting, the doctor dramatically whipped off his glove, throwing it on the ground, and huffed «well then we cant complete the procedure». I left in tears, with no relief for my condition, and a bill for $ 200.
I would never, ever recommend anyone go here.

I am going to have to agree with the other reviewers who commented that the front desk staff is abrupt, bordering on rude. Additionally, while I was on time for my appointment, they were not. I had to wait 30 minutes past my appointment time to be seen. Thankfully, I have insurance that has a lot of in-​network providers. I can choose to go somewhere else next time.
If you can go somewhere else, do yourself a favor and avoid EyeHealth Northwest.

Review of Lasik surgery for extreme-​ish nearsightedness.
tl;dr — wonderful, hit my expectations, would do it again (though, thankfully, i won’t have to).
longer version: made my appt, went in for the free consult, and found out i was a candidate. yay for me!
was able to continue the conversation over email, which was wickedly helpful. went in for the second set of exams (measurements, etc) the week before, then had the last set the day before. word to the wise — the dialation appt will take you out for ~24−30 hours, so don’t expect to do anything productive afterwards.
had my surgery the next day, which is very clockwork orange. i won’t lie — it’s terrifying in the moment, but over in about 10 minutes. spent the rest of the day in bed.
next day, went in for my checkup, and all was well. eyesight was slightly blurry at this point, and was rocking quite a few different eyedrops.
a week later, i was at ²⁰⁄₁₅ and love it. if nothing else, i can now open my eyes underwater while swimming, and i have way better peripheral vision (helpful for biking). huzzah!
throughout the entire process, they were super professional, didn’t treat me like an idiot, and explained the process at the level i requested. plus, they’re all nice people, and funny to boot.
overall, the process is easy and life-​changing. i’m officially an augmented human… now i just need to get bionic legs.

Review of Lasik surgery for near-​sightedness with astigmatism:
Pre and post-​op appointments were held at Eye Health Northwest — Milwaukie Center. Surgery was performed 8÷29÷12 at the EHNW surgery center in Happy Valley/​Clackamas. Cost: promotional price of $ 3200. My insurance covered 5% of discount price (or 15% off full price of ~$ 3900). CareCredit covered surgery costs with 24 months interest-​free.
I had a consultation first at Joffe and then at EHNW. Joffe felt more like the fast-​food version of laser surgery in how they took all the ‘necessary’ (ie, bare-​bones) tests/​exams during the consultation. EHNW had all the tests (many) done over two visits to ensure that accurate readings of the eye were obtained. I feel that this and the rigorous eye-​drop schedule I was one 3 weeks pre-​operation and still 2 weeks later, is why I am seeing so excellently today! Not to mention the care and speed with which the operation was performed. :P
Surgery Coordinator (Michelle) did a great job answering questions and keeping in touch with me pre and post-​operation. Dr. Grealish answered all my questions and made sure I was comfortable with the procedure. He and Michelle gave realistic expectations for outcomes and reassurances for what EHNW would do if the surgery were not effective as intended.
The fact that both the coordinator and surgeon had laser surgery done themselves was helpful. They both knew exactly what I would be going through. An added bonus is that my in the three weeks leading up to surgery I found out that two individuals on my dragonboat team have had the surgery done in the past 5 years, one of which having it performed by the same surgeon as I. I was able to discuss the procedure with both of them.
Result: I can see so well now! It is very exciting to not have to wear glasses or contacts! I would love for all my family to have the surgery now, too. :P

I made eye appointments for both my Husband and myself at Eye Health NW. Upon entering the clinic we were greeted by a pleasant receptionist that checked us in promptly. After only a short wait, we were called back to an exam room. So far so good. The medical assistants started the exams on both my husband & me. Shortly after Dr. Fonken arrived to finish our exams. Dr Fonken was professional and efficient we & will probably be back to see him. My husband was hoping to be a candidate for Laser eye surgery and Dr Fonken had to give him the bad news that laser surgery wasn’t an option for him. He was even sympathetic which we really appreciated. The part of our visit that I wasn’t impressed with was the optical center. We took my husbands glasses prescription & started browsing through their selection of frames. Nobody asked to help us for quite awhile. We actually were about to leave when someone finally asked us if we needed help. We asked the Optician, named Terry, which section was the frames for men. And she brought us over to the small selection of Men’s frames. She did a good job in bringing us different frames for my husband to try on and he did quickly decide on a pair. Then the salesman part of her came out. She managed to suggest all these different upgrades & options that soon brought the total of the glasses to $ 788. I gotta hand it to her she is a slick salesperson. We have pretty good insurance and she did do the calculations and informed us our portion would only be about $ 350. My husband was so disappointed in not being able to have laser surgery that I wanted him to like his glasses so we agreed on the pair. We actually didn’t have enough money to pay the full $ 350, so my husband said he would come back the next morning with a different credit card & pay then. Terry agreed and the next day, after my husband paid, she submitted the order & told my husband that he would get a call when his glasses were ready for pick up. After a couple of weeks & no call, a bill arrived for the remaining portion of the bill. She didn’t bill the insurance after all. I made a quick phone call to their billing dept and the lady there told me that the billing system is new in the optical dept and they don’t know how to use it very well yet. She told me that she would submit the bill to the insurance company & it should be taken care of. So we waited a week and still no call about the glasses. Finally my husband went there & spoke to Terry & asked if his glasses were in. She told him no & that she would call him when they were in. He asked if she would please check anyway. She did and they were right there. She was going to send him away without even checking? She seemed more interested in getting as much money out of us as she could. After that we really weren’t that important to her anymore.