Facet joint arthritis treatment in 1 Neurosurgery and Orthopedic surgery clinic in Köln

Context: Foreign patient/tourist Lack of signage for foreign patients is what exacerbated this horrible experience not knowing what is the correct entrance, the fact that you can't go any doctor and must go straight to the emergency reception for example (flat fee is also 200 EU which luckily was refunded by my travel insurance) 1 receptionist out of 7 was friendly, rest were horrible to an ill person despite being polite as possible 1 doctor in the emergency ward was pretty careless after dismissing me from the hospital (and was dismissive), not even providing a proper dressed bandage for my wound after removing a drip needle that was never used to give fluids (something usually done for pain or dehydration - I was expecting some for relief but none was given) A trainee had better bedside manners The doctors in the gyni section were absolutely fantastic, explaining everything, being friendly etc. However, nothing was found for the cause of my pain which was distressing and no pain relief was offered even. A traumatic experience for someone traveling alone. I hope this review helps someone in the future. Will never be traveling back to Cologne as the reception to tourists is 99% of the time cold as ice.

First , I can not comment on medical services , but the buildings and the arrangements, the wide variety of specialties and advanced equipment all are amazing. Well organized campus.

My wife gave birth there. This was the only good experience we had in hospitals. I want to give thumbs up for the best team in the world and especially to Frau Hannah. 🙏

Never go here, Please. Dr. Julia Brzoska promotes in Doctorlib reception of publicly insured patients, but they do not. They have unqualified personal on the front desk unaware fully of regulations. It wasted my time in such a delicate topic. They are another private clinic sustained by marketing.

Most Traumatizing Medical Experience Ever! While the Meo clinic might impress with its aesthetics and cordial staff, its administrative and financial aspects are deeply flawed: Lack of Transparency: I never received a clear financial breakdown for my treatments, and attempts to seek clarity were met with resistance. Billing Issues: A year post-treatment, I got bills escalated to collection agencies and court by PVS, an outsourced payment firm used by many of the clinic's doctors. The initial bills of approximately 3800 EUR more than doubled. Worse, the bills had incorrect patient details. Missing Medical Records: Despite continuous requests over two years, I've only gotten records from one out of the four doctors I saw. A recent visit revealed a mere two notes from 22 visits and a few prescription copies – no record of MRI/MRT scans, ultrasounds, cancer tests, or blood tests. Poor Communication: The clinic's staff claim that doctors operate autonomously and aren't answerable to them. The doctors, on the other hand, blame PVS, their invoice firm. PVS remains unresponsive, creating a maddening loop of non-accountability. Legal Issues: While withholding necessary medical documentation from me, the clinic keeps adding to my bills via lawyers. They know I need the documents for insurance, but continue to stonewall all communication attempts, even from my insurance provider. In summation, my experience with the Meo clinic has been nothing short of a nightmare. Despite promises of proficient service and clear English communication (given my expat status during the Covid lockdowns), I've received neither medical results nor proper documentation of treatments. Their blatant disregard and lack of support have left me feeling abused and overlooked. I warn potential patients, especially international and EU visitors to Germany, to be cautious before visiting this clinic! Expect zero documentation, no effective communication, and exorbitant bills. This clinic seems indifferent to the profound impacts such negligence might have on your life, expecting you to bear costs out-of-pocket despite insurance coverage. The only "documentation" you might get are bills from PVS that state amounts without any clear patient context. When reaching out to the clinic for help they clearly state that they aren’t responsible for any of “their doctors”… but at the same time advertise their clinic as a fully integrated medical institution that takes care of everything for you as their patent! It’s absolutely scandalous!

**EDIT TO RESPOND TO COMMENT*** While I understand the reply is mainly to manage reputation for people reading this review, I spent 35 minutes trying to 'rectify' the issue in the clinic and was met with eye rolls and sighs from unhelpful management. I understand there are protocols to follow in regards to billing, it is just a shame that this time it seems those protocols weren't adhered to and extra charges were added. I believe my email address and phone number are on file so I am happy to discuss further if you wish to reach out. ------ ORIGINAL POST Quoted €80-150 for a doctors consultation and after a 12 minute consultation was given a bill for €394,88. Was eventually discounted by €80 euros as was able to show I was charged for services I didn’t receive but still was grossly overcharged and my lack of speaking German was taken advantage of (one small example was my 12 minute consultation was charged as “Mind. 20mins” which the obnoxious manager tried to tell me means “under 20 minutes” and wouldn’t change). Even when you do the right thing and ask for a price upfront you still get ripped off. Please think twice before attending this clinic as they are not upfront at all and are very deceitful. The receptionist was good and very apologetic but all other staff dealt with were rude and unhelpful. The final explanation is “I’m sorry but the professor can charge what he wants and won’t change anything”. Be careful if you don’t speak German as you will likely get overcharged too.

I was travelling from England on a motorcycle with friends to travel through the Pyrenees and the alps, it was the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen then into the Black Forest, then I had a terrible accident and was smashed up badly, I was take by helicopter to university hospital where they repaired my broken bones, they saved my life, they were very good to me and I will never forget, I was in hospital there and back home for a couple of months, the end result I’ve led a near normal life, thanks to the surgeons who expertly repaired me, I will never forget,

i went for my yearly check but was told it cant be done if i do not have one of the 3Gs. i was told to get another appointment although the hospital websites states otherwise.

Every time I go there there is a different doctor. This time she spend most of the time typing away and looking at the computer. She was friendly but I got nowhere. For the past two years it's always the same. I have severe pain in my back and a few other parts but it's always a complete waist of time.

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good hospital, doctors and nurses are friendly

I got a brain surgery in 2017 and stayed for over a week here. I felt well treated, especially by the staff of international nurses and some doctors. I got some complications that I don't know whether they came from the care I got or if I dodged a bullet (6 hours surgery). Follow ups are a pain, emails don't work, phones only, and one has to wait for months for something.l, but the system is the bigger problem. I trust the professionals here, some will even talk English to you if asked. (Sure, don't come to the emergencies if you can be treated elsewhere). The facilities look a bit better than other hospitals in town.

the worst hospital I've been to. I broke my leg and they told me to go at 7 in the morning for the operation and they left me until 8 in the evening without giving me any information, without water. Then they remembered to come and inform me. The next time I was driving with my mother, who had a bypass and her blood pressure was quite high. The doctor asks me if he is dead? does someone have to die for us to go to the hospital? Because we also pay insurance for the doctors.

This is going to be a long story about my terrible experience in the emergency service. An ambulance brought me here at 21:30 with a broken swollen ankle. Since the emergency guy brought me inside and put me in a bed, no one came to me to do the first check-up. I begged 3 "nurses" to at least bring me ice because I am dying of pain. They go and never come back. They didnt give me ice, nor pain killers, they didn't even do a first check-up on me. How professional! especially when I can see them talking to each other, laughing, talking over the phone. The level of ignorance that I saw here is unimaginable. They are lucky that I was in pain otherwise I would have called the police. So around midnight finally someone came to do xray for me. half an hour later someone came to me to explain the severity of the injury, put the cast for me and gave me the crutches. Then he told me a nurse will come to explain everything, show me how to walk with the crutches, bring me outside with a wheelchair and call me a taxi. But no one showed up. I was screaming and no one heard me. At the end, around 02:30 I had to ask a "guest" for help. Luckily he was a nice guy unlike the nurses and stuff here. He helped me to walk outside and waited with me for a taxi that I called! I am waiting to fully recover and then I will see a lawyer about this. I even called them after days to send me the xray because the doctor wants to see them and they ignored my emails and phone calls. 5 hourse in the emergency with a broken ankel. No help, no check-up, no ice, no pain killers. No one helped me to leave and they didnt even call me a taxi!!

Accidentally my mother is sick,she is a 3 month visitor,I called 112 , the crew came very fast ,they were very kind, professionally treated my mom and they helped me with language when we reached the hospital , the nurse, receptionist,the Dr all give professional service ,with smile in their face,I stayed almost 8 hours, they were very busy ,they receive now and then emergency sick people.i just can say ,God bless you all the time ,God give you healthy life as you help a sick people under God will.thank you very much to all Ak clinic crew ,l💕💕💕💕

I was here two weeks ago as I cut my finger by accident. It was bleeding A LOT. Dripping onto the ER floor. Nobody cared until I had a panic attack. There was at least one good nurse with empathy. She was young and had black hair. Should have known her name.. The other middle aged nurse would mock me while passing, saying sth like she (obviously me) keeps crying and crying 😒 (with this face haha). I’m sure she thought I could not understand German only by looking at my appearance. Anyway I waited for like at least four hours there. Okay, yes, I was not obviously dying and I knew that, but at least I wish I had known what was going on and all. And the ER was not busy at all. Like four patients before me, I think. When I could finally get the x ray done, the woman in the x ray room was the WORST. My tendon was 100% cut so I could not move my finger. And yet, the incompetent woman tried to force my finger straighten up so hard and it gave me a lot worse pain than the one I had before going into the x ray room. Anyway, in the end I got transferred to St. Georg’s Asklepios and got surgery for re connecting my tendon after a long waiting time. I don’t think my nerves were connected properly as I cannot feel right side of my finger very well. I’m visiting a different hand surgeon at a different praxis. If this symptom persists, I’m getting the check up outside of Germany. Just like one review I have read here, I would rather just die (lol, with a bit of exaggeration) or fly to my home country with better health service if necessary. Even Cambodia had a better hospital, where I had to visit because of anaphylaxis during my travel there.

Very friendly staff overall. I came here to get my booster shot and I was at the wrong building, the security guy showed me where I needed to go. Then at the vaccination facility, the doctors were very helpful and informative.

I was transferred back to the emergency department where I waited for hours in excruciating pain to be seen by J. Straub and Dr. med T. Mederer for less than 5 minutes each completely ignoring my recent scans and the notes from the referring hospital. One of these supposed medical professionals told me they have a program that could help me but that I couldn’t be treated any further because I only spoke English. They administered Iv pain medicine that made me feel worse and pushed me into the waiting area until my family could pick me up. I am requesting a formal response from the hospital administration and the head of Neurochirurgie Prof. Dr. N. O. Schmidt. I will also file a complaint against the hospital through Tricare.

US military here. I would definitely not recommend this hospital. Poor communication, rude staff (case management). Make sure they can 100% confirm your appointment on the first day of your visit (at least on your pre-op appointment)! Make sure your surgery is not "selective", otherwise they would schedule you and let you know 24 hours prior that your surgery was rescheduled for in another 6 weeks (almost like on aspace-available basis). This happened to me. If you are an active duty military member feel free to reach out to me. Unless you wanna be your commander's favorite and put in and cancel your convalescent leave as if you're a civilian... Also talk to your local Tricare office about this hospital.

I was extremely honoured to have been at Regensburg University Hospital. They outmost trained professional students and their highly educated doctors. Their program is unmatched and superb. Simply the best!