Alan C. Westeren's Online Review Report Card

RUN AWAY. I spent 2 hours here and he scared me to death my eyes were unhealthy. Told me my pressure was 29 and I had serious issues. Prescribed 3 Glaucoma drugs to be filled at CVS. I didn't take them and got a second opinion. Today at Shiley (very good place) they tell me my pressure is 11 and my eyes are totally healthy!!! VERY TRAMATiC EXPERIENCE. Said those drugs should not have been prescribed to me AT ALL! The whole thing felt wrong and I should have run out as soon as I entered the very sketchy office. No one there but us, and very run down. Asked me 3 times if I snorted cocaine. Would not stop asking me to read lines of letters that were too small for me to read. I am still heavily dilated from this office visit. Not standard care. Not professional. I am traumatized and upset I didn't read these reviews before going in. My eyes are healthy. Also the pharmacist at CVS was very upset dealing with this Dr. At first he wouldn't give me the drugs prescribed (that I didn't need turns out) because the Dr. Wasn't following "protocol". I felt very mislead to say the least. It was all very weird, and thank god I got a second opinion today. I'm A ok but I can't believe this happened to me.

My wife went to see this guy unfortunately for discomfort in her eyes. He proceeded to prescribe a handful of different medications that not only did not solve her problem, but caused several more. She suffered for 2 months before getting an appointment with a specialist who immediately took her off the medications and told her she didn't even have some of the conditions he diagnosed her with. She started improving the very next day. This guy is a monster that has no business treating living beings. He needs to be exposed and shut down. Avoid at all costs. 0 stars

Diagnosed me with Glaucoma, after over dilating me, and checking my pressure with an antique looking hand held device. Got a second and a third opinion, I DONT HAVE GLAUCOMA

I’ve been seeing Dr Westeren for over a year now. He’s amazing! Very knowledgeable and extremely thorough.

I wish I read these reviews before visiting Dr. Westeren's office. I have severe dry eyes and was coming in for a second opinion on my treatment. While taking my ocular pressure readings (with a handheld device that I've never seen in my 10 years of receiving eye care) Dr. Westeren damaged my cornea. He prescribed antibiotic drops/ointment for the tear and told me that it should heal in a few days. He also mentioned that when the numbing drops in my eye wore off I may feel some pain. That was an understatement. A few hours later I could barely open my eye and was in constant pain. My primary opthalmologist was able to see me urgently and provide an eye band aid (like a contact lense) which immediately relieved the pain and is currently allowing my eye to heal without constant pain. The injury is still not healed and he dilated my eyes to an extreme level for some reason, so I can still barely see more than 24 hours later. I've been dilated DOZENS of times and am used to the effects wearing off around 4 hours later. Additionally, I told him that I had an important meeting and he kept talking and talking and would not let me leave the office without being extremely rude. He had no receptionist, so mid-visit he had to help another patient for 20 min while I sat waiting for him. The "new patient" visit took a full 1 hour and 45 minutes. Not much of that was waiting, to be clear, Dr. Westeren spent a lot of time talking about opthalmology and explaining things to me. His response to my call stating that I was distressed due to extreme pain in my eye from the injury he inflicted was to have his secretary send a message saying that with dry eyes this type of damage is common. In my experience, it is not. Go see Dr. Ochabski instead. She's excellent.

Dr. Westeren really shows he is concerned about the individuals eye health. He explained in detail my issues and took the time in my appointment. Very thorough and an expert in his field.

Please do NOT use Dr. Westeren for your opthalmology needs. During a routine exam he caused a 3 mm tear in my cornea!!!! I came in for a second opinion on my dry eye condition and left with a painful injury. I am currently seeing a DIFFERENT opthalmologist EVERY DAY to ensure the care and healing of the injury I sustained in his practice. Dr. Westeren's response to my distress due to the injury being extremely painful was to say that tears during ocular pressure readings are common in patients with dry eyes. He didn't even have the decency to call me himself, but had his secretary send me an email. He knew I had dry eyes, as that was the reason for my visit. I've suffered from severe dry eyes for more than 3 years and in that time my ocular pressure has been measured at least 6 times with no issue. Dr. Westeren simply does not have the skill to do this properly. I wish I'd read these reviews before the visit.

Dr Alan is very nice and takes the time to try and figure out your issues. He's extremely smart and will take care of you and get you sorted.

NOT A SCRIPPS CLINIC DOCTOR. Having seen two well-regarded actual Scripps ophthalmologists, I realize this guy, Westeren, is as wackadoodle as the previous review reported; you spend hours as he obsessively makes you try and read illegible charts over and over and over, "Try it again, try harder..." He pushed the pressure meter into my cornea several times, saying my pressure was super high, my angles too narrow, and more. And then he diagnosed me with a VERY SERIOUS EYE DISEASE that I absolutely do not have! Good thing I didn't fill those five prescriptions-- which the pharmacist are never all used together-- and instead sought more professional advice. Westeren's sketchy office should have been a big red flag, but I sought help for such a simple eye irritation that I thought it sufficient to go to someone geographically convenient, whose web presence says he is with "Scripps." The actual, very fine doctors I saw said, "This is not the first time I've heard this story..." when I explained my traumatic experience with Westeren. He really scared me with this completely inaccurate diagnosis, causing real stress and upset-- and now I just wonder what is wrong with this guy??? IMO he is not mentally fit to practice.

Dr. Westeren all but told me my eyes are falling out of my head. While doing a routine exam he also decided to diagnose scoliosis and dermatitis. In addition, Dr. Westeren over dilated my eyes and I could not be outside or near a window for three days. Finally the office is shared and a little better than an old motel room. Needless to say, I have decided to make a second appointment elsewhere.