Zinkel John L Md's Online Review Report Card

My 85 year old husband suffered with back problems most of his life. His problem involved the L3, L4, and L5 vertebrae in the lower lumbar area. About 5 years ago he was referred to Dr. Zinkel in St. Clair Shores - we live in St. Clair, MI, but distance wasn't going to deter us. That referral ended his pain. Dr. Zinkel diagnosed the problem, performed surgery at Beaumont Grosse Pointe Hospital, where he removed the curved ends of bones L3, L4, and L5 which were squeezing the spinal cord. My husband was so relieved the pain was gone. Anyone suffering with chronic back pain may not need to go on suffering. Maybe Dr. Zinkel will be able to help you, too. You have nothing to lose and a pain free life to gain.

1st Visit: Not so good. DOC would not ALLOW PT to ask QUESTIONS or make COMMENTS about the problem(s). LACKS common courtesy. Both OFFICE and PT ROOMS could use an UPDATE especially the walls. And furniture. Thought I was back in the 50's! Perhaps light a candle or two for an environment scent boost. Or add background music or at least a waiting room big screen TV. Lots of pre-entry doc's (I don't think he looked at.) FOLKS, I'M SURE HE'S A WONDERFUL, EXPERIENCED SURGEON, AND ISN'T THAT WHAT MATTERS MOST?! GEEZ LOUISE! That's all folks!!!

Fantastic surgeon but difficult bedside manner.

Dr Zinkel saved my life. My lower back was "a mess". L4 L5 S1 due to a birth defect. He fixed me. A month later I walked into his office and hugged him. He's tough but good. I could not walk, sit or stand without horrible pain. I can dance now. I'm happy with the results since I waited 20 yrs to fix my back. Don't wait! Go see Dr Zinkle and tell him everything. His staff is wonderful.

I recently had a lumber laminectomy because of severe spinal stenosis. Prior to the surgery I was in constant pain; at times very painful. It is now over 3 months since my surgery and my pain is gone. Dr. Zinkel is an outstanding surgeon with great bedside manner. He makes sure you understand the procedure and its risks. He's very bright with a great sense of humor. I would highly recommend him. His staff is also very responsive to any concerns or issues that you may have.

What a disgusting office manager, I can only imagine what the doctor is like. They honestly should not be allowed practicing medicine and I will be filing a complaint with the BBB as well as with LARA and the Board of Physicians. You all should be ashamed of how you treat patients. They literally told me "what's your insurance bc I doubt we can see you," or "Dr. Zinkel doesn't do 2nd opinions". Must be nice to treat people like scum when I make well over what you make and you're answering phones. Karma is coming your way!

He was rude and basically told my husband he didn’t have a certain insurance, but he just had another insurance and that he has a private practice and my husband would have to pay his bill! What kind of person says that to someone in the hospital, let alone is telling him this while my husband is in the shower? Who does he think he is? I don’t care how skilled you are in your profession or what kind of doctorate degree you have, you don’t say that to people who are in pain and are trying to get help, treatment for it, especially when they are in the hospital for the second time in two weeks! Don’t just give someone pain meds and send them home, or make judgement because a certain insurance card hasn’t arrived yet, or since you don’t have the number yet, be rude to the patient. I don’t care if he is the best in his profession, I would never go to him or recommend him to anyone!

I saw him 5 years ago for what I thought for sure was going to be surgery, fusion of C5 & C6. Another St Clair Shores doctor told me that's what I needed after a 10 minute visit. Dr. Zinkel took all my information, did some in office tests, and prescribed further testing. He then told me that he would review all of the tests and have me come back to review the tests with me in person. In the meantime, he prescribed me some medication so I could manage my pain throughout the days ahead. I saw him 3 weeks later after all the testing. He went over each test in great detail and came up with a course of action on what the next steps would be. Turns out I did not need cervical fusions, I had a bone spur on the side of one vertebrae that was pushing on a nerve causing tingling in my right hand and fingers, aches in my shoulder and forearm, and pain like someone was digging an object in my right scapula. He prescribed me some medication to manage the pain but wanted to see if my nerve would plastically or elastically change shape to accommodate the bone spur that was pushing on my nerve. After two more weeks the pain subsided and surgery was avoided. He went on to say that if the spur was to grow further that surgery may be necessary but that the spur was in a location that was accessible and would not require fusions. Dr. Zinkel spent approximately 50 minutes on both visits to go over in detail the course of action and explained my condition in a way that I would understand. My neighbor recommended him and warned me that Dr. Zinkel isn't the warmest person and maybe lacks bedside manners, but that he knows his craft and tells it to you without sugarcoating your condition. I was perfectly ok with that; on the contrary, I found Dr. Zinkel to be caring and compassionate. He takes the time time to listen and explain things in great detail and provides a course of action that avoids surgery if possible. Three years later my wife had similar symptoms as I. We called Dr. Zinkel's office but he was booked at least 1 month out. Later that week a snow storm came in and we called early the next morning hoping for a cancelled appointment, there was. Like myself, he did some similar testing. There were several tests outside of his office that was required but he wants to make the most accurate prognosis so it was required and we didn't mind. The 1st visit he spent at least 45 minutes with my wife. Unfortunately my wife's condition was more severe than mine so on the follow up, he took over an hour to explain in great detail the next course of action, which was surgery. Explained the surgery, recovery, and expected results. He may not give you the warm and fuzzy feeling, but he knows his profession and knows it very well and at the end of the day, I want the person who takes the time to listen to me, explain what the next step is, provide answers to what is causing my pain, and a detailed course of action to remedy the problem, that's what he does and does it well. The office staff, first impression not so warm, but as we met them after our initial visit, they are good people that can throw you a smile if you treat them with respect. Sorry for any typos.

Dr Zinkel performed a very delicate back surgery on me and I am so happy with the results. He was warm, caring and is one of the best in his field! Love the office staff too! They are right on top of everything. 100% satisfied with my care with them.

Doctor Zinkle ruined my life by experimenting on me. I blame myself for not doing more research and getting more information on him but I trusted him and for the past five years I have been living in hell because of what he did to me