Matthew L Powers's Online Review Report Card

Heart Surgeon Doctor Mathew Powers saved my life!I was a month shy of 48 years old and had severe mitral valve regurgitation that had gone undetected for several years. I go to the gym regularly and had no idea and showed no symptoms. My doctor in Palm Springs was the first one to detect the heart murmur. He referred me to an amazing Cardiologist at Eisenhower Cardiology in Rancho Mirage who then, after a series of very careful and thoughtful tests, told me I needed to have Mitral Valve repair surgery as soon as possible. My heart had been compensating for the faulty Mitral valve for so long that it was leading towards irreversible heart damage and eventual heart failure. My cardiologist sent me to Eisenhower Surgeon, Doctor Mathew Powers. Dr. Powers explained to me very clearly the complexities of mitral valve repair surgery. He used a model and a drawing to show my husband and I the chambers of the human heart and the valves that connect them. He explained how a leaky mitral valve could cause one of the chambers to grow and change over time in an attempt to compensate for all the back flow of blood. He answered all my questions (I brought a list!) thoughtfully and with respect. I took notes and researched everything he said on the Internet. Comparing his information to what I found inside the most recent heart surgeon journal publications and hospital reports. I was surprised and relieved how up to date he was with his information and techniques. Dr. Powers told me before hand all the different things that could go wrong. Even letting me decide what kind of new valve I would want in case he went in and discovered the valve needed to be replaced rather than repaired. He carefully explained the pros and cons of each option and gave me a few days to think and to choose what I felt would be best for me. In the off chance I would need it. Even though it is well documented that in heart surgery much can go wrong. I was willing to take the risk because I am only middle aged and in otherwise good health. So for me all of the health benefits would be worth it. Internet wisdom says the best thing you can do to minimize heart surgery risk is to have an experienced surgeon that has done the procedure you need many times before. Dr. Powers has performed mitral valve repair surgeries hundreds of times, maybe even a thousand times. So right there I knew he was the best surgeon for me. My valve repair surgery was 100% successful. Dr. Powers and his surgical team did a fantastic job. He visited several times during my week in the hospital and he was very caring. One of my favorite memories about Dr. Powers was on Aug 30th, 2017. I know the date because I wrote it down in my journal that very same day. It was two weeks after my surgery. We were discussing my valve repair. He told me he had to imagine the valve beyond three dimensions and into the fourth dimension of "action over time". He said that it was easy to make a perfect repair that looks great and does the job 100%. But he also had to imagine the valve working over a period of many years. And make sure he accounted for that in his workmanship. What a thoughtful and amazing idea. This is what Dr. Powers is all about, not just getting the job done and moving on to the next patient. He is very careful and considerate. More than I could have ever expected or asked for. As questions arose during the long heart rehabilitation program that Eisenhower provides, he and his compassionate assistants were always available. The hospital campus is very open and easy to get around on so I could drive or walk from the Rehab building to just about anywhere I needed to go. The few times I visited his office I was always treated with kindness and helped out with all my concerns. And to a post heart surgery patient, every little thing is a major concern! It's been over a year now. My heart with all its chambers has remodeled itself back to normal. My lifespan is now on par with everyone else my age. I'm back at my regular gym and am stronger than ever before. I've lost some extra weight and am in really great shape. I keep making new discoveries about my self and my body where I'm pretty sure I am reaping the benefits of the surgery. Like better circulation and clearer skin, stronger memory, less fatigue, less general anxiety all that stuff that you read about where you aren't sure if it is true or not. Evidence keeps mounting that something in me has changed for the better. An old acquaintance complimented me and sincerely wanted to know what I had been doing to look so good. (She didn't know about the heart surgery!) I'm so grateful to Doctor Powers and everyone at Eisenhower hospital for fixing me and now I look forward to a long life and all the benefits that come from a healthy heart. Thank you Doctor Powers!

I am sorry for the heartache and disappointment of the previous reviewer. However, Dr Powers and Dr Wilson operate as a team. Open heart surgery is a really big deal. We all know that going in. It's not for the faint of heart, no pun intended.My experience was very different. I shopped drs and hospitals from La Jolla to Boston, and ended up with Dr Wilson 2 years ago for AVR surgery. It was a combination of best / closest. Dr Wilson is a wizard. Three of my family members died from aortic stenosis....I was scared. Dr Wilson showed unusual humanity and empathy, for a surgeon, my opinion. He exudes confidence and competence. Dr. powers was with him in the OR. I have no idea who did what, nor do I care. My surgery could not have gone better.These things are outcome based. My outcome was great. But the thought that these doctors are uncaring or unfeeling is just plain wrong, again, my opinion. They saved and improved my life. I love these guys and visit every few months to thank them and show them the results of their work. A 73 year old fairly active male with no limitations. ME !And the office folks are the greatest, too. One big happy deal!

I've used Yelp long enough to know... most negative reviews are not intended to harm, but to warn. Most of us are good people, heaping praise where deserved, and where criticism is justified, well... we generally move on and let the business alone. We're all just trying to make a living, right? And everyone makes a mistake once in a while. But that's just the issue I have with Dr Matthew Powers. His "once in a while something goes wrong" mistake cost my loved one his life.My loved one's Open Heart Surgery by Dr Powers seemed a success, until a few months later. A problem occurred and the patient had to be operated on again. Why? No solid explanation given. A mystery. Should be fine now. But it wasn't. Another 6 weeks. Another problem. Patient had to be opened up again. Of course it will all be fine now. But no -- several weeks later -- his "work" --- isn't working -- again. Another major surgery and attempt to "fix." Obviously after 3 times with a chest being opened up, this caught the attention of the administrative machine at Eisenhower Medical Center. Other doctors were called in. Only then did we learn what was really going on with my loved one. And the way we found out? Was by reading the fine print in the discharge paperwork after we got home. No doctor or nurse even spoke a word of truth or hard facts about the case while we were in the hospital. Finger pointing and whispering behind the scenes? The doctors protect each other. I guess they were too embarrassed by the multiple mistakes to say anything to our faces. Dr Powers was in over his head and had dug a very deep hole for himself, right there in my loved one's chest. My loved one trusted Dr Powers to a fault. A fault, a kindness, a forgiveness ... that became his death sentence. That's how elderly people are. They trust too much. And that's probably how Eisenhower Medical Center "gets away" with a lot of bad outcomes. These old patients trust their doctors. They believe in them. On the other hand, the doctor thinks "they're old, they're going to die anyway." At that point, it's just a matter of who's going to last the longest... and the doctor always wins. Just avoid the patient and the family, and you'll avoid the consequences. Which is what happened here. My loved one suffered greatly in the last few years due to multiple mistakes by Dr Powers. Dr Powers has very good reviews on the medical websites. I'm here on Yelp because there is another side of the story. Dr Powers may have good surgical skills... as far as cutting and pasting. Maybe he has good hands. But he lacks good judgment. My opinion is that he wings it. He does "one size fits all" surgery. That means a large percentage of the time, everything will work out fine. But sometimes, it doesn't. And that one time could be your loved one. In this case he made an amateur mistake, with a big league consequence. His biggest failure was to recognize it right away.This review is long overdue, and honestly -- far too kind. But Yelp is my only recourse and outlet. Elderly people don't "sue." They just suck it up and move on. Doctors probably rely on that too. If your loved one is in the ER at Eisenhower, stop... take the time to find THE BEST cardiac surgeon. Frankly, I'd go to another hospital. One that doesn't see a lot of elderly patients. One that treats all patients the same, regardless of age. I'd certainly never let someone I cared about go under the knife of Dr Powers, no matter how good the other reviews are. There's always that "one" -- and this one -- was mine. I have to do what's right -- because this doctor -- didn't.

Utilizing the services of this doctor resulted in catastrophic results for me after performing a procedure at St. Johns Medical Center. I highly suggest thoroughly researching alternatives.

Dr. Powers is a hospital based Radiologist, so does not have an office for seeing patients. Scheduling is done by the hospitals. I have had many procedures by him going back to 2003. He is the absolute best when it comes to Interventional procedures.