Soujanya Biragoni's Online Review Report Card

I was very disappointed. This was my first visit with her. She never introduced herself. I thought she was another nurse, but eventually figured out on my own that she is the doctor. She did not have time to see me nor do a physical and she told me in a rushed panic tone that she wasn't doing it and that it would have to be done later. She personally saw me about two minutes and then she was gone. ...

Dr. B You’re so dedicated and thorough and committed to her patients near and long-term interest. My wife and I both sheer for annual check ups and four issues that arise during the year. Recently my wife had G.I. tract issues that caused the doctors to be concerned. In spite of my wife’s phone being off she tracked her down through me, talk to her and insisted she come in for a additional test or two. Amazing And her staff are very kind and professional!

Dr Biragoni gets to the bottom of the problem and addresses the issue. She is kind and humble and caring.

Dr. Biragoni is very friendly, very thorough and easy to talk to. It is easy to get an appt, and her staff is very pleasant too. I highly recommend her!

A very good physician I am happy that I changed to this doctor because of the commuting distance

Dr. Biragoni has nothing but contempt for people with ADHD. Now, I didn't decide to have my primary managed my ADHD medication because I'm some kind of nefarious drug-seeking scammer. No, when I was with my past two HMOs, I used my primary for my ADHD medicine because it was was more convenient. After all, I had been diagnosed in 2002 by a psychiatrist, and a psychiatrist had managed my meds for several years after that. Since all of this was in my records, why subject myself to the heinous wait time overburdened HMOs have for psychiatrists? When I was with GHC-SCW (2009-2015), my primary required that I come in every 3 months for an appointment in order to get a refill. The other restriction was that I had to come in in person each month to get a paper script that I had to bring to my pharmacy. When I was with Kaiser (2015-2016), I had to have an appointment with a psychiatrist who took a look at my records, then I had to take a drug test (no cost to me). Then my primary managed it. These doctors were all subject to the same federal laws regarding controlled substances as Dr. Biragoni. Once I got a PPO, I chose Novant-Bull Run Family Practice because (1) I had always gone to Bull Run before I moved out of the area, and (2) they are the only provider in the area that has hours for people with jobs. Novant is very up-front about their commitment to treating people who take controlled substances like criminals. They do so under the guise of adhering to federal law, but if that were really the case, Kaiser's clinics would be in violation of said laws. Novant mandates monthly appointments with the prescribing provider (not a requirement with Kaiser). This is clearly a thinly-veiled means of ensuring a steady stream of revenue from insurance companies. One of Novant's most ridiculous policies, however, is that you have to use the same pharmacy for your Rx every time you fill it. When I used CVS, they would regularly run out of my medication and inform me that I'd have to wait a week for it to come in. I asked Dr. Biragoni if I could get permission to use a different pharmacy if mine did not have my medication in stock. She said no. So, let's all hope that the government in its infinite wisdom never decides that a diabetes or heart medicine could be used recreationally, or Novant would just have you wait it out. With the background about Novant's role out of the way, here are my problems with Dr. Biragoni specifically. First of all, the method in which she interrogates me about my use of my medication. At my most recent appointment, she harped on the fact that I use it on weekends; her repeated questions seemed to imply that it was somehow wrong for me to want to be organized and approach tasks in a linear fashion on a weekend. What really bothered me about her list of questions is that she never took the time to ask about my productivity levels, or about negative side effects. In other words, she is so focused on sniffing out any hints of misuse that she neglects to perform her role as a doctor. It doesn't help that she has no "bedside manner;" she seldom smiles or uses facial expressions to convey even a glimmer of empathy. Another issue I have with Dr. Biragoni is that her overuse of drug testing is pricing me out of my medication. Novant reserves the right to drug test patients who take controlled substances whenever they want. The problem is, Dr. Biragoni simply chooses to drug test me every month. Novant has LabCorp do their testing, and I pay $80 after insurance. If you do the math, the appointment copay, the drug test, and the cost of the medication add up to the cost of the medication WITHOUT insurance. Finally, when I went to Dr. Biragoni with a medical problem unrelated to my ADHD, she misdiagnosed me. It took a general surgeon literally a glance to see that the diagnosis was wrong. The misdiagnosis furthermore bespoke an ignorance of basic anatomy. In short, if you're looking for a wannabe DEA agent, go to Dr. B. If you want a good doctor, go elsewhere. If you have ADHD, see a psychiatrist.