In response to the clinic's public reply to my partner's review, I feel it is only fair that my own experience as the patient is also heard, because their response does not reflect how I experienced my treatment.
My concerns are not with the surgical result, but with the way I was treated throughout my hospital stay and the standard of post-operative care I received.
From the moment I arrived at the hospital, I felt rushed. I was moved from room to room, asked to sign numerous consent forms that were entirely in Turkish and were not properly explained to me. I did not understand what I was signing, yet I was still expected to sign the documents. Within approximately two hours of having my blood tests taken, I was already being prepared for surgery. At no point did I feel that enough time was taken to explain everything or make me feel comfortable properly. Everything felt rushed from start to finish.
When I woke up after surgery, I was covered in my own vomit. The emergency call bell that had been placed in my hand did not work, meaning I was unable to call for assistance. I had no choice but to telephone my partner, who immediately contacted my coordinator on my behalf. It was only after my partner intervened that a nurse eventually came to assist me. Although I was cleaned up, I was still left lying on bedding that had vomit on it. I also repeatedly had to ask for help just to get out of bed and use the toilet, and the nurse kept rolling her eyes. No patient recovering from major surgery should be left in that position, especially when you are a Paying customer.
I also developed significant bruising around my eye following surgery, which has continued to become darker. I still have no satisfactory explanation as to how this happened, which naturally remains a concern.
The clinic has publicly portrayed my partner as being aggressive and threatening towards staff. That is not how I experienced the situation.
From the very beginning, the clinic chose to communicate directly with my partner. He organised my entire trip, paid for my surgery, arranged our flights, accommodation and transfers, dealt with every payment and every appointment, and was the clinic's main point of contact throughout the entire process. It was only once concerns were raised that his involvement suddenly became a problem.
The only disagreement we had with the clinic was regarding the sudden alteration of a follow-up appointment that had already been agreed. We had arranged to attend my follow-up appointment on the Saturday before flying home on the Sunday. At the very last minute, the clinic decided they wanted to bring my appointment forward to the Friday instead, despite already knowing that my partner had important dental treatment booked elsewhere and that we also had our one-year-old son with us.
We explained that changing the appointment would create significant problems for us because of our existing medical commitments, but I felt our circumstances were completely dismissed. Rather than considering our needs, I felt the clinic expected us to rearrange everything purely for their own convenience. As paying customers, I believe we should have been treated with far more care, consideration and respect.
We eventually attended the rearranged appointment at 7:00 a.m. despite the inconvenience it caused. During that appointment, my partner politely asked Dr Onur for some simple advice regarding loose skin on his own stomach. Instead of simply answering the question professionally, Dr Onur stated that my partner had been threatening members of his staff, refused to offer any advice and started to smirk and laugh at my partner. I found this completely unnecessary because my partner's issue was never with Dr Onur personally or with his staff. Our concerns related solely to the way my aftercare had been handled and the last-minute alteration of an appointment that had already been agreed.
From my perspective, my partner was simply trying to advocate for me after seeing me wake up covered in vomit, unable to summon assistance because the emergency bell did not work, repeatedly needing help to get out of bed and use the toilet, and feeling that I was not receiving the standard of care I expected following major surgery.
Throughout my experience, I also felt that Dr Onur was dismissive and blunt whenever my partner asked reasonable questions, as if he didn't want my partner there at all. Rather than listening to our concerns and treating us with empathy, I felt we were made to feel like an inconvenience.
They also cancelled our transfer back to the airport knowing I was in a lot of pain and had our disabled 1-year-old son with us. Luckily, Attelia Dental Practice was aware of the situation and offered their assistance instead.
This review is based entirely on my own personal experience as the patient. I have no reason to fabricate events. Whilst I genuinely hope my surgical results continue to heal well, I cannot honestly say that I was happy with the overall experience.
