Dr. Joseph L. Williams, 8months later,what would you do?

[Guest]

I had done a session with the Doctor in June 2005, and had unsatisfactory results, however the Doctor did everything he could to remedy my problem to complete patient satisfaction. His recommendations are very helpful and I am able to move forward with my aspirations.

 

thanks all!

 

Important Update for all readers - Since this incident featured in this topic occurred, Dr. Williams did an excellent job of taking responsibility and made critical enhancements to his staff and process. Pat Hennessey later visited his clinic to verify the high quality of Dr. Williams?‚?? work on October 22nd of 2007, click here to view the photos and highlights from this visit.

 

Given Dr. Williams willingness to step up to the plate and do what was required to assure that his process and results are world class he has been fully reinstated in the Coalition, see his Coalition profile here.

 

All of the issues discussed in this topic have been fully resolved.

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Embarrassed,

 

I read your detailed surgical account with great concern. I'm very disappointed and troubled by the pain and anguish you have apparently suffered due to your experience with a physician who is currently recommended on this community and a member of the Coalition.

 

I agree that your growth at eight months out is not satisfactory. I'm glad to hear that Dr. William's acknowledged this and at least offered to provide a complimentary session.

 

However, I can understand your reluctance to do another surgery with him given your disappointment.

 

By all indications to date Dr. Williams has been performing ultra refined follicular unit grafting with impressive results, click here for previous examples of his patient results. Your report is the first negative feedback that I have gotten regarding him or his clinic.

 

However, even one such negative patient experience is too many. The main reason for this community's existence is to help patients find ethical and skilled surgeons who provide consistantly high quality results.

 

Generally I think this community over time has done a good job of identifying some of the very best hair transplant surgeons and making info available to potential patients. And on rare occasion when a physician on this community proved to provide less than optimal results or ethical service they were promptly removed.

 

I promise you that I will contact Dr. Williams as soon as possible to discuss your experience, his clinic's operations and what he intends to do to remedy your situation.

 

His membership in the Coalition and his participation on this community will be depend on his response and what I find.

 

I apologize to you for what you have gone through. I will do every thing possible to produce a positive outcome for you.

 

Pat

 

Important Update for all readers - Since this incident featured in this topic occurred, Dr. Williams did an excellent job of taking responsibility and made critical enhancements to his staff and process. Pat Hennessey later visited his clinic to verify the high quality of Dr. Williams?‚?? work on October 22nd of 2007, click here to view the photos and highlights from this visit.

 

Given Dr. Williams willingness to step up to the plate and do what was required to assure that his process and results are world class he has been fully reinstated in the Coalition, see his Coalition profile here.

 

All of the issues discussed in this topic have been fully resolved.

[wesley949]

Dear Embarrased One:

 

My heart goes out to you. I have made numerous mistakes of judgement in my life which I have regretted and am still beating myself up on. Try not to do this, it is not healthy. As far as lawsuits go, unless an attorney takes it on a contingency basis, it takes money to get a law suit to trial (unless Dr. Williams is agreeable to an early settlement if he thinks you have the resources to get to trial where a jury would see the damage). Your goal should be to make the situation the best it can be. I think that Dr. Williams should pay for you to have surgery done by a doctor of your choice to make things right. I had some repairs done by Doctor Bernstein in January, 2006 and the pain was minimal. The donor area has full sensitivity, where before the surgery it was numb from transplants I had done 25 years earlier. I can't say anything about growth at this point because it is too early, but my head never looked like yours with the massive crusting. Based on your post, I think Dr. Williams is at the least disingeuous and most likely incompetent to boot. Good luck. Keep us posted.

[Beefy]

man I hate to see results like that , I honestly believe anyone who performs a HT like that should'nt be allowed to practice his trade. Deff file a law suit you should get some sort of compensation for those results.

[the B spot]

embarrased one--- many times those of us who frequent these boards in order to share experiences and offer some advice here and there, revel in some of the magnificent results fellow sufferers have achieved. It is with great regret that I read your post, which I think was quite eloquent, and well written, for you are voicing some of the fears all of us have. Take solace in the fact that you have posted here, and that Pat will in fact, get to the bottom of your situation. For a doctor, being a member of the Coalition is important, simply because it helps many of us make decisions that affect many aspects of our lives, and form opinions that affect doctors as well. I must say that I am surprised/astonished at your experience, but if you are disatisfied, you and all of us have a right to know the details of the situation. I know you are new here, but trust me, I have met Pat, and he takes this site and the Coalition very seriously, so you are in good hands. My advice to you is to take a step back, and wait until Pat contacts you, before you go any further. Take care my friend, we will be watching as your story unfolds.

[Gorpy]

Embarassed one, I am saddened to hear of your situation. Thank you for sharing. You mentioned the pain in your donar and recipient areas even at the 5 month point. That is very strange and cannot be attributed to the techs. I personally never felt any pain after the first week. After 3 or 4 days on pain killers the pain was gone so I discontinued them. Several months of pain is outrageous.

[kg007]

Embarrassed1 -

 

We feel your pain. You can take any necessary actions that will make you feel better to get back with your doc, but you should definitely look forward with positive attitude as your situation is not as bad as many other horrible horrible results we have seen. You have very limited hairloss, and it can be fixed in no time. Do some research here and make better decision next time. And yes Dr. Cole performs FUE that will solve your problem. With a limited hairloss like yours, I would prefer FUE any day. 1500-2000 FUEs will give you hairline that you always wanted without going thru much pain. Couple of other docs who perform great FUE are Dr. Paul Rose (FL) and Dr. Alan Feller (NY). Give them a call and set up a cosultation. Good luck.

[Pat - Community Publisher]

In my opinion, there are many issues with Dr. Cole that are not apparent to people on the forums. A previous consultant of Dr. Cole's and physicians who have seen his actual patients (offline) and their issues with growth have told me some pretty disturbing information that has not yet been made public on this and other forums.

 

I advise anyone considering FUE to consider other physicians.

 

Pat

[troy]

Sorry things went bad for you, That is a fear all of us have. I would think bare minimium the doc should pay for you to go to a physician of your choosing and make this bad expirence turn out positive, with a good doc you it should not be all that painfull, in fact it should be very minimal. I wish you the best.

[hairbank]

Embarrassed1,

 

I know all of us feel your pain when it comes to what you went through. I guess what is so surprising to me is that your Doc was a Coalition member. I know when I was choosing a Doc for my 2nd HT I wouldn't consider someone not a member of the Coalition due to the strict requirements of professionalism and excellent results proven and expected by them. As "the B spot" mentioned, I'm sure Pat will get to the bottom of this with respect to your Doc.

 

Looking at your pic's from the front, assuming your crown looks good, you have minimal loss compared to several and should be able to get it fixed without too much trouble. FUE may be the way to go for you but it's very expensive and I'm still not sold on it. As I received my recent strip FUT with Dr. Wong he mentioned he had concerns when it came success regarding methods of harvesting. IN GOOD HANDS, the strip FUT can be, and has been for me, a relatively painless experience.

 

No matter what you decide, take your time and take comfort in the fact that what you have can be fixed. Sorry to hear about your awful experience with what sounds like a total clod who is willing to accept the fact that he delivers poor service sometimes. It's not that mistakes don't happen, they do....all of the time. But, IMO a reputable HT surgeon would be not only offering you a "free of charge" session, but would be willing to pay for you to go to a surgeon of your choosing for "whatever it took" to satisfy you.

 

Good luck and keep all of us posted.

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Embarrassed1,

 

I spoke with Dr. Williams and he would like to be able to view your patient chart so that he has your detailed information in front of him. Could you privately email me your name at pat@hairtransplantnetwork.com so that I can forward this info to him? I certainly will not reveal your name publicly.

 

Or if you'd rather contact his office directly to provide him with your name his office phone number is 702-257-0888. You can also email him directly at drwilliams@need-hair.com.

 

I look forward to helping you achieve a positive outcome.

 

Pat

[Guest]

Embarrassed, looks like you still have plenty of hair to work with make your next choice count, im interested to see how this turns out because this guy is on Pats good guy list, Im glad Pat is Helping out here, this is actually a serious issue because the Dr. is on Pats list, but sometimes these procedures just dont work on some individuals for whatever reason, it has happened to some of the top Docs, im miffed at Pats remarks about Dr. Cole, in my research and questioning of other Docs i thought Cole was good just arrogant, i respect Pats opinion and i will research this further because Cole was my #1 choice for FUE if i do it, although Shapiro says he might be doing it more and more in the future, shhhhhhhhhh

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Embarrassed,

 

I have not yet gotten your email. Could you please resend it to - pat@hairtransplantnetwork.com

 

Thanks, Pat

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Update,

 

I spoke with Dr. Williams again today and apparently he and embarrassed1 had a productive conversation and have made progress in resolving the various concerns.

 

Apparently the messages that Embarrassed1's had left with his office had been directed to their administrator Walter who was out sick part of this past week.

 

Dr. Williams said that he routinely provides all his patients with his cell phone number so that they can contact him directly day or night.

 

Dr. Williams intends to make a post by Monday detailing the corrective actions he has taken since Embarrassed1's surgery a year ago to ensure quality results. He will also share what he is doing to remedy Embarrassed1's concerns.

 

I will continue to provide updates and work to get to the bottom of these issues.

 

Thanks for everyone's patience. Pat

[Bill - Seemiller]

I hope Dr. Williams comes through for this man. How terrible! Embarrassed1, we are here to support you. If Dr. Williams is an ethical doc, he will do all that he can to compensate this patient to the fullest extend, monentary returns as well.

 

Bill

[Dr. Joseph Williams]

To the participants of the Forum:

 

I am Joseph Williams, MD and I'm responding to the post placed by "Embarrased1" last week. I apologize for not immediately responding to my patient's concerns on this forum as it took me a short time to establish who this patient is. Since then I have had two detailed and productive conversations with the patient, one last Thursday and another one Friday. I believe that we have reached a resolution that is to his satisfaction.

 

While I would like to clarify my perspective regarding this situation and the above posts, ultimately I assume responsibility for all my patients' results and I do every thing possible to assure their satisfaction.

 

However, there were several inaccuracies, possibly due to miscommunications, in the above posts. One specific example, upon review of the chart, clearly establishes that there were no grafts placed in the crown. The 1200 grafts he referred to in his post were placed in the top region behind the hairline and front grafts. However, I would be equally furious if I were him and misunderstood this! Other things said in his post were very hurtful to me, but my last note in his chart clearly expressed my understanding of his dissatisfaction and my willingness to do whatever it takes to make him happy.

 

His hair transplant procedure was performed utilizing the most advanced techniques. Very small blades (0.7 mm) were used and the incisions were placed perpendicular (also referred to as coronal or lateral) so dense packing could be accomplished in the hairline. Although I had an experienced team, for some reason, many of the single follicular units at the hairline did not grow on the right side. This can occur from desiccation of the grafts, damage while dissecting them under the microscopes (trimming too close) or pressure on the bulb while placing them into the sites. The technician he speaks of in his post had over 10 years experience previous to being hired by me. However, despite this technician's extensive prior experience and positive references I did terminate his employment once I came to realize that his work was not consistently good.

 

I document the number of grafts and the exact location on the scalp where each technician works. This allows me to maintain quality control over every technician. Since I only perform one large procedure in any one day, I can and do oversee all the work. A large procedure, such as the one this patient received, takes about 40 "man hours" of effort. I do not leave the office and constantly observe the work of the team throughout the procedure. All hair transplant physicians require a team approach to accomplish these large sessions. I have excellent technicians and have stringent internal controls; however, if you are the patient with less than a satisfactory result, I understand that this is of little consolation.

 

In conclusion, I have had my medical doctorate for 30 years, practiced as a board certified specialty surgeon for 22 years, and have been a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons for 20 years. I have never had a law suit, in part, because I have always practiced with a keen sense of ethics, honesty toward my patients, while treating them the way I would want to be treated, and doing the best surgery possible.

 

Fortunately, my patients typically realize this and appreciate me for it. I am saddened by the comments made about me in the patient's post. But I must learn from it and prevent it from happening, again. Every patient of mine receives my personal cell phone number and my home phone is listed in the telephone book.

 

I apologize to this patient and to the Coalition members for this unfortunate occurrence. It is apparent to me that many patients have been treated poorly in hair transplant practices. But I know that the mission of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians and its members is to provide patients with the best results and satisfaction possible. I am honored to be among them and I intend to do my very best to respect its membership standards.

 

Since the "questionable" technician was terminated, I have carefully assembled the most capable technicians available. I have in place a Technician Supervisor, whose responsibilities include assisting me in oversight of the procedure. He has eleven years experience, extraordinary abilities, and shares my commitment to provide the best hair transplant results available anywhere. He and I inspect the quality of all technicians' work. This includes microscopic preparation of grafts, care of grafts regarding desiccation, proper handling and placement of the grafts. The performance of all my technicians under my new "quality assurance" system has resulted in accountability leading to consistent, high quality transplants. I assure you, my work is routinely excellent.

 

I can't always explain an occasional mediocre or rare poor result. But I can correct it at no charge or "make it right" and assist the patient in finding another physician, if he is uncomfortable with me. I hope this response helps clear up my position in this matter.

 

Sincerely,

 

Joseph L. Williams, MD, FACS

[the B spot]

Dr. Williams, thank you for responding to this unfortunate happening. Given the circumstances, I think your response here will solidify what many of us think, that you are a fine physician. However, as I am sure you are fully aware, a limited supply of donor exists and these follicles are so precious, mistakes simply cannot be made, period. This is why the standards of Coalition Membership are so high! Ultimately, any mistakes by your technicians are yours; this is the nature of your chosen field. After reading your post, your words project an image of caring and responsibility, so I think we can all judge you to be an honorable man. With that said, while we wait for embarassed1's resolution to unfold in its finality, perhaps you could take on a repair patient with limited funds, in order to showcase the fine work you perform on a regular basis? I am sure Pat would be willing to assist you in this undertaking. Once again, thank you for responding in a timely fashion, and I am sure all of us here appreciate your candor and openess in this matter.

[johnnie69]

Might just be me, but I think you spoke out of turn there B, and spoke for everyone at that....

 

Noone wants to see results like that....And Embarassed deserves to be, IMHO, compensated AND repaired.....

 

That docs a$$ is on the block, I say let those involved handle it....

 

Yes, we as potential patients have a right to see how it all unfolds and make our judgements accordingly, and also to assist Embarassed if he asks, but ultimately, I think it should be between them.

 

Kinda put Pat on the spot there too, didnt ya?

[pushing 40]

Geez..why don't we just ask him to finalize a peace accord in the middle east while we're at it B'Spot?

[Pat - Community Publisher]

The real value of this community is in helping patients find their way to the very best clinics. The process of selecting such clinics for presentation on this community has involved visiting clinics, examining patient results and techniques, attending hair restoration conferences and gathering input over the past seven years from actual patients.

 

The feedback from actual patients on this forum and in private emails is a very important reality check. In many ways I think of the members of this community as the legislative body, whose collective vote is very influential in ultimately determining who is selected for recommendation on our community and who remains recommended.

 

It is essential that patients have a forum for sharing both successes and failures. But it is just as important that this feedback be seriously considered. Thus I appreciate Embarrassed1 bringing his experience to light.

 

Based on his input, my past experiences with Dr. Williams and recent conversations I've come to the following conclusions:

 

That Dr. Williams embraced the use of tiny cut to size blades to make lateral incisions after he was impressed by the results Hasson and Wong were achieving for their patients. I believe that Dr. Williams committed to doing this ultra refined procedure almost two years ago in order to provide his patients with very refined and dense results. Prior to doing these new and more demanding ultra refined procedures, Dr. Williams had a proven track record of successful results and growth previously when he was doing standard follicular unit grafting.

 

However, as the hair transplant procedure becomes increasingly more refined and large such sessions also become more difficult and demanding to perform successfully. As Dr. Williams pointed out in his above reply, tiny grafts and tiny incisions make the grafts more fragile and vulnerable to damage and thus poor growth. Thus performing such demanding procedures successfully requires the entire staff to be at a high skill level.

 

My sense is that when Embarrassed1 and a few others had their ultra refined surgeries at least one technician was not up to pare in performing this technique. Thus months later the growth rate of their transplants was compromised.

 

While I sympathize with Dr. Williams frustration in getting all his staff members in the past to be fully committed to quality, ultimately the "buck stops" with the surgeon.

 

I'm encouraged by Dr. Williams's willingness to take responsibility for his patients' outcome and his willingness to compensate them with free surgery and or compensation. I also find some reassurance in his willingness to identify and remove staff members who proved not to be adequate and to replace them with technicians who are.

 

Dr. Williams has assured me that his staff and patients results are now consistently excellent. But I think that myself and the members of this community need to see evidence of such results and to hear from a number of satisfied patients before Dr. Williams is again recommended on this community.

 

I trust that Dr. Williams will indeed be able to demonstrate such results on our forum in the coming weeks and again earn our trust and recommendation.

 

But until this occurs, I must error on the conservative side in no longer recommending him on our community until sufficient evidence is made available on this forum to restore confidence in his clinic.

 

I also want to apologize to Embarrassed1 and any patients who may have relied on this site's recommendation of Dr. Williams in making their choice and then did not achieve optimal growth. I think we have all suffered a disappointment regarding this situation and I'm committed to do what I can to avoid a repeat.

 

Pat Hennessey, Publisher of the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center and the Hair Restoration Network

[kamin]

WOW! I am extremely impressed with Pat and how this was handled. Good work, Pat!

 

embarrassed1, good luck! I'm sure everything will work out!

[the B spot]

J69--- You need to read my post closely. In no way shape or form did I OK this doctors mistake. I called him to task for his mistake and presented him with a possible opportunity to give back to this community. Dr. Williams issue with Embarrassed1 needs to be reconciled FULLY and without delay, period. I do have a measure of appreciation for a Doctor who is willing to post on this site and admit that he performed a subpar HT on his patient AND fully compensate the patient. In addition, his response and handling of the situation goes a long way to prove that he values his reputation and his former membership in the Coalition. Nothing in my post contradicts that, and cannot be misconstrued in any other fashion.

As far as my suggestion, Dr. Williams has a responsibility to attempt to re-earn the trust of the Coalition to prove that he is practicing Hairtransplantation at the highest level, so giving back in such a manner will help accomplish that. As far as putting Pat on the spot, it is up to Dr. Williams to iniate my suggestion or dismiss it totally, so Pat's involvement would be solely for the purpose of documenting and verifying the Dr.'s actions. In the future, it might be better if you read my posts thoroughly, but with that said, I understand and FULLY respect your position. I am sorry if you feel I spoke for you or anyone else in this matter, that was not my true intention. It is a manner of speaking that sometimes finds its way into writing(I am reffering to Dr. Williams response and intended compensation).

40- I don't think anyone can solve the Middle East

[just tranpalnted]

i am a recent patient of dr. williams. i must say i am very pleased with him and his staff. i reviewied plenty of candidates and chose dr. williams based on his professionalism and experience. i was also referred and the work that i saw personally on patients was very good. i myself based on my experience strongly recommend dr. williams.

a happy patient !!

[hairbank]

just transplanted,

 

Would you be willing to share before and after pictures and of the procedure if you have them?

[Stevenvegas]

Hello my name is Steve B and I live in Las Vegas, I am also a patient of Dr. Williams. I had my second Transplant in Nov 2005. He did a great Job!

 

After reading some of the comments I must share my experience with the group.

 

Dr. Williams did a great job, he spent a lot of quality time before,during and after the process. Dr Williams went in to great detail of what to expect and was very realistic about the results. As soon as I figure out how to post pictures, I would like to share them as well.I will try to do it today.I got great follow up as well,his Staff Included

 

As for what I have been reading I thinks its a little one sided. I want to share my pictures, before and after. After all, A picture is worth a Thousand Words!!

 

I have and will refer anyone to Dr Williams. If they have a concern I will gladly talk with them one on one and supply my phone number by E-mail.

 

Thank you Dr Williams For the Hair

 

Steve B Las Vegas