A New York Dentist’s privacy agreement was not enough to avoid a negative patient review on Yelp. In an effort to preempt negative patient reviews from being posted online and damaging her reputation, Dr Stacy Makhnevich required new patent, Robert Lee to sign a mutual agreement to maintain privacy. The idea behind the agreement was to prohibit a patient from publishing an disparaging comments about her practice.
Dentist’s Privacy Agreement Was Not Enough To Avoid A Negative Patient Review On Yelp
The controversy began in 2010, when Lee went into Makhnevich’s office for a scheduled dentist’s appointment. Bleary from pain, Lee claimed he was told he had to sign several papers, including a “Mutual Agreement to Maintain Privacy,” before being treated. The form required Lee to agree not to publish any commentary or write anything disparaging about his experience with Makhnevich.
While Lee said he was hesitant to sign such a form, he claimed he was in severe pain and, therefore, gave in to the requirements.
Lee received a bill for $4,766 for the dental work, according to Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization. Lee reportedly asked the dentist to send the necessary paperwork to his insurance company, but she sent it to the wrong company. When he asked for the forms to submit them himself, Makhnevich’s office apparently refused to hand them over and referred him to a third party that required five percent of the total bill for its services.
Fed up, Lee wrote negative reviews about Makhnevich and her practice on Yelp and DoctorBase.
A Dentist’s privacy agreement was not enough to avoid a negative patient review on Yelp and that’s only the beginning of the story. Now the New York Dentist is battling her former patient with little help from Yelp, who refused to remove the comment. A tough battle resulting from a situation Dr Makhnevich thought she took adequate prevention to avoid. Review sites express subjective opinions and not necessarily the facts. With the importance patients place on online reviews this is a battle that is only more likely to heat up. Share your comments and experiences by clicking LIKE or SHARE
