Defy Medical

When I needed my thyroid levels balanced, Defy was there for me when my own primary couldn't. Dr Saya is really knowledgeable, kind, & patient. He truly listens & tailors a plan to the individual. Realizing no 2 people are the same, protocols may differ & he helps the individual get their life back. I feel normal & balanced again. 5 stars for him, 4 for medication coordination. When changes were made to my regimen, there were numerous mistakes made that took additional time to correct. The 1st problem was 1 of my medications wasn't added to my order. I called & they added it, but the next problem was it was the wrong dose. I had to call again & get it updated. I got verbal confirmation it has been updated but my patient portal still reflects the previous dose so when I'm ready to reorder, I'll have to call in order to get someone to manually input the correct prescription. It's more effort on my part than in necessary. Everyone is really nice, friendly & helpful but when the ball drops & the problem isn't corrected right away, a snowball effect begins & I'm in the process of getting it all ironed out.

My appointment with Meghan was very professional and thorough. She was so kind and listened to and validated all my concerns and symptoms. She listened and gave me options for treatment and really helped create a plan that felt comfortable for me. I really appreciate her collaborative approach to helping me find a plan forward for some of my health issues.

Dr. Saya is an excellent physician. He is very thorough, takes the time to truly listen to my concerns, and never makes me feel rushed during appointments. He is always well prepared and explains things clearly, which makes me feel confident and well cared for. I highly recommend him to anyone looking for a thoughtful and attentive doctor.

Mackenzie Pearce was AMAZING! I was so nervous to do my Testosterone and Estrogen injections for the first time, but she walked me through it patiently and professionally and I am so grateful! She was incredibly kind, reassuring, and helpful. I would highly recommend her to anyone fortunate enough to work with her. Thank you, Defy Medical, so far I am truly impressed! :)

My reason for contacting Defy was to get a second opinion on a prior course of hormone treatment that yielded mixed results. The intake personnel were professional, responsive to questions, and easy to reach when needed. There was a lot to digest about Defy's online, fee-for-service model, but they were quite transparent about terms and conditions. The consultation with Dr. Saya was very good and enlightening. The conversation was unhurried, and he patiently answered all of my questions. I came away thinking that if I tried again, I would have a personalized, practical alternative approach to try. Why three stars? If I were just grading on the intake process and my conversation with Dr. Saya, I would have given a 4 or 5. But there were a few things that were disappointing. First, we had a video consult scheduled, but Dr. Saya did not appear on video. If the expectation were a phone call, that would have been okay. But that was not the expectation. So I dealt with the annoyance of downloading a video program onto my old, slow, out-of-date laptop for what turned out to be the equivalent of a phone call. Second, we covered a lot of ground, but Dr. Saya said notes of the visit would be available on the patient portal for me to review. Thus, I didn't take my own notes during the consultation. Unfortunately, the "notes" were simply a list of medications we had discussed. There was no context or documentation of the reasons or rationale for each medication. True, we had discussed all that during the consult, but it would have been very helpful to have a more detailed record of that conversation. It seemed much more cursory than the patient notes I had seen from other doctors. Finally, Dr. Saya said a "nurse" would follow up with me later to make sure I understood the recommended protocol. I did get a call, but I'm pretty sure it was not from a nurse or any other sort of licensed practitioner. Unlike the consult or the intake calls, this one felt rushed and perfunctory. The employee said she had added all my medications to my "cart" for my convenience. But I specifically told her Dr. Saya and I had discussed starting out with one particular modality and then later adding in adjuncts if and when they were needed. When I later logged into the portal to check my cart, every medicine discussed was already in there, to the tune of $822 worth of drugs. This made me very nervous, as patients are required to keep a credit card on file. But no order had actually been processed, and I was able to empty my cart of things I did not immediately need or want. The business model of Defy seems to be based on partnering with a compounding pharmacy through which patients pay cash for their medications. I'm still a little confused as to whether you can obtain a prescription and then try to have it filled at a local pharmacy, using your insurance (similar to what I did for the required bloodwork). I think this is possible in certain jurisdictions whose laws allow for it, but there may be a processing fee from Defy. I'm happy to be corrected if I'm wrong about that. Overall, I feel like I got what I paid for from Defy. The information Dr. Saya provided was relevant and helpful. He answered all my questions. He seems extremely knowledgeable on the subject matter and has a kind and patient manner. I was just a bit put off by the lack of follow through on the consultation notes and the rather forceful sales job on the medicine during the follow-up. I don't know yet if I could afford the full protocol we discussed long term. The drugs in my cart would have lasted different amounts of time, so I'm still not sure what the monthly cost would have been. But Dr. Saya himself was certainly willing to take a conservative approach and phase things in only if they proved to be necessary over time. I have good insurance, and I would like to be able to use it for labs and medication. I don't have a problem for paying out of pocket for consultations. I will be glad to update my review if I continue treatment with Defy.