Huntsville Hospital Valley Surgical Associates

I had surgery with Dr Marc Zelickson several years ago when he was at a previous practice, and it was a great experience. When I found out on 8/15/2020 that I would need my gallbladder removed, I called his office and scheduled an appointment for 8/20/2020. When I started running a fever and having chills on 8/16/2020 (which is one of the things the hospital ER nurse practitioner warned me to seek care for if it happened) my primary physician started me on antibiotics and recommended that I contact Dr Zelickson’s office and leave a message for his nurse so that they could hopefully see me sooner.nnInstead, his nurse asked me “why I thought it was my gallbladder anyway” and (mistakenly) informed me that gallbladder issues don’t cause fevers. She said she would have to ask if they could still see me in the office at all because of this. Never mind that my primary physician’s office understood that there is a possibility of infection, and never mind that the ER physician and nurse practitioner both understood this as well. This nurse didn’t believe it was an issue. She acted like I had no idea what I was talking about and had just decided all on my own that I needed my gallbladder removed.nnI immediately contacted another surgeon’s office. Nobody there had a problem understanding what was going on- the nurses didn’t , the surgeon didn’t, and the receptionist didn’t. She had me come in that very same afternoon (yesterday, 8/18/2020) and my wonderful new general surgeon recognized the issue at hand. He removed my gallbladder this morning (8-19-2020) and it was necrotic and covered in pus. THAT is what was causing my fever, and THAT is how a knowledgeable office handles this.nnDr Zelickson and his nurse were flat-out wrong. His nurse called me later yesterday (after I had already called and spoke to receptionist about why I was canceling my appointment) because they needed to reschedule me due to my temperature. Thank goodness I found a surgeon with qualified nurses who actually know how to recognize an infection. I couldn’t eat and could barely drink from 8/15/2020 on. I made Dr Zelickson’s office aware of this also when I made my initial appointment. I really liked Dr Zelickson and his staff when he was at the previous practice but this one is absolutely terrible. They had no problem ignoring my symptoms and apparently believe signs of infection aren’t a thing.nnAlso, even though I called and canceled my appointment for tomorrow (8/20/2020), and then told the nurse I was canceling my appointment and going elsewhere, I’ve still gotten reminder calls so I have to call yet again I suppose and make sure they know I’m not coming because I wouldn’t put it past them at this point to try and bill me for a missed appointment.

Dr Hunt is a very attentive Doctor with an excellent bedside manor. He is very knowledgeable and really gives you peace of mind.

He is one of the best surgeons ever and very nice and takes time to answer my questions

Dr Hunt took wonderful care in looking after my mother. He is amazing

Dr. Downey is one of the best surgeons in the country and gave me fantastic care. I am amazed that he practices in Huntsville and not a big city,thank you Dr. Downey!!!!