CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A men’s health clinic is sparking frustration after patients say they were left without care and asking "where's the money".
Hank Rivers said he’s been seeking treatment from Oak Valley Medical Clinic in Charlotte for about four weeks.
“I was very pleased all the way through,” Rivers said. “Had the same clinician. He was very knowledgeable.”
Now, he said he’s out of nearly $5,000 after arriving to find the clinic doors closed and his calls to the company unanswered.
“All of a sudden, that’s where we ended up with the doors locked,” Rivers said. “'Leave your number. We’ll get back to you.' I guess nobody was there to get back to you, evidently.”
The clinic offers care for erectile dysfunction, with the company paying to advertise on shows like Charlotte Today in the past year.
WCNC Charlotte sought answers to what led to the change, calling Oak Valley Medical and one other clinic in Utah under the same ownership, to no avail.
Through public records, Dr. Kyon Hood was identified as a connection to the company. By phone, he shared he’s the company’s medical director, adding that there are roughly 20 similar clinics the company oversees around the country facing temporary closure.
“I was just notified from the management services organization late last week that the clinics had been temporarily closed and that they’re working on a solution to reopen them,” Dr. Hood said. “I’m in the process of trying to understand exactly what happened and what led to this so that I can take any corrective action that I’m able to that will benefit the patients who signed up and paid for their current treatment plan.”
The Better Business Bureau tells WCNC Charlotte it’s investigating the sudden closures, advising those affected to file a formal complaint with their organization.
“We’ll keep on going up the food chain and there’s an owner somewhere, or a president, or a CEO -- that will be our destination with our investigation of just trying to determine who’s responsible and who can consumers turn to to try to get their money back,” Tom Bartholomy, BBB President of Southern Piedmont and Western N.C., said. “BBB.org, click on file a complaint. As soon as we receive that complaint, we begin working with the company to try to get that recovery for you. It’s more difficult when a company has closed their doors.”
Rivers said he’s just hoping for answers soon.
“It’s going to be interesting to see,” Rivers said. “We may not recover any of our funds.”
Dr. Hood said he’s hoping to establish a system to improve communication between the office and patients as the company navigates its current circumstance.
Contact Kayland Hagwood at khagwood@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.