Gulf Coast Eye Institute

While the wait time has been exceedingly long for reasons other than the light treatment,, the wait time for getting the light treatment to my eyes has been very appropriate. The tech Doing the treatment is very nice and supportive. The best part is that I've had amazing results after just two of the treatments!

I checked in for my 8am appointment, was called in once they started calling in the patients. I was checked and dilating drops started to get me ready for exam with Dr. After 15 min was called in to see Dr. Exam completed and was out by 9am. I was sooo happy my appointment went as I expected and was not disappointed. The Dr staff was very polite and professional.

Visited the Harlingen location and it was full of patients. Even though it seemed like a very busy day Dr refell was still training staff and providing great customer service. The lady who checked me before the doctor seemed very moody, maybe since it was the end of the day, and she also seemed new. But Dr Refell answered all my concerns. I wish the ladies who check you before the doctor could be trained by their manager to have more people skills and provide better customer service because this also happened to me at the weslaco location. The girls don't seem patient and do the work carelessly that it hurts my eyes. This time the doctor was able to notice that it was not being done correctly and therefore I was not in pain afterwards. Kuddos to the doctor

The golf Coast eye Institute on Ed Carey in Harlington, Texas is an exceptional facility. I like it. It's a one stop office where you can get your exam and your glasses without having to go all over town. I can't say enough about the staff. They're all always courteous and professional. When I've happened to call the office and gotten a recording, my calls are always promptly returned and all my questions or answered. I feel very confident placing my. Eyesight health in their hands Sincerely, Mirtala Boman

I would strongly caution anyone considering care at Gulf Coast Eye Institute, particularly if your time matters to you. Over a month ago, I was contacted because the specialist I was scheduled to see would not be available. I declined to see another physician and was rescheduled for an 8:15 a.m. appointment. I arrived at 8:00 a.m. and was told I did not have an appointment. After waiting about 30 minutes with no update, I was then informed my appointment had been changed to 10:15 a.m. without my knowledge or notification. This was not an isolated incident. Over multiple visits in the past year, appointments routinely run several hours behind schedule, and patients are rarely seen anywhere close to their scheduled times. This appears to be a known and accepted practice rather than an occasional delay. When I asked to speak with a supervisor, the response was dismissive and confrontational, with no apology or attempt to resolve the situation. I was also told the owner does not speak with patients, leaving no clear path for accountability. If a medical office knows it cannot honor appointment times, scheduling should reflect that reality. Patients deserve transparency, respect for their time, and professional treatment when problems occur. Unfortunately, that has consistently not been my experience here.

The appointments I've been to for / with my 13 year old daughter who possibly might have early stage glaucoma have taken anywhere from 2 1/2 to 4 hours. I have Tricare West insurance and gulf Coast has problems with verifying my insurance. My daughter had an appointment in November and I was never notified that due to shut down they were not allowing Tricare patients. Made it to the appointment only to be reschedule! No call letting me know. Then my daughter's appointment 12-30-25. I had taken a paper, prior for my daughter's school to be signed by Dr for her to be able to do eyedrops in school and I was told that it was gonna cost me $25 to get it the document! Poor Scheduling, poor communication and poor quality of work ethic! I will be going elsewhere.

My first visit with Dr Tawfik was not a pleasant one. He has absolutely no bedside manners and is a very rude person. He had one foot out the door the whole time and actually shushed me down using his hand when I attempted to ask a question. I think he never even looked me in the eyes to talk to me. He only communicated with the assistant who actually was the only acting professional present. His asst. took a bit of time to tell me what meds I would be using and to answer a couple of questions I had. Also, the woman that washed out my eye was a very rude woman using military like commands. I was in a lot of pain due to the injury, but she had no compassion at all. She seemed an angry woman. I did report her to her supervisor. I left the office with many unanswered questions about the condition of my injured eye. I knew that I would never put my trust in that doctor to take care of my injured eye. I did give a bad rating when I received the text to rate the visit. I reluctantly returned for my follow-up ONLY doing so because it was with another doctor, which was Dr. Cantu. Thank God Dr Cantu was a true caring compassionate professional that took his time examining my eye, discussing and explaining the condition my eye was in with me, and answering all my questions with details. I left the office feeling very confident that my eye is in good hands with Dr Cantu. Currently under treatment with Dr Cantu and hoping my eye heals back to normal.

Lately things have improved vastly. I go to the Brownsville location and wait times are lo longer an issue for me. The people there are fantastic, I especially would like to mention Jessica and Mr Comisky, awesome people! Also, Cesar with the billing department thank you for all your help!