Patient Testimonials

Dr. Engasser and his team are the best! Before my ankle replacement I could hardly walk or sleep at night due to the pain. Now I am pain free and doing the thing I like to do most, walking!

Dr. Vargas was excellent!

I went to urgent care at TCO Vadnais Heights because I slipped and fell down my stairs. Dr. Vargas was on-site for clinic that day, and he was able to squeeze me into his schedule.

He was direct and kind, and he also communicated the urgency to resolve the physical trauma quickly. He was able to schedule foot and ankle surgery for me in two days with him. I’ve found out subsequent to this that for many people, it can take weeks to get in for surgery!

Although I was nervous at how all of this was unfolding so quickly (Wednesday urgent care, and Friday surgery), it was the best decision I made for my health to get the surgery. He was able to answer my questions, stay connected with me prior to surgery, and was attentive. My healing and recovery are going really well, and it’s been less than one week since my surgery.

If you want someone who “tells it like it is,” gives you solid, fact-based advice, cares for his patients, and is an expert in his field, then Dr. Vargas is your surgeon. I’ll be recommending him to my family and friends, should they need a podiatrist surgeon.

I saw Dr. Hofkens on June 1, 2023, for heel pain that was only increasing in severity. He diagnosed it as Baxter’s Nerve Entrapment. After various therapies were not helpful, Dr. Hofkens connected me with Dr. Den Hartog to discuss surgery. He confirmed your diagnosis, and I had surgery on October 31, 2023. It has now been 16 weeks since the surgery and my heel pain has (especially recently) been improving, and it is now probably about 85% normal. Took a long time for the nerve to calm down! While there is still some discomfort, I am again now able to walk and hike without any significant flare-up of pain. So this note is to express my gratitude for Dr. Hofken’s quick and quite careful diagnosis, and moving me through the TCO system to health.

The entire staff at TCO urgent care in Forest Lake, MN was phenomenal. Even though the PA, Rochelle, didn’t have a specialty with my toe surgery she was more than willing to review surgical notes, request x-rays, and write an email to Dr. McGarvey and his staff so they will have information for my follow up care. I’m so thankful for this location close to home. The staff at the front desk, X-ray, and PA were top notch! I hope more patients learn of this location.

I just wanted to take a moment to recognize my surgeon, Dr. Engasser. I am 59 years old and just received a total ankle replacement from Dr. Engasser at TCO. The care and consideration Dr. Engasser and his staff provided to me has been fantastic, both prior to surgery and after. The ultimate decision to have ankle replacement was thoughtfully laid out by him over the course of a year. Nothing was rushed, all options were considered, and a final agreement on treatment was decided. I am 3 months post-op I am walking under my own power and getting stronger each day. I can say without hesitation that meeting with Dr. Engasser was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I would highly recommend him for anyone with ankle/foot concerns!

Dr. Seybold was awesome, he was very confident and had a well thought out plan to fix my fractured heel. This was just short of a miracle as I was referred to him after my home town surgeon left me without much of a solution. After my accident, they were contemplating the amputation of my foot. Dr. Seybold thought he could help me and get me back to walking. He instilled a high level of confidence in me and he was very successful. I am now walking, biking and golfing which is something I couldn’t do for two years. I can’t say enough positive statements about the level of care he provided me. Thank you, Dr. Seybold, for your skill and for giving me my life back. I highly recommend him and TCO to any and all patients.

I have been a patient of Dr. Meyer for 15 years. In this time he has given me relief from pain with seven successful surgeries (both hips, both knees, shoulder, arm, and a severely fractured ankle and foot). Dr. Meyer and his PA, Sommer Vaughn, have always been very caring, compassionate, and knowledgeable about my care. They listened to me as a patient and plans were made for necessary surgeries. These surgeries have enabled me to continue to enjoy a normal life in my later years. I am now 83 years young, enjoying my husband of 65 years, 4 children, 9 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren. I would advise anyone choosing orthopedic care to call TCO. It’s a close by facility.

I want to thank Dr. Engasser for being so professional, proficient and kind during my surgery experience. I had so much pain in my foot and with surgery, but now I am able to do everything I want to. I experienced such a smooth and non-problematic journey, from the first visit with Dr. Engasser until the last. My foot is healing so well. I feel very blessed to have had such a good surgeon. Thank you!

Unfortunately our daughter slipped on the ice and took a spill. We went to a local hospital and she was misdiagnosed for about 2 weeks. They gave us a boot and told us everything would be fine. We were lucky enough to talk to a friend who recommended TCO as a second opinion, as we felt a little uneasy about her pain level and progress. Once we did, they recognized right away that it was a tri-fracture and she needed to get emergency attention.

Dr. Engasser took on our daughter as a patient right away and saw her the next day. He was able to reset her foot and start the healing process. 8 months later she has no effects from the tri-facture. We are so thankful for his quick, decisive, and informed actions. He talked with his colleagues, he talked with us, and he made us feel confident about every step of the way. Again, I will never go to another place for my orthopedic needs. Had we stayed the course and didn’t seek out a second opinion at TCO, she would be walking with a limp. Instead she’s playing basketball with her friends right now.

We couldn’t be happier with our experience at TCO. My kids are getting older (10 & 12) and more active. There have been a few times over the past 6 months where they hurt themselves playing sports and we weren’t sure if it needed additional treatment or not. TCO was efficient, affordable and we didn’t have to wait a crazy amount of time to be seen. They were thoroughly examined and we were given peace of mind of an action plan moving forward. TCO has now become our go-to for urgent care active related injuries.