Yaffe Ruden & Associates

I am absolutely amazed by all the 1 – 2 star reviews I’m seeing here. I started seeing Dr. Julie Bikhman at the recommendation of two friends after being very unhappy with my previous doctor. Dr. Bikhman is excellent — thorough, kind, and holistic in her approach. I feel as though she sees me as an individual and not as a set of statistics.
I’ve always seen Dr. Bikhman at the 84^th St. office, but have been sent to the 65^th St. location for tests on a couple of occasions. That office is definitely larger and more hectic, but I still found everyone to be professional and fairly organized.
The one reason I went down to four stars over five is a small incident last year. I had wrist surgery and needed some pre-​operative blood work done, which had to be sent to my surgeon’s office by one week before the surgery date. All the tests were done and I was verbally assured that everything would be sent over, but the day before the surgery was scheduled to happen, I got a call from the coordinator that it had been cancelled because they never got my blood work. I asked if it would be possible to put me back on the schedule if they got the results that day and she said yes. So after a panicked call to Yaffe Rudin, they got my test results sent over and I had my surgery without further incident. But that was frustrating and really shouldn’t have happened.

this is in no way a review of the individual doctors that work at Yaffe Ruden & Associates, but more the system as a whole.
i used to see Dr. Theiner, who i loved, but recently found out she no longer sees patients. i would see her at the 84^th street location, which was much more intimate than the circus on 65^th street.
the ladies working the front desk at 65^th street cannot be BOTHERED to look up when you stand right in front of them waiting to fill out the necessary paperwork. i felt like i was interrupting an important conversation concerning Crocs footwear or something (they all wear that shit in the office). i should have told them to buy some smiley face JIBBITZ for a reminder to be pleasant to the patients.
i recently had a physical as well as lab work done. my doctor knew that i was very concerned about getting the results of the blood test, yet after more than 15 days i still had not gotten a phone call. had i not called, emailed, and texted the office countless times i would still be waiting. and do not think because you don’t get a call back with test results that they are OK. be prepared to call… and call… and call. the office website offers a bunch of «troubleshooting phone numbers» to text… don’t F*ING bother. you will not get a response.
just a general statement about doctors in this city: the God complex needs to end… we know that most of you just guess.

Dr. Yaffe has been my Primary Care Physician for over twenty years, and Dr. Ruden has been my wife’s PCP for about 5 years. We are both very satisfied with the care and we both have found the practice to be well run for its size. The PA’s do a very good job and I rarely have a long wait time. My only quips are with the amount of forms and paperwork one has to repeatedly fill out (both digital and paper) upon arrival and getting through to a real voice on the phone, but I believe that is industry wide and not unique to this practice.

After years of taking the good with the bad at Yaffe Ruden, I am finally done. Some doctors there are fine, but I’ve had experiences with several different doctors whose bedside manner falls somewhere between dismissive and rude. The final straw was the doctor who gave me unsolicited advice about the ineffectiveness of my (actually quite effective) birth control method, peppered with misinformation and sarcastic warnings. It was off-​topic and bizarre. She may have intended to be funny, but it was just weird and invasive and kind of upsetting. I wish it was the only time a doctor at Yaffe Ruden was strange or rude, but it happens with some regularity. The cherry on top of all this was them screwing up calling in my prescription, resulting in an hour spent at the pharmacy waiting for them to convey the correct information. During this time, the pharmacists at Rite Aid confided that they hear a lot of people with complaints about Yaffe Ruden and the way people are treated. I’m done.

Dr. Yaffe has been my primary doctor for over a decade and I know that I am in the BEST of hands with him. I’ve recommended him to several of my friends and they all were so grateful for the recommendation. Sadra Atwell, the office manager is also such a pleasure. She will go above and beyond & has a wonderful disposition.
Dr.Yaffe and his staff are the best in NYC!

Dr. Yaffe has been my primary going on a decade now, and I believe myself to be very fortunate for having followed the recommendation to his office. I’ve found him to be ahead of the curve on nutritional trends, able to discuss issues in a knowledgeable fashion that teaches without condescension, and good for regular advice delivered in a down-​to-​earth manner that makes it easier to accept than ignore. He’s got data to back up his now annual plea to wear shoulder harnesses in the back of a cab; I don’t know if anyone else could have convinced me to bother despite the logic of the argument (namely, taxi drivers + plexiglass).
I’ve noticed some reviewers unhappy with wait times; it’s a NYC doctor’s office, sometimes you have to wait – they dedicated a whole room to the concept. Personally, I’d rather wait in a forward-​thinking office for quality care from a doctor whose opinion I trust, knowing that as a mid-​30s male statistically more likely to avoid regular check ups and physicals until something is wrong, having that relationship is enough to motivate me to make and keep my annual appointments.

I’ve been a patient of Dr. Yaffe’s for about 15 years. Only once was he so busy that I had someone else do my physical. And in that instance, Dr. Yaffe did the 2^nd half. It is a busy practice but you can text, IM or email any of the doctors and you get a quick response.
Just this last Friday, i had a 5pm appt. Right before i arrived, according to the assistant, the doctor had asked where i was. Not being there at 4:55, the doctor promptly walked back to his office. I arrived a minute later, gave them a new insurance card and was whisked in. I did not wait at all.
I have to the practice before and waiting in the waiting room, maximum 20 minutes. So not really different from other doctors.

Great family doctor — full service office. It’s busy but you can get an appointment and they refer to specialists when necessary. Front desk staff helpful and pleasant and support staff couldn’t be nicer. Several of my friends use Dr. Yaffe and they’ve all been going there for years. It’s an UES health destination. From childhood through issues of aging, they provide support, advice and great medical care.

After being a patient for nearly a decade, I am disappointed to write this review. I had thought writing the review would make an impact of some sort, but looking at the other reviews, it appears they are not at all concerned.
I never had a problem seeing their PA’s, because I often had a good experience. When I had Dr. Barot as a primary physician, all was great. However, when she went on maternity leave, the primary doctors I saw were worse (one year) and WORST (this year). The one this year had me rot for 2 hours waiting for the tech to come back to take my blood, because she couldn’t find my vein.
But the final straw is the administrative staff — they leave A LOT to be desired… From giving wrong information on everything from appointment times to doctor hours to when I need to come in and when I can get a referral. I fell for it every time — and every time got disappointed. Well after today’s incident (sending me to the referral department, have me leave 3 messages, only at 5pm to find out that I need to come in and start over again before getting a referral…). Today I will not be disappointed any longer — I am now in the market for a new primary care physician. Any suggestions?

WOW!!! That colonoscopy/​endoscopy combo was great. Did I really just type that? Yes I did. I just shut the door, so to speak on 2 years of medical issues with my gut and I saw several gastro docs and had surgery too.
Scopes with all of them.
Some were torturous and painful. Before, during and after. Not enough sedation, too much sedation, hours of waiting time. Confusing prep information. After one endoscopy, I could not swallow for a week. Just brutal.
Then I found Dr. Yaffe. It all CHANGED. He emails me back! He listens, he called my insurance company, he did not keep me waiting, he listened to me, he simplified my whole routine and got me up and running again. Then to top it off, it turns out he has the most AMAZING system and process for these procedures. The prep was simple. HIs instructions wise and full of good advice to get you through it. He has managed to make these procedures EASY, efficient and astonishingly fast. I was in his office at 7:30 a. m and out by 9 a.m.
I felt NO PAIN. I was treated like an adult human. I was told as soon as I came to, that all was well. What he looked for, what he blessedly did not find and then merrily sent on my way to have a good breakfast.
My husband went in 2 days later for a routine colonoscopy. This was his 2^nd in ten years. When I went back to get him from Dr. Yaffe’s recovery room, he was sitting there dressed and bright eyed. He could not believe how easy it was.
So yes I am giving Dr. Yaffe and his practice FIVE STARS for the system he has in place for these procedures. I will NEVER be afraid of having this done again. I dreaded everyone of them and with good reason. Not anymore.
It is clear Dr. Yaffe sees this from the patients perspective and has done everything possible to DO NO HARM. Way to go Dr. Yaffe and thank you for everything.

This is a huge, completely chaotic practice. Some of the doctors are fine, some are heinous. The same must be said of the front desk. I have been scheduled with the wrong doctor twice. Had to wait up to four weeks for the practice to call my pharmacy with an authorization (even though the pharmacy was repeatedly calling them, the person in charge was «just too busy.») They are 100 percent guaranteed to lose your records.
Also, they won’t call for pre-​authorization even if your insurance company cooperates.
You have to ask yourself if you really trust your medical care to a practice that screws up your medical records that much.

I’ve been to both Yaffe Ruden offices (65^th & 84^th Sts) and here’s what I recommend:
— Go to 65^th St. for same day or easy (e.g., flu shot) appointments. They have so many folks there they can pretty much always see you that day.
— Go to 84^th St. for booked-​in-​advance appointments. It’s smaller, not as fancy and there are no computers you can use while waiting like at the 65^th St. office, but it’s more personal.
I love Dr. Bikhman at the 84^th St. office. She did the most thorough annual physical I’ve had in my life, really listened to everything I had to say, did not have any «I’m the doctor» attitude, and even gave me free samples (Rx nasal spray and decongestant) to save me $ before I left. Two weeks later I got a call from an assistant who gave me the most detailed lab results I’ve ever gotten over the phone, along with a recommendation on add’l vitamins I should be taking.
I also really liked Dr. St. Claire (saw him at the 65^th St. office), he spent a lot of time with me to try to figure out what was wrong when I hadn’t been feeling well and was a real human being.
The only reason I give Yaffe Ruden 4-​stars is I don’t feel like I got the best Rx for strep the first time I came in (saw a PA in the 65^th St. office). After talking to a bunch of docs and even another PA in the same office, it’s not really clear if that was the best Rx or not, but when I asked abt it I didn’t really feel like the 1^st PA listened.
But I’ll be back. Dr. Bikhman and Dr. St. Claire were great and that’s enough for me :).

I personally love DR Kakolous. I feel like I am talking to a girlfriend. She really listens and is very through. I like how she does not push prescriptions on you, she focuses on exercise and vitamins. My husband and I feel very comfortable with her.
I also have seen Dr Yaffe and I was not thrilled with his bedside manner. I felt he was rushing me and not listening and has that «I am DR hear me roar» sort of personality. I say go to the 84^th street location, the other one feels very crowded and clinic like. They also are always running late.

Probably one of the most bureaucratic, unfriendly doctors offices I’ve ever been to, not only in NY but anywhere. As a 20-​something that moved here a couple years ago, I don’t frequently visit the doctor but have been on the hunt for good doctors for a while. I was referred to this place by a co-​worker who said this place was one of the biggest and has been around forever. The first time I went, the receptionist and support staff were so unfriendly, they didn’t care two cents. I saw a PA who had the same passive attitude, couldn’t care less when I told her what my symptoms were, my history etc. Just typed away in the computer without looking at me once. Finally saw a doctor for physical who was fine but nothing to yell home about. Was constantly fielding calls-​apparently, they take care of Alec Baldwin there. Second time I went, waited OVER an hour, saw another unfriendly PA. Quick to diagnose and shoo me out. They are the complete epitome of ueverything that is wrong with the US health care system. Am adamantly trying to find a new doctor.

Funky, non-​officey lobby is a plus. They run a tight ship and you can check the status of your specific doctor online before you go to see if they are running late! Pretty cool. I was taken in quickly for blood work and then met my guy, Dr. St. Claire. He was professional, relaxed, and kind. They called me back with my blood work results in less than a week. Great place.

You could spend the entire day, even week here. The doctors are wonderful, and caring. They have a great team of doctors for every little ache and pain in your body. I am a little afraid of one of the secretary’s but, waiting playing on the free Internet access makes it all better.