Poway Women’s Care

I absolutely love Dr. Kohatsu! She is so calming and easy to talk to. I am so glad I was able to find the perfect OB for me with my first pregnancy. I will definitely continue to see her for any future pregnancies. Her nurse, Vicki, is also very personable and pleasant to talk with.
The office is very clean as well and the front office staff has been very easy for me to work with as far as billing and getting authorizations done in a timely manner.
No complaints here!

This is my personal experience with Dr Kohatsu from my son’s birth 5 years ago (2010), when I was a first time mom. I went to her because my friend had liked her, and she accepted my insurance. I had a desire for a natural birth, something that she never seemed to fully support. I would go into my prenatals knowing that she would probably say «no» to my questions (like wanting a doula, for example). She would also complain to me about her other clients, saying how annoyed she was with them calling her in the middle of the night when they were in labor. It made me afraid to call her when I actually went into labor myself.
When I arrived at the hospital in labor, I was having pretty extreme back labor, panicked during the intake exam while I was on my back, and got an epidural. When she came into the room, she literally scoffed at me, «*scoff* I thought you wanted to do this naturally» as if she knew I wouldn’t be able to do it. I didn’t see her again until I was pushing, and she gave me an episiotomy with no explanation or reason why. There was nothing wrong with my son’s vitals, and while he had a big head, he was only 7.5 lbs. I couldn’t go to the bathroom by myself for over a week because of the pain from that episiotomy, my husband had to hold me over the toilet so it wouldn’t pull. Oh, and my next baby (born at a birth center) was 9.25 lbs with a 99 percentile head. I had superficial tearing with her and I could handle the bathroom by myself 3 hours after she was born. I did NOT need to be cut with my son.
But probably my biggest complaint is her policy on circumcision. It’s something I really hope she’s changed. Her policy was to do it within 30 days of the birth. Being a first time mom, I didn’t realize that the rest of the worlds policy is 10 days. I had scheduled it for 14 days after he was born, but she dislocated her shoulder and couldn’t do it. I couldn’t find anyone else to perform the circumcision since he was over 10 days old. By the time she circumsized him, he was 4 weeks old. While I am not necessarily against circumcision, it DEFINITELY should not have been done to him at that age. It seeped blood for days and healed really unevenly. I deeply regret doing it under the circumstances.
Ultimately, she was the wrong doctor for me. If you have any desire for a natural birth, do NOT go to her. If you want someone that will perform an extremely medicalized birth where you don’t want to make the decisions, she may be the doc for you.
She made me afraid to pursue a natural birth, I never felt truly listened to, she belittled me, she gave me an unnecessary episiotomy, she circumsized my son when he was really too old, and I wish someone had told me I could switch OBs if I wasn’t comfortable with her.

I will try to make this as concise as possible. Basically, if you are struggling with infertility and want a doctor who will listen to you instead of talking over you, do NOT come here. Specifically, do not see Dr. Kohatsu. I had a miscarriage a year and a half ago, and it wasn’t until then that I began having a problem with this office (granted, the front office staff has never been good). My husband and I have been trying to conceive ever since with no luck. I have been to Dr. Kohatsu twice for «consults»…what a waste of my money and time, not to mention the emotional turmoil she put me through! She did the majority of the talking during both appointments, without even asking me what my concerns are. She did no physical exam at either appointment. Instead, she told me story after story of women who gave up on getting pregnant, adopted, and then got pregnant. She insists that «things spontaneously happen when you don’t think about it», and told me to go home and stop stressing (I’d like to add that while my husband and I want a child, I am not the crazy stress case she seems to think that I am). She made me feel so stupid and guilty for even being there or wanting to be a mommy. She repetitively told me that there is nothing wrong with me, since I managed to get pregnant once. She disregarded the fact we had been trying again for over a year, and it was a struggle to even get her to give us a script for my husband’s semen analysis. She wants me to wait another six months (i.e. try for over two years!) before going back to her, and even then, I’m sure she would just tell me the same thing as the previous two appointments. She has not mentioned beginning any testing on me whatsoever. Also noteworthy, I paid for a copy of my medical records, and there are things in them that are blatantly wrong! As a medical professional myself, this made me livid. Needless to say, I’m not going back to her. Ever. I suggest you not waste your time with this medical practice.

Now that my favorite doctor left the practice to go on his own (thank heavens!) I can now leave the rating Poway Women’s Care deserves. The name is misleading because they really don’t care about you. They may or may not answer the phone and when they do, depending on who you want to make an appointment won’t, there is apparently only one person per doctor who makes appointments. So you are then routed to that person — and oh wait, they aren’t there so you leave a voicemail. They may or may not call you back.
I was pregnant a while back so I can tell you that almost every time I came in for my appointment, the bathrooms were disgusting. The little box where you put your urine sample would literally be filled with cups of other people’s pee. The bathrooms were rarely clean.
Back to the front office. Yeah, they suck. They don’t do reminder phone calls. They don’t schedule out more than 3 months at a time. They now CHARGE for filing disability paperwork for you. It’s not even paperwork anymore because all they have to do is do it online. They don’t answer their phones between 12 – 2.
And Dr Kohatsu. She’s such a weirdo. She stopped by to visit me in my hospital room the morning after I had my baby. She barely asked me how I was doing and was more concerned about making sure I remember to complete the hospital survey I receive in the mail and to make sure I rate my experience 5 stars.
don’t go here. You’re even better off at Kaiser because at least Kaiser will return your calls!

I had a great experience throughout my pregnancy and birth of my first child with Dr. Kohatsu and Deanna. I found them to be extremely personable and generous with their time.
During labor, Dr. Kohatsu was so calm and made crucial decisions that made my labor easy and very manageable. I highly recommend Dr. Kohatsu and Deanna.

Deana is outstanding. She went above and beyond to answer all my questions/​concerns. Took her time in the examine room and made me feel at ease. Highly recommend her!

5 stars for Deana the healthcare professional, and –1 star for the questionable billing and patient information practice.
The POSITIVE: Deana was the the best! She was very friendly and informative. She took her time to answer all my concerns, made me feel at ease, and had the best bedside manner. She seemed to genuinely care about her patients, which is VERY SPECIAL based on my past experiences. I also want to mention that Deana’s nurse (?) Jessica was very pleasant and helpful in addressing my questions and issues when Deana’s unavailable. Also, contrary to the other reviews, I did not have any problems with the front office. The one girl that was there during my visit seemed nice and accommodating.
The NEGATIVE: I believe this is more about the office’s policy then the staff. Mary Helen herself was pleasant to speak to on the phone, so my complaint here is not about her demeanor, but rather the information she required in order to schedule/​keep my appointment. When I called to schedule my appointment, Mary Helen was adamant about getting my sponsor’s social security number even though my insurance said that it was not required. She said their policy was to verify insurance before setting appointments, and without the social they can’t verify insurance. I even called my insurance’s claims and benefits departments after speaking to her to verify, and my insurance said all the provider needs to verify my benefits and submit claims was my «benefits number». Yet, Mary Helen said my benefits number didn’t work, so she would need to get the social or my appointment would be cancelled. So I ended up giving her my sponsor’s social even though I was told by my insurance it was unnecessary. It got stranger still when I got to the office and realized they also have MY social security number on file even though I never gave it to them. Remember, I only gave them my sponsor’s social. I never gave them mine. So I asked the front office staff how they got it, but she couldn’t tell me !?? She did offer to take it off my record as there was no need for it. I appreciate her efforts. Although I don’t know how much good that will do as they obviously can just get it again without my help. In retrospect, I wonder if there’s any info-​trading going on. They get some of your info to give others in exchange for access to more info ???
In summary, I myself would definitely come back to see Deana (mostly because I really like her, and also because whatever questionable things they do have already been done in my case). However, IF YOU HAVEN’T BEEN HERE BEFORE, I will ONLY recommend you coming here if you are paying cash or if you don’t mind giving your social security to everybody (or don’t mind if they abracadabra your personal info from unknown sources and then trade them away for more info…).

I had Dr. Young with 3 pregnancies. She is amazing and you can tell she really loves what she does and cares for her patients. My 1^st pregnancy was miscarriage and you could tell it was the last thing on earth she wanted to tell me. She delivered both my son and daughter perfectly. She made sure we followed my birthplan and checked in on me often!
Despite the other reviews about the women in the front, we have never had issues. They have always been kind and helpful for us. I highly recommend this place and Dr Young. I also really like her nurse Sessy? She is always so cheerful and personable!

Hours on Unilocal page are wrong. You can’t call after hours, to leave non emergency messages, so that during business hours someone can call you back. The office takes a long time to get tests back, or do contact you, and take a long time with no communication for prescriptions and approvals. My doctors was very nice, cool and helpful. The rest of the staff you encounter not so much. I like my doctor so i want to stay with her but not sure I can handle how the practice functions. I waited about 15 minutes to be brought into my room and then another 15 minutes for the doctor. There are no TVs or magazines in the patient rooms and this was my first visit and they didn’t even take a urine sample. The whole office is well kept visually. I just want exceptional care from my lady doctor and I didn’t receive it at this office.

Great office! I had Dr. Young through my whole pregnancy and the birth of my son. What a wonderful experience. She is professional and patient. She explains everything and why it is important and really cares about her patients. She worked with me on my birth plan and my delivery worked out perfectly how I wanted. Also want to mention her assistant, Sessy (hope that’s how you spell her name) she is great as well, very personable and caring.

As time goes on I regret my decision in coming here for care. I had an accident while pregnant and tried to call and talk to my Dr.‘s nurse to see what to do and was just sent to voicemail every time even when I told the receptionist it was an emergency. I ended up just calling the hospital directly to see what to do. My Dr. saw me in the hospital and told me to call her secretary to make a follow up appointment for the following day. I called 8 times, got through twice, got the «I’ll be with you in a moment», was put on hold then sent to voicemail 2 minutes later. I called the next day to see if she’d answer and– *shocked face*- another recording… Another voicemail… No call back… Great to know how much my baby’s health matters to them.
As for my Dr. (Dr. Young) she is amazing. I really wouldn’t want anyone else caring for me or my baby. She genuinely cares, is easy to talk to, and is all around a wonderful OB. I just wish people in the office would check their messages and actually make an effort to take care of their clients.

I’ve had three more experiences with the front office since the first review. The main receptionist is better. Once you explain the phones don’t work calling out from their office, she tries her best to put you through. I would say that the secretary/​admin staff is still a bit difficult to deal with.
HOWEVER, Dr. Young and her nurse, Cici?, are exceptionally pleasant to deal with. I’ve had problems with insurance and prescriptions… and they have gone out of their way to assist. Really out of their way.
I’d like to give the whole office a 5 star… but just can’t get past the admin. I’m sure though that it must be because insurance companies are so awful that the people needing to deal with them seem to have their souls crushed daily. I feel bad for them. I hope Dr. Young becomes one of those conceigre or botique doctors… and takes me as a client. Then she wouldn’t have to deal with insurance or the whole negative secretary thing.

I’ve come here twice to see Dr. Kohatsu. Both visits were mediocre and short. The second time I went, I found Dr. Kohatsu just playing games on her phone. She told me to go see a urologist for the symptoms I was experiencing. I sought out a second opinion and it turned out I had an ovarian cyst. I believe this was a huge oversight and bad quality of care. I will not be coming back.

I have nothing but good things to say about this office. I see Dr. Victoria Young. I have been to 5 doctors/​offices since moving from Orange County to San Diego County. I won’t get into the details but we had some terrible experiences with some doctors/​offices and the doctors that were decent took way too long to get in to see. This office has been wonderful. Short wait times, friendly staff, phones that get answered, emergency availability and of course Dr. Young is one of the best doctors I have ever seen. She’s professional, yet warm and friendly. Her character is genuine and sincere. So thankful I found her for my unexpected tragedy. She is a blessing to say the least.

Updating my review because their customer service had greatly improved and Ive had way worse experiences.

I left «Poway Women’s Care-​less» today in tears after a horrible experience with Dr. Young.
I had my right ovary removed about a year and a half ago due to a large tumor found on it. About two months ago I was hospitalized for extreme pain and they found another mass on my left ovary this time. Because Dr. Young was my gyno I went to her for follow up to find out what it was. After a week of trying to get my results (calling the office constantly only to get her assistant’s voicemail and then told they did not have results, or Dr. Young wasn’t there to give them to me ect.) I finally went into the office desperately to figure out what was going on. (I have been very sick this entire time and had expressed that to her assistant) Upon arrival the younger receptionist could tell I was frustrated but instead of showing any kind of sympathy she was short and anything but sympathetic. She proceeded to go in the back and then came out with a bunch of paperwork and handed it to me! I was floored. Here I am, a sick patient with a mass on my ovary and all I want is professional advice and they don’t care enough to come out and break down my results so I could understand: a three sentence conclusion?! Or make me an appt?! So with tears streaming down my cheeks I took the results straight to an oncologist who confirmed the mass has grown and might be cancerous. Gee thanks for being so concerned Dr. Young.

Dr. Young is great, and she has a very helpful assistant Ceci who made the whole process easy. I wanted to get a birth control method that she was not registered to do yet, and instead of sending me elsewhere she took the class she needed to take and was able to give me exactly what I wanted. I appreciate her taking time out of her schedule to accommodate me.

This was my first (and last) pregnancy. I left the Scripps group at around 25 weeks because I was uncomfortable and unhappy with the level of care. I’m relatively new to SD and I haven’t had much success finding good physicians. So, I did some research and found this facility on Unilocal.The receptionist (over the phone) was very helpful in suggesting the right OB for me. She said they were all good choices and asked me a few questions to help me decide. I chose Dr. Karen Kohatsu. What a BLESSING it turned out to be!!!
From day one, Dr. Kohatsu and her staff (Vicki) made me feel comfortable and at ease. She has excellent bedside manner and really takes time to examine you thoroughly, answer questions and address concerns. My husband was pleased with her level of care and service as well. As intimidating and unpredictable as having a baby is, she guided us through the process like a captain commanding a fleet. It was the most relaxing and calm atmosphere I could’ve hoped for. Throughout the delivery, she was encouraging, positive, relaxed (which made the other staff in the room relaxed) and just plain olé professional. She had a busy two weeks leading up to Christmas and if she was tired and didn’t look or show it. She was a rock star. My husband says she was a rock star with ninja skills. Lol. We are SO THANKFUL to have had her as our OB. It ALMOST makes me think about having another one (for about 30 seconds… lol)
Additionally, on the day after delivery Dr. Cobb (one of the other physicians at the office) was on rounds and was the one to discharge me. He, like Dr. Kohatsu, had good people skills, very personable, professional and thorough.
I highly recommend this facility and Dr. Kohatsu.

I met with Dr. Victoria Young a few weeks ago. I thought she was great and thorough. However, I’ve had issues with the office that seriously jeopardize the quality of my care. I was seen for an obstetrics visit and the doctor could not hear the babies heartbeat through the Doppler because it was still very early on in pregnancy. They quadrupled booked the appointment time and I had to wait 1 hour and 45 minutes to be seen for an ultrasound because they only have two ultrasound machines. This to me is just absurd. No one should have to wait this long to receive care for a scheduled appointment and they shouldn’t schedule that many people if they don’t have the resources to care for that many patients.
Additionally, I called to request a prescription refill and had to follow up five times throughout four days to get the rx. Worst of all, it is a specialty drug that sometimes has to be ordered, and because they delayed, now I won’t have my prescription in time and the health of my baby could be seriously affected. How can they even be expected to deliver a baby on short notice when it takes them four days to send in a prescription? I will be searching to continue my care elsewhere.

I’ve been going to Dr. Kohatsu for years (since her office was on Pomerado across from the hospital) and I originally started going to her for regular check-​ups. Both Dr. Kohatsu and Vicki were always extremely nice. Also, there were a few times when I would go for regular annual exams when Dr. Kohatsu was busy and Rhoda (nurse practitioner) was AWESOME and I could always get in with her last minute.
Now, I’m pregnant and knew immediately that I wanted Dr. Kohatsu. I had two appointments in my first trimester and both times Dr. Kohatsu spent a great amount of time with me answering my questions and let us look at our little one and sent us home with awesome pictures. I swear that the machines they have at their office are better than other places! I’m so happy that she’s going to be the one monitoring my pregnancy and I feel so much more at ease knowing that she’ll be there for delivery.