Dean Catherine L MD

I have been to WHP three times in the past two weeks. Once I waited two hours before being seen, and twice I waited 2.5 hours. On my second visit, I waited two hours to not be seen by Dr. Dean because my blood test results weren’t back. Frustrating that no one could have told me that before my appointment. On my third visit, I had even called ahead of time to make sure Dr. Dean was on time. In that instance, my appointment was at 2:30pm, and Dr. Dean walked in to my exam room at 5:03pm. That’s beyond frustrating, especially when I had even called ahead to make sure this sort of thing wouldn’t happen again.
Now I’m trying to get my pap smear results, and I can’t because I don’t have a PIN to access it with. Regardless of whether I check the results online or over the phone, I must have the PIN, and there is nowhere (at least nowhere I’ve been able to find) where I can create a PIN online. And none of the automated voicemails give me directions on where to find the button to find the PIN. I realize that the office is trying to save themselves time by not talking to patients, but it’s not an even longer process because of its difficulty.
In every experience I’ve had, the bad has outweighed the good. I will not be back, and I will not recommend WHP to anyone.

I have been with Dr. Dean for a few years, but it wasn’t until I began to get depo-​provera shots that I learned how unorganized the office truly is. In my opinion, waiting over an hour just to receive an injection – which I picked up myself at the pharmacy because the office won’t carry them due to expense – is ridiculous. I used to get them at Planned Parenthood, which was a much more positive experience, mainly because I didn’t have to stop by a pharmacy first. There are other problems. The person returning your voicemail may tell you something different than the receptionist, or they may not return your voicemail at all. When you call to make an appointment, after listening to their lengthy pre-​recorded messages, you will be on hold for no less than 15 minutes. If you’re on hold longer than that, you’re automatically directed to a voice mailbox where you leave a message anyway.
They recently switched over to an electronic records system. If you thought the wait time was bad before, you better bring a meal to the doctor’s office, because you’ll be there all afternoon. I really tried to give them a chance, but now they have been at their new location for a year, and they are STILL unorganized. Either staff appropriately for the number of patients you have, or stop accepting new patients. It is very apparent that the staff is stressed out, which is compounded by patients who have to wait too long. What a mess!
I know that Dr. Dean is very good, and I am impressed with her bedside manner and her knowledge. Unfortunately, since I do have to visit the office every 3 months due to my type of birth control, I have decided to look for a different doctor.

I encourage anyone that has had a negative experience with Dr. Catherine Dean and Women’s Health Partners to review your patient rights to ensure that yours have not been violated. If yours have been violated, please take the time to report the violations to HIPPA by faxing (816) 426‑3686, Division of Professional Registration, State Board of Registration for the Healing Arts by faxing (573) 571‑3166 and file a grievance with your health insurance company. I have experienced a level of harrassment and misuse of physician power over the past 4 months and have made sure to legally have it documented to ensure others don’t walk into Dr. Dean’s office unprepared to the level of care they will receive. They refused to release my biopsy results other than to tell me that they were abnormal for 57 days. Once my medical files were finally transferred — all instances of my contact to the office was missing and written journal entries were falsified, which will now follow me to all physicians in the future. I know it’s easy to walk away and start over due to the private nature of woman issues, but I encourage a simple faxed letter may help others from the treatment you have experienced.

Terrible service! I once had to wait 2.5 hrs in exam room, in gown, waiting for annual pap. Always late, and her staff actually schedules appointments BEFORE the doctor is due into office. I know, because I complained about frequently long waiting periods, and asked many questions to figure out best case scenario for booking appts. Jeez, really?
Dr. Dean performed an out-​patient procedure on me, (Barnes) which went awry, and I came out of anesthesia in major pain, looking at a staff in chaos and panic. Dr. Dean thought I had hidden some health issues from her that caused the mishap, but this was NOT the case. I had to spend the night in the hospital, and to this day, Dr. Dean has been vague about the operation incident, everything did turn out okay & I mended normally.
Dr. Dean’s bedside manner is also lacking. She is insensitive, uptight, and a bit abrasive. Only positive things: she is pro-​choice and highly respected at Barnes and other medical peers in the area.