Maurice Dicterow MD

WARNING — WORST DR EVER!!! I went in for what I thought may be an ear infection. He subscribed me meds I was confused about. While i was asking questions, he literally said «I DONT HAVE TIME FOR THIS, YOU WILL HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER DR» and proceeds to get up from his desk and CLOSES THE DOOR ON ME!!! while I was still standing there holding the door open so its not slammed in my face, I asked if he was serious as he is absolutely ridiculous for what he just did, and he said YES and left me in the hallway. I have never experienced such a rude, impatient, uncaring, individual ever. Let a lone someone who is a Familiy Dr!!! I walked out, not one person was waiting in the patient lobby, no phones rining, nothing going on where his TIME would have been so jeopordized by my not even 10min appointment.
Not even to mention the office is extremely outdated from its GREEN CARPETING & matching 1970s floral wallpaper.
I normally do not write reviews, and usually would only to give credit where credit is due, but this was so outrageous, anything I can do to have someone avoid going through what I did, and waisting there time I hope to help.

Dr. Dicterow is a great doctor. Whenever I need to be seen he is able to accommodate my schedule. I have never had an issue with his practice or his professionalism. The front office receptionist, April, automatically recognizes me by name, which is nice compared to other doctors I have had who treat me as if they don’t know me regardless of how many times I have been in for a visit.
For those who take issue with his seemingly outdated ways of operating his practice, remember he is not 27 years old and fresh out of medical school. This does not imply that his knowledge of medicine is any less adequate than any other doctor here in LA. If you are looking for a doctor who is available when you need him, treats you with dignity and respect, and is affordable (insurance or not), then I highly recommend giving Dr. Dicterow a visit. He is a great general practitioner and I will continue seeing him as long as his practice remains open.

I came in for what I thought was run-​of-​the-​mill heartburn. Dr. Dicterow immediately diagnosed my problem as a heart issue and sent me to a cardiologist. They put a stent in my heart that day which took the damaged aorta from a 99% blockage to 0%. If it wasn’t for Dr. Dicterow, I would not be alive right now.

Both the receptionist and the doctor are very nice and accommodating. Took my daughter in and they took care of her very well. They made us feel like long patients. Very nice people and great doctor.

Dr. Maurice Dicterow is a very nice man who knows a lot about medicine. It’s true that he somewhat understaffed, seeing as though his receptionist is also the medical assistant, but she works hard and does the best she can. She is also very nice and caring. I feel like I was treated very well by both her and the doctor. Interestingly though, they only accept cash (?). Besides that, this is a great place to go for an appointment.

I will keep this straightforward rather than provide a long narrative:
— Due to ACA, I needed to change doctors (old doc not under Covered California). Dr. Dicterow was the closest MD and could seem me right away.
— The office is ancient, as is the equipment.
— Front office person (April) is very nice, but evidently over-​burdened. Her workshpace is a mess.
— Doctor himself is very nice. Very personable. HOWEVER, he told me that I needed my ears cleaned out and that the charge would be $ 20. I didn’t think anything other than «how odd he is telling me what is going to bill the insurance company»
— I don’t know what the state of the art is in ear-​cleaning technology, but the doctor used something that looked pretty antique. Sort of a syringe pump It was effective.
— Afterwards, I a was checking out, April told me that it would be $ 20 for copyay and $ 20 for ear cleaning. I questioned this and was told that the doctor does not get reimbursed for ear cleaning
— I was then told to come back to have blood drawn. Was told that the doctor himself would take the blood. I thought this was odd (I have always gone to a lab for blood work). I asked if that was also $ 20 and she said yes
— I asked for a receipt and was told they were out of them.
— I called my insurance company and the representative agreed that it sounded shady. I was told to «demand a receipt». What i did was call the doctor’s office and give them an ultimatum: give me my $ 20 bill back or give me a receipt. At first, April said that my $ 20 could be used towards the next visit. When I balked at this she told me to «okay, come to the office» and I’d get my money back. I did, and received my refund. I asked for a receipt for my copay (which I have ALWAYS gotten from doctors) and she said, again, that they were out of them.
— Also, I should add that this the first time in decades where I had to hand-​walk a prescription form to a pharmacy. My other doctor just jumped on his iPhone and dialed it in via an app. You know, like it was actually the second decade of the 21^st century.
I do feel somewhat sorry for this doctor as he is clearly hurting for cash. He cuts a sad picture is his white lab coat. He is a nice man (everyone agrees) but this is serious business.

I have had to goto this doctor due to my insurance. and I have had very unpleasant experiences with this office. Very similar to other reviewers, the secretary/​nurse/​office manager is all one person, and frankly, she is terrible. I called to get a referral faxed over to my gyno for my insurance, and she said she’d have to call me back. A week later I still had not received a call, so I called the office, and she «remembered» me and instead of letting me speak and listen to what I needed, she just proceeded on rambling on about needing a phone number for my insurance provider. Wait what? You should have that information! Anyway, after I tell her I need them to fax the referral asap to my other doctors office, she declined my request, saying I needed to come in the next day for my referral. Frankly, I don’t have time to spend an hour or more (average wait time) at that dingy office for a 2 second referral ! Plus have to pay for parking for all that time sitting in the office (cash only!) at the parking garage! As for the doctor, when I seen him before he asked why I was there, which I feel like he should have known that information before walking in the room (btw the rooms where patients are, aren’t ever closed, so multiple people walked by and could look in at me) and when I told him what I needed he wrote up my initial referral and sent me on my way, not before telling me I needed to schedule an appointment for a routine physical. Which I didn’t understand why he just didn’t do that then!

Dr. Dicterow is a wonderful physician and has an intuitive understanding of human medical problems. He comes from a family of famous composers and he treats you and the care you need as gently and as earnestly as an orchestra. This is a rare quality, and an analogy that shouldn’t be scoffed at by future posters. I have my own part to play in my ongoing medical care, I have several issues that need lifelong monitoring and treatment. I feel he has worked with me carefully and continues to monitor and take seriously my problems. Yeah the office is old school, but he reminds me of my childhood pediatrician, and that makes me feel good. If you open your mind and communicate more holistically about your medical problems, he responds brilliantly.

Been a patient now for 16 years and have always been treated competently. I could go to my union’s clinic and have no copay but I prefer Dr Dicterow, he listens to you. I consider his nurse April a friend, she’s always been so helpful. It’s a small two person office but at least you’ll be treated like a human being. I have recommended him to family and friends as well and they always appreciate the referral. I see there are some dissatisfied reviews but I can only say that most people are quick to leave a bad review before a good review.

I have to agree with all of the other reviews being quite accurate. Dr. Dicterow is a nice enough doctor, and seems to somewhat listen to your concerns. I had been going to him for about two years (on and off for asthma) until I finally got too fed up with the unanswered calls, and terrible service. It’s true, I could never get in when I needed to, seeing how the office hours are VERY sporadic. Everything said about the office and the receptionist/​assistant is true. I had gone to talk to the doctor about taking asthma medication when I was pregnant (last year) and the first question she asked me (while taking my BP) was, if I was keeping the baby! I mean, come ON! it wasn’t as if I was at an abortion clinic, and who just outright asks strangers that?! LOL If you can, I would recommend finding a different doc.

It’s a real shame. I really did like Dr. Dicterow because as far as the ‘caring doctor’ factor goes, he scores high marks.
The problem with his practice is not him. It’s the receptionist, the assistant, the one who sends your labwork… they’re all the same person. She’s the cancer of the whole operation.
If you absolutely have to go here, DO NOT BELIEVE what she says especially when she says «don’t worry about it. I will take care of it.» Get the doctor involved.

the only reason i went here was because i had recently moved and it was walking distance away. i called around to all the nearby doctors, but this was the only place that could see me that day. after being treated by him, i can see why…
the inside of the office might be the dingiest office i have ever been inside. the office equipment was all outdated, the most recent magazines were about 5 years old, the cheap furniture was at least 20 years old, and the cheap musty carpet hadn’t been cleaned in at least 10 years. the shelves in the treatment rooms are chipped, and some of them are missing handles.
an old, yellowed newspaper clipping, held on by tape, adorns the reception window. it mentions how dr. dicterow was once a musician — clearly his proudest of memories, since the medical profession does not seem to be his forte. but i digress.
while i waited, someone who worked there took a stack of papers out and laid them on the waiting room floor and couch, in order to sort them. it seemed a bit strange (and unprofessional) to me that there wouldn’t be room in the actual office space to sort through paperwork, but after glancing at the receptionist’s space and the piles of paperwork, it started to make sense.
when i finally got around to seeing the doctor, i asked about a minor physical concern i had. he gave me a huge bottle of medication to try out. it turned out to have been a trial medication that had nothing to do with my symptoms and actually caused me abdominal pain.
the main reason i came here was to get a doctor’s note for work, since i couldn’t get out to see my regular doctor that day. i already knew what my diagnosis was, since i’d been diagnosed a few times and had been treated. i asked if he had any additional information for me, since i’m always on the lookout for new treatments or information. he knew less about my condition than any doctor i have ever met, and i’ve met many…
go here if you’re bored and are looking for some good writing material. the shabbiness of the office, lack of professionalism, and general sense of «i don’t know what the **** i’m doing» from the staff is truly inspirational.

where does a girl begin!
first, it’s never open. as in i call at 8:00 – no answer. i call at 3:00 – no answer. i call at 1:30 – no answer. only the answering machine, which, by the way, does not specify the hours of operation. finally i make contact when i call at 10:00 and manage to schedule an appointment, stating clearly that i need a gynecological exam and a referral for a mammogram (sorry if any boys are out there reading this…) turns out the office is only open from 9:00 til between 11:00 and 1:00, depending on the day of the week.
anyway, the day rolls around and i roll on in to the office – pretty much a hole in the wall with magazines dating from 1990. literally. i wait a little while and am ushered into an antiquated room, whereupon i am informed the doctor does not do gynecological exams and instead he takes blood from me to test various things for which i had no desire to be tested.
and then, i walk up to the receptionist to check on my referrals. she hands me this grainy photocopy with a certain address. it all looks very sketchy and it’s not the place i want to go to so i ask if she can refer me to the place i want. she says the medical group won’t send me there, but i know it will so i call them, only to be told the paper the receptionist is trying to give me isn’t worth jack! the insurance rep asks to talk to the receptionist so i pass her my phone and she skitters down the hall, holding the paper up to cover her mouth and keeps looking at me and then turning away as she talks to the insurance rep!
what’s a girl to do? well, i could peruse those personal patient folders left out on the counter where i am waiting, one of which has a letter on the front of it detailing a bipolar patient’s radical weight decline and teeth loss. required reading, don’t you think? real, personal, private information left out in the open for my real, personal, private amusement. not that i’m a bitch.
and the end note? insurance rep tells receptionist to throw away all of the old forms, i get the correct paper with the correct referral, but i gotta change my doctor!