Berkeley Parents Network: Yvette Gentry & Angelyn Thomas

Berkeley Parents Network

Yvette Gentry & Angelyn Thomas

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Health & Medical > ObGyns > Yvette Gentry & Angelyn Thomas

Nov 2007

Re: Looking For OBGYN
All my friends love either Dr. Girgis in Oakland or Dr. Angelyn Thomas in Berkeley. I go to Dr. Thomas and she's a youngish African American woman who went to Harvard. She's gentle, competant and all the friends I have referred to her are thrilled! Happy Patient

Feb 2006

Re: Need new ob/gyn in East Bay for OD pregnancy
I can highly recommend Dr. Yvette Gentry as a wonderful OB/Gyn in Oakland. I went through Invitro Fertilization and have had many complications with my pregnancy, after years of infertility. Dr. Gentry has been my OB and has been very informative, compassionate, and supportive throughout. Her office staff is also wonderful. You do not have to wait a long time to see her in her office, and she has been very good at calling me when I have had emergenices and questions. Her office staff is very professional and warm, as well as efficient. She has experience with assisted fertility procedures, and high risk pregnancy and is very supportive and knowledgeable in this area. She was highly recommended by my IVF doctor. I cannot say enough good things about her. She delivers at Alta Bates. Her office number is: 510-653-0846. kristen

Re: Seeking a More Personal ObGyn Practice (Sept 2004)
I used Dr. Angelyn Thomas and her buisness partner Dr. Gentry. I really liked the office staff and the doctors. On the day I deleivered, Dr. Thomas was ready and available right on time. Her offices were/are located near Summit hospital and I am not sure if they moved offices with the consolidation with Alta Bates. I'm sure you can find them on line or in the yellow pages. They were great! Carrie

Natural Birth Dr Thomas @ Alta Bates

May 2004

I am a very healthy 38 year old woman pregnant with my first child. My OBGYN is Dr. Angelyn Thomas. It is really important to me to have a delivery that is as free of intervention (i.e. drugs, i.v.'s, monitors, etc.) as possible. We have weighed our options carefully about where to have this baby and decided I will deliver at Alta Bates (Summit's Labor and Delivery is closing this summer). I really want to be able to move around while in labor particularly while pushing (I don't want to be restricted to being on my back while I push unless absolutely necessary). I am wondering if anyone has any experience with Dr. Thomas and her group, particularly around natural birth and her philosophy about intervention and natural child birth? Also any words of wisdom or recommendations about delivering at Alta Bates would be great also. Any information or advice will be welcome.

hi there, I'm also 38 and just had my first child in January at Summit w/ Dr. Thomas. She's really great about listening and adhering to your concerns/desires. If you feel especially strongly, type up a birthing plan (http://www.babycenter.com/calculators/birthplan/) and give it to the staff at the hospital -- I didn't need one w/ Dr. Thomas -- I told her beforehand what my wishes were (no meds, no episiotomies, nothing that might harm the baby in any way) -- w/ room for flexibility should the medical need arise. the childbirth prep nurse/instructor also advised to tell the nursing staff to not offer you meds (put it on your chart in case of shift change).

I also wanted to have all natural childbirth -- figuring billions of women have done so, so could I. unfortunately, it didn't work out that way (my water broke and the baby hadn't dropped, I wasn't dilating and stopped dilating as soon as they stopped inducing -- after 21 hours, I was only at 6cm) so we opted for the c-section -- which she already warned us might happen (9 lbs. plus baby, bicornuate uterus).

I don't know what Alta Bates is like but Summit had a full range of options -- their birthing rooms have showers (some w/ jacuzzi tubs) and the beds are multi-positional so you can get into any position you want. Unless you have an epidural (requires constant monitoring and they don't offer walking epidurals) you should be able to walk around.

I'm sure Dr. Thomas would honor your wishes unless it's medically inadvisable. My best advice is to request a second ultrasound a few weeks before your due date -- it enabled us to know how big the baby was (he was at 39 wk size at 36 weeks w/ head diameter at 10cm) and gave us a more accurate view of what delivery would be like and to think about our options. also, I have a friend who just gave birth after a healthy pregnancy and the baby turned out to have severe cerebral and respiratory problems and died 2 days later -- they didn't get the 2nd ultrasound and I wonder if it might have been helpful though I don't think it would have changed anything but you never know.

feel free to contact me if you have further questions and good luck.

I had Dr. Thomas birth my now 5-month old daughter. I found Dr. Thomas very open minded and willing to accomodate. I really love her. To my disappointment Dr. Thomas showed up only to catch the baby, she asked to be called when the baby was crowning. I was very surprised since I thought she was going to be with me for a big part of the labor but she showed up for the last 5 minutes. The nurse said that that is very common. It was the nurses who were there for the whole labor and let me labor the way I wanted to. Maybe find out what the nurses at Alta Bates are like. I hear wonderful things about them. Good Luck Anon

Dr. Thomas delivered my baby last September. I also wanted a drug-free labor with the ability to labor in the shower, on a birthing ball, etc. Dr. Thomas's advice was supportive (said many women can go through entire labor without an iv) but also suggested not to make any hard and fast rules regarding pain meds and see how the labor progressed. She encourages laboring in a variety of positions but requires that you are on your back for delivering the baby. I like Dr. Thomas and found her to be very competent and calm during the delivery. If you would like more information, my email is cmshafer@yahoo.com. Good luck! Cindy

Good for you in seeking what you want! If you want as little intervention as possible in a hospital setting, I highly suggest you find a nurse-midwife. The things you desire are a midwife's goal. Also, most OBs and many midwives show up just to ''catch'' the baby- it's the labor and delivery nurses that really matter (and they sometimes change their style depending on who the OB/ Midwife is). Tell your doctor about your wishes and see how she responds. You'll get a sense of how often she catches babies with mom on her hands and knees! anon

Also recommended: Childbirth at Alta Bates, Childbirth at Summit, and La Clinica Ob Gyns

Re: Fibroid Surgery (June 2003)
I would like to recommend my OB/GYN, Angelyne Thomas, she is also a surgeon and removed a fibroid from me last year. She is very gentle, thorough, patient, and knowledgable. She's in Oakland, her number is (510) 653-0846. Her office is on 34th St, and she works out of Summit Medical Center.

February 2003

Hi -- I just found out that I am pregnant, and I am looking for an OB who spends more than five minutes per visit with patients and who delivers most of her babies. A friend of mine recommended Dr. Angelyn Thomas. I would love to hear about people's experiences with her, especially when it comes to pregnancy and childbirth. Thanks! AD

Hi, I don't regularly see Angelyn Thomas, but am a patient of her partner Dr. Gentry. While I was pregnant, though, I saw Dr. Thomas around the office and she was very friendly and took the time to get to know me. I also saw her once, when Dr. Gentry was away. I was pleased with her. good luck, Michelle

I have been seeing Dr. Angelyn Thomas for about a year now and am completely happy. I plan to have her deliver my next baby. She spends a lot of time with her patients and is wonderful about answering questions. I have found her to be flexible, warm, intelligent, and a consumate professional. I hope this helps. Rebecca

Dr. Thomas is extremely professional. Despite running a busy practice I found her willing and happy to answer all of my questions (which were many) and address my concerns regarding my pregnancy. She was there for the birth and did a fantastic job leading the team. It was a bit of a stressful delivery at the end but Dr. Thomas was very capable and confident in her ability. I recommend her highly. dr. thomas is wonderful- she has been my gyn for the past 3 years-last year i became pregnant and she was my ob- she always took her time with me, answered all my questions and was very caring. my labor was rather difficult in the end and she was very level-headed and professional.if you have any questions please contact me

July 2002

Dr. Yvette Gentry, OB GYN, in Oakland, was recommended to me by a friend who doesn't have kids. I'm expecting my second baby in December and would love to know if anyone has had any experience with Dr. Gentry - particularly around childbirth. Thank you! Nancy

Hi, I used Dr. Gentry as my OB/Gyn for 5 years prior to and including my pregnancy. I really loved her (and still do). She was very supportive throughout, but gave me the most information when I asked for it. Her office is walking distance from Summit, so she prefers to deliver there. I wanted to deliver at Alta Bates, though, and she does have priviledges there, too. I guess that since she doesn't do deliveries there as often, she is not as comfortable with the nursing staff there. But, everything was fine...and she got there very quickly when it was time to push (30 minutes earlier, I was only 5 cm!). I hope this helps... I have recommended her to several people. Michelle

I am a patient of Dr. Angelyn Thomas, Dr. Gentry's partner in her practice. Dr. Thomas delivered my son last Aug. I only saw Dr. Gentry once, so I can't speak to her abilities, but I can say that I was always happy with my experience at their office. Their nurses and reception staff are professional and friendly. I can also say that if Dr. Thomas happens to be on call when you go into labor, you will be in good hands. She does have a somewhat traditional bent (I think I was her first patient to use a doula) but I felt very well cared for by her. I particularly liked the fact that she is a good listener. Good luck! AM

I have gone to Dr. Gentry for a couple of significant GYN procedures, and I have found her to be extremely competent, professional, thorough and women-centered. Her partner, who's name I can't recall, is equally qualified. They are both Cal alumni! Cindy

I want to HIGHLY recommend Dr. Gentry and her entire staff. They have helped me through one miscarriage and, thankfully, two smooth deliveries. I have sent several friends to Dr. Gentry also, who are as happy with her as I have been. I find that sometimes it's easier to learn about how great a Dr. is not by how they handle when things go right, but what they do when things go wrong. When I miscarried prior to the birth of my two girls, Dr. Gentry and her office staff were incredible supportive and compassionate, and I was devastated. She was encouraging when I was frustrated trying to get pregnant again and helpful in every way. They have continued, even as they have increased their patient load, to offer great and personal service. I believe Dr. Gentry really cares and takes time, and it shows. She was great through delivery as well, but I really became a loyal patient long before then. Also, she was happy to work with my doula, Treesa McLean, through both pregnancies, and now Treesa is a fan of hers as well. Leslie

I would like to highly recommend Dr. Gentry. I saw her throughout my second pregnancy and she is very professional and down to earth. i never had to wait more than 10 minutes for my appointments and she always took time to answer questions. I would describe her as graceful, calm and composed. In terms of teh childbirth, my baby came so fast (under one hour of labor) that she never made it to the birth but all the doctors at Summit spoke very highly of her. And I felt very well taken care of when she did arrive just moments after the birth. I will definitely go back to her when number 3 is on the way. all the best, petra

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