Berkeley: 2999 Regent St. #425
Orinda: 96 Davis Rd.

Hi There, I am looking for a highly qualified pediatrician with excellent bedside manner in the lamorinda/walnut creek area. This doctor must have excellent service, a kind, friendly helpful staff, and be available to answer questions and return phone calls within a reasonable time (1-2 hours) without rushing us or treating us in a clinical manner. This doctor should also have a decent amount of office hours and appointment making shouldnt be too much trouble. Any recommendations would be helpful. We have good insurance. Our baby will be born on April 14. Thanks

We have a baby due in May and we are looking for a pediatrician. I am wondering if anyone coud give me some feed back on East Bay Pediatrics Orinda location, especially Dr. Juliana Damon or Sara Handelsman? Jade

Having said that I just had a baby and did not chose them as my babies pediatrician apart from the fact that it is kinda weird that I only stopped going there last year. They are very medical doctors and as an adult I have chosen to use mostly alternative medicines and do not plan to immunize my baby which is a big things with most pediatricians. So I picked one that I heard is a little more open to that. Hope this helps a little. life longs patient

This is our fourth pediatric practice (didn't like the first one, the second closed due to retirement, and then we moved about a half hour away from the third, necessitating the switch to East Bay Pediatrics). So, having been to four pediatric offices now, I have to say that East Bay is equal to or better than the other practices I've dealt with.

Re: looking for a new pediatrician
I have been taking my 7month old since she was born to Dr. Vo at East Bay Pediatrics. www.eastbaypediatrics.com they have offices in Orinda and Berkeley. Dr. Vo is not only affectionate and wonderful with my daughter, but has two kids of her own and can answer any questions you might have. She even gave me many helpful advices regarding recovery after the birthing process...:) anon

Re: Pediatrician for our 8-year-old son
We have been thrilled with Julie Damon as a pediatrician for our now 10 month old son. She was recommended to us by our acupuncturist as someone who would be open to other ideas in addition to Western medicine. For us, she's a great combination. We've done lots of traditional stuff that she's suggested but also some homeopathic treatments for which she's totally supportive. Although the website is a little weird, she might be worth a look: http://www.eastbaypediatrics.com. Oh, and as a plus, the office staff is incredible. Happy with Dr. Damon

Re: Looking for Pediatrician in Lamorinda
We switched to East Bay Pediatrics earlier this year and we are happy with them. They have offices in Orinda (right by the 24 East onramp) and in Berkeley. Our kids see Drs Myles Abbott and Julie Damon. Dr. Abbott is an older guy, but is very personable and takes a real interest in the total health of the kid (mental, emotional, physical). Dr. Damon is just an upbeat sweetheart, but very good and on top of things. My daughter (8) adores her. Both are easy to talk to and ask questions of.

Their website:
http://www.eastbaypediatrics.com

Their office locations and tel. numbers:
Orinda Office
96 Davis Road
Suite 2
Orinda, California  94563
925-438-1100

Berkeley Office
2999 Regent Street
Suite 325
Berkeley, California  94705
925-438-1100

Re: Pediatrician for a baby with Down syndrome
I have a 10 year old son with Down syndrome. His pediatrician is Myles Abbott at East Bay Pediatrics in Berkeley. We LOVE Myles and he has been wonderful to work with. He is not an expert in Down syndrome, but he knows a lot and is willing to learn and explore anything that he isn't familiar with. Most importantly, he is respectful to both me as a parent and my child. Feel free to contact me if you have more questions about Dr. Abbott or about parenting a child with Down syndrome. jennifer

Re: Looking for a Wise and Supportive Pediatrician
I'm new to the e-bay, but from two referrals heard about East Bay Pediatrics, located in Orinda and Berkeley. Some doctors are more seasoned while others are younger. I've been very impressed so far. Good luck! anon

Re: Preemie Specialist Pediatrician?
I strongly recommend Dr. Richard Oken. He is an older gentleman with tons of experience. He is my son's pediatrician. He takes a personal interest in the patient. He visited me and the baby in the hospital immediately after my son was born. Everytime I've paniced about a medical condition (my infant developed a nasty rash) Dr. Oken has been able to see me the same day. PalPakk

Re: Black Pediatrician
Tracy Evans-Ramsey, MD is a young black woman who works with East Bay Pediatrics in Berkeley and Orinda. It's a great practice with a great reputation. All the doctors are friendly and knowledgeable. The office phone number is (925)438-1100 christina

We are expecting our first baby in the beginning of December 2005. We just started out in the process of choosing a pediatrician and have scheduled a prenatal meeting with Dr. Christina Vo at East Bay Pediatrics in Berkeley. I checked the earlier postings in BPN for this practice but Dr. Vo has not been reviewed there. She must be new to the practice. Does anybody have any recommendations for/against Dr. Vo? It will be really helpful for us in reaching a decision in this matter. Thanks.

We have a baby due next week and soon after will need to switch insurance to my husbands HMO and will be looking for a pediatrician. I am wondering if anyone coud give me some feed back on Dr. Juliana Damon of East Bay Pediatrics? thanks, naoms

Re: Pediatrician after SIDS Loss
Dr. Sarah Handlesman from East Bay Pediatrics is great! She is our pediatrician and we love her. Our daughter is incredibly colicky and we are in her office freaking out every other week. She is patient, understanding, thoughtful, and knowledgeable. Plus... she even returns phone calls right away. Her office is in Berkeley and Orinda. I would definately at least go to meet her and see what you think. Good luck!! Stephanie

Re: pediatrician in Walnut Creek or Lafayette
She's not in Lafayette, but is close by at East Bay Pediatrics right off of 24 in Orinda. Sarah Cahn is my toddler's pediatrician and we've been very happy with her advice and services in the 2 years we've been seeing her. Nothing serious yet (thankfully) but I would trust her opinion and she has a very gentle bedside manner with my son who isn't the easiest of patients. The practice was recommended to me by my neighbor who is a Pediatric Oncologist of note-they have used East Bay Pediatrics themselves with both of their (now grown) children. Another Mom

Re: pediatrician in Walnut Creek or Lafayette
If Orinda isn't too far, I would recommend Dr. Juliana Moran at East Bay Pediatrics. Great bedside manner with children and parents, knows what she's talking about and when we had to contact her while on vacation out of state for an emergency she did an amazing job of staying with us over the phone while we assessed the situation and found an emergency room to get to. Her follow up after the emergency was wonderful. dolby

Re: pediatrician in Walnut Creek or Lafayette
Try East Bay Pediatrics, with offices in Orinda and Berkeley. Dr. Oken and Dr. Abbott are excellent.

Re: Pediatrician in Lamorinda for child with food allergues
I would give East Bay Pediatrics in Orinda (96 Davis Rd.) a try. My son, who also has multiple food allergies, is seen there by Dr. Dorit Bar-Din, although I think you'll do just fine with anyone on staff. Dr. Bar-Din has done a good job of diagnosing what may have looked like a plain old rash as a food allergy, and ordered appropriate testing to determine which foods were culprit. They're also not shy at this practice about referring you to a specialist, which, in an age of managed care, is not all that common. The drs. in this practice are all wonderful, and nice people, too. Good luck Lisa

Re: Seeking African-American pediatrician
I would like to recommend Dr. Evans Ramsey at East Bay Pediatrics. Although my son was only seen at the practice for a brief time we were very impressed with Dr. Evans-Ramsey. She is a bright, knowledable, and warm doctor who took time to answer all of our questions...and we had a lot as first time parents. E

I'm looking for a pediatrician for our about-to-be-born baby. I've heard great things about East Bay Pediatrics and called them. Tracy Evans-Ramsey is a new member of their group and one of the few in the group taking new patients. Has anybody seen her as a pediatrician and if so, can you give me information about whether you were comfortable with her? Thanks. LRE

Sara Cahn is the newest member of East Bay Pediatrics, a venerable practice in Berkeley, with many recommendations on the website. I've seen Sara twice, both for sick kid visits. She is very sweet and quite young. I liked her fine. She lacks a little confidence, but that develops over time, and she has great back up so if she does have a question she can ask really good people. There is something to be said for a doc right out of residency... They are up on all the research. And East Bay Pediatrics is a great practice in general... An efficiently run office that runs its appointments on time, and when your kid is sick, they move mountains for you. Another new pediatrician has joined the group as well, and I like her a lot. Her name is Tracey Evans-Ramsey and my 18 month old responded really well to her energy and enthusiasm, and I liked her a lot too. She's also pretty young. Myriam

I have been with East Bay Pediatrics since my daughter was born 17 years ago. I have seen most of the drs. in the practice and have been *very happy* with their services. Our particular doctor is Mary Jones and she has been absolutely wonderful. She is warm and welcoming and savvy. My daughter asked, when she was younger, if Dr. Jones was a relative of ours!!! EBP has offices in Berkeley and Orinda Linnea

RE: child with asthma: I have three children with mild to severe asthma (I have it myself also). My kids have been cared for (primarily) by Drs. Elizabeth Moffitt and Marcia Charles-Mo at East Bay Pediatrics. They are located near Alta Bates Hospital (not too far from Montclair as she requested). This is a well established practice headed by Dr William Rhea and Dr. Sam Lewis. My absolute favorites in this group are: Liz Moffitt, Marcia Charles-Mo, Miles Abbott, Bill Rhea, and Richard Oken. Under no circumstances will I see Dr. Dorit Bar-Din who mis-diagnosed pneumonia in my 2yr old daughter necessitating a late night trip to Children's emergency. She also was very cold and indifferent toward my child. Liz Moffit is very proactive and Marcia Charles-Mo herself has asthma. They both have been patient and understanding in helping our family. They also treat a great many kids with this problem and are always aware and informed regarding the very latest meds and approaches. I do appreciate them so much. Since the number of children diagnosed with asthma is growing at an alarming rate, many peds should be well versed in the management and treatment of this disease.

Hi. We've been going to Myles Abbott, MD since our son was born more than 7 years ago. He's wonderful. Warm, experienced, great sense of humor. He talks to our son, not just to us. We've had 2 hospitalizations and some other scares, and Dr. Abbott has always been reassuring, and surprisingly liberal in his recommendations. A couple of my co-workers and friends children also see Dr. Abbott and are quite pleased. Of course, we've seen many other doctors in the practice at various times. My second choice would be Marcia Charles-Mo, again, warm, sympathetic, empathetic and so sharp. We've also seen Dr. Rhea and a couple of others. The office staff is pretty nice and helpful there's a play room for sick kids. I've also found the advice nurse staff extremely helpful. This is the Berkeley office, I haven't had much experience with Orinda. Mollie

EBP has recently changed their after hour referrals to the Children's Hospital Advice Line, which I don't like as much, but I have been impressed with EBP's followup. Case in point: my 10 month old was sick recently over a weekend and we conferred several times with CHO, and finally, by Sunday night, we were directed to take him in to see our pediatrician on Monday. Generally, EBP's office opens at 9, so I was waiting to call in--but they called me shortly after 8 to schedule an appointment. And to top it off, my older son often asks if it's time for his checkup yet. He really enjoys going in and is now quite disappointed that he's reached the age of yearly checkups! Natasha

I recommend my girl's pediatrician, Mary Jones at East Bay Pediatrics. I am not sure if she's taking new patients. I find her to be totally supportive of my child raising ideas and she supports and recommends using some alternative therapies. Toby

Dr. Samuel Lewis is one member of a group of pediatricians called East Bay Pediatrics.They have two offices, one in Berkeley and one in Orinda. I have been universally impressed with this group since the birth of my son six and a half years ago. Our pediatrician is Dr. Rick Oken, who has always been incredibly helpful and kind to us and our two children, but I have seen every doctor in the group and always have been happy. Dr. Lewis may not be the most personable of the group but he seems to have some of the best diagnostic skills there... Other pediatricians will look at something, not necessarily know what it is and call him in and he seems to almost always know the answer. The office is extremely well run, the appointments (with Dr. Oken especially) actually run on time, and I've never had a problem getting a referral to a specialist if necessary. Myriam

East Bay Pediatrics has offices in Moraga and in Berkeley, and the doctors are wonderful. My kids see Dr. Marcia Charles-Mo for regularly scheduled appointments, but over the years have been seen by most if not all the doctors in the practice. There is always someone available for a same day appointment if you have a sick child, and they even have Saturday mornings open for sick kids . Helen

i agree with the east bay pediatrics recommendations. i always get to talk to a friendly and concerned nurse or doctor even if i call at midnight on a sunday night. dr. marcia charles-mo is my daughter's main doctor and i have been very pleased with her. she is extremely intelligent and informed and good with my children. Carrie

I am currently with HealthNet and with East Bay Pediatrics at Alta Bates. I am extremely happy with the physicians within this group. When I had my son in June '97 I was greeted right away with a pediatrician from East Bay Pediatrics. My son's physician is currently Dr. William E. Rhea, who is an older gentleman who has been in this practice for many years. He is very caring and gentle with the children, along with his nurses. I suggest you call their office to find out if they are accepting any patients. **Also, Dr. Myles B. Abbott within this group is excellent as well. Sonia

I want to second the recommendation for East Bay Pediatrics. Dr. Marcia Charles-Mo, of that group, saved my daughter's life 3 years ago by diagnosing her congenital heart disease in her first examination after she was born. Since then we have seen nearly every doctor in the group and they are all fantastic, as are the nurses and other support staff. I'm pretty sure that Dr. Charles-Mo is not accepting new patients, but if you can get into the group, your child(ren) will be well cared for. Randal

I would also recommend East Bay Pediatrics highly. Our daughters's pediatrician is Mary Jones, who is wonderful, but we have also had good experiences with Drs. Oken, Lewis, Rhea, and Moffitt (sp?). Of the 8 doctors in the group, there's only one we try to avoid. The nursing staff are also generally competent and cheerful.

The only problem is that this office may not be taking new HMO patients. At least that was the case a few months ago; maybe this has changed by now. Greg

I would like to second the recommendation for East Bay Pediatrics. My daughter's pediatrician is Elizabeth Moffit, a less senior doctor in the practice, but we love her. I think I like her so much because her style in approaching parenting seems to be similar to my own, but that aside, I've always been thrilled with the care that Emma gets, and the time spent with us while we're in the office. We have seen other doctors in the practice, and were equally pleased. Suzanne

I would like to recommend East Bay Pediatrics, at 2999 Regent St., Ste. 325. Phone 841-6451. They also have an office in Orinda.

Our insurance is also with HealthNet, and I have taken my 2 kids to this group for the past 8 years. Their personal care physician is Richard Oken, with whom we are very pleased. On the occasions when Dr. Oken is not available for an immediate appointment, the kids have been seen generally by Dr. Lewis.

I recently called to make an appointment for my son because of an old sports-related injury that wasn't healing. It didn't seem to be urgent, but the advice nurse thought we shouldn't wait. Dr. Oken was not in the office that day and Dr. Lewis was completely booked, so we were seen by Dr. Rhea. After examining my son, he wasn't certain about this condition and called in Dr. Lewis to take a look. Dr. Lewis was familiar with it, explained a new method of treatment to Dr. Rhea and referred us to the appropriate specialist. I was extremely grateful that Dr. Rhea, a very senior and experienced pediatrician, was willing to seek the opinion of one of the other doctors. This is an example of the thoughtful and careful treatment we have always received through East Bay Pediatrics. I would assume that the other doctors in the group practice the same high standard we have experienced. Rachel

I second the recommendation to switch to East Bay Pediatrics. My daughters' pediatrician in that group is Dorit Bar-Din. My husband and I, and our children, can't speak highly enough of her. I have had nothing but positive experiences with this medical group. At one time or another, my kids have seen most of the pediatricians in this practice, and they are all wonderful.

When Sabine was two, she hurt her leg going down a slide. Dorit was very prompt and thorough in treating the injury seriously and having it evaluated -- she conferred with another doctor in the practice and sent Sabine for multiple x-rays and put her under the care of a specialist at Children's Hospital. Another time, my younger daughter Naomi stuffed six peas far up her nose. We called Dorit, and she met my husband and Naomi at her office at 9:00 p.m. to extract them. When she and Michael couldn't get all the peas out, she walked over with him to Alta Bates Emergency, where it she, the ER doctor, and my husband all worked together to get them out.

When Sabine turned four and went for her well-child checkup, a surprising thing happened. Dorit explicitly began directing all of her questions to Sabine instead of to us, and we realized that Dorit was acknowledging that Sabine is old enough to talk directly with her pediatrician about her body and her concerns. We had to hold ourselves back from answering for Sabine and let her begin developing her own relationship with Dorit. Although we were surprised, I was pleased with this mark of confidence and respect towards Sabine.

She is warm, caring, personal, professional, and takes time to talk with us about what's going on in our lives, our concerns about schools, cognitive and social development, as well as treating our girls' physical conditions. The nursing staff are wonderful, too. Kimberly

In response to the parent looking for a pediatrician - we have been at East Bay Pediatrics over 5 years now, seeing Dr. Marcia Charles-Mo as the main doctor, but often seeing any one of them. They are always available for emergencies, including one doctor leaving his own father's day BBQ on a Sunday to meet us at the office to put stitches in my son's forehead. Helen

My daughter has been seen at East Bay Pediatrics since birth (she's now 12) and we've been very happy with their services. She sees Dr. Mary Jones, who is personable and helpful. We've seen Dr. Charles-Mo and she is also great. Once Dr. Charles-Mo met me at the office at 8 PM to handle an ear infection. Drs. Oken and Ray are also impressive. Linnea

Re: Physician for 16-year old boy
I too have a 16-year-old boy, also a 14-year-old, and they are both very fond of Dr. Myles B. Abbott at 2999 Regent St. in Berkeley (841-6451), whom they've been seeing from birth. He's very easy and fun to talk to, and is good at drawing them out re personal concerns; encourages them to call him at any time. The other day one of my sons was feeling really bad about his acne, so he said, "I think I'll call Dr. Abbott." He's also a fine physician. Not sure if he's taking new patients--and it can take a while to get appointments. Margo