Golomb Herbert S MD

Both the office and the doctor deserve a very low rating. I went in before my scheduled appointment and didn’t see the doctor until 2 hours after it was set. Once I saw Golomb he «treated» my symptom and prescribed me medication that costed a lot and it isn’t really working. He is way too old to still be practicing and the office told me I was fully covered and I still received a very large bill for a visit that didn’t help. Run away from Falls Church Medical Center and do not get «treated» by this terrible «doctor» Golomb.

I understand the concerns of most of the posters here. There’s a lot to put you off at this office. But let’s take a closer look.
Golomb will give you as much time as you need. That’s why he’s usually running late — because he’s giving other patients as much time as THEY need. It’s called a trade-​off, folks.
Yes, he is a senior citizen. His hands are a bit shaky, and I probably wouldn’t let him do anything surgical on a critical part.
His eyesight isn’t great, and he uses magnifiers, and when he examines or freezes areas, he still misses spots. I usually have to point things out to him, which he will then address. I’m aware he’s a bit freeze-​happy, so I sometimes have to reign him in. («No doctor, that’s a cut on my arm from a few days ago, don’t freeze it!»)
But he does think outside the box. And he will be open to discussion, if you approach the subject in a friendly way.
When I come in for my twice-​a-​year exams, I try to bring a sense of humor. It’s a pretty laughable situation, when you think about it.
I just don’t feel like he’s got an agenda, like other dermatologists do. I think he’s sincerely looking out for my best interests — even if he can be misguided sometimes. I just have to be a bit vigilant to make sure he moves in the right direction. That is, I have to be proactive, and informed, and responsible for my own well-​being, rather than totally putting it in the hands of a physician — which has sometimes been detrimental for me. (Case in point: because I trusted another dermatologist to take care of me, I lost my nose to cancer. No joke.)

I made the mistake of not reading the reviews before setting up an appointment. On my first visit he removed a few spots on my face and did a fairly good job, although he missed the spot I was talking about. That should have been my warning.
On the second visit, I came early in the day so the wait was not a problem, but he went hog wild with the nitrogen. I had welts all over both arms and my back and the scabs have not healed 4 weeks later.

I’ve gone to Dr. Golomb as needed for many years for several different skin issues. One issue in particular stumped another dermatologist. Dr. Golomb was able to think outside the box and he remembers learning about the condition (which is rare) at a conference. There was another condition I saw him for and the first med he prescribed didn’t work. He then prescribed a new one, which worked. Yes, the office is not fancy and it can be messy. I don’t care because he was helpful. Yes, there is sometimes a very long wait. I have found in general doctors either can schedule you right away, but you may wait a while or you can’t get an appointment for 6 months, but you don’t wait that long once there.
It’s one thing to share your experience here so people get many perspectives. However, posting a covertly taken photo is going too far.

I went in for removal of a benign cyst and he found all kinds of flaws with my skin and prescribed me 7 different medicines. I expressed surprise that I needed so many treatments for facial acne that was so mild I hadn’t noticed, he acted irritated that I would question his recommendation and told me he goes to many conferences and has treated thousands of acne cases.
When I tried to fill the scripts at the pharmacy, I found that some of the prescriptions required pre authorization from my insurance company, who Dr. Golomb refused to call, saying it was instead a form I needed to fax instead (which the pharmacy states is not true).
I went for a follow-​up and expressed my concerns about using powerful medications for what I consider a mild acne problem on my face. I said I wasn’t sure that it was necessary and asked what alternatives exist, if any. Dr. Golomb said, «I have treated thousands of cases of acne, so I know what works. How many cases have you treated?» I didn’t reply, so he continued, «What makes you have a right to say that to me?» I hopped off the chair, walked out of the examination room and out of the office.
I’d like to add that I agree with some of the other posters who stated he was indiscriminate in his use of the freezing spray. He froze only half of a blemish and although I pointed out the other half which needed the spray, he instead kept going over the spot he had already done. This was painful and I’ll have to get the treatment done again because of the parts he missed. I don’t think he can see the skin well enough without his magnification tools.

He is definitely senile, because he keeps you waiting ridiculously long. Still didn’t get rid of my rash.

Don’t go! I just changed insurance companies and couldn’t believe my eyes that Dr. Golomb is still practicing and on the list of providers with my new company. I saw him probably about 15 years ago and was horrified with his treatment techniques. He saw 2 areas of concern and used the spray freezing agents (I’m sorry… I don’t know the technical terms) on my leg and face. I was literally in shock when I left his office. 15 years later, I still have big white scars on my face and leg. I contacted the medical board that oversees physician safety concerns, but it was clear that I would have to jump through hoops to ensure that his cavalier methods of treatment were documented. I figured that he was soon to retire anyway, so I’m regretting not going through with it, as I probably could have saved thousands of people the trauma that I went through some 15 or so years ago. it is shocking and shameful that he is still practicing. DON’T GO!!!

I’d like to set the record straight! «DO NOT» believe everything you read here on Dr. Golomb. I’ve been a patient since the late 1980s, and Dr. Golomb is always polite, professional and very courteous to me as a patient and a person. He is an excellent physician and dermatologist. I would not recomment him if he were not. Check out his creds and other positive reviews. I would «highly recommend» him. To be a patient of over 25 years shows that I have complete faith in his abilities and practices as a physician.

This is the worst DOCTOR I have ever been to. He is unprofessional, and unwilling to work with clients. His staff is rude. If you miss an appointment (even though they don’t give reminder calls) they charge you for the appointment.
Diagnosis-​wise: He basically tried to start a scar removal treatment on me without even asking me for permission. He didn’t even ask if I wanted the procedure don.
I rarely write these reviews, but if it saves anyone time or energy, then just do yourself a favor and find another dermatologist.

Had an appointment with Dr. Golomb on the recommendation of my opthalmalogist who I love. I didn’t read the reviews before I booked the appointment (I’ll never do that again!) I arrived for my appt at 11:15am. At 12:15 they told me it would be a minimum of 45 minutes and probably longer still until the doctor could see me. That’s when I read the reviews and saw one about him having shaky hands. Given that my appt was to have moles removed on my face, I decided that I wasn’t comfortable waiting so long to see for myself. On top of all that, the office IS hideous, customer service is among the most pathetic I’ve ever seen. The nurse seemed like the most miserable person, and the cashier sat there playing on her smartphone for a good few minutes before even acknowledging my presence. The ONLY saving grace is that they said they wouldn’t charge me for cancelling the appointment. Save yourself a lot of time and make an appointment elsewhere.

I’ve read some pretty horrible reviews of this doctor online. I didn’t have the same experience.
I went to see him today for a second opinion on a subcutaneous cyst that I have which has reoccurred (this is the third one, after the first two were removed by a different dermatologist). Dr. Golomb was running late (around 45 – 50 minutes until I saw him) and his office was … messy. Not unsanitary messy, just … messy. Anyhow, what most concerned me about him was that he offered the same solution as what the other dermatologist had done (and I clearly explained that the two times the other guy did it, the problem just came back), and also that he seemed so … well, old. I certainly don’t want to be ageist, but this guy’s bio says he graduated from med school in 1960. I suspect that he came to medicine after an initial few years as something else, because he looks like he’s early to mid-​80s. His hands aren’t as steady as I would prefer, so I would be unlikely to let him do any sort of procedures on me.
And yes, he did say «Can I get some help in here?» when I was there. (The internet has loads of reviews indicating that he says that all the time. I thought it was funny that it was actually true…)

I’ve been to Dr. Golomb over 6 times for psoriasis treatment.
First, he is ALWAYS late. The quickest I’ve ever been called to go back to the exam room was after over an hour wait. Then you sit in there for another 20min’s or so.
Second, He half listens to your concerns while scribbling out prescriptions at a cheetah’s pace. You tell him the concern, he writes out the answer. And damn if he doesn’t have «answers». Honestly, I only end up filling a third of the scripts he writes me.
Finally, the dude is kinda weird. He’s a nice guy but I think he’s getting to be a little to old for his job.
So, if you have a love for sitting in waiting rooms and prefer a prescription mill to an actual doctor, you’ve found your man!

I trust this man to do exactly what I want him to do. I’m not comfortable bringing new problems to him.
He is always running insanely late.
He once decided I had an extra problem that never bothered me – the only explanation I can think of is so that he could write me a prescription and mark my appointment down as treating two problems, and thus earn more money. He didn’t pick up on my signals that no, no, everything is fine, please let me leave now.
He also once needed the nurse’s help to see where on my body he was supposed to be focusing his dermatological tool… The only possible explanation I have is bad eyesight. That disturbs me.
I’d have rather been in the nurses’ hands at every appointment — they are quick, efficient, on-​time and seem very competent.