Dr. Rakesh Donthineni

I’m giving Dr. Donthineni a 5 star for the good experience I had with the front desk staff and his Nurse Practitioner. Jacky goes out of her way to help with pre-​authorizations referrals and follow-​up, I have had calls at 6 PM so I appreciate that she has a great sense of urgency.
I went in with an L5 S1 herniation and although it was determined not to require surgery (yes a surgeon who doesn’t want to cut everything!) I appreciate the step wise approach they use at this office.
During my two visits I spoke with several patients who have been through serious surgeries they rave about the results.

I only saw the doctor only once, he seemed nice. I did not get treatment from him. Getting a follow up has been horrible. Their process did not favor me. They were inconsiderate at best and incompetent. At this point I’ll have to look for another Doctor.

Absolute worst experience with a doctor and the office EVER.
We should have known it was going to be bad when they never answered phones and took days to return calls.
Waited over an hour for the appointment and then he didn’t have any of the documentation from our referring physician and blamed the patient for his ineptitude.
Very rude and condescending.
WE WILL NEVER GO THERE AGAIN.

I am a Registered Nurse and saw Darren, the PA, for a surgical consult on some ruptured discs of my low back. He was really kind. He showed me every frame of my MRI and he even looked at a recent neck MRI and made comments about it (not what I was going in for). He was thorough, went through what surgery I might be a candidate for, including explaining the benefits and risks. He said they wouldn’t be able to do it until I’d had 3 lumbar epidural injections. He said they always follow protocol on this because the injections entail less risk than the surgeries and sometimes even if the 2 previous ones don’t give a patient relief the third one does.
If I were going to stay in Oakland (I’m moving next month) and needed the mini lumbar laminectomy, I definitely would get it from Dr. Donthineni. Even though I’ve never met the Dr. I can tell by the way they run their office and Darren’s knowledge and carefulness that the Dr. must be equally good. Also, I checked out some of the amazing and complex surgeries of the neck and low back (the actual MRI’s are online) that Dr. Donthineni did. I feel he is a very good surgeon.
Thank you Darren and the super helpful receptionist, too.
With regards,
Victoria

I would highly recommend Dr. Donthineni. His staff was courteous and efficient. I did not have to go though a PA but went straight through to the Doctor. He read my MRI’s and spent a long time discussing my options. In the end, he recommended that I try a less invasive procedure before resorting to spine surgery. My wife and I were both impressed with his patent and thoughtful approach to my back pain problem. If, in the end, I need to resort to surgery, I certainly will choose Dr. Donthineni.

After requesting from my neurologist to see a specialist for my back and neck pain or the past 3 years, he suggested going to Dr. Rakesh Donthineni. I read general reviews ad his background and felt confident in him to provide a 2^nd opinion. Once I arrived, I was ONLY seen be the PA of the office for both of my visits. The PA didn’t talk to me he talked down to me. His background stems from the military so maybe he treated the «enemy» in Afghanistan and Iraq and thought he was doing the same when consulting with me. The front desk staff is the only thing I liked about his office. Would not recommend going and if you have no choice, refuse the PA and say you want to be seen by an MD given the nature of your illness. All the best

I had an excellent experience at this office. My family doctor recommended it and faxed over a referral. The office called me and set up an appointment within a few days that fit into my schedule. I got to the office early because I knew that as a first-​time patient there would be paperwork. The office staff was great and just as I finished the last page, I was called in for my appointment… at exactly the scheduled time. I was seen by the PA (whose name I wished I could remember). He was thorough and knew more about my condition than any other doctor I had seen previously. He also was able to view my MRI results and interpreted them without having to rely on the report… he showed me the pictures and pointed out various things with clear explanations. We even had a friendly conversation about places we had both hiked. Dr. Donthineni came in at the end of the visit and the two of them discussed my case in front of me. I would certainly recommend this office.

I have not had very much interaction with the doctor BUT his staff should be replaced.
They DON’T return phone calls. (I never get a live person) It took forever to get them to send in a referral for my MRI and they charged me for a no show even after calling to cancel and reschedule.
This happened in January and I still get the bill. I have sent them a copy of my phone bill and even sent a check even though I did not owe the money. I left messages, I sent mail explaining, I sent a letter directly to the doctor and I am still receiving the bill.
I can afford to pay but I should not have been charged. What’s worse, I need to see the doctor. And, with this staff that does NOT answer the phone it is close to impossible. I will have to find another doctor because of his staff. I hope he reads this and I hope he has seen the letters that I have sent him.

Very nice doctor who is very accommodating and understanding.
But you ask, «why not five stars John?»
Let me tell you why, two reasons: 1. The receptionist is somewhat rude. Her attitude was one of such that didn’t really want to be at work or of one that was just not happy in general. I could be wrong, but I’m the customer — so I’m right!
Another thing that I noticed was that at times I felt rushed. I felt that there were times where I was explaining things to the receptionist and to the doctor and they would be quick to start writing the diagnosis — hands it off — and then I forgot about what the options are for therapy. So then I would have to call them back in so that they can be told to slow down and explain my options. It was annoying. I expressed my frustrations with the doctor at the time — and to my surprise he responded really well. Explained why there are times when things can be hectic and offered his apologies. It all seemed heartfelt especially due to the type of patients that they usually deal with (oncology). In the end, all of my visits were fine. Especially, once I realized the type of medical conditions they typically deal with. Those people can have all the time they need to ask any question they want… my broken hand can wait. For real.
If I ever found my self with a broken bone again — I would go back.

My husband and I have waited for a pre-​existing letter from this office to be sent to insurance since Oct. 2012. We have over $ 20,000.00 waiting on this letter. There are 4 other doctors waiting to be paid. We got a MRI to prove it was not pre-​existing and went over it with Rakesh Donthineni who also agreed it was not pre-​existing. Jackie is the person to contact about this matter she has been so rude to me every time I have spoke to her major attitude problem!!! She has told me I am not the only patient today and hung up on me-​she has not called me back several times now to confirm they sent the letter back to insurance. I have excellent credit and it is now being ruined by this office. Today I filled with the BBB hopefully they can get done what neither Blue Shield and I could not. Then I will be able to spend more time getting them to send me back from collections– at least we will be able to get our out of pocket thousands. DO NOT GO HERE!!!

I have received very poor care at Dr. Donthenini’s office. He gave me no more than ten minutes of his time, and then kicked me out with a referral for x-​rays (even though I already had gotten x-​rays. He even said he didn’t think any bones were broken.) He never asked me about my injury, nor did he properly assess the damage done. It has been over a week, and I still have not heard back from his office concerning x-​rays or a follow-​up appointment. I still do not have a care plan, and my pain medication will run out before he is willing to see me again. I tried calling and was instead given the cold shoulder. I would NOT recommend going to see Dr. Donthelini. You will not be treated as a human being, he will not listen to you, and he will not provide proper care.

Dr. Donthineni is a talented surgeon, good natured and reassuring. I had a lipoma (benign fatty tumor) removed from my shoulder in March and was terrified since I’ve never had any kind of surgery before. He was confident and the surgery was easy and successful. His office staff was also great– easy going, responsive and friendly. I was quite satisfied with the treatment I got. Dr. Donthineni’s specialty is surgical oncology so god forbid I ever had a reason to need him as an oncologist– but if I did, I’d feel comfortable in his hands.