UCSF Osher Center For Integrative Medicine

It is truely a shame when a good place suffers due to disorganization. I called in about 3 – 4 weeks in advance and was told their doctors like to schedule 2 or 3 appointments at a time to make sure they have timely follow-​ups after the first appt. That sounded ok so we scheduled 3 appts 2 weeks apart. I needed to cancel the first one with short notice to care for a sick child. When I showed up for my 2^nd appt date, they said all 3 had been canceled. Yet they had neither told me that by phone or email-​no warning at all. What a wasted morning. Now I would not trust them and prefer to
go elsewhere where the Admin staff values a bit more the patient’s time.

I highly recommend the Mindful-​Childbirth and Parenting class (truly focused on first-​time parents, and the birthing experience). Judy Cueno was our instructor (she is a practicing OB/​GYN). Truly helped put the childbirth experience in enough perspective that I had the confidence to manage any pain when giving birth. Invaluable experience. I feel stronger for it, and am grateful for her frank feedback on our birthplan, which our providers truly followed, and did not scoff at.

This place is cleaner than the family health center besides General Hospital.

We had a good experience here, seeing Dr. David Becker, who took plenty of time and showed great concern for a teenager’s migraine headaches. The front desk staff and the scheduling people were easy to deal with and I did not experience any of the negative attitudes that other reviewers did. We waited for several months to get a biofeedback appointment, but the staff was good about calling us and offering earlier appointments as they became available.

It is a shame that the Osher center is so unorganized .It is a point well taken that UC had attempted to include alternative treatment in its repertoire. The treatment there is good, but the confusion and mix ups with making appointments and trying to get an invoice makes it not worth the energy.
If you are interested in trying alternative treatments I would suggest a smaller office with more TLC and less officiousness.

Great array of practitioners and classes. The mindfulness class was great. The alum sit is a needed resource for people who have completed it. The facilities are peaceful and clean. I wish the garden was more accessible, however.

you would expect more from this center, but i came across many issues, particularly with the front desk staff. the doctor was okay… seemed like she cared about the whole person, but really didn’t know much about the disease i have and gave some very general information and suggestions to me. i appreciated being able to talk with her about the whole picture and i learned a lot from what i found myself telling the doctor.
the front staff, on the other hand, were HORRIBLE. the information that they sent me up front when first setting up the appointment was incomplete. in particular, the information in the email did not include the fact that the patient has to get the visit approved by their insurance on their own. i can understand that, but no where was that stated in the email they sent to me. further, when i went through the trouble of bringing in documentation prior to my visit and asked them about insurance the were EXTREMELY DEFENSIVE, RUDE, and UNHELPFUL, claiming that they told me. THEY COULDN’T (OR WOULDN’T) EVEN ANSWER THE SIMPLE QUESTIONS AS TO WHAT MEDICAL GROUPS THE DOCTOR THEY ASSIGNED ME WAS IN. thankfully i am well-​versed in the upside-​down U.S. insurance and health care system and was able to get everything sorted out in just a couple of hours. just in time for my appointment. TALK ABOUT STRESS. they should hire someone to help people navigate the insurance. every time i used the word insurance the staff was defensive and rigid…
another surprise that i had visiting there was the elitist attitude of the front desk staff. i am aware that this center goes out into the community and provides scholarship/​discounts to those without insurance and low-​incomes. HOWEVER, i can not find information on their website about this. when i asked for a price list for those who would like holistic care, but don’t have insurance i was astounded. a new patient visit is $ 450.00. follow up visits are $ 315.00. THESE PRICES ARE NOT REASONABLE. unfortunately it seems only those of us with insurance and/​or money can access this. they would do better to update their website to show what they are doing in the community.
i guess over all i was completely surprised by the visit. i had very high hopes for this. i am very well acquainted with the ‘traditional’ health care as well as ‘alternative’ holistic care. i would recommend the osher clinic for some things and for the accessible location –and have you seen their GORGEOUS new building?– BUT i did not enjoy my experience working with them.

My experience with Osher Center was HORRIBLE as a breast cancer patient going through chemo. The first experience was with the cold and «couldn’t be bothered» attitude of the receptionist when I called to make follow up appointments for more acupuncture. I then left a message for the acupuncturist after not being able to get an appointment for a couple weeks through the receptionist. I heard nothing… Then while too sick to call, my sister called and left a message as well and again NOTHING. No return call from the acupuncturist nor the receptionist. I was contesting the $ 280. charge via my credit card co. and during that time I heard from 3 people, after I wrote to complain… the acupuncturist, the clinic admin. director and also the director of the center about how concerned they were about what happened. I was so sick and unable to function during this time that I could not drive to meet with any of them and informed them of this. After this initial reply from them, I never heard another word.
As soon as they got their money cleared through my credit card, they disappeared. So from the cold receptionist, the lack of communication to the band aid of concern from admin. I just can’t believe how I was treated and how this problem was handled. Osher Center does not provide the healing services it’s boasts. Find an independent practitioner who would really care about how you feel when going through cancer and chemo.
Stay away from this place.

The Osher Center of Integrative Medicine is affiliated/​belongs to UCSF. Most of the physicians there are UCSF teaching or research faculty, and all have chosen to provide holistic, patient-​oriented care in a serene, unhurried environment. If you’re looking for the unusual experience of sitting down with your doctor/​practitioner (the center employs everything from biofeedback to acupuncture) and truly communicating about your health issues without any restraints on time, then this is an oasis in the desert of American managed care. The down-​side? It’s NOT managed care, meaning you will pay out-​of-​pocket for your care here. I am biased, being a physician and knowing all that goes into providing this sort of care, but I’d say scrap the expensive health plan premiums, buy catastrophic INSURANCE for when you need to go to the hospital, and pay $ to keep yourself healthy and away from the aforementioned hospital/​catastrophic stuff. The Osher Center is leading the way on this in an integrative approach.