UW Neighborhood Ravenna Clinic

I am the caregiver for my husband who is being treated at the SCCA clinic. I became ill, and the clinic’s resource people told me about the UW’s neighborhood clinics. I chose the Ravenna location because it’s fairly clue to SCCA, and it was a good experience in all respects. I was welcomed, had a very short wait, and Dr. Valasquez was attentive, and easy to talk with, professional but not intimidating. She obviously knows what she’s doing, and mercifully I am feeling much better already. If I lived here I would
see if she could be my doctor.

One of the worst doc visits I’ve ever had. Do not see Dr. Cherry if you are hoping for any real medical attention. I was rushed through the visit while he stared passed me hardly hearing what I had to say. He ruled possible diagnosis out by making assumptions about past testing «I must have had», having never seen any of my medical history. He spoke condescendingly, never felt the areas of concern, wrote me prescriptions and hurried me out. It’s hard to believe this is acceptable when you have students shadowing you. Very disheartening.

The clinic itself is very fancy, clean and has really nice staff and medical assistants. This is a huge plus considering being sick is the worst time to deal with bad customer service.
But… sadly there is a but
If you’re looking to see Dr. Cherry, I recommend you skip. He hardly listened to anything I had to say, in fact the whole time it seemed he was telling me what symptoms I was having instead of letting me get one single word in through what must have been the most rushed consult of my life. He also spoke condescendingly of my country/​ethnicity (not realising I hadn’t just traveled there for fun but that I was actually a naturalized foreigner).
I was hoping I could get along with a white churchy texan male and all stereotypes would disintegrate before my eyes in a joyous moment of mutual human understanding. Yet he fell extremely short of that and I thought it would be good karma to let future sickys know.

Dr. Zubin Vasavada is one of the most intelligent and caring medical professionals I have known, and I have known many. UW Medicine, in general, has a level of customer service on par with Nordstrom’s. Whenever I reflect upon either Dr. Vasavada or UW Medicine, what comes to mind are experiences of quickly receiving thorough consideration and a level of care that seems in sync with the UW’s international reputation for excellence.

Uw medecine has been nothing but fantastic as my care provider. The customer service over the phone, in person clerical staff and my care teams have been near flawless. The Ravenna clinic does not live up to this. 2 separate issues have occurred here. one involving a referal for my son and one a billing issue for myself. After repeated emails and phone calls to the contact center, only weeks after was I told that «the previous agent dropped the ball.» For billing, beware when seeking services for a physical. If your doctor reads your medical records and asks if you’re having any issues… plead the 5^th unless you want to be billed for another office visit. Heck, I wouldn’t even tell them you ate for lunch. Specifically in this instance Mr Rhodes (whom is not even a doctor but will bill you for full services). When trying to get clarification for what I was billed for, I finally received a call from Ravenna billing after almost 2 weeks. The agent was not helpful at all. She basically told me tough luck, this is how it is. I would definitely look into another clinic for primary care in Seattle. UW medecine is a great provider, unfortunately just not the Ravenna location.

Have to a lower a star took tests 3 weeks pass and no phone call or letter, had to call myself just to be told I need another check up. I honestly believe I didn’t call I wouldn’t have gotten any update.

After moving to Seattle I needed a new doctor and the UW Medicine Ravenna clinic was close to where I was living and covered by my insurance so I tried it.
Pros:
–Great parking (a large underground garage)
–Lobby is super relaxing and clean, almost never has anyone else in it
–Receptionists go through check in quickly and are friendly
–Nurses check vitals quickly and efficiently
–Dr Vasavada is great and always takes time to ask at the end of appointments if anything else is needed or if there are any other questions (awesome since a few of the doctors I’ve seen here have rushed through the appointment)
–Clean, calm, and private blood lab with professional staff
Cons:
–It definitely took me a few tries to find a doctor that I liked and felt like genuinely cared about my health
Overall this is a great clinic, just be prepared to go through a few of the doctored to find the right fit for you!

Dr. Kong Wong is awesome. Staff was friendly and I didn’t wait long in the waiting room at all.
I think in general it’s crazy to «rank» physicians. I am just adding my review because usually people who review are unhappy. Not every patient will be happy– and most people coming to Unilocal to review are seriously crazy themselves and aren’t happy with anyone. My advice to all you Unilocalers is to find a physician that works for you and who cares about all these stupid on line reviews!

I love this clinic. Dr. Pamela Sheffeld is excellent. She is very gentle and professional. I always find the answers and the care that I need.

Don’t be fooled by the new building and pristine lobby. The care at the Ravenna clinic is far from the high quality care I’ve received at the other UW clinics (namely Factoria). Dr. Debell may look young but she has the demeanor of an angry old librarian. She spent most of my appointment scolding me for being late (I was literally 4 minutes late and apologized) and a total of about 30 seconds actually looking at me. She made me feel like my ear infection was a nuisance. Dr. Debell needs to take some serious lessons in patient care and maybe dig deep to find some compassion for her patients.

Dr. Tiffany Hollenbeck was so nice and professional she taught me about my eyes and gave me advice in a non condescending manner and made me feel very well taken care of. My eyes are forever hers to take care of. Thank you UW

Saw a doctor for a physical. The appointment ran on time, The physician was excellent and I felt relaxed with him. He was also very informative. They were able to do blood work right away on site in only a few minutes. I got the results in an email to my private, secure account I set up on their site. The doctor followed up with his view of the results. Nice job!

Love Love LOVE this clinic! Everything from the tranquil lobby with a soothing water feature to the knowledgeable providers here is amazing! I am a person with very few health concerns, but every single one of them have been addressed amazingly at this clinic! I mainly see Dr. Kong-​Wong whom I love, but my freinds and family have seen other providers here and all have had amazing experiences with every single one! I have recently moved to West Seattle but will still continue to make the trip to the Ravenna neighborhood in order to continue receiving top-​notch care. Love the UW Medical system :)

I usually go to the UW neighborhood clinic at Northgate. I called to make an appointment and found out my doctor just started a week of vacation and there were no appointments available that same day. They said the Ravenna clinic had openings around the time I requested so I said lets give it a shot, I only live a few blocks away.
First impressions were very positive: great lobby, receptionist was quick with the check in and very nice, and they even had a water feature. I sat down and thought to myself I might have found a new clinic. This is where everything started to go downhill.
I had to wait 20 minutes past my appointment time.
The nurse that came back for me didn’t know what tests needed to be run when he took me back to the lab. Because I was being seen for preexisting medical issue I was able to tell him what the doctor would want tested.
After I was deposited in the examination room and told the doctor would be in shortly I had to wait another 30 minutes for her to make an appearance. During this time I had to listen to the nurses in the room next to me talk sh! t about one of the receptionist that works in the office. I heard she is lazy, sucks, doesn’t work, has no personality, etc. This went on and on.
Finally Doctor Hwang decided to grace me with her presence. She told me how tired she was, how busy she had been, she couldn’t focus because she was having brain farts, etc. I’m thinking to myself great job on picking this place. Her only focus was to rush me out of the exam room and get on with her day. I told her I have a few more medical questions to ask and she said she didn’t have time so make it quick. Gee thanks Doc! The doctors and nurses her aren’t worried about your health and wellness, they’re off in coocooville. They rush you out the door and move on to the next patient. I still don’t know what is wrong with me after the visit and will have to go back to my regular doctor once she returns.
Avoid this place — try another clinic in the UW system.

I’ve really grown to love this clinic. They have multiple awesome doctors, unlike a lot of other clinics. I’ve been to others where there is one awesome doctor who brings in all the patients, and then most of the other doctors are sub par. This place is definitely not like that. My primary doctor is Dr. Sheffield, but if she is unavailable I will see either Dr. Hwang or Dr. Kong-​Wong. I haven’t visited any of the other doctors in the office, but all three of these doctors are awesome. They’re caring, willing to listen to all of your concerns, want to get to know you, and are great about answering any and all questions or concerns. This clinic also allows you to use UW Ecare so that you can message your doctor any questions or concerns, schedule appointments online, see test results, and ask for medication refills. This feature is an absolute lifesaver, especially when you have a question but don’t have time to go to the doctor and make an appointment, or even when you need a refill or a change in medication due to side effects or a new medication not working. The staff also responds very quickly to any messages on Ecare which rocks. I went to a lot of different doctors at a lot of different clinics to find a new primary care doctor after I had to leave my pediatrician due to being too old. When I finally visited this clinic I knew this was the right place, and haven’t gone to any other clinics since. If you’re looking for a new primary care doctor I highly recommend the UW Ravenna Clinic.

Wonderful service, relaxing lobby and overall caring environment.
Went here for the first time as my home neighborhood clinic was booked up. The Ravenna Clinic is leaps and bounds amazing. From little things like having your weight and vitals taken in your exam room to a water feature in the lobby, these make a huge difference in patient comfort. My doctor really took the time to listen and care. Dr. Emmott made sure all of my questions were answered to the best of his ability and really showed a sincere interest in making sure I felt my visit was worthwhile.
Parking is free (covered garage and a small amount of paved outside parking) with no validation or time limits needed. The whole experience was wonderful and the lab tech was able to quickly and painfree draw needed samples. Located right across the street from University Village, there is great dining and shopping options to occupy you after your appointment.
**Note, this is not UW’s fault, but Verizon GPS/​Waze wants to have you go to the complex one block before this, the office is right across the street from University Village’s street light and across the street from Chase Bank –same side of street, opposite corner-**

I’ve been in here a number of times, for everything from a pre-​surgury physical to the flu. Their receptionists are super nice, wait time is always reasonable.
The first time I went in I saw Dr. Vasavada for my physical. He really took his time with me, answered a lot of questions, listened to me, and respected my choices and views. The phlebotomist who did my bloodwork was BOSS. I have super tricky veins and I honestly didn’t even feel the needle go in. A good person to go to if you’re a needle-​phobe. Unfortunately I can’t remember her name… I’ve seen Dr. Vasavada a couple time since then to get medication refills and when I had a respiratory infection. He’s always kind and takes his time. I never feel rushed.
I saw Dr. Kong-​Wong when I had the flu. She was really compassionate and nice, listened to me about my symptoms and health history, and hooked me up with the medicine and notes for work I needed. That’s another thing, they always ask you if you need notes for work or class and will print them out from the exam room, no bullshit wait for things to be printed or faxed.
I had to wait 30 minutes once to be seen when I had an appointment because Dr. V had an emergency visit come in earlier that day. The nurse coordinator came out to personally apologize to me and give me water, explained the situation, and ask me if I wanted to wait or reschedule.
The MA’s are also awesome and very friendly.
TL;DR: Everyone at UW Ravenna is awesome. Go there.

Dr. Pamela A Sheffield is amazing.
I followed her here from another practice (which I previously reviewed). But damn do I love this doctor. She is so nice and really takes her time with you. She answers all my questions, doesn’t think I am crazy when I start in on the «Ugh I made the mistake of reading MDNet! now I think I could be dying… again.», she follows up with everything, and she cares about her patients sex life! No awkward pauses or looks.
I plan on going to her as long as she is in the state of Washington, I live no where near this clinic but it’s worth the trip.
I have found the other staff members to be very considerate and professional. And to top it off they have online scheduling! perfect.

Really knowledgable doctors with great
Bedside manner. Addressed possible concerns even before I broached on topics. Really impressed and love the free underground parking to boot!