Roger Kao's Online Review Report Card

This might be the quite possibly the greatest medical office I’ve ever been to. The level of care that I got was 200% more than what any other place would have. The front desk is extremely responsive, and you can tell they really care about the patients. I was in such an extreme amount of pain after a fall and Dr. Kao explain the situation very thoroughly to me, helped qualm my anxieties almost instantly, and his front staff was able to squeeze me in almost immediately for an emergency endoscopy when someone canceled. I get very very very nervous for surgeries , and for some reason, I just wasn’t nervous here. Perhaps it’s the fact that Dr. Kao is as smart and compassionate as any doctor I’ve ever talked to, or maybe it’s that the two ladies at the front desk were immediately communicative and positively supportive, or maybe it was that the surgery staff was actually having me laugh right before the operation which is something that is actually impossible with me, or maybe it was because the results of the endoscopy were communicated almost immediately once the doctor received it. He knew the level of pain I was in, and how anxiously I was awaiting the results. I wasn’t just some other patient. He gave me so much extra time and care, that I felt like God had sent him directly to me as a perfect physician for what I needed at that moment in my life. I am actually starting to tear up as I write this. He got to the root of my issue and help me rule out any extremely serious conditions or ailments, which information I was able to use to get the appropriate care that I needed from another source related to muscular recovery. I truly can’t imagine a Gastro doctor better than Dr. Kao. I am not kidding here. It’s simply doesn’t exist. Not at Harvard. Not at Stanford. Not at Johns Hopkins. Right here in this tiny, beautiful little corner of California. There wasn’t a single thing that I would’ve changed or that he could’ve done better. I even needed a note from the doctor to provide proof of my incident, and he sent it in the portal and in an email, and even followed up to make sure that I got it OK. Seriously… tell me one doctor in this day and age that ACTUALLY DOES THAT??? I’d give six stars if I could. I’m going to stop now before I keep rambling on, but I really wanted to express to you, fellow pain feeler who is reading this review right now, that coming to this office will be the single greatest choice that you can make. Even if you have to drive an hour to get here, do it. You won’t regret it. Thank you, Dr. Kao. Thank you. :)

Dr Kao is a great GI doctor, he is very professional also super nice! he know i was being super nervous during the colonoscopy so he even encouraged me to sing during the process 😀so the experience is just great and i didn't feel any pain or uncomfortable at all! Thanks Dr Kao! I'm probably the only one who sing during colon! 🤣

I'm not writing this review as a patient but as the wife of a patient. My husband was prescribed Humira at double the regular dose (once weekly) by Dr Kao for a lengthy period, which did well to treat his crohn's however basic routine blood work including kidney function was never taken. This lack of monitoring while on Humira is very wrong, my husband now has IgA nephropathy which is a type of chronic kidney disease. There have been many case reports of IgA nephropathy linked to Humira use and a patient on a weekly dose should be closely monitored. My husband is not one to complain but I feel it's very unfair he now suffers from kidney disease as basic blood work was missed. As we moved internationally his new gastroenterologist picked up on this during routine blood work. We are shocked and it's hit our family hard. So thankful he is in better care now though kidney issues could have been picked up and treated years earlier had Dr Kao monitored him as required

Dr. Kao and staff are outstanding, Dr. Kao makes you feel at ease, treats you with respect. The nurses are also excellent, it is very rare to find a doctor with Dr. Kaos positive personality.

Best one!

Best doctor who actually helped me with my problem. He immediately suggested banding for my internal hemorrhoids and after several visits I was much much better. Very professional and very smart.

I saw a few other GI doctors for my GI issue before seeing Dr. Kao. All other doctors told me that my stomach produced too much acid, which caused burning sensation. They ordered PPI for me. After more than half of year of taking PPI, my symptom didn't improve much, but I experienced many side effects of PPI. The other doctors didn't know why. I kept trying to find another doctor who I hope could find the root cause of my GI issue. Finally, I was lucky to find Dr. Kao. Though his office is far from home, I was desperate to get another opinion. For the very first visit, after Dr. Kao looked at pictures of my previous endoscopy, he said there was no gastritis or other issue with my stomach. He said most likely the discomfort was caused by functional dyspepsia. He gave me a couple samples of FDgard to help with it and asked me to stop PPI. Initially I was very skeptical, but FDgard works wonders for me. I am now completely off PPI and take FDgard a couple of times a day. I am feeling so much better now. Thanks so much Dr. Kao for saving my life. Dr. Kao is flexible and responsive. I always receive his reply within a day after I send him a question. Lately Dr. Kao performed the screening colonoscopy for my wife, which went smoothly. She said she almost didn't feel anything and it was done. Thanks again Dr. Kao. Words can't adequately express my gratitude.

Dr Kao and his entire staff are professional, kind, and welcoming. I felt always at ease.

I am beyond shocked and disheartened after my first and only visit with Dr. Kao. The blatant sexism, dismissiveness, & gaslighting I experienced at Dr. Kao's office is almost surreal. I came to Dr. Kao's office really hopeful -- I had been experiencing sudden acute abdominal distension, swelling, & digestive issues which resulted in me losing 15 lbs over a 2 month period and chronic fatigue/discomfort. This was my very first gastro appointment, and I was hopeful to finally initiate specialized medical care for these issues. Firstly, I was confused at the onset of my appointment because it was not in an exam room--it was in his personal office, with him sitting at his computer and you (the patient) sitting across the desk. There was no medical exam whatsoever--it was all a verbal consult (if you can even call it a true consult). Although this was surprising to me (because you would think that a gastro consult would entail examining the patient to some extent) I figured "hey, maybe this is just how it goes." He proceeded to ask me a series of questions about my symptoms, but quickly started interrupting me/seemed to lose patience when I would respond. When I mentioned that I was previously receiving care at PAMF for a separate medical issue, without warning he just logged into my PAMF files (really not sure how he was able to do this, since I thought he was a separate private practice dr) and started browsing my medical history from previous doctors over the years. I did not give him permission to do this, and felt like this was a violation. He started reading out loud "oh, I see you have anxiety documented in your chart" and "oh, I see you just went through another medical issue that probably made your anxiety worse." He looked at my lab tests done by another doctor for a previous medical issue (it was just basic blood work) and declared that nothing was wrong with me.When I pressed Dr. Kao to see how we could figure out what was causing my gastro issues, he just said "we already know there's nothing wrong with you. So there are no tests to be done." Mind you, he made this judgment call based on no examination of me or tests of his own, nor by reviewing any tests/notes done by another gastro dr--he made this declaration purely based off of previous medical records of mine he somehow accessed that were for non-gastro issues. When I continued to question how he knows this, he kept saying things like "I see women like you all the time. They have underlying anxiety, and then something happens and their anxiety gets worse. And then that causes IBS, and then women like you get depressed because they can't wear swimsuits because they feel bloated. Women like you just need reassurance that bloating is temporary." I sat there, in disbelief that a doctor in the bay area of all places would say such blatant sexist remarks. Note that I never once mentioned anything about feeling depressed about wearing swimsuits--I was physically in pain and that's why I was concerned. If I were a man, I guarantee Dr. Kao would not have said those words to me. He continued to insist that nothing was wrong with me physically, and told me to buy some peppermint pills for my bloating. I left his office in a daze, not sure what to make about what I had just experienced. For this ~15min appointment of nothing but gaslighting and no medical exam whatsoever, he charged my insurance $300. Fast forward to a couple months later: I see another gastro doctor, and it turns out I actually had a severe bacterial infection in my intestines. I started treatment and now feel much better. Thank god I continued to advocate for myself and be proactive, even when a specialist like Dr. Kao told me it was all in my head and that no tests were needed. It's scary to think: what if I just walked away from dr. Kao's office, believing that it was "all in my head/caused by anxiety, and that nothing was physically was wrong"? God only knows how many other patients (especially women) have worsening gastro issues just because they are immediately told by Dr. Kao that it's all in their heads? I know this review is harsh, but I don't care -- it's doctors like this who are responsible for why women's health issues are all-too-often overlooked until it's usually too late, and this is unacceptable. A word for you, Dr. Kao: women are not monoliths. I suggest you take some gender-bias training as part of your professional development plan. Stop saying "women like you...." to your female patients & assuming that the reason we're distressed is because we're uncomfortable in bathing suits. Actually do your job and assess your patients before declaring it's "all in their heads" and sending them away.

I had a fantastic experience with Dr. Kao. I developed indigestion and severe stomach ache all of a sudden and it just wasn't getting better for weeks. I was barely able to eat anything and was really worried about my situation. I finally consulted with Dr. Kao, who paid detailed attention to my case, gave me FDGard which was life changing in managing my belching and indigestion. He also did an endoscopy and biopsy to make sure we do a detailed analysis of what's going on. With his treatment I am already 95% better and on road to recovery. Couldn't be more thankful to Dr. Kao and his staff for a very comfortable and seamless experience. Thank you so much! Highly recommend!!!