David Ansel's Online Review Report Card

I worked w/Dr. Ansel at the Park St clinic in Lawrence. He expected high performance and did not tolerate mediocre work. I learned a lot from Dr. Ansel. He is an amazingly caring pediatrician and an excellent doctor. If you have him as a pediatrician for your child, you are very lucky. I’ll always remember Dr.Ansel for the pediatrician he was; a very caring doctor.

Dr. Ansel is an outstanding physician who gave us insight and clarity on the best way to move forward with treatments for our son, who has been diagnosed with with ADHD and ASD. Dr. Ansel spent a great deal of time with us and immediately grasped our son's strengths and challenges. We found Dr. Ansel after much research and having seen several previous (mostly great) specialists for autism. Dr. Ansel more than lived up to his reputation as a leader in the field, and our son has flourished academically and socially.

Our pediatrician referred our 7 year old daughter to Stanford to get an evaluation from a developmental pediatrician. Dr. Ansel interviewed my husband and I, asking us many questions. He and his staff spent time alone with our daughter. This all took about an hour. At the end, Dr. Ansel met with us, and explained that she had Oppositional Defiant Disorder. He said that she needed to hear this too, and had his staff bring her into the room. He looked at her sternly, and told her that she wanted to be the queen at home, and have everything her way. As he spoke to her, she slid under the table. I felt horrified, and was speechless. As we walked to the car, our daughter said that she did not like that doctor. I told her that she would never see him again. After discussing with her pediatrician, he sent us to a clinical psychologist, who diagnosed her with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

I don't typically right reviews... but in ongoing search to find help for my daughter, I decided to see what others thought of Dr. Ansel.... And I am glad I did! My experience was just like that of C.W.. My questions went unanswered, and as a parent, I was belittled and left feeling completely inadequate. He didn't take the time to read the charts, nor get to know my child. I held high hopes that a doctor with the Stanford name backing him would provide some answers. I was so very wrong! I left feeling super lost, not knowing where to turn to next. I am so glad I read reviews to know I am not alone in my experience with Dr. Ansel, as it is giving me the encouragement and strength to keep seeking answers for my child.

We’ve gone through tests and meetings and countless of paperworks and information that overwhelmed both my husband and I, Dr. Ansel cuts through the head spinning details and clarify a lot of misconceptions. We learned so much after meeting with him and he was so great with our son. For instance, Dr. Ansel sat on the floor with him to engage him, and make him understand that it’s ok to not be apprenhensive when the new doctor tries to listen to his heart and check him out. My 3 year old got to listen to his own heart and we can see his eyes with amazement. His engagement with children is amazing, and with parents are very direct, informative, and we actually walked away with some relief after talking to Dr. Ansel. We got lucky and booked an appointment with him ASAP after our 3 year checkup, and we are so glad we did get that chance to speak to him and for him to assess my little boy.

Dr. Ansel's knowledge about autism is quite outdated. He wasn't able to help our child get the necessary treatment, which we got elsewhere after switching doctor.

Dr. Ansel is incredibly thorough and caring. He advised my daughter to get help in areas never suggested by anyone else. He is a great resource to have on your side. He listened to me and asked many questions. I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to schedule and meet him through the primary pediatrician. Renee and Chris are outstanding assistants as well. I'm very pleased to have their help!!

Dr Ansel was requested to give a second opinion regarding our complex little guy ( speech delay, motor delay, social delay). Dr. Ansel walked into our appointment announced that he would not be evaluating our guy, but would instead treat this as a counseling appointment for me - mom. After 45 minutes of condescending lectures and comments that made it clear that he had no even glanced at our kiddos file, I left in tears. I will be writing a formal letter of complaint.

I was extremely disappointed in our evaluation with Dr Ansel. He refused to review any of our documents. He was glib. After coming up with a diagnosis refused to entertain any other thoughts. I was devastated as I waited 8 months for our son to see him. At our return apt he began to look at his watch after 10 minutes.

Dr. Ansel is a brilliant clinician but he can be a bit direct, perhaps rude, in talking with parents. He knows his stuff, but he is not sentimental or gentle in his manner with parents. He is direct and to the point. If you are tough enough to take that, 99% of the time he's right on the mark with his diagnosis. He accurately diagnosed my child when her symptoms and test results were very confusing to us. However, he was not one to talk to or to process the difficult diagnosis with us. If you want a doctor who is smart, he's the one. If you want one who will hold your hand and offer you a tissue, he's not the one.