Brian W. Lester's Online Review Report Card

Quick, thorough and pleasant - a great combination of strengths for a dermatologist and their staff.Think about what traits you want your doctor/specialist to have. I've grown to appreciate doctors that are respectful of my time, detail-oriented and consistently polite.Quick. Dr. Lester and his staff do not mess around. Many times I am in/out the door in less than 30 minutes. They are prepared and ready.Thorough. This is most important to me. I want my doctor to ask questions, carefully check/monitor any possible issue and follow a practical "better safe than sorry" credo.Pleasant. I have been treated with respect and professionalism every time by every person on staff. Check-in /out has been with staff nicer than other doctors and dentists' offices. They make scheduling appointments easy. I've also seen great kindness taken with older patients or people who need extra help.

Office staff was horrible, didn't save my change of medical provider, (blamed me) and charged my credit card 1200 dollars without even a phone call. They responded by being nasty and insensitive. Avoid these people.

Very unprofessional and inarticulate. I’d never recommend Dr. Lester to anyone worried about their skin. He should be delicensed for the amount of skin cancer scares he has given multiple patients.

I have been seeing Dr Lester for a number of years and have found him to be kind, and caring. I always felt that he heard what I was saying and readily answered any questions that I had.

I went for a 15 minute consultation. I went for my 10 minute appointment to put the patch test on. I paid my $35 copay. I go to have the patch test removed (10 minutes). No copay. I return twice more for readings and have to pay $35 each time. $140 and I'm never SEEN or TOUCHED by a doctor. I wrote a bad review and Dr. Lester tried to bully me because of it. UNPROFESSIONAL DOCTOR

When I arrived at the Dr. Lester's I was taken to an exam room by one of his assistants, and told to remove my clothing, other than my underpants, and to wait for Dr. Lester on an exam table. I was not offered a gown. I waited in my underpants for about 10 minutes for Dr. Lester to arrive. When Dr. Lester entered the exam room with a "scribe", he did so through a door where I was in plain view of anyone walking down the hall, including patients. Dr. Lester did not introduce the scribe, or ask me if I was ok with having a scribe in the exam room. Although there was a curtain that could have been used tp provide privacy between me and the scribe, Dr. Lester did not use the curtain. Dr. Lester introduced himself quickly, shook my hand, and then proceeded to conduct the exam. During the exam, Dr. Lester went over my skin systematically, stating the technical name and location (using technical terms again) to his scribe of each and every thing he found on my skin. At one point, he found something which he said should be removed. He did not explain what it was or why it should be removed. If I consented to the procedure, it was so quick that it certainly was not informed consent. Although I am sure I would have consented if it had been explained to me, I certainly would have wanted to know what the consequences of the procedure would be. The area was painful for a week after the procedure. I am sure that this is normal, but I would not have wanted the procedure done at that time if, for example, I had an important event coming up in the next week. During the exam, with one exception, Dr. Lester did not address his remarks to me--instead, he spoke to his scribe in technical language. The only times he spoke to me two times. One was when he said that he could tell from my skin that I had spent a lot of time in the sun. I responded that that was funny, because a medical condition had kept me out of the sun for several years. He responded that he meant over my whole life. I didn't respond to that, but compared to most people, having been a book worm as a child, and having had an indoor white collar job, and having been aware of the risks of sun exposure from a young age, I have actually spent little time in the sun over the course of my life. The only purpose of Dr. Lester's comment seemed to be to make me anxious about the health of my skin. Indeed, if he was going to make the observation, he should have explained why or if it was relevant to anything. When Dr. Lester finished the exam, he did not offer an overall assessment of the health of my skin, other than to say that he would like to see me for another full skin exam in 6 months. I would not return to see Dr. Lester. First, although a skin exam inevitably involves some lack of privacy, I have had a lot of medical procedures that require that I be completely undressed but I have never had one where there was absolutely no effort make to respect the patient's privacy--no offer of a gown, having me sit on an exam table in my underpants for 10 minutes in plain view of anyone in the hallway when he entered the exam room, no dressing to cover one part of my body while examining another, no separation between me and the scribe, no consent on my part to the scribe, who was standing literally three feet from me while Dr. Lester examined my genitalia in her plain view. I am not a terribly shy person, but when a medical practice seems to go almost out of its way to fail to respect a patient's privacy, you have to assume that there is a reason for this. My own guess is that Dr. Lester has figured out that the less he respects the patient's privacy, the more disarmed the patient feels, and the less likely the patient is to ask questions or fail to consent to a procedure. As to the exam itself, Dr. Lester's use of technical terminology, and his directing his remarks to his scribe, left me with no information or better understanding of the health of my skin, or what I could do to keep my skin healthy. In addition, his recommendation that I should return for another exam in 6 months, with no explanation as to why, left me wondering if he had a concern about my skin health. I decided to try another dermatology practice the next time that I got a skin exam. The differences were remarkable. First, I was given a gown. Second, the doctor directed his comments to me, and put me at ease. Instead of reciting to a scribe each and everything that he found on my skin, he described in general terms what they were, and also stated that they were absolutely nothing to worry about. He also said that a yearly exam was sufficient.

Although Dr. Lester's exams were thorough, he always pressured me (although) politely to have cosmetic work done on my face. When I made it clear that I was there strictly for skin checks, he became very reserved. Also, he usually kept me waiting 15-20 minutes.

Agree with above comments!! He alone diagnosed my poison sumac...after first doctor diagnosed Lyme Disease (had a red ring and bull's eye). After 2 weeks on awful medication with worsening conditions, I went to my primary care doctor. He brought in another internist and neither had a clue, but both said it was NOT Lyme. So they referred me to Dr. Lester. With just one look, Dr. Lester said it was poison sumac...no doubt. Other lesions had formed but none quite like the huge mess on my knee. 15 days of prednisone and cured. Finally found where my contact was on my daily walk...and I avoid it like the plague! Dr. Lester is a genius!

Dr. Lester & staff are amazing. I have been their patient for four years and recommend him to everyone I know. Best dermatologist in Boston.

After many visits and many attempts to figure out why I was having a persistent rash, Dr. Lester finally referred me to an allergist after discovering an indication of an allergic reaction through a biopsy. What really impressed me was that he called me after I saw the allergist to find out the results of my visit. I've never had a dr. do that before, and it made me feel like a real person, and not just another anonymous face that travels in and out of his office daily. I felt like he was genuinely concerned for my well-being, and that is an important quality in a doctor.