I've been a patient of Doctor Kawachi's for going on 30 years. She's an old school doctor who believes in talking with her patients and getting to know them. She is thoughtful about symptoms, not into over-medicating, and she provides excellent referrals when a specialist is needed. One of the more amazing things about her is that she will reach out over the weekend or in the evening if she has not been able to make contact during normal business hours. It is true that her office staff changes fairly often and that can be a problem. Some of the staff have been very good; some have been subpar. Recently, I had a huge issue with an insurance claim. My MRI was approved, then rejected retroactively (after I had the test). All my insurance company would say is "talk with your medical provider". Doctor Kawachi dug into the issue, found out who to talk with at the testing facility, followed up with her/him, and kept me apprised of what she was being told. A week later, she went above and beyond by calling me to find out if the situation had been resolved or if I needed more help. Long story short, thanks to her efforts on my behalf, I went from being on the hook for $1,200 and getting nowhere with my insurance company to having the original approval reinstated and my obligation reduced to $178! read more

I been a patient of Dr Kawachi for 30 years cannot believe give her one star , cannot believe the things they say about her, because She is knowledgeable , kind , she is funny , I recommend her , I love Dr Kawachi . She is a Good doctor . read more

From reading others' reviews I'm very skeptical. I was a patient of Dr. K for 4+ years and it's been a difficult process. The office has multiple receptionists and they don't coordinate between them- every time you call you have to re-give them a lot of information. Beyond that, she is rarely on time and I've never been able to get an appointment with less than a 2-hour wait. I spent a long time figuring out different health issues and she rarely offered to refer me to a specialist or connect me to lab tests- I often had to call multiple times about the results, upon which she would tell me they came in weeks ago and wouldn't explain the results. Now that I'm no longer with her I'm struggling to get my medical forms from her. I have spent weeks calling the office and providing my new medical group's information but they haven't gotten them to me. Additionally they don't use medical release forms and Dr. K "processes files herself"- meaning that theoretically anyone could get access to them. It's frustrating how slow and disorganized their process is, and I've since found that she wasn't keeping detailed medical records for me and doesn't actually have a complete file to pass along. It's been sub-par care and every time I'm in the waiting room other people feel the same way- she takes on too many patients for the insurance payments and has no idea what she's doing. read more

I agree with all the very positive reviews and won't repeat the overall descriptions. She has been my doctor for 20 years and has saved my life several times! When I reported something that didn't seem that urgent to me, she responded with more questions and finally said she wasn't convinced and ordered tests. Thank goodness. She has earned my trust many times over. I am aware that she is "up-to-date" with medical research and even asked her how she kept up when so much research is produced. She has called me on weekends and at night to check in and to provide guidance. As many said, she is "old school" if by that we mean she takes focused time, is thoughtful and questioning, does not rush through, and has patience with my questions. Like others, I try to get an early a.m. appointment. However, when I can't, I bring something to read and am not frustrated. I know she is taking time with the previous patient and will do the same with me. I am often amazed that she remembers something from a previous appointment. As others have mentioned, she has referred me to excellent specialists and obviously is knowledgable about them. When I ask questions about them, she is forthcoming with details about that person's approach. She is retiring the end of the year and I am sad/distraught/anxious. She is a hard act to follow and I will have high expectations for my next doctor. read more

Dr. Kawachi was my doctor when I was in high school, and now that I've moved back to Berkeley I made sure to have her as my doctor again. I honestly forgot how amazing of a doctor she is in the interim; I've struggled with serious chronic health problems in the last few years and she's one of the few doctors who makes me feel simultaneously well taken care of and also that I have an active hand in my own health care. She's just fantastic. Also, another reviewer mentioned that she mis-diagnosed an angina, so I thought I'd provide a counter-example: my mom has heart problems so she sees a cardiologist, but he didn't catch it when her ventricles stopped beating - she desperately needed a pacemaker and was about to go on a deep-sea diving trip! She stopped by Dr. Kawachi's office before the trip, and our beloved doctor caught what my mom's cardiologist had missed, and she was booked in the ER within days. My mother would certainly be dead by now if it weren't for her. In summary, this doctor is wonderful and really knows her trade. I highly recommend her. read more

Dr. Kawachi did not seem very knowledgeable or organized. During my first visit, she appeared to be a nice person, but I was skeptical of some of her medical explanations. My Google-searching later confirmed that some of her medical advice and explanations were simply incorrect. It's not exactly comforting to find out your doctor doesn't have a firm grasp of the medical topics she's attempting to reference. Moreover, she seemed to blindly and wildly guess a number of possible explanations for my health issues without really seeming confident in anything. I wanted a referral to a specialist, which I'd seen prior to switching insurance, but Dr. Kawachi's receptionist required that I first make an appointment to see Kawachi again. On that second "mandatory" visit, we essentially started from square one (i.e., she apparently had taken no notes about my prescriptions, my medical history, etc.). I left without a referral and without much help for my problems, and when my symptoms didn't improve, I called the office again to get the referral. There was no answer on the phone despite multiple tries during normal business hours, so I left a voice-mail. Over two weeks passed and I had not heard back, so when I called again and failed to reach someone, it was clear I had to go there in person in order to get them to just fax the form to the specialist. If you're looking for a new doctor, stay away! The office is hard to get a hold of, they're not helpful in person or on the phone, and Dr. Kawachi doesn't seem like she really knows what she's doing. read more

Dr. K is the best ! The people that wrote poor reviews obviously do not have a clue. A doctor is not a miracle maker. This one is practical and establishes empathy with you, and will guide you through the results of your examination. If you require an additional medical specialist care, she will assist in recommending the correct specialist, and will follow up with you after the procedure and or analysis. For all of you that appear to be not pleased with Dr. Kawachi. Perhaps you will consider this, an excellent doctor is in great demand, and we have to be patient- wait until the extremely sought after doctor is available to see new patients. It will be worth your effort. In the mean time - for those that spread disinformation-please do not belittle a serious medical professional; one that works diligently to help her patients maintain good health and or provide care for many to recover from their ailments; if possible! I'm grateful for Dr. Kawachi- I waited a long time to become one of her patients and I'm so happy that I did! read more

I largely concur with the previous positive reviews, so i won't repeat them. Dr. Kawachi is clearly not interested in money. She is always late, because she spends so much time with her patients. However, a fair portion of that time is social chit-chat, unrelated to the problem at hand. As a result, on several occasions, she missed important items in annual physicals. Also, she mis-diagnosed my angina, which could have resulted in my having a heart attack. I was mildly shocked when, presumably to justify her diagnosis, she questioned my cardiologist's decision to operate. Since I first wrote this review, I have noticed that her interpretation of out-of-range blood test results is more lax than some other doctors, and my cardiologist had to prescribe an antidote for a well-known side-effect of one of her prescriptions, that I had been taking for several years. Dr. Kawachi had never even ordered a blood test to check for the problem. She has been my doctor for 25? years, but I no longer trust her implicitly, as I used to. Update 2/12/18. Dr. Kawachi is still my GP, and the quality of my annual physicals has improved (she read my review?;-)). At the last one, she found a carotid artery problem that could have led to a stroke. I'm awaiting surgery. read more

Agreed. Dr. Kawachi is consistent, compassionate, funny, smart, accommodating, and benefits from an excellent office staff. Dr. Kawachi is what everyone wishes for in a doctor, but rarely gets for one reason or another. I picked her fairly randomly, and I got very lucky. She returns phone inquiries about what immunizations to get, what to do about a stomach sickness picked up while traveling, etc. and puts things in perspective in a very even-handed way. She is not an ideologue, meaning she is able to chart a moderate, reasonable, informative course for medical intervention. This is my style. I don't want someone who pushes intervention or denies it. Kawachi seems to understand that the body can, by and large, heal itself, and what kind of medical or therapeutic supports may be helpful in making that healing happen. Highest recommendation. read more

It has taken over 2 months just to speak to the doctor, which is apparently a prerequisite for getting an appointment with her. She was rude, aggressive, defensive and extremely hostile. It took me calling the office literally daily to even get to the point of her yelling at me on the phone. I'm not sure how a business can be run with such inefficiency, but looking at these reviews clarifies much. Stay away. read more

Dr. Kawachi has been my doctor for 12+ years and I would agree w/the other reviewers (amazing, personable to a fault, caring, usually late, sometimes distracted). Compared to the MANY other doctors and specialists I've seen over the years, all of the positives far outweigh the negatives. If you can get the first or second appointment of the day your chances of the cascading lateness will be lessened. Bring a list of your questions, save the chit-chat for after the medical exam, be nice to Gabriela, and be thankful there's an MD who takes the time to *care* for her patients. read more

Experienced better communication and responses from other MD office's in the past.

I just moved back to this area in February and needed a general practitioner. Dr. Kawachi is awesome, has a great sense of humor and is very professional. She pointed out things about certain medications that no other doctor had noticed. Thank you for restoring my faith in the healthcare field!! read more

Dr. Kawachi is a superstar. I totally agree with all the 5 star comments made by other reviewers. She is a delightful person and a skilled diagnostician. Selfishly, I hope she lives forever. Her assistant, Gabriella is so efficient and friendly. John Berkeley read more

I've only written one review on the web in my life, but after looking for Dr. Kawachi's phone number and seeing these reviews, I had to sign up and write this one. Bottom line: The best doctor you could ever hope to find. She has treated me, my wife and all three of my daughters since they outgrew their pediatric physician. She is super-smart. She has links to all the great specialists. She returns your calls. She cares. It's not just me. Anytime I mention her to anyone in the health field, it is a guarantee that she has their highest respect as well. read more

I have been impressed by the reviews of Dr. Kawachi. Perhaps other yelpers could explain how they were lucky enough to actually make voice contact with the office? I have called a half dozen times but they never answer the phone, but ask you to leave a voice mail. I do and no one ever calls me back. Any suggestions? read more

I've been her patient for more than 20 years. In the past two years I have been unable to talk to a person in the office after calling repeatedly and my emails are not read by the doctor. They are read by her assistants and they seem to think they can diagnose or instruct patients.It's impossible to be seen by the doctor. The person is the back, Susan, is rude and unwilling to help. When my prescription was not ordered and days and days went by without communication and finally I was able to "connect" they told me that my insurance "did not cover prescriptions". I explained that I had just picked up a prescription from my specialist two days earlier. She cut my off and said "I don't want to hear your story". Still without prescription. Twenty years... and now this. read more

My doc just retired. I Have some fairly recent health problems, and losing my old doctor 6 months into sorting them out was a little scary. Initially Dr. K was a bit intense. She smiles a lot though. She knows her stuff. She spent a lot of time with me. She is an old school doctor in her caring style, but clearly up to date in her knowledge. What really impressed me was she made me feel like I was just as much involved in the process of working on my health issues, where many doctors act as though you know nothing. She is also down to earth, and took time to listen. She is focused and overall very kind. I highly recommend her. read more

Dr Kawachi is an extremely knowledgeable and very personable board certified physician. She gets 5 stars. That's why she's been our family physician for over 2 decades now (she's ageless however!) Dr. Kawachi is non judgmental, friendly, and cares about her patients. She makes you feel like a friend which is a style that works for me. However, because she keeps the lowest overhead of any doctors office I've been in, i.e. one office staff member, it can be tricky getting a person on the phone. It really depends on time of day and if receptionist is helping a patient. I've had experiences where someone picks up right away, and I've had some where I leave a few messages. Someone always gets back to me though. In March however, she demonstrated her awesomeness when she personally returned my phone call within 20 minutes while I was out of state, injured and waiting in the airport to catch a plane home. She stayed late to see that evening (7 pm) when I got home. This is typical of Dr. Kawachi though. If you want a caring doctor who has a really approachable manner, Dr. Kawachi might be a good fit for you. If you need regimented appointments with the corporate feel of a clinical machine, then there are other options. read more

I left a very sane and courteous message requesting an appointment. I got no response, so I repeated the process a week later, being careful to enunciate my phone number. No response. Repeated the process a month later. No response. According to my insurance company, they are taking new patients...so what gives? I don't know. read more

Dr. Kawachi is a smart and caring doctor with the old style traditional method of taking time to talk to and listen to her patients. She is just what I would hope for in a doctor and I feel so grateful to my chiropractor friend who referred me to her. I have been in the waiting room for long periods at times but it doesn't bother me as I bring something to do and plan for that being the possible case. I know the quality of attention and care I get when I cross over from the waiting room will be of the highest and most compassionate quality. Dr. Kawachi not only treats me well in the office but has taken time to call me at home to discuss various concerns and test results even on the weekends or later in the evening. When I go for tests or see other professionals who ask who referred me, when I say Dr. Kawachi, her name elicits nothing but high praise and appreciative remarks. I also have met a number people in the waiting room who have told me stories of how far they drive or travel to see Dr. Kawachi because she is their most trusted doctor. One lived out of state and flew in to the bay area to have her check ups rather than change doctors. In a way I would like to keep her wonderfulness a secret but she is so great she deserves high public praise and I wish there were more physicians like her. She really is funny and so very enjoyable to speak with it takes much of the anxiety of visiting a doctor out of the transaction. Thanks, Dr. Kawachi! read more

I was happy to select Dr. Kawachi as my new PCP based on all the positive reviews on Yelp. Without taking away from what the positive reviewers said, I would just like to say I was pretty disappointed. It took months to get in for my new patient appointment. The day I arrived I found the receptionist was out. Which is a big deal considering it is a two person office, just her and the doc. I waited a long time to be seen to find that Dr. Kawachi didn't know who I was and wasn't expecting me. During that long wait I heard every last detail of conversation coming from her exam room. The exam room is right next to the waiting room, and you hear EVERYTHING. I'm not a privacy fanatic but this detail was disconcerting. Also disconcerting was that the doc spent the whole appointment with her computer screen facing me with patient information on it. Dr. Kawachi was nice. But I didn't think she was particularly thorough. She didn't even take my weight, or discuss it. She wasn't supportive when I mentioned I was still breastfeeding my less than 2 year old. And then, a medication request sat for a week before I called my insurance company to find she had not made contact. All conversation after that was by voicemail with her receptionist who most definitely does not answer the phone during the day or check messages. So, maybe she is just great for everyone else, or maybe I had an unfortunate series of dings on a bad day, but my experience was poor. read more

Most compassionate, yet hilarious, doctor I've ever met. She goes above and beyond for her patients. I have had massive paperwork for her to fill out the past month and millions of immunizations and boosters to get. There have been a lot of errors on the lab's part and missing medical records from my childhood. It's been hell. But my doctor, the wonderful Dr K, has been a star. My parents have been seeing her for 20 years and recommended her. She is so cool! And very, very bright. Yes, I know all doctors are supposed to be, but this one really is. read more

I cannot believe anyone would give Dr. Kawachi 1 star. She is an amazing doctor, a great listener, precise, accurate and very professional. She is a one woman show, personally calls her patients after hours and on weekends. I adore her and highly recommend her read more

I just had my annual physical with Dr. Kawachi. As always, professional, complete and caring. Dr. Karachi is so caring that I can't imagine ever having another doctor. My wife and I are grateful to have a wonderful physician like Dr. Kawachi. read more

Superlative in every way. My life is in Michie's hands. RK

Just called office, not accepting new patients and no referral. some help would have been appreciated. thanks, mjh

A most amazing person. She is a one-woman show, spends an hour with you if you need it, and really cares. Is the office high tech and bustling with nurses? No. Are there 3 receptionists to answer every call? No. But you get personalized attention from her, and that is rare in the medical world. She's not in medicine to get rich. She just likes people and cares about her patients like family. Please don't retire Dr. Kawachi! read more

Dr. Kawachi has been my doctor for 26 years, and someone I admire and whose opinions and help I really value. I have lived in other countries, and in LA and kept her as my doctor--returning here for a solution. She fixes me. I DO trust her implicitly with good reason. I have had unusual infections when I was younger/traveled more, and she has been sensible and kind, and helped me save money, time, and trouble treating me. I am very hands on, and she works with me. For anyone without 5 stars, I can't help but think some of the problem was with the patient. The chitchat tells her a lot about her patients--all the better the treatment. Gabriella is marvellous! read more