I was a patient of North Jersey Dermatology (both Rockaway & Newfoundland locations) from 2019-2023. This practice is closed, but their lasting impact STILL affects my daily life... Hence writing a review at the end of 2024.
My journey to a psoriasis diagnosis was extensive, so I met many employees at North Jersey Derm. It tended to be a revolving door of both providers and staff, and the office ALWAYS struggled to see patients on time. I had plenty of gripes with the office, but stuck with them after meeting Sara Sidor NP. She was very empathetic and helped finally secure my diagnosis -- unfortunately she left in winter '22 on maternity. At that point, I was on meds and waiting for symptom improvement so I didn't transfer to a new provider. I had a 3-month follow-up scheduled for June 6, 2023 which was a LONG stretch without care for me (I was used to having appointments 2-4 times a month) so I was nervous about it to begin with.
Alongside psoriasis, I was managing a lesser-acknowledged condition called Topical Steroid Withdrawal Syndrome after being treated with steroids in various forms/potencies for 3.5 years consecutively. As a result, I couldn't go more than 12 hrs without applying topical steroids or I'd break out in rashes/puffy skin. TSW has been wildly painful and debilitating, and I'm still angry so many docs misguided me. At my 6/6 appointment, I planned to discuss applying for disability benefits, as my ability to work was eviscerated while managing the full-body symptoms of TSW with PsO.
I was running late the morning of 6/6 and called en route to tell them. Much to my surprise, the number didn't work as saved in my phone...but I kept going. When I arrived, I found an empty parking lot, doors locked, no notice/signage, weeds overgrown. After a few minutes circling the building trying to decide what to do, I saw a commercial land surveyor doing routine measurements. I asked if he knew anything about the practice being out of business. He didn't have details, but his work experience led him to believe the building hadn't been occupied in a couple months.
Considering I saw Anthony Marion a few months prior, it was all so strange...I never got any cancellation notice, snail mail, call, or email. Parked, I could finally Google the phone number to make sure I was dialing correctly. But again got the generic error ("The number cannot be completed as dialed") ...and the same when trying to call Parsippany/Newfoundland locations. Oddly enough, Google identified the business as "permanently closed" and upon further searching, I discovered their entire website (myskindoc.us) was removed from the internet. Since North Jersey Derm never provided an online patient portal, I was left with no way to get in touch with any of the providers, no refills of my autoimmune meds, and no access to records.
The disappearance of this practice was emotionally traumatic for me in an already isolating medical journey. Obviously I'm legally entitled to my own medical records, but it was so much more than a matter of principle -- I needed prescriptions so I could FUNCTION. I needed lab results so I knew if my joints had been compromised, dictating future care. I needed a provider to back my fight for disability coverage. I needed referrals to other specialists and documentation of treatments for those future prescribers. They weren't just appointment logs, they were years of extensive medical records including 5+ skin biopsies, patch testing, progress photos, extensive bloodwork, treatment history, peer-to-peer insurance reviews, and pathology results. Without them, I had no way to substantiate my compromised health condition -- those records were my lifeline in a complex health saga.
I immediately reported the practice to the NJ Board of Medical Examiners, but still haven't gotten access to my records. Further, it looks like they dropped the lawsuit because the summons wasn't successfully served to the business owner (I mean duh, he lives in FL and wasn't a doctor so I'm not sure why the court thinks he'd be camping out at the ghosted Rockaway office to make legal proceedings easy)... there were delivery attempt slips on the door when I was there in June '23, so obviously no one would be getting the summons. It's really disappointing that so many providers were fine stranding patients without records, details, relief, follow-up, support, or options. Even more disheartening to know the state can just ignore so many folks who were affected.
I had to suddenly stop my meds, watch my illness severely progress as I waited months to see another in-network dermatology provider, and have repeatedly had to fight with insurance to prove that I've tried the 15+ prescription treatments ALL prescribed over the years at North Jersey Derm so they'll cover a treatment that won't force me back into vicious steroid addiction. This practice destroyed my body and mind in so many ways. Heartbreaking. read more
