Perinatologists & Prenatal Tests at Kaiser
Parent Q&A
Archived Q&A and Reviews
| Questions about Kaiser Perinatologists | See Also |
2008 - 2013 Recommendations
Perinatologists at Kaiser Oakland and Walnut Creek
Sept 2011
Hi. We are having twins and I need to decide between the perinatologists at Kaiser in Oakland and Walnut Creek. I'd like to hear people's recent experiences with Dr. Lawrence Newman, Dr. David Walton, and Dr. Mara Beth Greenberg at Oakland and Dr. Jeffrey Maier and Dr. Monica Sood at Walnut Creek. I believe Dr. Greenberg and Dr. Sood are relatively new.
This is my first pregnancy and my limited experiences with Dr. Newman so far have been less than reassuring. Ideally, I am looking for someone who is very competent, doesn't mind a patient who asks a lot of questions and does a lot of research, and isn't adverse to natural childbirth (I am being realistic and understand that it may not be an option, but I'd at least like a provider who isn't totally adverse to it.) Thanks. - Looking for a supportive provider
Ask for Dr. Newman's resident, Lisa Ryujin. I'm assigned to Dr. Walton, who is very, very good but also often unavailable, so I've seen both Drs. Newman and Ruyjin in his place. Personally, I don't mind Dr. Newman at all--while he is businesslike and straightforward, he clearly knows his stuff. However, Dr. Ryujin (whom I have seen multiple times) is very knowlegeable, but also highly compassionate, and I have NEVER felt rushed at all with her. Although I'm having a scheduled c-section due to my medical condition, I get the impression that Dr. Ryujin would be very open to natural birth as long as it doesn't pose a risk to the baby or you. Here's a link to her profile: http://goo.gl/pKxPY ...and best wishes for your delivery!! also high-risk, very happy with Kaiser Oakland docs
I have had a lot of experience with both Dr. Walton and Dr. Newman at Kaiser Oakland. My first pregnancy got complicated very fast and I was in the hospital, under both Dr. Walton and Dr. Newman's care. I found Dr. Newman to have a great bedside manner, and he was a believer in taking more precautionary measures that made me feel comfortable. Dr. Walton is very, very smart, but until I got to know him I didn't know what to make of his personality. He comes across as a little awkward. However, over time he really grew on me and I wound up trusting his judgment completely. All of the nurses in the hospital love him too -- and I think it's telling of how kind he is that he treats everyone he works with with respect too. He's read every relevant article and researched everything to help prevent pre-term birth. In my second pregnancy, I was automatically considered high risk, and the moment I got pregnant I emailed Dr. Walton and he saw me and did an ultrasound right away. Even though nothing in that pregnancy was abnormal in the least, and I ultimately delivered full term, he took every precaution, did ultrasounds every couple of weeks, and addressed all of my concerns immediately. He was not hesitant about ordering tests that I suggested if they made sense, which I really appreciated. He also always managed to bend the rules for me and see me at odd times (like during his lunch). He made me feel like a VIP, which is hard to do in the Kaiser system, and gave me the reassurance I needed to feel less stressed about the 2nd pregnancy. So my recommendation would be to go with Dr. Walton at Kaiser Oakland. You can't get a more skilled and caring physician than him, even if it takes a while to warm up to him. been there
2004 - 2007 Recommendations
April 2004
Can anyone recommend a perinatologist outside of Kaiser? I'd particularly like to find one with extensive knowledge of (and treatment for) pregnancy and lupus anticoagulant antibodies.
I had a very difficult pregnancy with my first child and I was in the Kaiser system. I think Jeffrey Maier out of Kaiser Walnut Creek is excellent. He was the first one to accurately diagnose the problem with my pregnancy and I felt I was in really competent hands. Lee
2003 & Earlier
March 2003
Does anyone out there have experience with the perinatologists at Kaiser-Oakland? My child was born two months premature, and now that I am pregnant again, Kaiser wants to put me in a special program it has for women at risk for premature births. I'd love to hear about people's reactions to the program in general and to the two perinatologists at Kaiser-oakland -- Dr. Newman and Dr. Walton. Thanks!
I've had Dr. Walton for both my pregnancies and highly recommend him. In my first pregnancy I had HELLP Syndrome (severe preeclempsia) and delivered by emergency c-section at 31 weeks (baby was IUGR and in NICU for two months). I was hospitalized three days prior with my condition undiagnosed and once on duty Dr. Walton was the one who worked with the doctor monitoring my condition; he took an aggressive course once it became clear that immediate delivery was the only option. During such a scary time he was extremely supportive, patient with our numerous questions and fully explaining everything, but at the same time being realistic about the seriousness of the situation. He was not scheduled to be present at the surgery but at my request he assisted (and allowed my spouse to be there as well). Prior to this my only contact with Dr. Walton had been that he had done my amnio earlier (he also has a reputation for being a highly skilled technician).
When I was pregnant 2.5 years ago I didn't hesitate to request Dr. Walton again since I was considered high-risk (reoccurence of HELLP). I had some anomalies show up in my blood work and needed follow-up tests every month. During this time Dr. Walton again was very informative, patient with questions and answers, and reassuring. He didn't always have answers to my questions but would research and get back to me with detailed information. He also didn't hesitate to make referrals when needed, e.g., he referred me to hematology for during- and post-pregnancy followup. Dr. Walton was very accessible via email and would call me at home in the evenings to discuss my test results. I was also conflicted about whether I should try for a VBAC or have a c-section so we would discuss this (along with my birth plan) at length as well. About week 25, protein in my urine showed up and I additionally had to be monitored by the pre-term center in Santa Clara. This meant that I checked for protein in the urine every morning, checked my blood pressure twice a day, and spoke to a nurse daily. Needless to say I ended up carrying to term with a normal delivery.
In my experiences with Dr. Walton I always found him extremely competent, professional, knowledgeable, and funny (he has a dry sense of humor). When I found out I was pregnant with #2 I was extremely relieved to find out that Dr. Walton was still at Kaiser-Oak. I highly recommend him. Feel free to email if you want to discuss anything else. dafong
I went to Dr. Jeffrey Maier at Kaiser Walnut Creek. While Dr. Maier is fairly business-like, he is extremely competent, he told me my options and kept his personal views out of it, he was the first one to identify the problem with the pregnancy. I would recommend taking the trip to Walnut Creek. By the way, he is now a gorgeous 3 year old who is pulling on my arm as I write. Lee
I am a medical professional who has worked with many perinatologists over the past twenty years and can give the highest recommendations for Drs. Walton and Newman at Kaiser Oakland. I saw Dr. Walton for my pregnancy, and in addition to being incredibly up to date in his knowledge of this field (which is highly technical and changes at a fast pace), he bent over backwards to listen to my concerns and do his best to do what was necessary to reassure me about my growing baby (who turned out to be perfect, in spite of my worries). Dr. Newman is also one of the best, and has been doing this for a long time. They are both committed professionals who care a great deal about their patients. bellarose
I've had experiences with both Dr. Newman and Dr. Walton regarding my two breech babies, born 2 years apart. I had unsuccesful external versions with both, and still wanted to try for natural childbirth. With my first, Dr. Newman seemed to think a vaginal breech delivery was possibly and not unduly risky. He supported my desire to try, and even arranged for a CAT scan of my pelvis to see if the baby's head would fit. When the time came and I was in labor for 72 hours, he did not agree to assist the vaginal delivery (he was the Dr. on call) and we went ahead and had a c-section. I never called to find out why - I actually think it was a good decision, since 3 days of labor had exhausted all my physical resources and I did not have it in me to push the baby out.
I felt like Dr. Newman was experienced and knowledgeable, but quite short on bedside manner - barely looked you in the eye.
Dr. Walton is much more personable and also more cautious. He recommended against having a VBAC at my 4 month visit (at that time I wanted one, not knowing my second baby would also turn out to be breech!). I definitely was not up for trying the vaginal breech birth the second time around, so that didn't even come up, but he did perform an external version on me that was pretty gentle and ultimately unsuccessful (he didn't want to ''bust my scar.'')
I don't know if this is relevant information - I hope it helps. 2 breech babies - 2 c-sections
Hi; I had a high-risk pregnancy also and was assigned to Drs. Walton & Newman. Of the two, I preferred Dr. Walton. They do see each others patients so are a bit ''interchangeable'' in that way; you'll probably get to know them both. I wouldn't describe either as having a great bedside manner, though I would definitely give Dr. Walton higher marks in this regard than Dr. Newman. I did feel confident in Dr. Walton's abilility to manage my high-risk pregnancy, though his communication (both content, and style) could certainly improve. Basically, I would just ''accept'' that this is what you have given your high-risk pregnancy; you do want the specialists. I remember some of the nurses as being quite helpful and competent. Best of luck, Mom of a preemie at Kaiser Oakland
If you are not a member of Twins by the Bay, you should join. It is a support group for parents, and expectant parents, of twins in the East Bay. My twins are about to turn 10 and I've been a member since I was pregnant. I've never belonged to Kaiser, but I'm sure some of the other parents in the group would be able to answer your question. Besides, it is an awesome group and an invaluable resource for parents of twins. twinsbythebay.org
Best wishes,
Daria
Congratulations Mama! I am 25 weeks with identical twins (one placenta but two sacs) and also at Kaiser. I understand your concerns as my perinatologist and team could not discern whether or not there was one sac or two for a long time so I did a lot of research. Though are situations are not the same, I did want to share that I have been very, very happy with my perinatologist (high risk because of identical twins and I am 44!) Dr. Gaea Moore. She is incredibly professional, informative, responsive and a straight shooter. I went through an amnio procedure with her and both my partner and I found her to be both technically and interpersonally skilled and reassuring. I really believe she is as good as they get anywhere. I hope this is somewhat helpful to you and I wish you all the best in your process. PS. I also highly recommend the book by Dr. Barbara Luke on pregnancy with multiples and utilizing Three Stone Hearth (if you are in Berkeley) as a resource to ensure your protein intake is high enough to help avoid TTTS. All the best. Isabelle
I do not have experience with multiple births, but I am sure doctor David Walton at Oakland Kaiser does. Check him out at
https://mydoctor.kaiserpermanente.org/ncal/provider/davidwalton
I've known him (I was his patient) for more than 15 years, and he's guided me through two complicated pregnancies. He only sees patients with complicated pregnancies, including multiple births. And, he is an amazingly nice, with great bedside manners I've ever experienced. The first time I saw him, I found out that the fetus inside of me stopped growing, and had no heart beat anymore, so I had to remove it surgically. They didn't have an appointment for surgery that same day, and I was upset about having to spend a day or maybe days waiting, with a dead fetus inside of me. As I was walking to my car in the street, I heard someone running after me. It was Doctor Walton, who found an appointment for me to have surgery that day (still don't know how he did that), so he ran outside (!) to find me. After that, I had another normal pregnancy, so I didn't see him.
Then, 12 years later, I had another pregnancy with complications (ending a beautiful healthy baby girl!!!), and saw him again. He's still the same, the best doctor to see any woman through their pregnancy, no matter how hard or complicated. He e-mailed me to check on me when I had tests, and was great with my older son who came with me to one of the appointments (my son said he wants to be a doctor now, like Dr. Walton!).
Anyway, check him out - you can request him if you want. I made sure he was the one to do all of my testing.
Best of luck, and congrats on your pregnancy!