Dr. Aki Niihara, MD

Condescending doctor. Has to learn how to listen to patients and have a better approach in communication.

I saw Dr. Niihara in the fall of 2019. I was pregnant with mys econd. I had a frustrating experience trying to get an appointment with my primary OBGYN. During my nurse visit, I was told that my primary OBGYN did not have any appointments available - even 3 months out! Not waiting to hop around to different OB every appointment, I was able to schedule with Dr. Niihara for my appointments. During my initial visit with Dr. Niihara at 8 weeks, the ultrasound did not show a heart meat. My husband and I did not know what to think at that point. Being a "realist", we figured at that point the pregnancy was not viable. Dr. Niihara was very honest in her assessment to say that there was still a possibility for the heart to develop and she immediately accommodated our impossible schedule (I had a vacation and business trip planned within 3 weeks of each other). She answered all of our questions regarding the data on these situations, share with us from her experience what she has… seen, and briefed us on options if the pregnancy is not viable. While some may feel that by providing options on what happens if not viable as taking away hope, that was not the case for us. Throughout the entire conversation, she stressed that it's important to wait until the follow-up to make any decisions and there's still a chance of viability. For me, it was important to know what all of my options were so I can prepare myself mentally. During my follow-up appointment, it was confirmed that the pregnancy was not viable. Yes, we were disappointed but we understood that this happens more often than we'd like to think. Dr. Niihara walked us through the process of our options, helped us make the decision that is best for us and even went out of her way to help us schedule the procedure to meet my impossible schedule. Throughout the entire process, she asked how we were feeling and checked in with us. Dr. Niihara is calm, rational, and honest - which I appreciated a lot during this emotional/stressful experience. She was extremely professional and compassionate. I really appreciate her approach and care and will be requesting her for any future care.

I saw Dr. Niihara in the fall of 2019. I was pregnant with mys econd. I had a frustrating experience trying to get an appointment with my primary OBGYN. During my nurse visit, I was told that my primary OBGYN did not have any appointments available - even 3 months out! Not waiting to hop around to different OB every appointment, I was able to schedule with Dr. Niihara for my appointments. During my initial visit with Dr. Niihara at 8 weeks, the ultrasound did not show a heart meat. My husband and I did not know what to think at that point. Being a "realist", we figured at that point the pregnancy was not viable. Dr. Niihara was very honest in her assessment to say that there was still a possibility for the heart to develop and she immediately accommodated our impossible schedule (I had a vacation and business trip planned within 3 weeks of each other). She answered all of our questions regarding the data on these situations, share with us from her experience what she has… seen, and briefed us on options if the pregnancy is not viable. While some may feel that by providing options on what happens if not viable as taking away hope, that was not the case for us. Throughout the entire conversation, she stressed that it's important to wait until the follow-up to make any decisions and there's still a chance of viability. For me, it was important to know what all of my options were so I can prepare myself mentally. During my follow-up appointment, it was confirmed that the pregnancy was not viable. Yes, we were disappointed but we understood that this happens more often than we'd like to think. Dr. Niihara walked us through the process of our options, helped us make the decision that is best for us and even went out of her way to help us schedule the procedure to meet my impossible schedule. Throughout the entire process, she asked how we were feeling and checked in with us. Dr. Niihara is calm, rational, and honest - which I appreciated a lot during this emotional/stressful experience. She was extremely professional and compassionate. I really appreciate her approach and care and will be requesting her for any future care.

She explained everything in detailed. I felt incredibly comfortable with her. She is kind, caring and very warm !

She is very kind and helpful.

She is very kind and considerate.

I had her when she was working in Union City offices. I was a first time mother, young at that. I did not know any better for I had no one to accompany me that knew what a proper OBGYN should be like. Bedside manner was okay not exceptional. My issue with her is that, towards end of pregnancy typically your appointments are every week. I had slight complications with my pregnancy and was not even seen more frequently. I had appointments every 3 weeks or so. when it came to me hitting 40 weeks, went past my due date i wasnt seen until a few more days later. i did not feel as though me nor my baby were being given the proper treatment especially towards end of term. Thats concerning because what if something bad was going on and i didnt know and had to wait 3 weeks every appointment to be seen.

She is cruel, mentally unstable and not fit to treat humans or even animals. Not sure whyKaiser still have her in spite of many patient complaints

This is my first pregnancy, and first prenatal visit with a doctor. The magic of Kaiser is that you don't know which doctor you're getting, so I was scheduled with this doctor based on the day and time I requested to have an appointment. The doctor was minimally friendly and seemed tired/not very motivated. Worst part was that when I told her my concern about the risk of early ultrasounds on the embryo brain and that this is why I wanted to skip the first one, she did not address the concern directly and instead lectured me about the importance of the ultrasound in order to know how long I've been pregnant. I calmly explained to her that I know exactly when I conceived because I know exactly when I ovulate, because I have been taking my basal body temperature every morning for over a year. But she did not change her perspective, and just continued to make me feel as if I were making a bad decision for my baby. She also warned me that I might not be able to get any prenatal tests done… because of this. I did not allow her to change my mind on having an early ultrasound, so I walked away with only a physical exam and my clean lab results, but the entire day, I could not shake the feeling of the negative experience with the doctor. Now I will forever remember my first prenatal visit as one that made me feel inferior as a first-time mother.

I had to go in for a very short notice appointment and was booked with this doctor. This is my first pregnancy so of course I'm very new to all of this and nervous. Dr. Niihara made me feel extremely uncomfortable and she was wanting to send me home without even checking everything was okay. She kept telling me the services she would have to do would be extra costs and would have to be done again in a couple of weeks. There was a reason the nurse I spoke to on the phone wanted me to get seen by a doctor within a few hours. Dr. Niihara is the most unprofessional doctor I've ever been to. After this visit I was ready to move to a different health insurance provider if I could. After this year, I will never enroll with Kaiser insurance.