Dr. Christina Haejung Rho, MD

Over 5 years ago, Christina Rho was the first Endo I had an appointment with after being told my blood test showed that I was Hyperthyroid--I had been an extraordinarily healthy woman until this time. Having no clue what hyperthyroid meant, I walked into her office, only to wait in her patient waiting room for 45 min. while they tried to get my file from my GP. It was obvious she was skimming my file from the fax machine into the office. She was very pleasant, obviously rushed (something about her children-dropping off, picking up, sick--I forget, but her excuse for making me wait was that)--she quickly told me because i had Graves DISEASE, all I needed to do was the most common procedure, get my thyroid ablated with radioactive iodine--simple. This Dr. identified the issue, had a plan, was ready to execute it, and on to the next. Simple. Right?. WHAT??? I have a DISEASE???? whoa whoa whoa...what the heck...please back up and slow down, no one told me I had a frigging… disease --I'm only 45. She looked at me and obviously perplexed that I didn't know that I had Graves Disease. At that point, she was very textbook thorough and told me that it was my choice of three options, but the radioactive iodine was the most common in the US. I said, ok, if that is the solution what next? She quickly wrote a script, and in two days would just run down the street for a simple thyroid ablation. Until....my husband digested this and told me no way no how was I just doing this on a Dr.'s first recommendation, he and I researched what exactly Graves Disease was, and the options. Thank God. I immersed myself in dozens of books, countless hours on Graves Disease, and came to the conclusion that if I could avoid having a radioactive material ablate my thyroid, that I should. And that, since this method simple immediately, turned a HYPER Thyroid into a HYPO Thyroid, I was now a candidate for daily thyroid hormone to keep me alive which no eliminated any possibility of a thyroid-storm which can be lethal. Perfect, potential for death and liability eliminated, and future patient management easy. Subsequently, I met with an Endo a the Mayo, who surprisingly, treated me also like just another run of the mill Graves Disease case--he suggested that I get a thyroid scan to confirm Graves. I very politely told him to look in that envelope that he as given this morning that contained all of my medical history, and he would see a CD of the scan....'oh he said' and promptly inserted the CD to confirm I had Graves.--No S...Sherlock! Then, becoming quickly disillusioned with the medical profession, I found one of the best Endo's in this county; I see her yearly just to check my thyroid levels, that incidentally are NORMAL (although still contain the antibody for Graves) because I chose instead to educate myself, change my diet, little gluten, & supplement with iodine, selenium, & magnesium (I don't suggest you do this without thoroughly researching, and reviewing it with a doctor!) And only if I had just taken the script and had my thyroid ablated 2 days after my appointment with Dr. Rho.....how different my life might have been.

I am a T1D and Dr Rho is without a doubt the best Endo I have had. She has worked with me through chemo and my A1C is the lowest it has ever been since diagnosis.

I have seen her several times over the past 8 months for thyroid diagnosis. She has always had time to explain my test results & status & to answer my questions. She even filled in once when I had a respiratory infection & my PCP was unavailable!

Doctor was very rushed and did not take the time to explain the new treatment plan or write it down clearly. I had to wait a long time for my appointment and was very disappointed in the care that I received. I felt like the doctor rushed through my appointment and was very unconcerned with my questions. The office staff was very gruff and unfriendly.