Dr. Deborah Gomez Kwolek, MD

I’ve been a patient of Dr. Kwolek’s for a few years now, and have had increased dissatisfaction at each appointment. During my last appointment for a routine physical, the doctor was extremely late with no explanation and a halfhearted apology (I was the first appointment of her day, and the NP told me that she wasn’t even in the building after checking me in on time.) I spent 45 min in the exam room waiting her. The exam was rushed, and it was clear she had no memory of me as a patient, reading off her computer screen as she sat with me about my prior history. There was no advance preparation or reading through of my chart before she entered the exam room. During the exam, she did not pull the privacy curtain, and an assistant barged in to the room while I was partially un-gowned for a signature needed on some form unrelated to me that apparently couldn’t wait 5 minutes. Again, a halfhearted apology. I visited the office last year when sick and was kept waiting for 2.5… hrs in the waiting before a doctor was able to see me after calling ahead and being told that they could fit me in. A prior annual visit was cancelled by the practice and pushed back 6 months before they were able to fit me back in the queue. Be forewarned if you elect to see this doctor and practice.

I have had Dr. Kwolek after my hearth surgery for about 3 years. She has been excellent to keep me healthy and going at my best. She is very smart, very knowledgeable and experienced. I have recommended her to my close relatives and friends.

I go to MGH for all of my medical needs and I've been very happy with every doctor I've seen, so I figured it would be worth waiting nearly 8 months to get an appointment with Dr. Kwolek. I had a number of health issues that I had been concerned about for quite some time, and she listened to everything I had to say. She was very friendly and made me feel comfortable talking about personal issues. However, she was extremely rushed and wasn't as thorough as I would expect from an MGH physician. I found it to be very rude that she left the room 3 separate times for 15+ minutes to meet with other patients during MY scheduled time with her. I had a lot of questions and I wasn't given the attention I expected or satisfying answers. I had been suffering from chronic pain that interfered with every aspect of my life and she did nothing to help me. I was worried that these pains I was experiencing were an indication of something serious, and when she told me not to worry about it, I did not… trust her opinion. How am I supposed to "not worry" about something that is constantly bothering me and reduces my quality of life? She proves to have very basic knowledge since she can't answer questions without leaving the room to look things up. Lastly, she says she is accepting new patients, but it seems she is only in the office one or two days out of the week. It is nearly impossible to get in touch with this woman. I would not recommend her. A nice person but a mediocre doctor.

My husband is relatively young and healthy but a few times this year had health incidents that required immediate medical attention. In one of these, Dr. Kwolek's staff never replied to his email request for an appointment, days went by, and we ended up going to urgent care for a worsening infection rather than waiting for a reply. The last few visits he requested pertaining to that incident and one other, a nurse has seen him, not the doctor. I'm switching him over to my PCP practice outside of MGH as they are more attentive.

Dr. Kwolek is extremely nice and caring, however she ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS runs at least 1+ hour behind. I go to her office expecting to sit in the waiting room and then again in the exam room. She is my PCP, and she has helped me deal with some acute issues and has been accurate with every diagnosis. She is also very prompt to follow up with any results from tests or labs, she usually will call me the same day or the next day, even if everything is normal. Sometimes her visits can feel a bit rushed, probably because she is running more than an hour behind and has a bunch of patients waiting. Overall, she is a good doctor, and I trust her diagnosis and treatment plans, however I would be wary of the wait times.