Jitendra Tolia, MD

Good doctor, thorough examination IF you get to see him!
Waiting time is ridiculously long (I’ve sat there waiting for the doctor up to three hours!) and receptionists are quite honestly the worst I’ve ever dealt with — completely unresponsive or helpful and highly unprofessional. Waiting room is very narrow and so you get to hear each and every indecorous remark made to patients in the office and over the phone.
FURTHER, after switching doctors because of scheduling availabilities (office only open Monday-​Friday, no weekends) and requesting my records be sent over to my new physician, I was completely appalled and horrified at their customer service. They had me calling their office several times to request the records, hanging up on me, saying ‘I don’t have time for you’ ‘I am losing my patience’ and ‘I am not playing anymore games’ all over their inability to give me an answer as to what I can do to get my records the same day for asthma related complications!!!
AND AS IF THAT WEREN’T ENOUGH, after enduring their mistreatment and having to request their names to file a compliant over 10 times (as if it was some sort of highly classified information), I spoke to their manager who basically gave me the same run around and even went after far as questioning my choice of new doctor in addition to finally saying she cannot fax (and would instead of snail-​mailing) a very important document!
FINAL ADVICE — UNLESS YOU WANT STRESS ADDED TO YOUR MEDICAL AILMENTS DO NOT GO THERE UNTIL DR. TOLIA FINDS BETTER HELP!

Dr. Tolia is an intelligent man. When I was still able to pay for my health insurance, he was my primary physician and was able to help me cope with Graves’ Disease.
Now the downside is the WAIT TIME that seems to be forever! I usually ask the front desk to book me before 2 pm (I live a few blocks away). I would be waiting there until 5 or 5:30 pm !! This is just what’s annoying about this doctor.
You gotta show up on time, man!

I have been going to this internist/​pulmonologist for years. He is a wonderful, patient doctor that listens to his patients! very rare indeed!
He used to be my internist but I switched due to the long waiting time in his office.
He has a wonderful bedside manner and expertise, but the major downfall of this Queens practice is the 2 – 3 and even more WAIT time. It is really awful the way the staff is inconsiderate to the patients. They can certainly improve on this if they wished to.
Having said this, when you are ill and need to see the doctor, they will fit you in and the wait time is the price to pay for a Great, Holistic doctor.
Now I only go when I am very sick, he is in the neighborhood, but be prepared to sit and wait for him for Hours!

Wow… what can i say about this doctor. I went to him in September and again in October because of drastic weight loss and a feeling that something wasn’t right with my body. Needless to say he saw me and had a very laid back attitude as if to say my health concerns weren’t valid. To his credit and i’m sure, wallet, he took blood and ran tests. Fast forward to my next visit. He unsympathetically told me i was pre diabetic and that he couldn’t explain the weight loss. His ‘helpful’ advice to me was to «lay off the soda and fruit juice». In my honest opinion, his bedside manner sucks, he is not compassionate and with advice like that, i might as well wait for the big D to come and claim me. Needless to say, i am looking for a new doctor who can explain to me my diagnosis and what i need to do to prevent it from becoming full blown diabetes. For your life and your health… go see another doctor. BTW… i once waited 2hrs! Totally unacceptable!

He was late by 2 hours at arriving to the office and took his time with each patient and when he saw me i realized he was quiet most of the time. When we did speak he was responsive and didn’t seem to just want me out the door.
I think what I really disliked was the wait. it was inconsistent. First it was wait 15 minutes then 10 minutes. then «he’s on his way»… then 20 minutes. until it became a 2 hour wait. I think his office hours should start at 4 and not at 2 since someone else on Unilocal also said he was late to show up at 2pm.
Ps: Beware of the exams they perform at random like the electrocardiogram. The assistant made it seem like. oh since your waiting anyways might as well and oh yeah. the doctor want you to do this exam (Before even seeing me or asking me why im seeing the doctor). They charge you and no insurance covers; so thats an extra $ 35 dollars i was not expecting to spend at the office. If they would have told me the cost before they performed it I would have accepted it but the medical assistant never bothered to mention it so it made me feel sour towards the practice. BUT the assistant was very nice and sweet and im not saying she was a –itch. Just uninformative about the extra price.

I changed my mind. He’s constantly late when he’s supposed to show up at the office at 2PM. That’s not very professional nor is that respectful to your clientele. I’m changing docs!

Dr. Tolia is the first «regular» physician I’ve had in years and, I have to say, he was worth the wait. Even though I first went to him for one specific problem (sinus infections), he did a complete battery of general health tests and a full blood work-​up immediately. Imagine! A doctor who actually wants to know his new patient’s entire health situation up front! And you can tell by the many, many people in his office that he is definitely a physician of choice. What I like best about Dr. Tolia is that he actually does talk to you and that he often suggests natural cures instead of pills whenever possible. What I like least is the waiting-​even with an appointment, the least amount of time I’ve waited is an hour. But he is a great doctor, and after all, this is your HEALTH-​so if he is within your insurance plan, I say bring a book, sit down and suck it up.