Marino Center For Integrative Health

I am genuinely confused about the reviews below for the Marino Center. It is a gem! I have seen Dr. Wedda and Dr. Bordick at Wellesley and Dr. Emsbo in Cambridge and have been VERY impressed by the time that they take with patients in appointments, the thoroughness of exams, their diagnostic skills, and the integration of traditional and complementary therapies and medicine. A decade ago, I worked in health care consulting and only dreamed that a center like this would be possible. Before that time, I cobbled together my own health care, seeing a traditional PCP, and also seeking out an accupuncturist, massage therapist, allergist, explored supplements, etc. When my mother visited from England, she paid out of pocket for assessment/​treatment here, even though she receives free health care in England. Personally, when it comes to health care, I prioritize the quality of doctors and treatment that I receive, as well as ability to get an appt. promptly. All these things are THE BEST at the Marino Center.

I have been going to the Marino Center in Wellesley for a number of years and I love my doc– John Borduik… I have never had any issue with the lab folks — I DO NOT do well with needles so they get one chance only to get blood — I am in and out of there with no pain and no wait…
Unless somethig has changed dramatically since last fall I cannot fathom why some folks are having serious issues. I have always been treated with respect and nothing less.

I like the approach a lot, and some of the doctors are great. However you can expect some unexpected bills in the mail. So I stopped going here a while ago. My neighbor when to see the nutritionist Wendy and came back reporting that she didn’t really listen to her particular concerns. I now go to a doctor’s office elsewhere that seems to have it’s ducks in better order.

I have been painfully disappointed with the service from the staff and reception personnel at the (now, only) Marino Center in Wellesley Though my doctor, Gary Gross, is friendly and helpful, the overwhelming computerization and disorganization of the place is awful. All the doctors and practitioners have to type all of their notes and test requests into an antiquated computer system, and then the information is lost anyway. No one there ever seems to have any idea what is going on, test results are lost or dropped, you can never get anyone on the phone who has a vestige of a clue. Auuggghh! Also, folks seem both snarky and distracted. How anyone gets any health care delivered under these circumstances is beyond me…

I need to preface this review by saying that I *love, love, love* the Marino Center for Progressive Health on Mass Ave. in Cambridge. Dr. Trepasso is awesome, the lab techs and nurse practitioners are always super friendly and their appointment scheduler is possibly the sweetest woman alive.
Now, maybe I’m just prejudiced because I live in Cambridge, and nothin’ beats the people in your own neighborhood. But when the good folks at the Marino’s Cambridge location sent me over to the Wellesley office to see Dr. Gross — I was already a little nervous. Wellesley feels like several days by wagon train when you have no car and need to make it out there for a 3pm appointment. But whatever — I mean, I’ve always had a good experience in the Cambridge office, so the same should hold true for their posh suburban locale, right?
So I arrive at the office, go through the whole «check-​in» thing at the front desk and chill in the waiting room for awhile. Dr. G. and his student resident come out into the waiting room to get me. I tell him I’m totally cool with the resident sitting in on our appointment — cuz I am. Sistah’s gotta learn the biz somehow, right? I’ll gladly be her guinea pig. We go into Dr. G’s office. It’s kinda cluttered and messy. .. . like grandpa’s basement worktable. .. . but whatever, he’s not examining me in here. I start to give him the abridged version of what brings me here, but he stops me and tells me to go back to the very beginning. This seems a little strange to me, since I’ve been a patient of the Marino Center for a couple of years, and they have the record of my medical history in my online file, which he definitely has access to. I know this for a fact because he is having me dictate my medical history extremely slowly while he types it into the computer in front of him. I’ve never had a doctor type non-​stop while I describe my medical issue to him. Bizarre.
So after I’m done telling my tale, Dr. G. actually looks up at me (huzzah!), asks a few more questions, then proceeds to have a highly technical conversation with the resident, full of all sorts of crazy medical lingo. I’m about to interject to ask them what the eff they’re talking about when *Dr. G’s cell phone rings.* he says, «Hold on a moment please, I need to take this call.» Ok, fair enough, I think. He’s an OBGYN — pregnant ladies need to talk to their docs all the time. But no — this was not an emergency patient phone call. .. the good doc proceeded to *schedule his dog’s Lyme Disease vaccination* — while still sitting at his desk, in the middle of my appointment.
At this point, I’m feeling slightly panicked. I ask my questions and then I’m ready to make my exit, with plans to finding a Cambridge /​Boston based specialist for a second opinion ASAP. But first. . Dr. G. sends me to the Wellesley office lab for some quick blood tests. So I greet the lab tech, hand her my paperwork, sit down in the chair and wait. I wait while she slooowly collects all the vials needed for blood gathering. Then I wait while she *phones a hotline to ask how to perform a certain test*. Uhhhh. .. ok, now I’m a little scared. At this point, she’s approaching me with the tourniquet, so I squeeze my eyes shut and tell myself, «This will be over soon!»
But it’s not over soon. Not at all. Bitch can’t find my vein. After tapping on my arm for 5 minutes, she sticks the needle in. .. and digs around with it. .. . and digs around some more. .. «Sorry,» she says. .. she’s still digging — but surely, surely she must be almost done, right? «Um. .. are you almost done?» I finally mumble, like a terrified 5 year old. «No, I cannot find ze vein,» she snaps. I look up, and there is not a drop of blood in the vial. Weep.
I told her I’d go and get my blood drawn at the Cambridge lab tomorrow. She actually looks kind of relieved. «Sorry for torturing you,» she says. Well. .. at least she apologized. .. ?
So, I go to Cambridge to fill my blood work, where the super awesome lab girls chat with me about clothes and Britney Spears while they do their thing. Before you can say «K-​Fed», I’m done and outta there. I put «Find new Gyno!» on my To-​Do List and go about my merry life. .. .
Until the following Sunday morning, when I stumble hungover to my computer and find an email from Dr. G. Emails from the doc on the weekend are never a good thing. Basically, dude sent me an *email* to tell me I could possibly have a *brain tumor* and that his office is going to schedule me for an MRI. Ummm. .. say wha?
After that follows 2 weeks of tense waiting and lots of unanswered phone calls to Dr. G’s office, where I was literally *begging* the doctor to give me my test results.
So basically — if you want to experience what it feels like to be treated with the respect and dignity of a used tissue, I urge you, call Dr. G and go see the folks at the Marino Center in Wellesley! You won’t be disappointed!