Watcher Melissa, MD

I’ve never written a review for a doctor before, but I just had to share about my wonderful experience with Dr. Watcher. Last week I had a terrible reaction to a facial that I received, which caused a rash-​like break out on my face. I immediately went to my local dermatologist who basically told me to not wear make-​up for 3 weeks and use a gentle cleanser and see what happens. My skin became worse overnight, so I desperately started calling other dermatologist offices to see if anyone would see me that day. Fortunately a friend referred me to Dr. Watcher, and her staff was so helpful in squeezing me in. I seriously can’t thank them enough for doing that! Even though it was the end of the day, Dr. Watcher spent time with me trying to figure out what was going on with my skin so she could develop the appropriate treatment plan. She ended up putting me on an antibiotic, which I should’ve been prescribed by the first doctor I went to. She was kind enough to give me samples of everything I needed, and literally within a day and a half my skin had almost completely healed. I’m so grateful for the care I received from Dr. Watcher and her staff!

Office staff gets a kick out of using the hold button on phones w client waiting and leaving office for lunch. Bad customer service

Dr. Watcher is the most detailed and caring demo in Orange County. I would ignore any negative reviews as they are not correct. I have been seeing De. Watcher for more than 20 years and she has performed all kinds of surgeries on me to fix issues that I had. Getting in to see her is difficult as she is always busy because her clients know there is no one better. These few negative reviews out of thousands of patients mean nothing. She is just outstanding in everything she does. She has a gift of being able to perform surgeries without leaving scares. She was just born with that. My entire family love her.

Dr watcher is the best dermatologist in Orange county. I would recommend her highly. Also the lady at the front desk is very pleasant and kind.

I have been seeing Dr. Watcher for close to 10 years and I can’t say enough great things about her. Unlike other doctors she doesn’t waste your time suggesting procedures or products you don’t need. She gives it to you straight and is a wonderful doctor. I recently had a malignant mole removed and she has seen me multiple times since to help correct the scar at no charge. I refer everyone to her!

I came to Dr. Watcher for melasma. She started me on an ointment applied nightly to each area on my face. Well, after two weeks the areas looked inflamed and darker than before so I stopped. When I returned for follow up she did not recall how often she suggested I use the product and started me on cortisone cream to counter the inflamed tissue. After returning from a month of applying the steroid she replied we were back where we started from but now my spots were darker and more obvious. She should have suggested only a single small area to start versus applying the cream to all three spots. We tried laser, which further darkened a corner of one area. At the third visit she recommended another regiment with sample creams and basically left it up to me to decide the right amount and frequency. At the front desk I thought I was going to schedule a follow up appointment after 4 – 6 weeks but they said it was an «as needed basis.» She basically had nothing more she could do for me but did not have the tactfulness to tell me this and left it up to the receptionist. I threw out her products. My face is worse off than ever before. I have had to add to my daily routine a tattoo-​concealing make up to each spot. Prior to going to her I did not. I trusted that she was the expert but I must say my first yellow flag was that she kept referring questions to her assistant. In doing my research one of the chemicals she recommended could actually darken areas, laser is also generally not recommended on darker pigments. In retrospect, this was my face with no forewarning that things could potentially get worse. She should have been more conservative. She should have known/​stated the facts.

Dr. Watcher is the best. She has performed surgeries on my husband that left nary a scar on his face. When I recently went for a check up she immediately noticed and biopsied a suspicious site. It came back from pathology as a Stage 1 melanoma. She calmly referred me to a surgeon where the lesion and node dissection were pergormed. All came back negative from pathology. Dr. Watcher is professional, calm, has a sense of humor and thorough. She is our Dermatologist for life now.

Yes Dr. Melissa Watcher is very busy all the time and I waited to see her BUT when i showed up, this Dr. looked at me like i’m a monster (i came to the dermatology office without wearing any makeup because i wanted to doctor to have a clear picture of what’s going on my face). I don’t know if she made a correct analysis of my skin but she immediately put me on drugs without exploring the possibility of more natural methods. At the end, she told me that I need to put as much makeup as possible to cover up my face! She was very insensitive. I didn’t like her attitude. Dr. Melissa Watcher did not have any knowledge of current products either.
I do not recommend her!

Dr. Watcher saved my mother’s life by recognizing and fixing a melanoma stage 4 on my mom’s first visit. This is after her general medicare doctor told her it was ‘nothing to worry about’ and I instead paid for her to go to Dr. Watcher. Needless to say, she has been our family dermatologist for years now and she is amazing.

I went in to see Dr Watcher for an annual check-​up. I also had a few other questions regarding my skin. She performed the check-​up in about 60 seconds. When it came to asking her my other questions, she referred all of them to her colleague, in which I needed to make another appointment.
When I initially called to make an appointment, I told the staff exactly what I would be seeing Dr Watcher for. I wish they would have told me at that time that she would not be able to help me and that I needed to make an appointment with her partner. Even that’s a bit suspicious though, as her partner is a cosmetic dermatologist and none of my skin issues are cosmetic.
I ended up seeing another dermatologist and re-​doing my yearly exam. Don’t waste your time and money at Dr Watcher’s office.