Jacqueline Dolev, MD

You should know… I almost never write negative reviews. Dr. Dolev is terrible. Avoid her practice at all costs. She is focused on profits rather than results. Her staff is rude, the doctor is rushed and does not listen, and she is so overpriced. I have never been so offended by office staff in my life and insulted at the price. NO VALUE.

This is about the office staff — specifically a charming young lady named Alyssa. I will never get the chance to see Dr. Dolev because it takes 3 months to get in as a new patient according to the worker who answered the phone and told me so rudely! When I asked if there was any way to get in sooner — she said «no» — wow — helpful!
They clearly don’t want new patients — so Unilocalers be forewarned.

I too am a recent and very fortunate patient of Dr. Dolev. Her medical expertise is clearly unrivaled based on all the reviews and examples here but in addition her ‘empathy and personal touch’ is very uncommon! Dr. Dolev understands the ‘wholeness’ of treating a patient. She is knowledgeable, gentle, understanding, authentic and generous. Most of all she herself is a physician and person of integrity! Her respect for the patient, her timeliness and her professionalism leave one feeling enlarged and grateful after each office visit. I am sure I speak for many of Dr. Dolev’s patients to say a resounding – ‘Thank you!’

She removed my cyst and did an excellent job I would highly recommend her for any surgical procedures. I had no scarring at all. The procedure was painless and took maybe 10 minutes. I had two other cysts moved by two other doctors while living in Hawaii and they did an awful job compared to her. I had big scars from the previous 2 procedures and lots of trouble with the recovery. So needless to say she really saved me. Thanks Dr. Dolev.

Dr. Dolev is wonderful. I was struggling with terrible acne and her treatment has dramatically improved my skin. I highly recommend coming to see Dr. Dolev. She is very personable and really cares about her patients. The only downside is that her practice does not take my insurance, but it has not stopped me from coming to see her on a regular basis thus far. The results have been great.

Dr. Dolev is simply the best! I’ve been struggling with my Roseacea and she has been the only dermatologist to help improve the condition of my skin. She truly listens and talks through all my options to choose whats best for me.
I normally don’t write reviews but I was compelled to share my great experience with her!

I am such a huge fan of Dr. Dolev. I’ve been going to her for over a year now, and she has resolved some major skin issues I’ve been having, way better than any previous dermatologists I’ve seen in the past. I was suffering from a horrendous skin allergy reaction, and the skincare regimen she recommended did just the trick to clear it up quickly (I had previously seen an allergist to help with the condition who couldn’t help me at all). And once that cleared up, she has continued to work with me to ensure that my skin is as clear as possible in advance of my wedding — which I really appreciate. She didn’t just stop with the problem at hand, but proactively took the next step to see how she can help better my skin even more.
The skincare line at her office, Avene, is amazing — I’m so glad she recommended it to me. Dr. Dolev is friendly, direct, personable and really does want to help — which is why I give her 5 stars!

Dr. Dolev is exactly the kind of Derm I needed:
I am 29, and had a couple of dark spots appear, very gradually, on my bottom lip. It is scary to have something change on your skin, and particularly for me, on a part of my body so visible (my face). These were fairly big and pretty dark.
Dr. Dolev removed both spots (on separate visits) in her office, stitched them up, and they have both healed beautifully. I was pretty nervous about scaring, but the results are stellar — No one can even tell!
Dr. Dolev was able to explain to me where these spots were coming from, what they actually were structurally (via lab testing), how to treat them, and how to prevent them from coming back in the future. Not to mention, she’s also really lovely. Her staff is super helpful.
I needed a derm who could tackle both the smaller stuff (occasional acne) and for me, the bigger stuff (facial spot excisions), and Dr. Dolev is just the best.

I have been a patient of Dr. Dolev for over a year now and she’s been nothing but wonderful. She has breadth of knowledge and has definitely helped my acne situation. Excellent bedside manner — very personable. Highly recommended!

I have been seeing Dr. Dolev for about four years. She is lovely and smart which makes me feel confident and happy that I have found the best dermatologist in all of SF! She pays attention to details, and provides compassionate followup after more complicated procedures. I can’t recommend her more highly. My skin looks amazing. And now you all know why.

I am sorry to write this, and some people may not care as much about this as I do, but I was not even able to see Dr. Dolev, because one requirement they have is that you leave a credit card on file. As someone who has dealt with stolen mail and identity theft, I keep my information close to the vest and never store my credit card anywhere. When I explained this, I was told that I could not even see Dr. Dolev without leaving a card on file. I have an insurance card. I have perfect credit and always pay my bills on time, but I do like to assess each and every charge, so that I know what I am paying for. In addition to the private information issue, I am also worried about fraudulent or mistaken insurance company charges.
It is perfectly fine that Dr. Dolev has this requirement, but I was not informed of it when I made an appointment. If I had been, I could have politely declined to make an appointment at that time. Instead, I moved meetings, got myself to the office, missed work, and discovered at the time of the appointment that this was a requirement. That means I lost several hours of productivity, money, and time.
I wish I could have seen Dr. Dolev, because the patients who have seen her seem to be quite satisfied. But, storing personal information is a red flag for me. And, the failure to inform me of this requirement from the beginning, which is not a standard across all doctors (first time I’ve been asked to do this at a doctor’s office), was a problem for me, given my professional responsibilities and the wasted time this caused.

I have been a patient of Dr. Jacqueline Dolev for the past three years and I am very happy with her knowledge. Dr Dolev understood immediately my condition that three previous doctors were not able to resolve. I trust and recommend Dr Dolev.
The receptionist is also very professional and helpful.

I have received two out of three IPL treatments on my face and chest. I’m very impressed with the results.
In addition, I really appreciate Dr. Dolev’s expertise and professionalism. I’m so glad she recommended IPL for my brown spots and broken capillaries because it is obvious this approach was the right one.

After many visits to others, I was ready for someone who could provide more options for my situation than just antibiotics.
Dr. Dolev has provided me with excellent care for over a year now. Her cute little office is a one-​stop shop for my skin needs. Her peels and the other prescribed topical treatments have ACTUALLY WORKED. My skin looks better and better these days.
I also love how knowledgeable and competent her staff is with insurance billing and scheduling. Makes my life easier. I’ve had more services covered by my insurance because they knew how to bill properly.
Her office is comfortable and clean. She’s very warm and friendly, while also being very professional. I’m so glad I went to Dr. Dolev!

I saw Dr. Dolev from September 2013 to April 2014 and it was not a good experience. I went to her for a couple reasons, I had a rash developing near my underarm area but I mainly went to see her for facial acne. I’m 33 years old and had some recent breakouts and I always had oily skin. From the first appointment until the last time I saw her I always felt rushed and she never took the time to look at my skin carefully.
During that first appointment she handed me a tube of Tretinoin Cream (Retinoid) and told me to use every other night then eventually every night. If you have oily skin you DO NOT want to use the Retinoid cream instead you want to use the Gel. The difference is night and day. This cream made my skin even oiler and I had ongoing bad breakouts. You will have breakouts when using a retinoid but if your skin is getting worse after a few months STOP using it and revaluate. I should have stopped using it and demanded the gel but I was following Dr. Dolev’s recommendations. I ended up having many hyperpigmentations (red acne marks) on my face that pushed me to getting an IPL treatment from Dr. Dolev. Unfortunately this treatment gave me 2^nd degree burns at 4 locations of my face. One of the worst experiences of my life! Dr. Dolev took no responsibility for this and just said it was my skins reaction to the treatment. She seemed offended when I asked for a refund and eventually sent me a check with a letter saying she would not see me anymore.
I have since seen other dermatologists through One Medical Group and I’ve had a great experience. Whoever you see for your skin make sure they take the time to look at your skin carefully before they recommend something.
Recap and some additional comments;
* DO NOT buy a retinoid from Dr. Dolev. You can find a Dermatologist that will reach out to your insurance company for coverage and just pay the co-​pay. I have BCBS and I pay an $ 8 co-​pay per tube instead of $ 50.
* If you have oily skin USE the Retinoid Gel instead of the cream. Very important!
* DO NOT get an IPL treatment from Dr. Dolev. See above
* DO NOT buy any products from Dr. Dolev. Buy online or try cheaper products that are just as good. Paula’s Choice is a good website to educate yourself on your skin and it also gives product reviews.
* DO NOT pay Dr. Dolev for other in office treatments without checking with your insurance company first. I had some cortisone shots I paid $ 150 for only to find out later that my insurance covered the full cost.
* Good luck!

Not for skin health! My skin issues are due to sun damage and fair skin with moles. Perhaps she’s a cosmetic derm, but if you want someone to focus on the health of your skin, steer clear.
Her annual skin health/​mole check was a 10 second (tops) with none of the exam in detail of previous dermatologists.
She was more obsesses with my flakey scalp than the enlarging keratosis on my forehead. She told me removing the keratosis was a ‘cosmetic’ issue and I would have to pay out of pocket. Meanwhile she kept me coming back every 3 months (and billing my insurance) for a 3 second look at my scalp.
I realized I needed a real dermatologist, and found one who told me the now bleeding keratosis on my forehead would need at least two freezings since it had grown so large (under Dr Dolev’s watch).

Dr. Dolev is highly effective, easy-​going, warm, and straight forward in her practice. I appreciate how supportive and genuinely enthusiastic she was with the positive results of my treatment, as well! My skin looks so much clearer, and I have a maintenance regimen that is simple and keeps me clear.
Her office staff worked with me to clear up a billing issue when my insurance transitioned — something they really weren’t required to attend to, but chose to address. I appreciate the support and care they show!

I think it’s interesting that I received a rude phone call today from this office challenging my review. They tried to tell me that my appointment wasn’t meant to be 25 minutes (which is what was clearly printed on the bill). I said thank you and hung up. I then got a series of calls from their office, which I did not pick up. I finally blocked their number. Unbelievable.

Two words: Life Changing
As a female 46 year old, two+ year patient of Dr D’s, this review is long over due. When relocating back to the Bay Area, I started the process of asking friends and checking reviews in the hopes to find an «all in one», i.e. doctor and expert on the latest products and procedures. After trying a friends derm, and one of the med spa’s on the corner, I finally decided it was more important to get a doctor (have dozens of moles, fair skin that spent the 80’s in tanning beds and beaches covered in baby oil.). As a happy, long time user of the UCSF system, I pulled up their list of dermatologists close to my home.
What got me in the door, from her online profile, was her extensive education, training, and overall involvement with her industry. What has kept me coming back as a loyal, referring, patient, is not only has she helped me with the «doctor» part in managing my dozens of unique moles and other middle aged medical needs, is she has gone above and beyond in giving me a long term approach to improving my skin and the results prove it.
I started with IPL sessions complimented with retinoids and good all around over the counter products. I know next year (or two) I will probably start Fraxel (ahhh, the neck!!) and expand use of Botox/​Dysport into my forehead. She’s also answered my never ending, unrelated-​to-​current-​office-​visit questions and given me practical approaches (e.g. Hair thinning) to solve my concerns. I now have my husband (in his mid 40’s) going to her for mole checks and starting to get some of his sun spots removed — he’s a big fan and not easy to please!
I know this is long, but one last update which prompted me to post this Unilocal: I woke up one morning with an inflamed mole on the side of my neck. After two days of pain and getting paranoid about why a mole would inflame overnight, I walked into her office asking if I could just sit and wait as long as it took for a cancellation. Understanding how nervous I was, her receptionist explained the situation to Dr Dolev and I was fit in between patients. No questioning, no trying to have me wait a day or two, no extra charges. She looked at it, assured me it wasn’t anything to be concerned as it was a blood clot/​follicle irritation and just needed to be removed. Path results confirmed her diagnosis, all was well, just an old tired mole, lol
In short: She is the all-​in-​one skin ninja. She rocks as a dermatologist, has improved my appearance (and therefore confidence) with the latest technologies and products, and never once was I surprised by things like add on costs or getting products pushed on me. She’s even saved me money by bundling extra laser session costs retroactively when I decide to go back for «just one more». Your skin will thank you!

About 2 ½ years ago I came down with a serious auto immune problems, not least of which were skin problems or varying type. I find Dr. Dolev to be kind, compassionate,
a good listener and showing great attention to detail. So far she has helped me with 4 or 5 different problems, always working through to a good conclusion. I recomment her to anyone in need of a dermatologist.