Yolanda Holmes, MD

I bought a livingsocial for a chemical peel and had it at this place. Not a good experience. The setting didn’t seem professional so I was a little on edge when I left, and then two days later I broke out in a rash. I have had many, many peels before including more aggressive ones and I did nothing different ahead of this one. And this has never happened before. I’ve sort of learned to look at provider reviews before buying a coupon!

I’m new to DC and searching for a good facial spot. I used a Living Social voucher for a chemical peel here. The aesthetician explained to me that I would be getting a zero downtime glycolic peel with very little peeling. So, day two after the peel, I’m still confused as to why I walked out of the place with 2^nd degree burns and blisters around my mouth. Now let me paint you a picture…
First, the interior of this office is dingy. If they want clientele that pays $ 2000 to $ 3000+ for monthly cosmetic maintenance procedures not covered by health insurance or Medicaid, they need to spruce it up a bit. I mean, at least offer me a cup of water (no cucumber or orange slices necessary). Definitely not the type of upscale derm, plastic surgery, or cosmetic spas that I’m used to visiting for chemical peels and facials.
And now for the main event:
I’ve been getting chemical peels for about ten years now. I’ve received Vitamin C, Glycolic, Salicylic, red carpet, pcas, and microderm plus chemical peels. And NEVER in those ten years has the aesthetician or nurse left me alone in a treatment room for fifteen minutes with chemicals eating up my skin. Usually, while the peel is «working» the aesthetician sits in a chair next to me and fills out paperwork. They check in multiple times and ask for my pain level on a scale of 1 to 10. I even get a fan to cool the burning.
Not at this place. The aesthetician LEFT the room and did not return to check up on me. After 5 minutes, the skin around my chin, nose, and mouth was burning at a level 9. After 10 minutes, it was a level 10. Tears were falling out of my eyes at this point. When she finally returned, I told her that the area around my mouth was on fire. She casually replied, «oh yes, you are red and frosting around your mouth.» Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you know those white layers that form on your skin right after you get burned, but before it starts to blister. That’s what was going on with my face.
Day two and some of the blisters have busted. I walk around downtown DC looking like I had a herpes breakout with splotches of blistered/​raw, red skin, and burnt black skin all around my mouth. I feel embarrassed and humiliated.
Needless to say, I will never visit this place again.

I’ve only had positive experiences with Dr. Holmes and DC Dermatology. I will continue using.

I’ve been going here for a few years, I think two. I won’t say I love the place but it gets the job done and I get relief from my irritated scalp. I love the PA, I do! She is so patient, I cry at the sight of a needle and make a big fuss about when to inject and when not to. Also while she’s injecting I scream, I don’t do it on purpose but my fear of needles just makes this an automatic. After 30 years of life I have learned to accept my faith that I am scared of needles. LOL. The PA is so patient and sweet, I return simply because of her and the steroid injections work on my scalp. I met Dr. Holmes probably once or twice, I didn’t get a good feel for her as she is a bit dismissive. I don’t think she does it to be rude, I think she’s overwhelmed maybe. I don’t understand the long wait people are speaking of, I barely have a long wait not to mention that I rarely see other patients there.
staff of her front desk staff, they answer your questions but they are dismissive. I think they should be a little bit more friendly and welcoming to patients as a doctors office, dermatology for that matter is a very sensitive experience for patients. They need reassurance. I have about other services but the reception I received made me hesitant. I am looking into laser dermatology services but I am not comfortable enough with Washington DC dermatology and the other staff their enough to have them play on my skin.
I have to mention that her front desk staff or whomever deals with billing has good phone etiquette. I had an issue with insurance and they were helpful in sending me information I needed to secure coverage of services via email :-) !
Hope this helps

I would RUN far, far away from this place.
I came to Dr. Holmes to get some moles shaved off. I wish I had followed my gut instinct after my first visit, after dealing with her rude staff scheduling my next appointment.
So I decided to go ahead with the appointment to my dismay. I genuinely feel violated.
Dr. Holmes triple books her appointments so you won’t see much of her, what you do get to see of her is rushed. She had picked out 2 spots to biopsy. By biopsy I mean for them to punch a nasty deep hole into your skin that requires stitches. Weird because my doctor in Seattle shaved off my moles, sent them out to the lab without the NASTY scar I have now!!! Dr. Holmes couldn’t even remember the location of the original spots she had picked out to biopsy, almost like she didn’t care where they drilled holes in my body. So I corrected Dr. Holmes on which spots she had picked out the week prior. So her PA does the first biopsy, I ask her why they couldn’t just shave the spot off since it barely leaves a scar, she actually told me the punch method leaves less of a scar. HUH? I have had 9 moles shaved off and there’s no comparison to the awful scar I got from these hacks. I told the PA I didn’t want the second biopsy. I’m so glad I did.
This place doesn’t give a crap about real dermatology issues, right now they are running a sale on cosmetic procedures!!!
Also they will spam you to confirm your appointment, I’m talking 3 texts, a few emails and a google calendar reminder. I am 40 and quite capable of keeping my appointments without being harassed. Also her office is a dump, and she shares it with a fingerprinting place???
AVOID AVOID AVOID

She and her staff were amazing. She addressed my skincare concerns and put my mind at ease in reference about a potentially life-​threatening issue. She also listened to my concerns about my facial skin and addressed them without up selling me. I am very pleased that I am seeing results in the evening of my skin in two weeks.

I called a day ahead for an emergency appointment for a weird rash on my face.
Pros– got an appointment the next afternoon, and the meds she prescribed stopped the rash from spreading and it’s beginning to look better.
Cons– waited 50 minutes to be seen, waiting room was pretty dumpy, and she spent literally 3 minutes with me, and it would have been maybe 1 minute if I hadn’t kept trying to ask questions. She barely even glanced at my face or asked about potential exposures that could have caused it. I wanted to ask about other things but she was rushing me out the door.
To me a good doctor provides both a diagnosis and a treatment. I still don’t know the diagnosis, which is a problem in case something in my home caused the rash. I want to be able to prevent this from happening again!

Please don’t give this practice your business!!! I really didn’t want to believe all the negative reviews about this practice, but I had a horrible experience here. I read the previous Unilocal reviews that advised patients to call ahead to: A) ask specifically to see Dr. Holmes (not a PA), and B) see how late they’re running so you can avoid massive wait times (they book multiple appointments in the same time slot). I did BOTH and was assured that I would see Dr. Holmes and that they were running on time. However, I ended up having to wait for 45 min and at the very end, was only seen (briefly) by a PA; Dr. Holmes was already in the middle of a lengthy procedure. Maybe if they have less patients to triple book, they’ll have a chance to reform their business practices.

My first visit with Dr. Holmes was wonderful! She was patient, she listened to my issues and was able to quickly workout a treatment plan. I had to wait a bit but no longer than any other doctors office. I was able to successfully see her during my lunch hour.

Incompetent. I went in to have a lump on my chest looked at. Dr. Holmes was too busy so her nurse practitioner looked at it. She couldn’t tell what it was and they had it removed. Turns out it was a wart with a very expensive price tag and a scar to boot. I was not suppose to have a copay to have the stitches removed, but apparently simply asking a question about another part of my skin, with no procedures done, validates a copay. And for some unknown reason I’m still receiving multiple bills from them.

i didn’t even want to write this review but after going twice I was very disappointed. First, I had one practicing student as the initial person I saw who came in with another practicing student. When Dr. Holmes did come in she looked at my face, no type of consult just walked in looked, said that they had prescribed me the right stuff and left. No type of discussion, I wanted to discuss my concerns with her and couldn’t because she was in and out. This is the second time I’ve been there. The first time was even worse because I didn’t even see Dr. Holmes when I made the appt with her! The office itself is not inviting, décor is dragged and dingy. I almost didn’t want to sit down. And even worse they share an office with a fingerprinting service… like what??? I was just super disappointed. I tried to give it a chance but never again. She was very impersonal and just disregarding to me. Sad, she got a lot of publicity for being popular with black skin and doesn’t live up to the hype AT ALL. Customer service should be a priority, but guess not with Dr. Holmes.

I have been going to Dr. Holes now for 5 years. I am not saying that I know all but I worked with dermatology offices for a number of years and I still chose to have this office treat me.
Dr. Holmes is very sweet and patient and she has a staff full of knowledgable people that can provide great aesthitic services as well. She is very ethical and never trying to suggest things you do not need. You can trust her.
Her office is in the heart of DC so it is a busy area but once you are in her actual practice it is very low key. Dr. Holmes always tries to do right by the patient I don’t think you can ask for anymore than that…

Dr. Holmes is an amazing doctor. Just a head’s up, she’s not going to spend a lot of time with you, and she’s perpetually booked. This is not about hand-​holding, hanging out, or being friends. She’s going to tell you what’s wrong and give you whatever she thinks will fix it. Great experience over all.

Not a fan. Bad customer services and a tendency to push you towards the more expensive option. After recommended a $ 90 cream which did not work on dark spots on my face, I was then recommended a $ 400 procedure which hurt LIKE HELL.
My next dermatologist recommended a $ 7 prescription skin cream which worked wonders.
Dr. Holmes seems nice enough, but the place needs to be less «commercial» and more customer service oriented. Her staff is rather rude.

I’ve been seeing Dr. Holmes for a few months now. I was looking for a dermatologist who is knowledgeable about female hair loss, which isn’t easy to find. Dr. Holmes performed a scalp biopsy and did an excellent job. She then prescribed me medicine that has completely stopped my hair loss. 3 months later, I’m starting to see regrowth! I’m so grateful for her treatment and for her understanding with this difficult condition. Washington D.C. ladies looking for hair loss treatment I highly recommend you see Dr. Holmes!
One note for first time patients: make sure you specify that you’d like to see Dr. Holmes during your appointment, otherwise you may end up being booked with one of her medical assistants instead.

A friend recommended Dr. Holmes to me and I had a great experience. The staff was friendly and thanks to the patient forms that are available online, I was able to turn them in upon arriving and was seen right away. Dr. Holmes listened and I didn’t feel rushed, though my visit was short (around 10 minutes.) She answered all of my questions and made small talk with me. I would recommend this office to anyone looking for a dermatologist.

I was pleasantly surprised by the level of customer service that I received from Dr Holmes and her staff. It was a great experience from the start. The staff made me feel welcome as soon as I walked through the door. Everyone was smiling and willing to help with any questions or concerns that I had.
Dr. Holmes is AMAZING to say the least. I wish that all of my doctors were as professional and friendly as Dr. Holmes. I will be referring all of my friends and family to her in the future.

This is one of those places that I wish I could give ZERO stars. Dr. Holmes might be the worst doctor I’ve ever seen.
I waited for nearly an hour for the doctor to spend less than 2 MINUTES with me. I went for an annual skin check… which I had never had before. When I was brought into the office, I was told to undress and given a gown. Dr. Holmes walked in, asked me why I was there and I told her. She asked if I had ever had a severe sunburn or was concerned about any moles or anything. I said no, and she said, «Then why are you here?» UMM because you’re SUPPOSED to get an annual skin check.
She then told me to lie down, RIPPED the robe off of me, looked me up and down and said, «Looks good» and made a move toward the door. I stopped her to say that I had a question about something else and she said, «You’ll have to make another appointment for that.»
She then opened the door, while I was still completely naked and walked out, leaving it WIDE OPEN as one of her male colleagues was standing outside of the door.
I was absolutely horrified. To add insult to injury, this was over two months ago, and I still can’t get them stop sending me special deals for botox and laser hair removal because they have no unsubscribe feature on their emails.

In short: Don’t waste your time with Dr. Holmes and her staff.
I waited two and a half weeks for their earliest available appointment. I showed up 30 minutes early to fill out paperwork (which you’ll totally need all that time — though they won’t tell you that on the phone) only to soon realize that she books multiple appointments at the same time — 3 people showed up for the same appointment slot!
When it was finally my turn, Dr. Holmes spent all of 3 minutes with me (and this is SERIOUSLY not an exaggeration). She took one quick look at my scalp, handed me a sample, and said «goodbye» after every question I asked her. When I got home to use the sample she gave me, I soon realized that she did not give me any of the drug information (and it didn’t come with the sample) nor did she explain how to use it, how often, etc.
This woman is making bank by double– and triple-​booking appointments, and then rushing through everything. Maybe it’s a great method if you just want to pop in and out for some botox, but this is not the place to go if you need non-​cosmetic medical attention.
Beyond that, if you value your privacy, don’t bother going here. The exam room walls are paper thin and I literally heard everything being said in the rooms around me.
It’s a shame. The location is great — right above the metro — but the service is meh.

This is now the second doctor’s office I’ve been to in the DC office in the last few days, and again, the reception was cold. They weren’t particularly unfriendly but I just was not impressed by the welcome and dim lighting of the waiting area.
Dr. Holmes was friendly and smiley. I wanted to get some moles checked out and she did a full body scan, albeit a quick one, and assured me that they were benign and to have them removed would mean having a bunch of scars. No thanks.
I did get sold on some under eye night cream. I probably should have passed as it was $ 75 for 0.5 oz, but I thought I would give it a try.
She probably saw at least 5 patients while I was there… about 45 minutes so if you’re looking for more time with a dermatologist, I don’t know that you’d get that with her.
Oh, as for privacy, expect little. The walls are paper thing. I heard the conversation between the doctor and another patient, and the waiting room, staff, and the exam rooms are kind of in an open space, within earshot of one another.