Duke, Daniella, Md - Coastal Dermatology Pc

My wife went to Ms. Duke last summer (2013). We purchased the ""Alma Accent Skin Tightening"" treatment in attempt to smooth out some sagging under her chin. Priced at $600 per treatment, Ms. Duke gave us a special 6-for-the-price-of 5 (total $3000). Additionally, to remove some fatty areas on her lower back, we were pitched the ""Cool Sculpting"" treatment for $1700.\r \r We were told that the Accent treatments would start showing improvements after the 3rd or 4th session (each session being spaced apart by a month), and the one-time Cool Sculpting would show an immediate improvement. To Ms. Duke's credit, she did say that these treatments would not completely solve the areas of concern as traditional plastic surgery would, but we could expect at least a 20% improvement. An assistant then came into the room and took some face profile shots and one of her lower back. We were eager to see how the ""after"" pictures would look in 6 months!\r \r That was the last time my wife ever saw Ms. Duke. For all her follow-up sessions, over the course of 6 months, she was handled by very polite technicians who operated the equipment. After 3 months, my wife spoke to them with concern that she wasn't seeing any improvements, and each time the technician assured her that improvements would be visible after another session or two. This never happened. \r \r In summary, we feel that the $4700 was a waste of money. Ms. Duke never came into the room to discuss any progress or get feedback from my wife. And after her last treatment, no final pictures were taken for before-and-after comparisons, indicating to us that they too didn't feel that any improvements were made. My wife was particularly disappointed that Ms. Duke didn't meet with her at the end. For all the money that we paid her, a final consultation would have been appropriate, if not expected.\r \r We feel cheated.\r \r more

Leaving this practice. I do not feel like I am treated as a patient. They only seem interested in collecting money and selling cosmetic treatments. Found much better care. more

I have seen Dr. Duke for Coolsculpting 3 times this year, as sessions are spaced out 3 months apart. She was very congenial, helpful and supportive, even when I was embarrassed about my abdomen. After assessing the problem, she recommended 3 separate sessions for me in particular. It doesn't always take that long, depending on the extent of the problem. I am now fitting into clothes I haven't worn in years, and I am no longer embarrassed about my body. The fat I lost is gone permanently, but I still exercise because you can gain in other areas. The procedure itself is performed by her nurse Erika, who was also easy to work with. A suction cup shaped like a vacuum wand is placed over the area to be done, then the area is sucked into the cup and the temperature slowly lowered to the point where fat freezes but skin doesn't. There is a protective sheet between the skin and the cup. It pinches for a minute, but then feels numb and there is no pain. I had some bruising, and a tingling sensation after the first session (2 hours), but pain after the second one (4 hours). I think had I opted for a shorter session that might not have been the case. I am very pleased with my results so far, and will be having at least one more session soon. By Christmas I hope to be back into a size 10. There is no surgery, so no risk of infection, and an ugly caesarean scar I had for 30 years is hardly visible anymore. Dr. Duke told me that the skin had a natural tendency to want to adhere back to the body, so there is some skin shrinkage, but I will still have some loose skin. But I don't care about that, I am just happy to be looking good in my clothes. Another advantage is that it happens so gradually that people just think you've been losing weight. I would highly recommend Dr. Duke and her staff for a safe and effective procedure of Coolscupting. more

Nice Office. I went to Dr. Duke for a second opinion regarding a recurring skin condition a few years ago. She helped me figure out the problem, and I ended up switching over to her as my regular dermatologist. Her office is great--easy to get to , friendly, modern. The staff is nice and welcoming. They are always very busy, but Dr. Duke is always calm and very attentive and focused on you. She is happy and loves talking about skin. While she is treating you, she talks about how sunscreens work, or the history of chemical peels or tattoos. Dr. Duke helped make my skin better, and I have recommended her to others. I am very satisfied with her care.\r more

I have been a patient of Dr. Duke's since 1998. I have had several skin cancers, and Dr. Duke checks my skin and all my moles regularly. She is an excellent doctor, very nice and caring and patient, and she is very thorough with her exams during my office visits. Her staff has always been pleasant and helpful. Although the office is always busy, my wait time is usually less than 15 minutes, and I never feel rushed. I would highly recommend her as a great skin doctor. more

I have been a patient of Dr. Duke's since 1998. I have had several skin cancers, and Dr. Duke checks my skin and all my moles regularly. She is an excellent doctor, very nice and caring and patient, and she is very thorough with her exams during my office visits. Her staff has always been pleasant and helpful. Although the office is always busy, my wait time is usually less than 15 minutes, and I never feel rushed. I would highly recommend her as a great skin doctor. \r more

Dr.Daniella Duke is the dermatologist for my entire family. From our first visit almost 10 years ago, I have had confidence in Dr. Duke's compassion and high standards of professionalism. Both Dr. Duke, and staff, have made me, my husband, and my 2 children are all comfortable knowing that we our getting excellent care when we need to see her. Our visits have included regular skin checks, and treatments for rashes and acne on my children, as well as a number of rejuvenation treatments for me (and my husband!) as we have gotten older. She has customized a number of treatments for me based on my specific goals and skin issues, and she has an incredible number of laser in her office for treating these issues. We feel very fortunate to have Dr. Duke as our dermatologist! more

Dr. Daniella Duke is the dermatologist for my entire family. From our first visit almost 10 years ago, I have had confidence in Dr. Duke's compassion and high standards of professionalism. Both Dr. Duke, and staff, have made me, my husband, and my 2 children are all comfortable knowing that we our getting excellent care when we need to see her. Our visits have included regular skin checks, and treatments for rashes and acne on my children, as well as a number of rejuvenation treatments for me (and my husband!) as we have gotten older. She has customized a number of treatments for me based on my specific goals and skin issues, and she has an incredible number of laser in her office for treating these issues. We feel very fortunate to have Dr. Duke as our dermatologist! more

Dr. Duke is a WONDERFUL dermatologist! She has a beautiful office in Mystic, with onsite parking. I have been seeing Dr. Duke for almost 10 years, and find her to be caring, professional and accommodating. At most of my visits, she has been able to do the biopsy or treatment at the same visit, without me having to schedule another appointment and miss more work. Her staff is friendly, and I like that they give me a reminder call a couple of days before my appointments. I chose Dr. Duke because of her stellar training and credentials, and her experience with lasers (I have some birthmarks). She has always been able to figure out any skin problems I've had, and make recommendations and offer treatment options, and she is not shy about telling me what I don't need as well. My experiences have been consistently excellent, and I've recommended Dr. Duke to many of my friends. more

I was seen at Dr. Duke's office and am writing to report my positive experience. I had a cosmetic consultation-which was informative; all of my concerns were discussed and my options reviewed with me, and given to me in writing which was very helpful as it is hard to remember everything Dr. Duke says. She was not pushy and spent a lot of time explaining how everything works. I returned for Dr. Duke to do several of the procedures (Dysport, Juvederm, and a laser treatment to remove the brown spots on my face). I am very pleased with the results. Her office is friendly and helpful. I would recommend this office to my friends. more

I made an appointment six months ago as a first-time patient. I called today to see when my appointment was since I was not able to locate my date/time. I was told that my appointment was this morning. I missed it. I asked if the office made confirmation calls/reminders since the doctor doesn't take new patients until six months later. She said the office does and that either she, or another girl, makes the calls. She read back my phone number and it was correct. She then told me that I'd need to pay a $30 penalty before rescheduling. I asked to ""take this further"" because I felt this was unfair. The fact that this doctor does not take a new patient before six months later combined with an office policy that was not executed leads me to understand some of the other complaints on this platform. Some may say, look - you missed the appointment, therefore it's your fault and agree. However, it is standard practice that drs confirm appointments with their patients. I see a lot of dr's for my diabetes (including eye and foot drs) and ALL of the call me a day or two before to confirm. I've been trained by the industry to depend on these calls. Dr Duke even employs the same policy in her office. Now I'm being penalized because I did not receive the confirmation call, which I was trained to depend on. I am supposed to receive an call back from the office manager tomorrow and I hope that this situation is rectified fairly. By fairly, I mean that I am excused from paying this penalty in lieu of the office failing to follow their own policy. This should be awash. I will report back what the office manager says - good or bad. Thanks for offering this platform so the ""playing field"" becomes a little more level between the class structure created where a dr has a disproportionate amount of power. more

A wonderful review. I was very surprised to read the inappropriate reviews posted, as I have been a patient of Dr. Duke’s for many years. Most of my family members are also patients of hers. I think some people just like to write extreme or hostile reviews because they are mad about something else. Dr. Duke is very nice, and is a good doctor; straightforward, helpful, knowledgeable, very well trained. The laser treatments for hair removal were very effective for me, and the treatments were much less expensive than in other offices I had spoken with. I have received several different cosmetic treatments from Dr. Duke (laser, Botox..) -with equal success. Everything happened just as she had explained it would. Her office is one of the most efficient offices; all up to date and electronic, on-time most of the time, clean and pretty. Her staff is incredibly friendly, very helpful. I met two or three of the treatment nurses; they were all nice and professional. The people who checked me in and out were happy and helpful. I have been seeing her for almost 10 years for skin checks, as well as some cosmetic procedures, and have never had a negative experience. Over the years, I have successfully recommended her to several family members and friends and will continue to do so. I give this doctor and office a very good rating. more

I am completely shocked this is happening to more than one person, i cant believe it. This place does not practice morals and IS only in it for money. They do not resolve anything just a discharge, unbelievable. Happened to myself as well. more

Odd your story sounds similar to my families encounter. We have also been going to her for years. We had problems with being responsible for a bill we didn't feel we should be responsible for...rather than resolving, we were discharged. She doesn't genuinely care, seems to only be about the money, it is very sad. more

My parents have been patients of Dr. Duke's at Coastal Dermatology for many years. I believe she's been a good dermatologist, although her practice seems to focusing more now on ""cosmetic"" dermatology than before. \r My parents had recently chosen a new primary care physician, and had given that physician permission to request records from the 10 or so different combined specialists that they also see. A couple of months ago, the PCP noted that he hadn't received any records from Dr. Duke, so we told him that we'd get the records for him. We called Coastal Dermatology to request the records, and they said ""no problem, we'll call you when they're ready for you to pick up"". A week later, they left a message on our machine saying ""the records you requested are ready, you can pay by cash or check; the total is $7+change. It came as a surprise that they wanted to charge for the copies because we weren't told that in advance. When we questioned the office about it, all they said was that the law allowed them to charge so much per page. It wasn't the amount of $$ that they wanted; it was fact that they wanted any money at all. When we asked if they could fax or mail the records directly to our pcp, they told us that they do not fax or mail records, even at the request of other doctors, and that the only way to do it was for us to pick the records up ourselves, pay for the records, and then we could do whatever we wanted to with them. I told the girl on the phone that I thought it was a crime, and that I would discuss it with the doctor at my father's upcoming appointment.\r My father's six month skin check appointment was today. Dr. Duke entered the patient room after we had been waiting in there for 45 minutes past our appointment time. After the check-up was completed, while still in the patient room, I brought up the subject issue of the records, and expressed to Dr. Duke that I was disappointed, that I thought it was unnecessary, and that I thought it was a shame that she charged for record copies. She said ""it's not a shame at all, do you know what the costs associated with that are?"" I replied that my parents had been patients of hers for many years, and that these records were not for us, that they were for their new pcp, and suggested if she was financially hurting so badly that she had to charge for a few sheets of paper, that maybe she's living above her means somewhat. I also told her that out of all of the specialists that my parents see, she was the only one who refused to send record copies to other doctors, and the only one who felt the need to charge a fee. Dr. Duke told me that she didn't care what other doctors do, and when I asked her what made her so special, she told me that we could take our business elsewhere. Her resolution to the matter was to discharge my parents from her practice, rather than offer to absorb the cost.\r more