Spruce Street Internal Medicine

Used to be better, but now pretty bad since Boulder Hospital took them over. Rude scheduling staff and you can never get in to see your doctor, so they just hand you off to whoever is new in the current revolving door of physicians they seem to have (seriously, I’ve seen three different doctors over the last three appointments, none of whom knew me from Adam). If you have anything remotely time sensitive, they just tell you to go to urgent care. Looking for another PCP, but not hopeful in the current healthcare system. Anyone decent seems to rapidly get inundated to the point where they can’t take new patients or conversely just ends up being unavailable to ever see you (I think that’s what originally happened with Spruce Street).

I visited Dr. Browne and found the whole experience humiliating and degrading. I had previously had some blood tests (by several MDs) which found I had immune issues at a very complex levels but she kept referring to the costs of the tests as if somehow, though they provided useful information, I was stupid to have done them or to have consulted doctors when I was ill. She seemed almost contemptuous of me and my efforts to get to the bottom of a complicated situation. I have had thoughtful and helpful doctors, and her arrogance seemed unwarranted.

I have been overall pleased with the care I have received at Spruce Street Internal Medicine. I have been seen by Dr. Browne for 2 years now and I think she has always been kind, patient, well informed and experienced. I really like how they use electronic medical records, and how easy it is to receive your health information to recall what was discussed in the exam.
The one thing I do not like about the clinic is calling and trying to speak with the doctor. If you have any question you must first leave a message with the medical assistant who then relays the information to the doctor and back to you. The times I have spoken to the medical assistants I find they lack astuteness and people skills. I find this particular system to be inefficient because it takes at least a day to hear back after leaving the message and then more for them to speak with the doctor and communicate that information to you. If you are having a medical concern it is not handled quickly.
Appointments do run on time and I feel the office does run smoothly. They were recently integrated into Boulder Community Hospital. For the most part, I haven’t noticed any major changes. Overall I think this clinic does provide good care and is an above average clinic.

This is the absolute worst doctors office I have ever been to.
I switched doctors in 2009 and started seeing Dr. Maiocco at Spruce Street. After she left, I switched to Dr. Ling. Surprisingly, after going to this office for 4 years I have never met Dr. Ling because she has never been available to see me.
The last 3 times I have been sick and wanting to see a doctor, I have been given the same answer, we can see you tomorrow afternoon. Aren’t doctors offices supposed to allot a certain amount of appointments to sick patients? Since I am calling first thing in the morning, I am 100% sure that Spruce Street is not. The past three times I have needed to be seen the office has suggested I wait until tomorrow or go to the ER or Urgent Care…
The front office is absolutely horrible, making me hold for 30 minutes to set an appointment… I’m fine with seeing a different PA each time I need to see the doctor but telling me that I can’t be seen for ²⁴⁄₄₈ hours when I am sick is not appropriate for a facility that I am supposed to trust with my health.
I would stay far from this practice and find someone in Boulder that actually knows how to run a doctors office.

I would not recommend Spruce Street to anyone.
I waited (which I expected) in the waiting room for longer than my entire consultation. When I finally met with the doctor she took a brief look and said, okay, maybe you should go to another place. Then she gave me a name and I was charged for the 2 minute visit as a full physical and then some.
It was ridiculous. Not only that, but after I paid (in cash), they continued to send me a bill for the the visit. I moved out of the state and tried calling them to clear it up, but nobody picked up, then they had a bill collector send me notification of my «unpaid» bill that I already paid.
Nightmarish and unprofessional. I’m not sure how this place is still functioning.

I’ve been a patient at Spruce Street for six years. My main contacts have been with Dr Browne and Dr Ling.
The first thing that impressed me is that the office runs on time, or very close to it. Coming from a situation where the physician was an hour or more behind, this has really impressed me.
Another thing that really impresses me is that the physicians really make an effort to stay up to date. Several years ago I had a condition that was actually misdiagnosed by the emergency room of a local hospital. Dr Browne was stumped — very briefly. She figured out what needed to be done to address the condition and I quickly began to heal.
With the office running on time, one might wonder about feeling rushed. I never have. Both Dr Browne and Dr Ling have given me and a family member who transferred to their care all the time needed, including hand-​holding when that’s been needed (I’ve been through breast biopsies twice).
I like their emphasis on preventive care. They make sure I stay up to date with shots and, when an issue arose about a possible allergy, I was referred to a top-​notch allergist immediately. Because adult onset diabetes is an issue in my family, they make sure I’m followed with appropriate lab tests and exams of my feet and circulation.
One astonishing thing: my family member was not a patient at Spruce Street when first seen by Dr Ling. It was an emergency and the person’s regular doc wasn’t available. It turned out that he had an early case of shingles. Dr Ling immediately started him on an antibiotic (the clinic has a dispensary) and, to our complete astonishment, called a week later to check on the patient’s progress. We were flabbergasted, but we’ve found that both Dr Ling and Dr Browne are not afraid to pick up the phone, themselves, to deliver test results or to followup.
I’ve found the office staff to be friendly and helpful. They deal with insurance, which I appreciate, and Dr Browne’s medical tech is competent and genial.
Going to the doctor is one of my very least favorite things to do. In fact, I hate it. But Spruce Street minimizes the unpleasantness and I have the security of knowing that the doctors really are on top of things. I can’t imagine having to go elsewhere for my primary care.

I have had many primary care physicians in my time, but almost without exception, none of them ever EVER followed up with previous visits and followed through with any treated conditions.
I have been a patient with Dr. Ling of Spruce Street medicine for years now and she has been great. She is the only doctor to actually follow up with me and not act like I am a new patient every time.

I’ve been a patient at Spruce St for about 3 years now. I always see Kathryn Johnson, and the reason I continue to be a patient there is because of her. I actually despise Boulder, would do anything to avoid coming to Boulder, but I refuse to get my medical care anywhere else. Here’s why:
From my very 1^st appointment, I have found the office staff to be very friendly and helpful. The receptionist always greets me with a smile and when I was accidentally billed by their lab recently, Patty the Office Manager told me she would take care of it immediately, with no need for me to contact the lab directly. And she did. The medical assistants are always nice and I never feel put off or rushed, even though I tend to ask them a lot of questions and am probably taking up more of their time than I should.
Most importantly, Kathryn Johnson has been the best medical professional I have ever encountered. She answers all of my questions, as I am an internet self-​diagnoser, and gives me as much attention and time as I desire. I wanted to lose some weight and she helped me decide the best way for me. I’ve lost 50lbs and have been completely comfortable doing it because I got great information about my options. She has helped me in dealing with many other medical issues and has really earned my trust and my respect. In addition to being a knowledgeable and confidence-​inspiring PA, she always has a huge smile, kind words, and a hug. You know that feeling of being just another number? You won’t get it here. Not even a little.

As I was reading the review from Dustin G, I honestly had thought to myself «wait … did I write this?» While I think Dr Ling is a nice person, I prefer a doctor who isn’t going to run in, speak so quickly that I can’t understand her, and then run out again. I don’t even want to know how much she’s getting paid by my insurance, but I’m pretty sure I should be given more than 7 minutes of her time. She is probably over booked and working too hard, but I will definitely be going to a doctor that has time to listen to what’s going on.
And on another note, their receptionist is a truly difficult person. It may just be a poor way of handling stress, the poor dear constantly has a phone ringing somewhere, but I could not believe how rude she was to me and the others in the waiting room. Definitely not good for business and I hope she cheers up soon.
I’m currently looking for a new primary doctor

I do not recommend Spruce St Internal medicine at all. Every time I go there, the physician (I have seen Dr. Ling the most) acts extremely rushed and like I am a nuisance. When I went in to get the HPV vaccine, no one at the office informed me that it was a series of 3 shots. When I found out from friends and family that it was and went in to get my second shot, Spruce St ACCIDENTLY gave me the tetanus booster instead! Even though the nurse realized what she’d done right after I left, they waited until the NEXT DAY to call me and tell me their mistake. It’s disgraceful and unacceptable. Seeing that I only go to the dr once a year, I stupidly stayed with Spruce St. until recently when I moved to Portland. When I called Spruce St. to get a current prescription called into my new pharmacy they wanted to charge me $ 35 because the new pharmacy is out of state. RIDICULOUS. This place has made me angry every step of the way and I am only kicking myself for giving them as many chances as I did.

There are things I like about Spruce St Medicine, and things I really dislike. The worst part about them is their receptionist, I forgot her name, I think its Sandra, she is the rudest person I have encountered in Boulder. She thinks shes better than everyone and treats patients horribly. I am very seriously considering not going here anymore because of her alone. Dr. Browne has been very nice and helpful in my short time being her patient, but I have to say, the receptionist is so awful I do not think it’s worth it to go here.

I sort of feel bad giving this place 2 stars but after some thought this is probably what they should get.
Spruce Street Internal Medicine consists of 3 doctors and a P.A. and is located off of Spruce Street (who woulda thunk it).
I’ve been having this weird sort of abdominal problem for the last 6 months and have gone to this place 3 separate occasions to try and figure out what the hell is going on. First I went to Jaime the P.A. who was nice and courteous but after 2 visits and a CAT scan couldn’t give me any answers. I then went to Dr. Ling, who again couldn’t help me and prescribed me Celebrex for the pain, even though that is for joint pain and might be recalled soon. The Celebrex side-​effects were exponentially worse than the pain (NEVER TAKE CELEBREX) and now I am running low on pain reliever that works since she didn’t want to prescribe me Vicodin again. She was obviously in a hurry, and seemed as stumped as everyone else I’ve talked to.
It took the 2^nd visit for me to get pain-​reliever, and the third visit to get blood work. It’s not like I enjoy going to the doctor, so I’m really not sure what the hesitation was all about.
So now I’m left in the same spot I was 6 months ago: a mysterious illness which can only be helped by a heap-​load of Tylenol or 1 vicodin, and continues to be detrimental to my every day living. Except of course 650 dollars poorer due to the CAT scan and the useless meds.
I did go to Dr. Maiocco before who was more helpful.
In any case, my girlfriend turns out has a similar sort of problem. However, on her first visit to Dr. Jennifer Christenson she got blood work, several packs of lab-​stuff to check parasites and other abnormalities, some anti-​spasmodic and a referral to a specialist. This is what I should have gotten as well for my condition: why I didn’t I really can’t say.
I don’t think I will be going back.