Lynette W Tsai, MD

Dr Tsai has been my OB/​GYN since 2012 when i found out that i was pregnant with my first child. I was with another OB and i didn’t really click with her. Being that the Dr is going to be the one bringing my child into the world i figure i should probably feel comfy with this person. So i found Dr Tsai.
Being that i am a nurse in a reproductive endocrine and infertility clinic i am very well aware of the ins and outs of an office and proper bedside manner. Dr Tsai has it all. She is a pretty busy woman and for good reason. She really takes care of her patients and always takes time to answer any questions no matter how long that may be. She is always so peppy, smiley, and happy, which i love. You know that she is there for her patients and wants nothing but the best for them. Without her being my coach through my first birth i don’t know if i could have done it without her (sorry to my boyfriend). He was also such a big help however she focused me and guided me through an extremely painful birth experience as my epidural didn’t work!!! She calmed me through my grunting, yelling, and profanities (yes i was that person). Dr Tsai is amazing.
Yes its true that the staff isn’t always genki, but for me im not there for them i am there to see the Dr, and that makes every visit worth it. Although i have to say every time i have been there i have always been greeted maybe not necessarily with a smile constantly but i have been greeted. And the girls who take me to do my vitals are always pleasant and sweet :) Dr Pangilinan and her Nurse Practitioner are super kind and nice as well. I recommend Dr Tsai she is simply amazing and always puts her patients first !

Dr Tsai and Michelle are very nice. They smiled, and explained a lot. But the reception was not that nice. The face was not welcome, and didn’t say anything to you. Such as hello, have a seat or thank you. I guess she must very stress.

I am not a new patient. I wasn’t impressed my first visit but thought I should keep an open mind and let them redeem themselves this next visit. Here’s what happened:
I received 3 — 4 phone calls about needing to change my annually scheduled appointment in the few months prior to my actual appointment. Being a working professional it is hard to take time off work, commute to the Dr. office, pay for parking and fight traffic to get back to work in between high importance clients. So I had to tell my boss each time that the scheduled appointment has changed. Not to mention re-​schedule with clients. One of the phone calls from this Dr. office literally told me the Dr. wanted spring break off and so I needed to be rescheduled. (My Dr. is very young) Ok so after all this I thought I just needed to be understanding and flexible.
Today I took time off of work to come down and when I entered the lobby (yes where you take your shoes off and put on gross fuzzy slippers), I was not even greeted. The girls behind the desk were laughing and talking amongst themselves. It felt like I was the weird pledge walking into a sorority or something. Again, time is money I need to get back to work!
Finally I walked to the counter and the receptionist told me I am not scheduled today… ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? I told her they changed the appointment many times and this is the last scheduled time I was given, verbally over the phone. Instead of oh I don’t know pretending to at least care, she put both arms up and said «I didn’t reschedule you» with a blank face. OK lady but the office you are employed by did! I let her know it wasn’t personal but to try and understand my situation. Now, missing work, paying for parking and putting clients off has been for nothing. She was so uninterested in my problem and did absolutely nothing to make an effort to remedy it. I told her to take my name off the list and that I’d find a professional M. D!
I won’t keep going on and on but basically this place is unprofessional, unorganized, and uneducated in basic customer service. When your gyno feels like a sorority house, RUN!!!

I have had several OB’s through the years, but I can feel her passion for this work. She knows her stuff, expert, to-​the-​point, personable, gives some good advice and resources. She even sat down with me and my husband about getting started on family when I was 38… she is bubbly yet serious, and overall, I trust her guidance. I’ve always felt she is accessible, as some doctors are not always that easy to reach or connect with. Besides, my husband is also a tough cookie to impress, but he trusts her judgment, too. Office is calming, I haven’t stuck with one OB for this long. SHE’S GOT IT. I highly recommend Dr. Tsai. Office easy to find near downtown at the Kukui Plaza Mall.

The people at the reception in downtown office are so rude!!! It was my first time to ask a question to the other staff and this other staff raised her voice at me. I hope they learn their manners even if they are under stress. Mililani staffs are way better and more friendly

Just gonna state the fact’s not going to include the drama. However if drama is your passion… this is the place for you!
My wife and I previously had searched for a new OBGYN. In fact read the previous good reviews here on Unilocal.
Based on first impressions with Dr. Pangilinan. This would still be my wife’s choice for OBGYN.
Staff and Dr. Tsai Included can be abrupt.
Perhaps to the extent of unprofessional. Coming from a medical service care provider. I would deem this unacceptable.
Remember this is someone bringing a new life into this world. And perhaps detecting or removing a part of your feminine existence.

Dr. Tsai and Dr. Pangilinan are awesome! The staff there are awesome! Very thorough. The office is a very relaxing environment. I’m not sure what’s with some of these negative reviews. If you’re going for a pap smear, of course you take off all your clothing down there. That’s just common sense. And if you’re a new patient, it’s common sense that you should come in earlier than your appointment time to fill out paperwork. And if you’re not sure about something, just ask! Is it really that hard? This office doesn’t deserve these poor ratings. It’s all a matter of common sense and perspective. We’re all adults here. Let’s communicate like adults.

She has so much positive energy and is always very helpful at addressing concerns. Her office has a very zen kind of theme to it. With foodnetwork alwayssss on lol. Next baby I will definitely go to dr. Tsai again

I wish there was a zero star option. Horrible postpartum care. Overlooked some things with me and I had to address it a month later because her nurse Shirley kept shrugging me off when I called (she sucks too!). It’s not about how nice, friendly, or sweet a doctor is or the fact that Dr. Tsai tried to give an impression that she is experienced due to multiple kids she has. It’s about a doctor taking pride in their work and not overlook anything. She’s not a doctor who takes pride (rushed through my delivery). She’s a money making doctor. No bueno!

I’ve been in search of new doctors on the island for one year now. It has been very difficult to get appointments with any doctors– good or bad ratings aside.
When I finally got a hold of Dr. Tsai’s office, I was so excited to finally have an appointment! I had questions I wanted to ask, and most importantly, I needed an annual exam done for the first time.
The location is odd off of S. Beretania St. I feel that the center this office is located in could use a face-​lift. It’s un-​inviting.
What’s even more uninviting though, is having to take your shoes OFF in a doctors office. Do you know how many people where slippahs on the island? Oh that’s a stupid ass question… you already know. SO, by having to take my shoes off, I am BAREfooted! SAY WHAT? Yuck, yuck, yuck, yuck.
Alright, so I take a deep breath as I walk up to the window, «Hi…I have an appointment at 2:30 PM.» The elder asian woman looks at me and with a snap says, «You need to wait a minute.»
Uhhhh, OK. I stood there for a couple minutes and then she asked for my ID and insurance card. In exchange, she hands me forms to fill out.
As I am filling out the first page of the form, a medical assistant calls me name. I look up and notion that I’ll bring my papers in with me if they’d like and she tells me to just finish and they can call me again after.
GREAT, the hold up at the front is now causing a delay in my visit.
15 minutes later and I get called back up. As I am walking to the back with the med assistant, she doesn’t say a word to me. When I sit down in the room, she butchers my name a second time and this time I correct. She ignores my correction and grabs my arm. She doesn’t even say what’s going on although I know it’s a simple blood pressure test.
As my blood is pumping hard from irritation, I look up to see a poster of pictures. The pictures are of Dr. Tsai and her kids. The whole hallway down to the room was filled with pictures of her kids and their artwork. It’s a bit much.
I am taken to another room by the very rude assistant where she tells me, «Take your pants off and put that over you.» I’m sorry. what? Take the underwear off too? Cover myself with what? I don’t see anything I can cover myself with… She retorts with an eye roll, «Yeah your bottoms and unfold that.» All I can think is, I WANT TO PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE!
Moving on, Dr. Pangilian finally comes in. She’s young and spunky and her helping hand is super sweet! The two of them combined were a great duo. Despite being a great duo though, Dr. Pangilian didn’t answer all of my questions throughly and instead of advising me about new birth control methods she just said to stick with what I had if it was working. It works but I don’t remember to take the pill everyday like I should so it doesn’t work. Does this make sense?
The rest of the exam was fine, it was brief.
Are you still with me here? The rest of this story gets even more aggravating. I walk out of the room, with my pants on of course, and back head up to the counter. I get my insurance card back and I ask what I owe. I am told that I owe nothing unless I know my copay. Well, I do not know my copay because my plan is ⁸⁵⁄₁₅. So you tell me what 15% of this visit is so I can pay that amount. She says I need to pay a copay… I am confused. I ask if she called CIGNA to clarify this. She did not. I tell her I can. She says NO. I ask if I can call and come back to pay. She says I don’t have to pay. I ask her if she is going to bill me, she says they don’t bill and that I have to pay there.
WTF LADY?! Just tell me what you want from me.
She says that they don’t bill but I don’t have to pay right now. How is this not confusing? I ask her if my prescription will be available for pick-​up soon. I confirm the pharmacy address and the prescription.
DONE, good bye.
Waiiiiit…the story is not over. I go to the pharmacy and GUESS what? My prescription is WRONG! I blame this on Dr. Pangilian and the front desk. Why? Because I told Dr. Pangilian that I had a generic birth control and I knew that the office and pharmacy wouldn’t carry the exact brand so I needed the equivalent. Dr. Pangilian said she would look it up before submitting the request but she didn’t. And despite me making the change and confirming the medication at the front desk before I left, it was still wrong.
Do you know how much damn time this office has wasted me?
The only reason there is even ONE star is for Michael. Michael is the office manager and although I did not meet him in person, I spoke to him on the phone multiple times. He has exceptional professionalism and concern. He is what real customer service is all about. Michael is not enough to give this entire office a 5 star rating though. Sorry, Michael if you are reading this! You get 5 stars alone though :)
I wanted this all to work out for me but I would NOT recommend this office what-​so-​ever.

I love Dr Tsai! She’s been my doctor for about 6 years, she’s delivered two of my girls! Although she is very busy with so many patients, she’s very friendly and makes me feel very comfortable. Never felt rushed through my appointment. Her staff is also great, they know what they are doing and very nice. The waiting room is very relaxing, lights aren’t bright and blinding which is good, chairs are comfortable and she had tv and lots of reading material. I would recommend her to anyone who is looking for a dr. ;)

Dr Tsai is a lovely person but her husband (that guy who sits out front) is insanely rude and unethical. His bedside manner makes me question why he’s in the medical field — even if he is in the periphery. He certainly should not be in a place for women with the way he treats patients and staff. He is frighteningly cruel. I think Dr Tsai is great but I could never go there after being insulted and demeaned by that man in her office or watch him do the same to other women.

I had an extremely horrifying experience at this office. I was accused of not paying (when I had never received any bills, even when I had asked about payment for my visits) and I was yelled at for not having cash to pay my bill with (they charge more when using credit card). All in all, I left the office feeling like a victim of verbal abuse, when I had just gone in for an annual. NEVER going back there! No one should have to be irrationally yelled at when visiting a healthcare facility!!!

BEWARE IF THIS DOCTOR! Dr. Tsai only seems to care about the $$ you bring to her practice. She will charge you for every little thing, especially for copies of your medical records (if you need them sent anywhere, expect an additional charge also) or if she sees that you didn’t have a primary care check-​up she will send you to get an unnecessary $ blood draw (I didn’t understand why, and she didnt take the time to explain it, but I listened to her and did it in 2010).
My background: I have been going to her since I was about 15 (I’m in my 30s now) where she has since moved from Kapiolani Medical Ctr./Queens Medical Ctr., to her current location in Kukui Plaza (2007). I can remember numerous times at the Queens location that I had waited up to an hour and a half+ on the examination table to see her (pretty much naked/​bottomless listening to the noisy elevators go up and down). She has since gotten better at her Kukui location but it was still a wait. Her new office is nice but prepare to take off your shoes for some gross house slippers.
Her receptionist, is EXTREMELY rude. I got in to an altercation with her receptionist once, I believe over for some type of a prescription problem. The receptionist was quick to place blame elsewhere for a simple miscommunication that she could have prevented.
Before I finally decided to leave Dr. Tsai’s care I felt that I should discuss with her the problems that I had been having with her and her staff. She said she understood but responded with nothing but excuses… All things that I felt like I’ve heard from her in previous years when issues arose.
I have been gone for about 2 years and I’m glad that I have left her care.

THANK YOU THANK YOU Dr. Tsai for helping me with my problem. It’s finally resolved and it took all these years and no other doctor could help me or has helped but did not pursue to go any further.
Thank you again!!!

She has been my OB since I was 12 years old. We’ve been through 3 kids together both on her end and mine. I wouldn’t leave her for anyone else. I also love her newly renovated office.
I recently gave birth to my 3^rd child all by myself in the hospital (my husband was away for work) and she made me feel comfortable plus she was the best coach I’ve had. She’s a petite doctor but when it’s time to push, she’s an aggressive, supportive coach. Don’t underestimate the way Doctor Tsai looks, she’s actually a very tough woman. She’s on my super mom list!
The receptionist can be very cold at times, maybe because they’re busy or stressed
But don’t let it phase you. I love Shirley, she’s my favorite. She’s most responsive with a very pleasing personality. Like I said, I’ve been with Dr. Tsai for over 10 years, I have watched her practice grow.

Tsai is a super busy OB with two different practices (Mililani and downtown). I transferred to her after my first OB and I kind of wish I didn’t. I rarely see her and her staff can be a bit short and rude. Don’t walk into there asking questions or asking for other options bc they won’t give it to you.

The receptionist was so terribly rude! She talked down on me, and made me feel stupid for simply asking a question. I am turned off by this office and in search of a new potential OB. Although I’ve heard great reviews on Dr. Tsai, I really don’t want to have to deal with a rude receptionist every time I have an appt.

My doctor retired from practice and transferred all of her patients to Dr. Tsai. I went for my first exam, expecting great things from the reviews here. Unfortunately, in my case, I’m not able to review Dr. Tsai, but her office in general and her nurse, who gave me my exam. I’ve never paid to see a doctor, and then only spoken to their staff. This was a first for me. I usually get to speak to the doctor… I wish someone had told me I would not be seeing Dr. Tsai when I made my appointment.
Their downtown office was indeed nice, and the staff was friendly, but I didn’t get to speak to Dr. Tsai other than her waving Hello to me in the hallway. I was asked if I had any questions or concerns before my examination. I said I wanted to ask about my medical history of endometriosis, and some things my physician said to me last year. (I had surgery in 2008, and was diagnosed with a severe case). I wanted to know Dr. Tsai’s take on it.
Instead of Dr. Tsai, her RN performed my examination. She also attempted to answer my questions. I’d mentioned to her it started hurting recently, and that the surgeon told me back in 2008 I’d probably need multiple surgeries due to the severity of my case. She told me not to worry about endometriosis, take NSAIDs for pain, and that if I have pain and want another examination to make another appointment.
If I had a clean medical history, I think I wouldn’t be worried, but with a family history of ovarian cancer, and the caution my previous physician exercised, this visit set me ill at ease.
I paid $ 45 for a copy of my 55-​page medical records so I could transfer over to a new doctor.
This was not an easy review to write, but for any women out there in my situation, I wanted to post this review.

Just had my baby two weeks ago with Dr. Tsai and I’m still excited she’s my OB! Honestly I was worried when she told me that her husband (aka the kids’ babysitter) was out of town and she may or may not be able to be there to deliver my baby. However she was able to con her aunty into watching her kiddos so that she could deliver my baby. She was in constant contact with the hospital staff so she could come down and help out with the final stages of my labor and to stich me up after when I tore :(. The followup appointment after my pregnancy was helpful because she was able to give us some good baby and breastfeeding advice. I’m glad she’s a parent too so she can explain things from her perspective.
PS. She threatened me enough so I didn’t have to have a dreaded C-​section… believe me it was for the best :).