Dr. Michael Bernaba

Dr. Bernaba was my mother’s nephrologist until recently. He took her off medication that was stabilizing her potassium levels, which then caused her to accumulate potassium in her blood, which is life threatening and scary to hear from a middle of the night phone call that you can die if you don’t get to the ER right away. The ER destabilized her with the same medicine he took her off of. Then 6 months later after she had been doing well, he took her off the medicine for the second time. There was no slowly taking her off and monitoring, just had her completely stop, and again she was high alerted to get into the ER ASAP so she doesn’t have a heart attack. My mom is in her mid-60s, lives alone, and is awaiting cataract surgery so she can’t see well, which is hard enough, and then to be told to rush to the ER to save your life — twice for the same medication error! Be careful if you choose this doctor and ask a lot of questions about treatment, the impact and side effects.

I switched from my WC nephrologist several months ago when my GP asked me if it had it been explained to me what was going on with my kidneys. Actually,no,not really! There was little communication with my original nephrologist. I switched to Dr Bernaba, and couldn’t be happier with my decision. He reviews test results in understandable language, is encouraging, and up to date on available treatments. I never feel rushed, he throughly answers my questions, and in general, I feel he is dedicated to his patients and his profession. If you are looking for a nephrologist, I highly recommend Dr Bernaba. Truthfully, this is the first Dr. I have ever recommended, but kidney disease can feel overwhelming , and it helps to have a physician who will help you understand these new uncharted waters in such a thorough manner.