I was told someone from the office would call to follow up on my negative review. No one bothered to reach out. This is the worst endo office I have ever experienced. You're just a number. Find a different endo. Any other office will take better care of your needs. read more

dr. karen is an excellent well-versed endocrinologist. she is affable, patient, explains issues throughly. i'm glad she's my doctor!

Dr. Karen Earle is your dream endocrinologist come true. I know because I was confronted with a thyroid issue this year for the first time, and Dr. Earle consistently guided me through a complex and lengthy process of diagnosis and testing, followed by successful surgery. My diagnosis: primary hyperparathyroidism, a condition regarding a calcium imbalance which I had literally never even heard of before! Dr. Earle combines superb medical skills and knowledge with a calm, empathetic communication style, putting me at ease and answering all my questions. She patiently accompanied me through a series of tests and scans to confirm the precise nature of my thyroid issue, supported me through the selection of a skilled surgeon to remove my problem thyroid gland, then through surgery and its aftermath. She responded in a timely manner to my queries via the My Chart app and her staff did their best to find room in her busy schedule for follow up visits. Peace of mind when dealing with these medical issues is worth its weight of in gold and by that measure Dr. Earle is precious indeed! Thank you Dr Earle and Sutter Health. read more

Dr. Earle is a wonderful doctor. She has a great bedside manner, is compassionate and knowledgable. Gloria, the diabetes educator, is also extremely helpful and knowledgable about technology. My current stress is finding a general practitioner that is in the same medical group as Dr. Earle so I won't loose her. read more

Dr. Karen Earle has been keeping my Type One Diabetes and progressed auto-immune dysfunction at bay, since 2007. In fact, she spoke with me today, taking enough time from her very busy schedule to contact me. She's a doctor who is a GEM. I recommend the entire staff at the CPMC Diabetes Clinic, and Endocrinology team. Did you know: Endocrinologists and other 'specialized' medical practitioners are paid less than primary care providers, who systematically avoid referrals through HMO, and me having had PPO since 2001? This are facts of damage against patient rights. Thankfully, I have Dr. Earle in my life, and I don't need jewellery. She's a GEM. read more

Update 8 years later - still seeing Dr. Earle and her amazing staff. Over the past decade she has been so good to me, and never once have I felt like she treated me poorly or given me bad advice. All these years she has been great to me - so much so that "not being able to see Dr. Earle anymore" has been on every single pros cons of moving somewhere far enough away that I would need to find new doctors and such things. read more

Terrible, inexcusable experience. If you look at my profile, I am not some axe grinding troller, this is the second bad review I had written out of hundreds. I am seeing here there are many others with this experience so I am hoping to relieve them before they get into the situation I and several other were in. Like some others, I contacted the office on nine separate occasions. I got some pretty alarming news from my GP and he wanted me to have some tests. Nothing, about four calls later I was told someone named Rowena was supposed to be calling me back. I kept hearing from the agents my situation was SO rare (however, looking at other reviews it is not rare at all). I got more and more upset, went back to my doctor, could they make another referral, asked to clarify paperwork, kept trying to get an answer. Ultimately I learned that Rowena was not who I am supposed to be hearing from but Alida who is some sort of office supervisor. I asked to leave a message for her and was put on hold an ETERNITY before speaking to... ROWENA, who was going to take the message for Alida. I said while I was pretty much a lost client because if the service is this terrible, the medical care can't be too great, but I would really like to know what happened. A week later, still no return call from Alida. At this point I just wanted to know what happened and I spoke to two different operators (Chalice and Rebecca) and I never got the impression the operators were just losing my messages. Something was happening further in. Chalice actually was able to tell me that my records has been reviewed and determine that I did not need to see an endocrinologist. Ok WEIRD because my doctor referred me to one so it should be a matter of WHY I don't need what my doctors says I need and then AT LEAST return my freakin call and communicate this to my doctor. The core product of any medical service is not just the expertise of the doctor. It is making the patient feel heard, treated and informed. Without that, the expertise of the practitioner is meaningless. read more

I was pretty disappointed with my visit. Dr. Earle is booked months in advance so I had to wait quite a while to see her. When I arrived to the consultation, she was running late so I had to wait another 40 minutes. When I was finally able to present her with my situation, I was amazed at how quickly she formed a diagnosis of my problem (pcos) and without even running any tests, wanted me to get on medication. The consultation couldn't have lasted more than 15 minutes. I felt very rushed and don't think she was thorough enough in evaluating my problem or explaining to me the implications of her diagnosis/prescription. VERY disappointing because having read the rave reviews, I was really looking forward to meeting a doctor that really listened to my concerns and addressed them appropriately. read more

Dr Earle used to be good, until her practice grew and turns over her patients to her PA. I am not paying DR fees for the advise and medication regulation from an assistant instead of the "Well Educated" Dr. She is not accessible to her patients and she is not aware of what her PA is doing by covering for the DR and taking up the slack where the Dr has slacked off. I have been listening to the PA re: my RX taking because the DR. is totally unavailable for an unacceptable time period. It is my body and I have to protect myself, therefore I am going to another Endocrinologist read more

This is a review for the office. Not for Dr. Earle. After much research, I called to schedule an appointment with Dr. Earle. Given that I recently moved from another state, I was informed that I must move all medical records and send a referral in to see Dr. Earle and schedule an appointment, earliest is April. After 3 weeks of moving all information, I receive a call to schedule my appointment. When I receive the call I am informed that I cannot see Dr. Earle, who is not accepting new patients. I then receive attitude from Brittney, stating that I am unable to schedule an appoitnment with Dr. Earle, but need to pick another doctor. She then quickly goes through 6 physician names and no information about them. I ask about the physicians specialties and then i was told, "well they all have a specialty. It is Endocrinology". Very disappointing and needless to say the research continues. read more

Karen Earle is the best doctor for diabetes...ever! She is smart and has a perfect bedside manner. I am very thankful that I found Dr. Earle after I had a stroke. She changed my life, and I highly recommend her to any diabetic. She is so fantastic that I just can't even put it into words. By the way, the person who gave her a negative review must be simply crazy. I would ignore that review entirely. read more

I would be lying if I told you that I wasn't scared. Sam, I am. Being told that the cause of all your wierd symptoms is an autoimmune disease called Grave's Disease is a wierd feeling in of itself. First having early onset of high blood pressure, palpitations, shortness of breath with exercise, like I'm an eighty year old is Super Fun! :P All the while, I'm hiking up a storm, climbing, scuba diving, swimming in the ocean, trekking through the jungle, dancing, and exercising my ass off, but only losing 5 pounds in a year. Then, in February, I lost 20 pounds in a month, had sudden muscle weakness, less tolerance for exercise, and having palpitations again. Also feeling super anxious all the time and not knowing why. Did I mention having hot flashes too??? Yep. Hot flashes at twenty-nine? My co-workers thought I was kidding and I just thought that it was the temp flux of the A/C in the building. FAIL. It's wierd when people say you look hot but you feel like a freak in February. Yeah, the weight is gone, but guess what? It took my muscle with it. I was having trouble walking down stairs.I needed help or I'd go down them backwards which looked really silly. I couldn't even open a jar of spaghetti without help. My eye bugging out was the last straw, as my co-workers started to point at it and I just thought they were nuts. All it took was one little blood test (TSH) to find out that I had hyperthyroidism and it was confirmed. I was referred to see Dr. Earle by my first primary Dr. Sherman. From my first meeting with her, she was warm, caring, concerned. She explained what the labs meant, what my treatment options were, and how we could go about it. She was empathetic and understood how frightening it is to have your body get all wacky, like it's some sick joke. I joke and say at least I'm not the hunchback of Notre Dame and I still have my large rack. My condition as she put it is in the acute stage, so aggressively she had me take medications to stop the thyroid from making more hormone. It was working at high doses as I recuperated and gained my strength back, but recently the BP meds aren't working as well. My weight is fluctuating, and the BP keeps going up. Dr. Earle has been with me the whole way and just yesterday, she emailed me to ask if the BP had gone down during the evening. She's referred me to an eye specialist who deals with Grave's Disease at UCSF, and she's consulted with my regular eye doctor before going ahead with some more permanent treatment options. I'm doing my best to make lemonade. I really am. It helps to have a few good docs helping to make the best of those lemons. :) read more

The 1 star goes to the ladies at the front desk. I have been trying to make an appointment with Dr Karen Earle, but despite several attempts I was unsuccessful. I wasted a lot of time and got frustrated with their lack of service; they were unprofessional and far from being client-centered. It is disappointing that they are part of Sutter Health as I have never experienced a similar situation with them. To make a long story short, after several phone calls and submitting all requested information, they refused to offer care. However, to my amazement, 3 months after my initial contact and 2 months after their refusal, I received a call from the office telling me that they have a referral for me and they want to proceed with my appointment!! Here is the outline for those interested in the details: I was referred to Dr Earle by my Ob/Gyn when I was looking for an Endocrinologist for my annual thyroid check up. I was initially discouraged by the yelp reviews but I decided to proceed anyway, after also consulting the Consumer's Checkbook. Mid of December: I contacted the office asking for an appointment. They asked for paperwork (referral, previous exams and primary physician reports) before deciding to accept me or not. The referral stated that the appointment needs to be done within a month but they would not commit unless it was an emergency. I sent the documents and waited for a phone call, as instructed. End of December: I never received a call, so I contacted them again. They said they had received my paperwork but they were not happy with the wording of my referral, so I should provide a new one. It would have been more professional to let me know as soon as they decided there was a problem. I then emailed my provider and she made it available electronically (they are both on the same health network - Sutter Health). Beginning of January: Still no contact, so I called Dr Earle's office again! The lady on the phone told me that they could see the new referral but again they were not happy with it. She did not seem very interested in answering my questions about the problem, so I had my physician send the referral for the third time. It was done via fax the next day. Mid of January: Another week passed without contact, so I called and they said "We don't accept new patients from your insurance". When I replied that somebody should have let me know, she said "I am not sure who was supposed to call you." They were aware of my insurance provider, Blue Shield, since the very beginning (December.) In January, Blue Shield and Sutter announced a 6-month extension to their contract, while negotiating new terms. Maybe they somehow got confused, despite the numerous announcements on the matter from both Sutter and Blue Shield. In the end, it all boils down to a dysfunctional front desk. Being misinformed about the agreements with Blue Shield, their inability to follow through with my case, and the 3 month delay to finally call me were all very disappointing! read more

Best endocrinologist I've seen. She's knowledgable and treats each patient 's unique requirements. Nice front office staff. Dr Earle always takes her time with me. To Maria M, Type 1 diabetes is a complex disease to treat. Yes, we are lucky it's treatable. To suggest that effective treatment of diabetic patients only requires knowledge of what "brand" of insulin to use demonstrates your ignorance about the disease. I am sorry you have such a debilitating illness that took so long to diagnose, that must be devastating. I will keep you in my prayers. read more

Hi Everyone, Dr. Earle is fantastic! She is not only very smart and thorough, but also extremely nice and approachable. I have found her to be very responsive. Availablity in her clinic can be tough, but since I do not have a "serious" disorder, I have never requested unusual or expedited access to her. I am sure that she can make time when necessary to see urgent care patients. read more

I really like Dr. Earle - in my experience she's responsive, open to suggestion (I'm a medical writer/editor, so have the associated hypochondriacal tendencies), and overall has a great bedside manner. I've seen her for my hypothyroidism for over 2 years, and she has been the most open of many specialists I've seen to my input and direction wrt how I'm feeling/responding to therapy and next steps. My only criticism is her office administration/mgt - there were a few mishaps (scheduling, lost file/test results, etc) over at the Clay St/CPMC location, and it took several phone calls/attempts to make an appt at her new location. Dr. Earle herself, however, is great - and she handles criticism/feedback well, so overall I highly recommend her. read more

Update on this doctor: she only will be great for you if you go to her with obvious, easy-to-diagnose problem. She smiles a lot and LOOKS compassionate. I have been just diagnosed with peripheral tissue resistance to thyroid hormones. I have advanced myxedema, with my hair almost gone, deformed face, unable to work or walk or draw or enjoy life in any form, and am completely debilitated due to doctors like her. She spent a year keeping me on a drug that only aggravated my symptoms, adamantly refused to contact any specialists who are familiar with my condition, refused to read ANY research on the subject (oh, sorry, she did read a page once, and it was about the WRONG illness.....) All I wanted to do is to have serious doctor who would have serious testing done and who would feel that a patient is suffering, and take measures if taking control is impossible. She kept telling me how yes, I am getting worse, but I should just keep staying on the same dose, refused to investigate any of my suggestions entirely, about testing or a different therapies which are available, and after me breaking down in tears in her office refused me services, plus made me starve for a prolonged period of time (punished me by refusing to fill out my disability papers which she had no problem doing before). There is a difference between bedside manner and actual knowledge, and a shame that ignorance goes hand in hand with utter resistance to further learning. General knowledge of Graves (I could diagnose that) or what insulin brand to prescribe doesn't make you exceptional doctor at all, but add a charming smile, a few medical jargon terms here and there, and an "expression" of concern on her face-and bam, you got you Department Chair. read more

I want to thank Dr. Earle and her staff for helping me with my wretched thyroid issues. Over these three very long and emotionally jarring years I have come to realize what a caring and excellent doctor she is. Even if my insurance changed, I would still try to see Dr. Earle. read more

Wrote this review awhile ago... not sure why Yelp filtered it. Anyway, everything I said still applies... really, really like this doc. Super down-to-earth and really takes her time to listen to my issues. read more

I'm sure it was through Dr. Karen Earle's guidance that I am alive today. I went into CPMC unconcious witha blood sugar of a STAGGERING--get ready--measurement of 1,717. Normal is, of course, 100. I set a hospital record I'm told. Good thing I got to CPMC when I did. Much longer and I'd have been a GONER! Dr. Earle was kind enough to seek me out when she heard about my case. She said she would like to help me. When she entered my hospital room there was an aura around her because the diabetes had affected my vision and everything looked hazy. Today, I'm inclined to think it was the aura of an Angel, heaven sent to me. She said we could fight this disease together and she would love to help me. I was greatly impressed that she took her time to seek me out and I gladly accepted her help. If I ever needed assuarances about my health prospects, then was it-- and I gladly acccepted. That turned out to be the wisest decision I could ever have made. I had to learn to inject myself with insulin right away. I was horrified, especially since it would be a four times a day thing, but I mastered it on the first try. I eliminated sugar from my diet, changed how I ate, lost weight and did everything Dr. Earle told me to do--never missing. Eventually I improved and graduated to the Flexpin, then to pills, then to nothing for diabetes anymore. I control my diet and my blood sugar is normal. And folks, PLEASE, PLEASE-- if you are unsure about how all this diabetes stuff affects you or works, for goodness sakes, take the free classes and educate yourselves. I did at CPMC at Dr. Earle's request and I learned a lot--starting with "test your blood regularly even if you feel fine." Thanks to Dr. Karen Earle, I do feel just great. She calls me her walking miracle boy. I LOVE it and I am. I LOVE her, too. (Kudos to her friendly staff as well and CORY!) They are SF'S finest team for any diabetic. read more