Gretchen E. Makai, MD

"Do not recommend. The hospital is closer to home for me than St Francis, but I will go to St Francis or anywhere else from now on for any medical treatment going forward, even if I have to cross state lines and go into NJ or PA. In fact, I had a better experience having painful fibroids removed years ago at St Francis than I did having a hysterectomy here at Christiana. You ask for help navigating something they offer help for, then they don’t, get a frustrated attitude with you, start berating you and accuse you of something shady when you're just trying to get through a process you don’t understand and are making honest mistakes with. I’ve never done this before, so please talk to me like a human being and explain things and help me understand how it works instead of assuming horrible things about someone you don’t even know and is going through a lot, including recovering from a surgery. Isn’t it your job to be compassionate and help, especially if someone doesn’t know or is unfamiliar with a process? It’s also very hard to get a hold of someone, you have to leave messages all the time, wait for responses (which you can miss), turning into a back and forth game of phone tag, so a process gets dragged out longer than it needs to be. Refuse to help you get a Dr’s note if you feel you need one and ask for one (which would’ve avoided all this in the first place), insist on FMLA paperwork even if you don’t qualify. If you show up in person with any paperwork to try to speed the process along, they treat you like a bother. If you make an honest mistake with the paperwork, you get berated. Front desk reception not friendly or welcoming. Just make you feel terrible and like you’re a problem and annoyance. I‘m so hurt, it feels like a punch in the gut, and I don’t know what to do with these feelings. I stopped trying to trust them for help because I don’t feel safe talking to them. If you paid me to or offered services for free, I will not return, not even for follow ups post surgery. I’m better off taking chances on my own without the horrible treatment, thank you. After I cancelled my first follow up following this treatment, I got a voicemail left by them on my phone. Too scared to listen to it because I didn’t know what to expect and how I would be talked to, I deleted it. I suffer from general anxiety, social anxiety and fear and growing lack of trust in people, and cptsd from people earlier in life, including my family, and this doesn’t help, just makes it worse. Side note: The surgery center at St Francis was better run and a better experience than Christiana. At St Francis, they let your husband be with you while you wait right before surgery, not Christiana. St Francis puts you on a gurney under a nice comfy warm blanket while you wait with your loved one for support, then wheel you away from your husband and into a ready room right before surgery, where they administer anesthesia and wait for you to fall out before wheeling you into the surgery room. You will never see the surgery room. Christiana makes you walk yourself into the surgery room in your gown following a nurse, and you have to prop yourself onto the surgery table, with your gown being opened with you still conscious before you fall out from the anesthesia. If you want to experience extra fear, anxiety, intimidation, and humiliation right before surgery, go to Christiana for surgery."

"Dr Macai listens, taking time with you, has all professionalism that you can possibly ask for ( and I’m picky) , cheering you up and making you feel so sure that you are in a good kind hands. She also doesn’t have a $$ sign in her eyes."

"Dr. Makai is patient, personable, and makes you feel at ease. I appreciated the way she explained everything and found her assistant to be just as kind and knowledgeable."

"Dr. Makai is an amazing doctor and surgeon. A few years ago, I received a diagnosis and needed surgery. Dr. Makai spent so much time going over everything with me before surgery. I never felt rushed. I felt safe with her. The surgery went well and she fixed the problem I was having 100%. I highly recommend her to my loved ones and always say she is one of the best doctors I have met in my life. I am forever grateful that she is the one who did my surgery and was able to help me."

"Dr. Makai performed a needed surgery on me. At each visit she was very professional and exhibited a warmth that help to calm the nerves due to the impending surgery. During surgery she ran into an unexpected hiccup but handled it like a pro. Never would I expect to have such a serious surgery and heal without the slightest hint of pain during my recovery. In my book she rocks and I would definitely refer my own daughters or granddaughters to her for care. Her office staff are also very nice and attentive. Thank you Dr. Makai, you've restored my faith in physicians."