Robert Minkowsky, MD

I love Dr Minkowski — he is the epitome of optimism, something anyone dealing with back issues needs in massive doses. His program of care for my back helped me progress from regular, debilitating spasms to a stable platform upon which I could build.
Over the course of a year+ he helped me identify all of the behaviors I had that would put my back at peril. He helped alter my awareness of body so that I could head off potentially destructive behavior before it did serious damage. I’m stubborn, and used to healing quickly. Dr Minkowski helped me negotiate a long-​term injury that has been as stubborn as I am.
If you have a recent back injury or a chronic back injury, Dr Minkowski can help you get on the road to recovery. Provided you are willing to put in the work.

I saw this doctor many years ago for a painful neck injury. Unlike the other doctors I had seen previously Dr. Robert Minkowsky actually helped me quite a bit and I made some good progress under his care.
The problem? I was a personal Injury case, and the insurance carrier was being so unreasonable that my attorney and I were planning to go to trial. While all three of us were on the phone together, my attorney told Dr. Minkowsky that we would need him to testify for me, since he was my treating doctor. His response was that he wouldn’t do it, and that if we forced him to do so, he would tell the court that there was «nothing wrong» with me.
I think if you hate testifying in court that much, then as a doctor you should be ethically bound to refuse personal injury and/​or worker’s comp patients, or at least inform them that they cannot count on you to back them up if they need you in court.
As I said this all took place many years ago, but if anyone reading this is in a legal situation, you would be well advised to verify whether Dr. Minkowsky has changed his position on courtroom appearances.

I was diagnosed with TOS (thoracic outlet syndrome) about 12 months ago. I had seen countless doctors and therapists. All made slight improvements though with no lasting impact. I then met Dr Minkowsky. I had high hopes he could help me though was also cautious. He took a very gentle and common sense approach. He was well encouraging of alternative therapists to help (and which to avoid). His approach has finally made consistant improvements. He is a great doctor.

I couldn’t agree more with what everyone has written about this practice & Dr Robert in particular. I had scoliosis as a child, was in a bad car accident in college and have since been diagnosed as having several herniated & bulging discs, degenerative disc disease and spinal stenosis… basically, one of the worst backs you can have! I have been to every single kind of doctor you can imagine — many who took years to figure my back out — and Dr M ‘got’ it on first visit and provided relief.
He is very very very knowledgeable!

Dr. Minkowski is a wonderful man and superb physician. It has been a number of years since I have been under his regular care but I have been meaning to write a review for some time. His compassion, dedication, and medical expertise most certainly changed the trajectory of my life. When I first went to see him with a severe bilateral repetitive strain injury, frozen shoulder, and lower back issue, I was completely immobilized and unable to work. Despite seeing a number of doctors and rehabilitation practitioners, I was making little progress and was told I may never heal beyond where I was. Luckily, I was referred to Dr. Minkowski and my life changed. He offered an amazing balance between (incredibly powerful) hands on therapy and patient education. He taught me the exercises I needed to strengthen my body in a holistic way. He understands that many injuries do not respond, heal, and sustain from the «quick fix». He spent the time necessary to teach me how to take responsibility for creating healthy patterns that support the body to heal and strengthen. Years later, I am still guided and benefiting from his advice and expertise. He is respectful, kind and compassionate, has a wonderful sense of humor, and is wonderfully positive. He believes in the ability of the body to heal given the right modalities and personal commitment. It is rare to come across a doctor who is so knowledgeable, so kind, and so committed to his patients. He truly, truly cares. He was a gift to my life.

I appreciate and have benefited from Dr. Minkowsky’s systems approach to his medical practice. I have been a patient of his for 4 years and have made dramatic improvement to my overall health by following his advice and guidance. I seeked his help for osteoarthritis of both shoulders and lower back problems. Note, he does expect you to take responsibility for turning medical advise into action.

I found Dr. Minkowsky on Unilocal; going to see him inspired me to write my first Unilocal review.
I was seen immediately, Dr. Minkowsky took time to understand all my issues (hurt knee & shoulder), performed a thorough examination, and was very helpful in recommending treatments and exercises to avoid future issues. He was patient, thoughtful, and friendly.
Highly recommended!

Went to see Dr. Minkowsky a couple years ago with lower back problems.
He did an excellent job of diagnosis and gave me exercises to do, which have helped me enough that I haven’t been back to see him again. That’s the best recommendation I can think of!
His staff was very nice and helpful with a strange insurance problem.

First off, let me say that I’ve spent the past four years studying allopathic medicine. And I have a terrific back specialist and wonderful PT to boot. I’ve been in totally competent hands, able to maintain minimum day to day function with 2 PT visits a week and the occasional epidural. But unable to extricate myself from some oppressive back pain that prevented me from doing almost anything fun or productive for over a year. I couldn’t sit, couldn’t lift, couldn’t swim… The back surgeon was telling me I could never go backpacking again and shouldn’t get pregnant or might be faced with months of intense pain. Read degenerative disk disease, multiple previous blown disks, bone spurs and joint space narrowing. All that. Then I saw Dr. Minkowsky. 3 visits later, I was virtually all better. His techniques were able to do what multiple therapists, doctors, surgeons, and drugs had not. And in about 15 minutes. And covered by my insurance. Sure, I have to keep doing the exercises and not have crappy posture or poor lifting technique. But so glad I found this great practitioner before turning to surgery or more medications. So worth the drive to SF from the East Bay. And there is street parking. And they are nice and on time every time. And I went on an 8 day backpack trip this past summer. I do miss my PT’s entertaining stories… but not that much.

This review is long overdue. I have been seeing Dr. Robert Minkowsky for over two years now. I have scoliosis in my thoracic spine that has been the source of ongoing difficulty for years. I saw chiropractors and did yoga and nothing helped in the long run — I would hit a plateau and not move beyond it. I have been amazed at how Dr. Minkowsky has helped improve function.
I was able to start running again after three year within a few months of starting treatment. The «skin rolling» while not pleasant has broken up the adhesions that were the cause of so much of my problems. Rather than making me more dependent on treatment (chiropractors) he has worked to get me into PT to build strength and to reduce my need for ongoing care. The only reason I am still a regular after almost 2 years is that just as I was going less often I was in a head on car collision and suffered soft tissue damage that set me back to worse than my first visit in 2009 — BUT after just 6 months of weekly treatment and PT I am MUCH better and starting to return to regular activity levels.
Beyond the physical help — both doctors have amazing bedside manner and are dedicated to patient care. My husband saw Dr. Minkowsky following being hit by a car and would not be walking today if not for the ongoing support and treatment he has had there. I cannot recommend them highly enough for back and orthopedic issues. My husband had a massive infection in the spine and was told he would likely never function as he did before — he was even told walking would always be painful — Dr. Minkowsky took a different view and worked with my husband to build a path to recovery. There is still a ways to go (body against car is hardly a fair contest) but the progress has been beyond what other doctors told us was possible and the care has been positive and supportive.
I would give 10 stars if I could!

Great doctor that provides personal service. I have never had a doctor that actually took the time to listen to me without being hurried. He even wrote a personalized exercise regimen to help me improve my symptoms. I highly recommend this office to anyone who has back problems.

I have been seeing Dr. Robert Minkowsky for almost 22 years. I have degenerative disk disease and spinal stenosis and he has kept me moving, functioning and able to live a relatively normal life. I used to see him every 6 mos to 1 year but have been stable for a bit and haven’t seen him for more than 2 years until today and he took almost an hour with me.
I was reminded once again what an excellent and compassionate physician he is. He’s patient, caring, gentle, persistent and dedicated. His multi-​discipline approach tackles spine problems from all angles. He’s open to trying numerous approaches-he’s very «hands on» and will only result to recommending surgery when all else fails. He works with you as a partner and helps empower you to take responsibility and work hard with home exercise, PT and other therapies.
He is a true healer and I’d literally walk the 20 miles from my house to SF to see him if necessary. I just cannot say enough positive things about this wonderful man –I’ve never encountered another physician like him in my 60+ years.
I’ve also seen his wife, Irene, on a few occasions and she’s every bit as wonderful as he as are their efficient, compassionate and caring staff. I cannot recommend their practice highly enough!
DH

If you have a back problem go to see this man.
I have had a continues problem with my mid back
for 15 years this man did more for me in forty minutes
than all the other doctors l have seen.
If you follow his advice you will not regret it.

Doctors Robert and Irene Minkowsky helped me recover quickly from an Achilles injury using the cold laser treatment therapy in their office. I was in a dire situation — I’m an ultrarunner and Achilles problems are a common overuse injury in my sport. My big race was 3 weeks away and I was not able to walk on my left foot. They saw me 2 – 3 times a week for two weeks, and with a series of painless cold-​laser treatments and mildly-​uncomfortable-​but-​not-​unbearable massages, the problem went away immediately — and, most importantly, has not returned. They even gave me a book called «Peak Performance» and some helpful articles! My race went great and the Achilles has not given me any problems since. These doctors are now part of my expert team of medical advisors. I am fortunate to have met them. They are 100% committed to my running, winning, and living a long and healthy life with all my limbs intact.

After suffering an acute herniation of a lumbar disc I was referred to Dr. Minkowsky following a nightmarish experience at my (now former) internist’s office. Dr. Minkowsky is a wonderful doctor and a compassionate man. He immediately made me feel comfortable, physically and emotionally and treated me with respect and dignity and has been providing me with the highest quality of care. He takes his time to explain all the options, answers questions thoroughly and never makes me feel that I am wasting his time or keeping him from other patients, paperwork etc. I’m only 30 and wish that I was not having back problems at all, but since I have no control over that I am at least glad that it’s still possible to get truly compassionate and responsible care from a physician and I am incredibly grateful to Dr. MInkowsky. And as if it wasn’t enough that he is a wonderful man and competent doctor, his office is also well-​run, ON TIME! and adorable. And his wife is in the practice as well providing physical therapy so it could be one stop medical shopping if that’s what you need. Can’t say enough good things about Dr. Minkowsky…

Dr. Minkowsky is the best doctor I have ever been to. I had hurt my shoulder, neck and wrists by typing for 8 – 12 hours a day. I was at the point where I could not even lift a glass of water. Through physical rehabilitation and empowerment, he was able to get me to a point where I can function perfectly well.
He also fixed a random stiffness caused by an injury I received 20 years ago! All it took was a little manipulation, and I could move my wrist freely!
There’s something to be said for doing the work to help heal your body without drugs and surgeries. It takes a little work, but with the right guide, the results are amazing.
I am so thankful I went to Dr. Minkowsky.

Note to self: lifting a 19″ flight case rack is not good. Even if it’s only for a few seconds and you put it down from a sound stage and the heavy amps are in another one and this only has some wireless receivers and EQs. Enough technobabble — two days after that, my back started to hurt really, really bad.
After almost two weeks of self medication — hey, gotta use that leftover Vicodin — and 4, 5 hour nights that had me waking up hours before my alarm leaving me unable to sleep any longer, just to sit and walk, I found myself in a constant state of mental fog. Not really great if you pay the bills through writing witty and intelligent magazine articles.
A good friend recommended Dr. Minkowsky who shares an office with his wife Irene. Got an appointment the day after I called in, the friendly staff made room in his schedule for me which was really great. And what can I say — this man is the best back specialist I’ve ever been to. Besides being a Ortopedic doctor, he is also an Osteopath*.
Dr. Minkowsky took some time to get all the details of what happened and he examined me meticulously. He then did some realignment moves which required little work on my end and sent me off home with an anti inflammatory pill. That night, I slept an hour longer, the next one I was up with my alarm. The following two I had to fight the snooze monster again. I’ve been back to his office twice to let him check on my mobility and some more realignment work — should be good with another visit.
No X-​rays and no heavy meds needed as Dr. Minkowsky says that he likes to give the body a push in the right direction so it can heal itself. Good stuff. Your insurance likes to hear that, too.
* from Wikipedia: Osteopathy emphasizes a holistic approach and the skilled use of a range of manual and physical therapies (Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine, or OMM in the United States) in the prevention and treatment of disease, particularly, but not solely, joint, muscle and nerve problems, such as back, neck and head pain. Osteopaths [or Osteopathic Physcians or Doctors of Osteopathy DO in the US] often see their role as facilitating the body’s own recuperative powers by treating musculoskeletal or somatic dysfunction.