McKindsey Frances, MD

I must say that my experience with Dr. McKindsey was mixed. She provided excellent care before and during my pregnancy. She was careful to order various tests and followed up with me when appropriate and I appreciate her positive attitude.
My birthing experience was not as great. I was induced at 40 weeks and my baby ended up in the NICU for a week. I caught a terrible infection in the hospital that required several days of antibiotics. It’s difficult to say if this would have happened with any doctor. However, Dr. McKindsey did perform an episiotomy on me which I was not aware of. I’m sorry but if someone is cutting my vagina, I would like to know about it. I did not need one for my previous two babies, why did I get one on this third birth (who was a relatively small baby as well)? This incision took months to heal and needless to say, affected the quality of my life due to severe discomfort between my legs. My advice is to really know what her plans are when it comes to your delivery and communicate your preferences clearly. It’s your body and birthing experience after all.
I am now pregnant with my 4^th child and will be using a different doctor to deliver my baby. I made this choice, not because Dr. McKindsey isn’t knowledgeable, competent with a positive upbeat attitude. She is all of those things. Rather it’s more communication, including a complete understanding of my options, that I need during the birthing process. I realize that not all births go as expected. Of course I want a healthy baby, but I want a healthy, positive, natural birthing experience as well. After all, it’s not every day that I get to deliver a human into the world.

best doctor ever!!! if you want someone honest who knows what they are doing this needs to be your doctor!!!

This is an update.
I have waited since of October of 2014 to write and post an updated review that reflects my last and final encounter with this physician. This delay was so as to keep the tone as non-​personal as possible, with the objectivity that time can afford my perception; Simply put, I didn’t want to «lash out», as is so easy for reviewers to do after a negative encounter with a service provider.
Further, so as to protect my personal and legal privacy I cannot go into many specifics here, in such a public forum; If you are a prospective, or even current patient (or an attorney representing one of her patients) and would like more specifics as to the situation that lead me to update my rating from five to one star, I will provide it via PM through the Unilocal message service.
I can say the following:
Please, please, use this physician with caution, especially if you’ve been suffering from a long-​term condition. If your case is a simple one that is quaranteed a quick and routine resolution, you’ll probably have an amenable experience. If your case is complex and/​or chronic, run, do not walk, to another physician.

The generalities, as per my experience:
1. This physician gives an initial impression of empathy, warmth, rationality, and patient focus. Once the inital patient-​doctor relation phase is over (initial appointment) though, this changes.
It is as if she has the ability to affect interest and care just long enough to secure you as a patient, and after that the ability rapidly wanes and you’ll suffer for it, potentially both physically and emotionally (possibly through neglect or abandonment). I have noted that at least one other reviewer on this site has reported this quality, so I know I am not alone in this observation.
2. Her ego seems incrdibly fragile.
She is a surgeon (which is why, in my case, I was referred to her by my internist in the first place, and, once again by the same internist in regards to my most recent appointment), and you’re probably familiar with the cliché that surgeons often have monumental egos and insensitive personalities that can, but not always, lead to unpleasant encounters with patients and/​or colleagues. Please believe me when I say, this physician is one of them.
NO gynocologist should have this personality trait though, as, due to the very nature of their specific field they treat people who often are in some of the most emotional situations life can throw at them. Dedication to the development of patient, caring interactions with patients, as well as that of a healthy, ego — and ego response — are absolutely necessities when one will be dealing with women stressed by the hormonal and physical influence of pregnancy, and other gynological conditions and/​or diseases.
When challeneged with a hard case or emotional patient (think one at their wit’s end with long-​term pain and/​or gynocological condition) she lacks the ability to ask the specific questions a competent physician would need to understand the specifics of the situation.
Because she lacks this inability she can grow gobsmakingly incapable of focusing in on the importants, and equally so of behaving professionally when faced with the miscommunication that will result from this. This can lead to a quick breakdown between her patient and her.
3. When confronted with the situation of miscommunication coupled with the patient (respectfully) questioning her personal experience in dealing with and treating rare, non-​gynological conditions that can effect gynocolocial health, she will reflexively verbally condescend, patronize, and belittle the patient, assumidly in a (probably subconscious) attempt to force them into submitting to her opinion.
If the patient doesn’t do so, she she will humiliate them through accusing them of needing professional mental help, and physically force them out of her office.
This is the only specific I will include here, so you know exactly what you could wind up dealing with if you choose her as your physician:
You haven’t been properly shamed by your gyno until you’ve been emotionally (and almost physically) frogged-​marched, sobbing, out of her offices, simply because you
a. begged her to help solve a 20-​year health issue that has effected every aspect of your life,
and b. you attempted to update her on a new diagnosis (by a geneticist at one of Los Angeles’ most well-​respected hospitals) you’d received that could be effecting this issue.
In short, she can and may act with a PROFOUND lack of professionalism. Regardless of what she THINKS the patient is saying to her, her response can be incredibly, wildly, and disproportionatly hostile, which in turn will leave the patient abandoned.

I had a wonderful experience with Dr. Mckindsey. My first visit was a «walk in.» I was referred by my primary doctor so I came in with my ultrasound and MRI results indicating a mass was growing on one of my ovaries. Of course I was upset, nervous and anxious. My primary doctor wasn’t very knowledgeable in this area so I was very discouraged, however, when I met with Dr. Mckindsey she took her time and explained what steps we needed to take to get the mass removed. She was very knowledgeable, compassionate and patient with me. She was very open to all of my questions and concerns and she made feel so comfortable. Even the office staff (especially Kim) was helpful and told me that I was in goods hands.
The day of my surgery Dr. Mckindsey greeted me before surgery and reassured me that everything would be fine. She asked if I had any questions and was just very concerned about how I was I feeling. I told her the only thing I wanted her to do was meet my mom in the waiting room to let her know once the surgery was done. Sure enough my mom told me that Dr. Mckindsey came out to the waiting room and informed her how well the surgery went and answered every question that my mom had before she had even asked.
I’ve had my fair share of uncaring and overwhelmed doctors. I even had an Obgyn who cared for me my entire pregnancy and never took time to realize that I had preeclampsia with hellp syndrome. I gave him my symptoms every time we met but he was so overwhelmed he didn’t take the time to notice it. Luckily the on call physician at TMMC diagnosed me right away and performed an emergency c-​section and at that time I was already going into liver failure, however my son and I made a safe recovery but it was scary.
My overall experience with Dr. Mckindsey was great! I would definitely recommend her to my family and friends. If you are looking for a knowledgeable Obgyn I believe it would it be in your best interest to contact Dr. Mckindsey.

Love her! She is very kind and caring and didn’t rush through my questions or make me feel like I was stupid for asking them. My mother also sees Dr. M and she is very satisfied with her as well. I think some people mistake her honesty with being pushy. She is genuinely concerned for your health and there wasn’t a moment I felt uncomfortable with her.

My honest review about Dr. McKindsey was mysteriously removed. Censored. One more reason to think twice before choosing this doctor.

While my encounter with Dr. McKindsey was years ago, I still feel it is valid, particularly considering Connie J’s review below. The gynecologist I’ve been seeing recently retired so I am on the search for a new one in the South Bay who has great reviews. I was reminded of my experience with Dr. McKindsey when looking through Unilocal reviews.
I was seeing Dr. Campbell at HealthCare Partners for decades until she retired (she was the kindest, most caring doctor ever). Dr. Campbell stopped doing obstetrics before I became pregnant so, while I maintained my patient status for gynecology with Dr. Campbell, I had to find someone else to follow my pregnancy and deliver my baby.
I was specifically looking for an obstetrician who had rights at Little Company of Mary Hospital. Dr. McKindsey was listed with my insurance company as having rights at both Little Company and Torrance Memorial. When making my appointment and during my first appointment, I made it explicitly clear that I had made my decision to go to Little Company. Dr. McKindsey was very aggressive in repeatedly pushing me toward Torrance Memorial, despite my telling her Little Company was my final decision. I shouldn’t have even had to tell her why I was so insistent on Little Company since, after all, I AM THE PATIENT, but ultimately I felt I couldn’t get around explaining to her that my mother died a horrible death at Torrance Memorial when I was a child, I spent a LOT of time there and those were the darkest times of my life. I did not want that atmosphere and that whole experience hanging over me and my family when giving birth to my first, and only, child. Dr. McKindsey was completely flip and unaffected, still insisting on Torrance Memorial. Nice bedside manner… NOT!
I ended up walking out the door and never looking back. What a waste of time and energy. I now see that Connie J. states Dr. McKindsey is the head of the OB dept. at Torrance Memorial. That explains it. Dr. McKindsey is lining her pockets by steering her patients there. What a lovely thought — thank you but no thank you.
Fortunately I ultimately ended up with an enormously kind and caring obstetrician… very UNLIKE Dr. McKindsey; and had my baby at Little Company. If you want an obstetrician who has a heart, an ounce of compassion/​empathy and takes your wishes seriously — stay away; stay FAR, FAR away from Dr. McKindsey.

Dr Mckindsey is a very caring doctor. She delivered my first son and I had some complications afterwards and she really held my hand and helped me through those first few difficult months. Now that I’ve recovered and gotten pregnant again, she’s the only one I would trust to deliver us. Because of my previous complications, I’m considered high risk and Dr. Mckindsey is following me very closely. I couldn’t ask for a more caring doctor. I highly recommend her to anyone about to have a baby. Sometimes she will call just to check on my glucose numbers since I have gestational diabetes. That’s really good service!

If I could give zero stars I would, considering this physician wouldn’t «accept me as a patient.» I never even had the chance to see her. LIkely because I have a pre-​existing condition. (NOTE: IF YOU HAVE ANY PRE-​EXISTING CONDITION THAT TAKES A LITTLE RESEARCH ON THE DOCTOR’S END, DO NOT TRY TO SEE THIS DOCTOR.) I wish I had scrolled through the Unilocal reviews and read all of them before completely changing my IPA in order to see Dr. McKindsey. (I read the positive reviews and she sounded great, so I changed my network and waited a month to make an appointment only to be told she would not accept me!)
Keep in mind, the office verified three times she is currently accepting new patients; even when they told me she wouldn’t accept me, they verified she is accepting new patients but it is «at the doctor’s discretion to decline any new patient.»
I had my medical records transferred 6 weeks ago and have been waiting until the beginning of the month to schedule an appointment (per Dr. McKindsey’s staff instructions). They NEVER called once to tell me the doctor had opted to decline me. Had I known this was going to happen, I would have been trying to find a different doctor and had my records sent to him/​her. I am 5 months pregnant and cannot afford to go 2 months without seeing a physician.
Here’s why I think Dr. McKindsey declined to see me as a patient: she is completely inexperienced and unfamiliar with Roux-​En-​Y Gastric Bypass patients. I had GB surgery in 2009, lost a substantial amount of weight since then, but for some reason, I think this may have deterred Dr. McKindsey from taking me on as a new patient. Had she given me the opportunity to see her and work with her, I could have told her that my physician is ALSO in her network (THIPA– Dr. Stanley Klein) and he could have called her and worked with her through my pregnancy.
When I asked for an explanation as to why Dr. McKindsey wouldn’t accept me, the staff told me, «I don’t know and the doctor doesn’t have to tell you.» Completely unprofessional.
Onward & upward, hopefully!

Dr. McKindsey and her office staff are excellent. She provided care for both of my pregnancies. I switched to Dr. McKindsey because she is was knowledgeable, friendly and compassionate. I went to Medical Group-​Women Physicians in Redondo Beach for my first visit with my first child, and my gut instinct told me that my baby would be endangered if I continued going there. For my 2^nd pregnancy, I had a subchorionic hematoma for about 10 weeks. I called the office staff and Dr. McKindsey responded quickly and monitored the condition. I had two C-​sections and the scar is very minimal and recovery was very quick. Anyways, I thank God that I had Dr. McKindsey (my insurance recently switched so I lost Dr. Mckindsey as my OB/​GYN). I told my husband that I missed Dr. Mckindsey, so we should have a third child, so that I can visit her and the office staff again! He suggested it would be cheaper to take her out for coffee!

My experience with Dr. Mckindsey was not a pleasant one and I was very disappointed with her as a medical professional. Five months ago I visited Dr. Mckindsey for an appointment to discuss about birth control methods and being tested for sexually transmitted diseases. After a few weeks, I received a call from Dr. Mckindsey about one of my tests that resulted in a positive but within a few minutes she realized that there were extra tests performed and that my «positive» result turned out to be «negative». Though I understand that medical professionals make mistakes when interpreting lab results, Dr. Mckindsey did not take any responsibility for her misinterpretation and was in a rush to end my conversation on the phone before further explaining to me what exactly happened with my test result. I would have appreciated if Dr. Mckindsey was fully prepared and knowledgeable about my lab results before she contacted me and to have taken the time to discuss my lab results. I contacted Dr. Mckindsey a week after with the intention to have her clarify my lab results. To my surprise, I received one word answers and a annoyed tone of voice. It surprises me how medical professionals can act this way when in the first place if she would have taken the time to explain my lab results and at least provided reassurance to me about my physical health, I wouldn’t have called her or been stressed about the entire situation. I am not an MD and I don’t work in a lab, so there should be no expectations for me being knowledgeable about the different variety of tests that can be performed and interpreting results. I was greatly disappointed because I have heard many positive reviews about Dr. Mckindsey and after this experience, I truly have no interest in continuing my relations with her as a doctor and I hope I will have a more positive encounter with a new gynecologist in the future.

I’ve been looking around for good female ob since I was going horrible experience with current one. I felt right in as soon as I called to make an appointment with Dr. McKindsey because of her staffs, they were super nice and helpful (especially Natalie). It was little difficult to make an appointment with her due to holiday season but I was able to meet Dr. McKindsey. She was very friendly, caring and professional.

Dr. McKindsey delivered all three of my babies. She’s very personable and the best surgeon for a C-​section that I’ve ever experienced. A doctor friend recommended her to me as the preferred choice among doctors. That speaks volumes. She was able to address my concerns about scarring after surgery and she was able to eliminate my keloid after I was done having my family. I am very happy with her knowledge and bedside manner. I like to call her Small Hands McKindsey because for me it was important to have minimal scarring and I loved that she didn’t have giant manhands for my surgeries. Her staff is amazing. Dr. Allen is great too! We feel like they are family. More importantly she gave me all the care that I needed and monitored the growth of all three of my children in utero. Since I was AMA she ensured that I was properly tested. My children give her 6 thumbs ups!

Dr mckindsey is a good doctor, however, she is just too pro torrance memorial medical center for me. I personally think little company of mary is a way better hospital than tmmc. I found out that Dr M is head of O.B. Dept at tmmc, which is why she automatically sends patients there. I had to insist on going to little company, and even then, she told me that she would have another Dr treat me there as she didnt know where things were at little company of mary. (I can only assume she doesn’t have rights to work at this hospital) Her office staff is also too gossipy. The receptionist katie is very obnoxious and rude and when I stated I wanted to go to little company, her response to me was «we just love torrance memorial» and she frowned upon me for wanting to go to little company. I did not appreciate being badgered for my hospital choice. Unfortunately due to this experience, even though mckindsey is a good Dr they lost me as a patient because of their one sided mentality about hospital choices in their office. I think that all Dr’s should be open to all the hospitals in the south bay, regardless of their strong ties or affiliations toward a particular hospital.

been looking around for a female ob for a while. my new primary physician (who i love + have reviewed) referred me to dr. mckindsey, and i love her. dr. mckindsey’s staff (esp. katie) is so warm and nice. the waiting area is super clean and pretty spacious. i didn’t wait too long, considering i was a new patient. my appointment was for 3:45pm. someone from the office called 3 days before to remind me of the appointment, and to tell me to arrive by 3:15pm, bc the paperwork was going to take 30 minutes. got there by 3:15, was seen by dr. mckindsey by 4pm. out by 4:20.
dr. mckindsey was super nice and i never once felt rushed. she took her time with me, and started off asking if i had any questions or concerns for her. after that, she turned on a small space heater to warm up the room for the exam. i thought that was very considerate of her. no ob has ever done that for me in the past.
i am super picky about the doctors i go to. i do a pretty intense background check before committing to a doctor, and i feel dr. mckindsey’s a definite keeper.

I think Dr. McKindsey is great. I met with a few doctors in the beginning of my pregnancy and felt that I connected best with her. The first time I went to see her, she was delivering a baby so I did have to wait about 45 minutes but that’s pretty common. Her office staff is great, and always call back. Her after hour help line is very useful too!
She’s a pretty busy lady so come with your questions ready! My husband connected with her too with the whole baby process and that was important to us that he liked her too.