Gastroenterologist - New Brunswick, NJ

"DO NOT go to this doctor, especially if you are ever in pain or feel that you need to take some time off work to help you deal with it. Over a year ago I began to have severe stomach pain. I was (and still am) vomiting up about 80% of what I eat. This pain would leave me frozen in one position, reclined back, and radiates around to my back. While this was not every day, it was episodic in nature, and the episodes would last about a week, on between I would have less severe but no less debilitating pain. I began my journey to gastroenterologists. The first just told me I needed to lose weight (I have PCOS and it is very difficult to do). The second kept throwing medications at me in the spirit of "if it's this, this medication will fix it". The third was very condescending and I dreaded going to his office. The fourth, Dr. Tait, seemed great at first. I have a boss that has little to no patience with my undiagnosed illness, because I kept having to call off, like alot, and I couldn't do asuch as the other employees. I was killing myself trying to be employee of the year so I did not get fired. My body needed a break and some time to get testing done. I called HR and requested 2 months leave. I had done this once before and it went perfect the doctor I had at the time had no issue giving me the leave I needed. I had no hesitation. I set the dates and sent Dr. Tait the paperwork. I had already been on leave about 20 days when I received a call saying Dr. Tait had put "intermittent leave with one episode a week" on the paperwork, and did not even bother with the paperwork for me to get paid while on leave. He also did not discuss this with me at any point. He just sent it off. So I was now 10 days away from being fired for job abandonment. I told him that and asked that he fix it. He refused. Days later I finally get him on the phone. He laughed at me 4 times during this phone call. He told me, and this is a direct quote, "I know your pain is severe but chronic pain is not an excuse to not work. I will not stake my medical license because you don't want to work.". I told him again I was going to lose my job and he said I could collect unemployment and take all the time I need. I have actually never been treated like this by a doctor. It was very traumatic as I already suffer from anxiety and don't like to go to doctors that much. I would not recommend any kind of care by Dr. Tait. Find someone else."

"I’ve been a patient of Middlesex Monmouth Gastroenterology for routine colonoscopies for 10+ years. Now, I will seek a new practice. Too many red flags this last go around. Dr. Tawardros is not a yet board-certified gastroenterologist. The practice ignored providing that information when they scheduled my appointment with a new doctor. The doctor who performed the first two retired. In 2021, I needed to see a gastroenterologist after a hospital visit. I was assigned to an alternate physician, Dr. Gupta, since my doctor had retired. In 2024 it was time again to schedule a colonoscopy. The practice did not schedule the pre-procedure office visit with the physician I met with in 2021 although he still is a practicing physician at the practice. They scheduled me with Dr. Tawardros. They did not tell me he is not currently a board-certified gastroenterologist. I learned this in my own. However, he is board eligible, and board certified in internal medicine. This should’ve been the first red flag that the practice has gone downhill.  The second red flag occurred when the practice sent my prep prescription to the wrong pharmacy. The third red flag was when I transferred the Rx, I learned there was a second. Surprise! Dr. Tawardros also prescribed Pepcid. This was the first time a physician has ever prescribed a medication and didn’t discuss it before leaving the office. I’ll give him credit he asked if I experienced heartburn, I told him rarely. Fourth red flag: You can’t call the office and talk to a person. Each time I called I had to use the “AI voicemail system.” Well, the AI system doesn’t always recognize numbers punched in with a cell phone. Fifth red flag: A polyp was removed during the colonoscopy. Now I’m nervous. I have a high risk for colon cancer, and this is the first time I’ve had a polyp. Waiting for results was nerve wracking. I called a little more than a week after the procedure. The doctor called me back and told me he didn’t have results, but we would discuss them during my follow-up. I considered that odd since the follow up isn’t for 7 weeks. I told myself, no someone will call with the biopsy results. Sixth red flag: I received the results via a My Chart alert two weeks after the procedure. No phone call from the practice to settle my nerves. Final red flag (7 weeks after colonoscopy): I received a voicemail that the follow up appointment I made several weeks ago needs to be rescheduled. Please call the office to reschedule. What?!?! No thank you."

"Unfortunately I did not have a good experience at this office. Office staff made me reschedule my radiology appointment not once but twice due to insurance and never called to let me know. I do not recommend and will be seeing a new doctor for a second opinion."