Dr. Vela seemed to be good when I first came in, but then after he looked at one of my abnormal skin growths, he told me that they wanted to, "remove it a different way," besides freezing. Next thing I know they were numbing my foot and cutting out the growth. They ended up sending the remains out for a biopsy, and I ended up in excruciating pain and on crutches for a whole week. I had to go to the emergency med clinic to make sure it wasn't infected and they informed me that my body probably just had an adverse reaction to the surgery. I ended up going back a week or so later and Dr. Vela told me that it looked to be healing perfectly and that I shouldn't have to come back. Well, sure enough the growth grew back and when I returned to the office, he only THEN told me that the biopsy specifically said that it would most likely grow back because he did not remove it completely. They then sent me to a plastic surgeon to redo the surgery.

Why wasn't I sent to a plastic surgeon first if the growth was, "in such a bad place," and is hard to remove? I have to endure that pain all over again?

Overall, definitely hides information and rushes everything.

Submitted Jan. 5, 2021

Dr. Vela has always been very informative and professional. He has always been kind and "down to earth". He is fast and accurate with his treatments. I have never felt rushed on any of my appointments. No pain experienced after the local anesthetic was injected. Gives clear written after-care instructions. I am a Registered Nurse and very picky with the medical professionals I choose to treat me. I would recommend Dr. Vela 100%. Thanks to all the staff for your professionalism and friendliness.

Submitted Jan. 25, 2019

Dr. Vela is very a very competent, caring doctor. His staff does a wonder job of scheduling, with very little wait time. The staff is very friendly and professional. Dr. Vela has been caring for my 88 year old mother. He puts her at ease while providing appropriate treatment. He allows ample time; we never feel rushed. She and I are both very pleased with Dr. Vela and would recommend him to anyone in need of a dermatologist.

Submitted March 5, 2010

Dr Vela was excellent, appointment started 10 min early, he took care of what I went in for, was very professional and friendly, wrote me a script for what I was having an issue with my skin.

Submitted Jan. 14, 2010

Dr. Vela was very rude, & sarcastic. He didnt want to hear what we needed to say. Rushed the visit and acted like he did not know Spanish, which we found out by a staff member he does. After mentioning we thought he spoke Spanish he just responded with "you can go pick another doctor". After he prescribed a medication and we questioned side effects and about medication. He crumbled the prescriptions and said never mind. He basically did not want to explain the meds and the side effects or he just didnt know. After telling him about symptoms he disregarded as "sometimes things like that just happen in life" which it was quite obvious the symptoms were not normal. I would definately not recommend. I think the visit was a waste of time and money.

Submitted Feb. 5, 2009

very proactive, always on time, relates medical terms in layman's language

Submitted May 27, 2008