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About Me

I joined Kaiser Permanente in 1995 after completing my internal medicine residency at the Kaiser Permanente Oakland facility. I chose internal medicine because it is a field requiring critical thinking and application of excellent history and exam skills using a basic hands-on approach to patient care. I subsequently became a hospital-based specialist, because I thrive on the varied and complex challenges and demands that hospital medicine offers. Nothing is more gratifying than helping a patient turn around from a potentially life-threatening illness and eventually go home. I loved hospital work during my residency at Kaiser Permanente Oakland, and I knew I would work at Kaiser Permanente after I was done with residency because I had inspiring attending physicians as role models and it is the only health care system that makes sense to me. Why would I go elsewhere?

I am interested in all aspects of internal medicine and hospital medicine. I have a unique position as a hospitalist at night ("nocturnalist"). I think my treatment philosophy would best be distilled as providing my absolute best effort to every patient encounter. This includes a thorough history from the patient and relevant family members. I feel that it is essential to elicit patients' questions and concerns, so that an appropriate treatment plan can be established. I consult closely with specialists to optimize patient care when the specialists cannot be here. I engage the patient in his or her care as much as possible because health care does not stop at hospital discharge.

A sense of humor is imperative; I realize that the hospital is my oyster, but to a patient it often represents a scary and frightful environment. It is not normal to talk about bodily functions or life and death issues every day unless you are someone like me! I send a copy of the hospital admission to the primary care MD so that there is continuity of care once the patient leaves the hospital. I also engage in continuing education and have recertified in internal medicine because it is my professional responsibility to provide the best and most current care that I can to those I serve. I am a doctor whom patients will often not remember when they come into the hospital because they are on life support or they are so ill that the last thing they can remember is a name. But rest assured that if you require hospitalization in the wee hours, I will be in attendance and it will be my happy privilege to care for you.

On a personal note, I grew up in Dayton, Ohio, home of the Wright Brothers, Jonathan Winters, Erma Bombeck and other notables. I developed my strong Midwest work ethic there. My dad was a chemical engineer and often took me to his lab to run "experiments" (I am sure much to his chagrin) and fostered my interest in math and science. My mom's motto was, "You have to use your imagination." This was borne out of her poverty-stricken childhood, but it was a gift to me because I learned from her how to see potential in the mundane. Prior to medical school, my first career was as an occupational therapist in Los Angeles specializing in hand rehabilitation. I always wanted to be a doctor, though, having grown up with Ben Casey and Dr. Kildare.

I hope that you will explore the HBS homepage. In the final analysis, your health is largely in your own hands. We are here to help and educate.

I am a hospitalist, which means that I take care of hospitalized patients only. Hospital medicine requires knowledge and skill in emergencies, quick diagnosis, and management of critical conditions, including cardiac illness, infection, and stroke, to name a few. For me it is the epitome of internal medicine.

I specialize in night work--a nocturnist-- taking care of patients in the hospital at night. It has its own challenges because the specialists are not present in the hospital, although available by phone. I love bedside medicine and the nightshift is pure medicine: me, the patients and other night shift staff. I am a member of the AMA ,CMA, and Society of Hospital Medicine.

My Credentials

Medical school	Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI
Internship	Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, Oakland, CA
Residency	Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, Oakland, CA
Residency	University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA
Fellowship	Mount Zion Medical Center of The University of California, San Francisco, CA
Fellowship	Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, CA
Board certification	Internal Medicine, American Board of Internal Medicine

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