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Bay Area Urology News
Patients' Choice Award Winners:
Five physicians at leading urology practice Pacific Urology in Walnut Creek, CA were awarded the prestigious Patients' Choice Award. Of the 720,000 active physicians in the nation, only the top five percent are awarded this rare honor. Physicians Judson M. Brandeis, Brian D. Hopkins, Jeremy Lieb, Parminder Sethi and Stephen P. Taylor were also awarded the Patients’ Choice Award in 2010, with Parminder Sethi receiving the award in 2009 and 2008. Pacific Urology has more doctors recognized than any other local-area practice, claiming five of the twelve awards given to local urologists.
Physicians are selected based on patient scores compiled on Vitals.com as well as other quality measures to receive the award. Patient scores are based on ratings pertaining to various components of care such as ease of appointment, promptness, courteous staff, diagnosis accuracy, the amount of time they spent with the doctor, and the doctor's bedside manner and follow-up care.
Merger Announcement
Pacific Urology Merges With Diablo Valley Oncology
Economic trends in health care, new opportunities in continuity of care lead two practices to form Contra Costa’s first multi-specialty group of its kind
Concord, CA (November 11, 2011) – Two of Contra Costa County’s largest private specialty medical practices announced today an agreement to merge in January, forming the area’s first multi-specialty practice in oncology and urology as a hedge against mounting business challenges in a rapidly changing health care landscape.
Pacific Urology, a six-physician practice with origins dating back to the 1980s, is joining forces with Diablo Valley Oncology and Hematology Medical Group, a seven-doctor group specializing in treating cancer and blood disorders. The groups gave two principal reasons for the merger: new opportunities to deliver a stronger continuity of care for patients, plus increasing economic pressures in health care, such as an anticipated 30- percent decrease in Medicare payments to specialists to begin in 2012.
“For just about all doctors, the costs of practicing medicine are escalating – it’s that simple,” said Dr. Stephen Taylor of Pacific Urology. “In anticipation of Medicare cuts, over the last 18 months we have explored several different options for restructuring our business and have concluded that combining our practices secures the future for both organizations and consequently for the quality of care of our patients.”
Prostate Cancer Expert:
Despite Controversy, PSA Test Still Best Weapon
Prostate Cancer Awareness Month spotlights California as home to the highest number of sufferers
Walnut Creek, CA (August 25, 2011) -- Recent controversy over prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening for middle-aged men does not diminish the critical importance of a health test that spares thousands of lives annually, says an expert who practices medicine in a state where more men die of prostate cancer than in any other.
With September as National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, Dr. Stephen Taylor of Concord-based Pacific Urology says that with one in six men developing the disease and an estimated 25,000 males affected in California annually, according to the American Cancer Society, men cannot afford to dismiss the PSA test regardless of critics’ charges.
No one is more of a believer than survivor Alfred Diggs of Concord, one of more than 240,000 men affected by the disease each year. A high risk patient of African American descent, Alfred Diggs pursued annual PSA testing at age 35. When he was diagnosed at 55, he underwent a prostatectomy and remained cancer free for 11 years. He was recently found to have recurrent prostate cancer and is undergoing radiation, but explains he is confident in overcoming the disease. Working diligently to promote prostate cancer awareness for the past ten years, he helped develop the first American Cancer Society speaker’s bureau, creates presentations and trains ACS organizations.
“The more people know about prostate cancer, the more we can save people from prostate cancer. It hasn’t been an easy road, but I am happy to be here and celebrating life,” says Alfred.
Circumcision Pros & Cons:
Local Urologist Advises Circumcision Pros & Cons As Debate Grows
Every parent should make informed decision, says San Francisco Bay Area doctor with Pacific UrologyConcord, California, July 27, 2011 – Although one of the world’s oldest medical procedures, male circumcision has nonetheless become a hotly-contested topic across the globe in this year, giving pause to parents from San Francisco to sub-Saharan Africa in deciding whether to put newborn sons through the relatively minor but increasingly controversial surgery.
On November 8, San Francisco residents will vote on the so-called Male Mutilation Bill, potentially outlawing the procedure. But for parents of infant boys, circumcision offers both pros and cons, says Dr. Jeremy Lieb, a urologist who has done hundreds of circumcisions at the six-doctor Pacific Urology, in the east San Francisco Bay area.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has repeatedly stated that there is no absolute medical indication for routine circumcision of the newborn. Regardless, “Currently, there isn’t enough medical research to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is a medical procedure to be regulated by a governmental body,” said Dr. Lieb.
Dr. Brandeis in the Contra Costa Times
Urinary incontinence: A common problem
By Laura CaseyContra Costa Times
Urinary incontinence is an awkward thing to talk about. It's an even more awkward thing to live with.
To prevent an accident, women who suffer from it stop doing things they love, such as running or playing sports. Some stop drinking the water they need to live a healthful life. Some are even nervous about leaving the house.
"There's a lot of shame, a lot of embarrassment," says Esther Dolowich, a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor dysfunction at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland. "Somehow they feel that they are damaged goods. They are not OK."
When just a sneeze or a cough can bring on unintentional wetting, so-called stress urinary incontinence is an embarrassing condition that affects 15 million women, according to the National Association for Continence. Women are often hesitant to bring up the issue during doctor visits but, experts say, if they do, there are several options for treating the problem.
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