Family medicine benefits both patients and their doctors. You get more personalized, tailored health care and I get the satisfaction and personal fulfillment of caring for families over months or years. In fact, I chose family medicine because I enjoy caring for all generations: a child, a young couple during a pregnancy, right up to grandparents.
I grew up in Edmonds and I've worked at SFM since graduating from Brown Medical School and a family medicine residency at Valley Medical Center in Renton in 1999. Recently I have become Medical Director for the practice after finishing up my M.H.A. at the University of Washington. I am board-certified, specialize in obstetrics and am currently working at the Puyallup Hartland office. My wife and I enjoy raising our three children in the Puyallup community.
I believe it is important that we take care of ourselves through fitness and healthy eating. You may see me running on the streets of South Hill. I enjoy discussing exercise with my patients, whether they are beginning a walking program, cycling, swimming or marathon training.
Medicine is changing. Most patients notice the difference right away in our office: computer charts, prescriptions sent directly to the pharmacy instead of handwritten, and access to information through the internet rather than just by phone. Some of these changes are important for patient safety, while others are about moving the center of the health care encounter from the physician to the patient.
People come to us from many walks of life. My role is to advise. This usually means laying out options and helping patients select what will work for them. This is a different model compared to a decade ago when he doctor finished the visit and told you what to do. But what has not changed is the value of a strong patient-doctor relationship.
