The last two years have been a period of reflection for all of us. Within the health system, the pandemic caused many providers to reassess their personal and professional goals, resulting in more retirements from the practice of medicine than we would typically see.
While those departures have certainly presented challenges, they’ve also allowed us to re-envision how we wish to deliver care and improve on already-excellent traditions of medicine in the years to come. In the past year, we’ve welcomed several new physicians, and plans are in the works for more providers to come on board this summer:
Urology
We welcomed Phillip Pierorazio, MD, as PPMC’s new chief of Urology. An accomplished surgeon, Dr. Pierorazio performs open and minimally invasive laparoscopic and robotic procedures for disorders of the kidney and prostate and retroperitoneal lymph node dissection for testicular cancer. He also leads the Delayed Intervention and Surveillance for Small Renal Masses (DISSRM) Registry, one of the largest active surveillance registries for patients with small kidney tumors, and is involved in translational research to find cancer biomarkers to minimize the need for surgical intervention in urologic cancers. Dr. Pierorazio is championing a comprehensive urologic cancer program at Presby with a focus on survivorship, a men’s health program, and a community outreach clinic for our West Philly patients.
Vascular Surgery
Vascular surgeon Shang A. Loh, MD, FACS joined PPMC as chief of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy. As an open and endovascular surgeon, he is pushing the boundaries of what can be accomplished through endovascular techniques. He specializes in complex vascular and endovascular surgery and has a special interest in aortic pathology including complex aneurysms, thoracoabdominal aneurysms, and aortic dissections. He also treats peripheral aneurysms, carotid artery disease, visceral occlusive disease, limb salvage, and lower-extremity arterial and deep venous disease. A main focus for Dr. Loh will be to increase the referral of patients with aortic disease to PPMC. He will also play an integral role in our new Penn Advanced Limb Preservation Program.
Breast Surgery
We are thrilled to have breast surgeon Leisha Elmore, MD, MPSH, to help launch breast oncology programs at PPMC along with breast surgeon Ari Brooks, MD. Dr. Elmore is working with radiation oncologist Manuj Agarwal, MD, and medical oncologist Mary Mahler, MD, to create a multidisciplinary clinic at PPMC for breast cancer patients that involves surgical oncology, radiation oncology, medical oncology, and plastic surgery. She is also collaborating with colleagues to expand outreach efforts throughout the West Philadelphia community, as she has a specific interest in improving breast cancer outcomes for underserved populations and promoting equitable healthcare for all patients.
Gastroenterology
In April 2021, we dramatically expanded our physical capacity to care for people with digestive and liver diseases with the opening of the new Penn Digestive and Liver Health Center at Penn Medicine University City. That expansion, which coincided with retirement from clinical medicine of several GI faculty, will soon include four new providers who will expand our ability to provide both general gastroenterology services as well as care for patients with esophageal diseases, inflammatory bowel diseases, and liver disease. Their additions will dramatically improve access to care – including increased capacity to perform colonoscopies and endoscopies – for people throughout the Delaware Valley, and particularly for residents of West Philly.
Please join me in welcoming these new members of the PPMC provider family. I am looking forward to the role that they will play in helping not only each individual patient, but our community, in achieving a healthy future.