49 Houston VA Docs on U.S. News Top Doctors List
Nine physicians are also among the top 1% in the nation in his or her specialty.
HOUSTON – U.S. News & World Report has included 49 physicians who provide patient care at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) on its Top Doctors list.
“I am very pleased with this recognition of our physicians’ clinical excellence by U.S. News,” said J. Kalavar, M.D., MEDVAMC chief of staff. “This is yet another indicator the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center continually strives to offer the highest quality health care possible for Veterans living in southeast Texas.”
U.S. News Top Doctors was developed by U.S. News & World Report in collaboration with Castle Connolly Medical Ltd., publisher of America's Top Doctors® and other guides, and was built upon data from Castle Connolly's Top Doctors™. Physicians on this list are determined to be in the top 10 percent in their region.
The MEDVAMC boasts 24 staff physicians, along with 25 physician consultants and attending physicians, on the U.S. News Top Doctors list:
Horacio J. Adrogue, M.D.
Nephrologist
Special Expertise: Transplant Medicine-Kidney, Hypertension, and Fluid/Electrolyte Balance
Timothy Boone, M.D., Ph.D.*
Urologist
Special Expertise: Incontinence, Neuro-Urology, and Urinary Reconstruction
Blase A. Carabello, M.D.*
Cardiologist
Special Expertise: Heart Valve Disease
Anita Deswal, M.D.
Cardiologist
Special Expertise: Echocardiography and Heart Failure
Donald T. Donovan, M.D.*
ENT - Otolaryngologist
Special Expertise: Head & Neck Cancer, Thyroid Disorders, Vocal Cord Disorders, and Voice Disorders
Hashem B. El-Serag, M.D.
Gastroenterologist
Special Expertise: Barrett's Esophagus, Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease, and Liver Cancer
Aimee Garcia, M.D.
Geriatrician
Special Expertise: Wound Healing/Care
Fae H. Garden, M.D.
Physiatrist
Special Expertise: Musculoskeletal Disorders, Spinal Rehabilitation, and Stroke Rehabilitation
John A. Goss, Jr., M.D.
Surgeon
Special Expertise: Transplant-Liver
Richard J. Hamill, M.D.
Infectious Disease Specialist
Teresa G. Hayes, M.D., Ph.D.
Medical Oncologist
Michael H. Heggeness, M.D., Ph.D.
Orthopedic Surgeon
Dov Kadmon, M.D.*
Urologist
Special Expertise: Prostate Cancer
Thomas A. Kent, M.D.*
Neurologist
Special Expertise: Neuro-Psychiatry and Stroke
Thomas R. Kosten, M.D.*
Addiction Psychiatrist
Special Expertise: Alcohol Abuse, Cocaine Addiction, Opiate Addiction, and Psychopharmacology
Panagiotis Kougias, M.D.*
Vascular Surgeon
Special Expertise: Carotid Artery Surgery, Endovascular Surgery, Stroke, and Vascular Reconstruction
Mark E. Kunik, M.D.
Geriatric Psychiatrist
Special Expertise: Dementia
Ida F. Orengo, M.D.*
Dermatologist
Special Expertise: Melanoma, Mohs' Surgery, and Skin Cancer
Yasser H. Shaib, M.D.
Gastroenterologist
Special Expertise: Endoscopic Ultrasound, Gastrointestinal Cancer, Pancreatic/Biliary Endoscopy, Interventional Endoscopy, and Encoscopic Therapies
Christopher P. Smith, M.D.
Urologist
Special Expertise: Incontinence, Neuro-Urology, and Voiding Dysfunction
Stephanie F. Sneed, M.D.
Physiatrist
Special Expertise: Botox for Pain and Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Samuel Stal, M.D.*
Plastic Surgeon
Special Expertise: Cleft Palate/Lip, Craniofacial Surgery, and Maxillofacial Surgery
George E. Taffet, M.D.
Geriatrician
Daniel Yoshor, M.D.
Neurosurgeon
Special Expertise: Brain Mapping, Brain Tumors, Endoscopic Surgery, Epilepsy, Pituitary Tumors, Skull Base Surgery, and Stereotactic Radiosurgery
Nine staff physicians from the MEDVAMC are also, in Castle Connolly's estimation, among the top one percent in the nation in his or her specialty.* These include Boone, Carabello, Donovan, Kadmon, Kent, Kosten, Kougias, Orengo, and Stal.
Awarded re-designation for Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Services in 2008, the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center serves as the primary health care provider for more than 130,000 Veterans in southeast Texas and provides some of the most complex care within the VA Health Care System. The DeBakey VA employs nearly 3,600 staff and is one of 49 institutions within the prestigious Texas Medical Center, one of the largest health and research centers in the world. The DeBakey VA is home to a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinic; Network Polytrauma Center; award-winning Cardiac and General Surgery Program; Liver Transplant Center; Epilepsy and Cancer Centers of Excellence; Substance Abuse Disorder Quality Enhancement Research Initiative; Health Services Research & Development Center of Excellence; Rehabilitation Research of Excellence focusing on mild to moderate traumatic brain injury; Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center; $26.8 million Research and Development Program; and Parkinson’s Disease Research, Education, and Clinical Center. The hospital offers sophisticated, cutting-edge technology such as PET/CT imaging, the Evident™ microwave ablation system, a CyberKnife®, a Varian Trilogy linear accelerator, a Philips Wide Bore Computed Tomography Simulator, the OR•Control System, the Abiomed Impella 2.5 catheter-based heart pump, and the Sapien heart valve. For more than 60 years, the DeBakey VA has served as the primary teaching facility for our major affiliate, Baylor College of Medicine and operates one of the largest VA residency programs in the nation. Each academic year, more than 2,179 students are trained through 194 affiliation agreements with institutions of higher learning. Including the outpatient clinics in Beaumont, Conroe, Galveston, Houston, Lufkin, Richmond, and Texas City, MEDVAMC outpatient clinics logged almost 1.3 million outpatient visits in fiscal year 2011.