General Surgery

In the first two months of his surgical training, Dr. Jason Williams has helped remove a gallbladder, excise tumors, repair hernias, save damaged limbs and patch up gunshot victims. With eight years of college and medical school behind him, Williams will spend about a decade under the tutelage of senior surgeons before he can practice on his own. Then, when he is pushing 40, he will launch a demanding career that could cost him some family dinners, Thanksgivings and birthday parties. What drives Williams, a resident in general surgery at the Johns Hopkins and Bayview hospitals, is the exhilaration of using his hands to heal sick patients.

After less than 30 minutes of surgery, Dr. Gina Massoglia removed Caren Eckwerth's gallbladder by squeezing it out through a tiny incision in her belly button. A colleague followed up with three small stitches in the navel, covering the wound with a Band-Aid. In a week, no one but her doctors will know the 57-year-old Annapolis woman even had surgery. An operation that once required a six-inch cut under the rib cage and went on, with the spread of laparoscopy, to be a less-invasive surgery involving three or four small slits is now becoming a practically scarless procedure in the hands of a tiny but growing group of surgeons like Massoglia.

So you think that little video camera in your closet is a marvel of miniaturization? Imagine trying to stick it through your navel.In what has become common procedure, doctors are performing surgery by viewing their patients' innards through a skinny video tube -- a laparoscope -- and by poking long-handled scalpels through a few half-inch slits in the belly.Although the procedure is nothing new in gynecological surgery, it began getting popular for general surgery in 1989, says Dr. Mark A. Talamini, a Johns Hopkins University surgery professor.

In the first two months of his surgical training, Dr. Jason Williams has helped remove a gallbladder, excise tumors, repair hernias, save damaged limbs and patch up gunshot victims. With eight years of college and medical school behind him, Williams will spend about a decade under the tutelage of senior surgeons before he can practice on his own. Then, when he is pushing 40, he will launch a demanding career that could cost him some family dinners, Thanksgivings and birthday parties. What drives Williams, a resident in general surgery at the Johns Hopkins and Bayview hospitals, is the exhilaration of using his hands to heal sick patients.

After less than 30 minutes of surgery, Dr. Gina Massoglia removed Caren Eckwerth's gallbladder by squeezing it out through a tiny incision in her belly button. A colleague followed up with three small stitches in the navel, covering the wound with a Band-Aid. In a week, no one but her doctors will know the 57-year-old Annapolis woman even had surgery. An operation that once required a six-inch cut under the rib cage and went on, with the spread of laparoscopy, to be a less-invasive surgery involving three or four small slits is now becoming a practically scarless procedure in the hands of a tiny but growing group of surgeons like Massoglia.

Surgeon joins staff at Md. Vascular Center Vascular surgeon Dr. Vasana Cheanvechai of Baltimore was joined the Maryland Vascular Center at North Arundel Hospital. A graduate of Princeton University, Cheanvechai received her medical degree from Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. She completed a fellowships in vascular surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore and Northwestern. Cheanvechai is an assistant professor of vascular surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and is board certified in general surgery.

Dr. Barry S. Tatar, a partner in the Ear, Nose and Throat Specialty Group, has been named chief of otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) at Greater Laurel Beltsville Hospital.Dr. Tatar is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh College of Arts and Sciences and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He completed his general surgery internship at the University of Pittsburgh and his residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and clinics.The Ear, Nose and Throat Specialty Group has offices in Laurel, Columbia and Glen Burnie.

Dr. Thomas E. Jordan has joined the board of directors of Upper Chesapeake Health System as medical staff representative from Harford Memorial Hospital. Jordan is certified in otolaryngology and plastic surgery, according to the health system. He received his medical degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine and completed his residency in general surgery and otolaryngology at Duke University Medical Center, then a residency in plastic surgery at Georgetown University Medical Center.

Upper Chesapeake HealthLink's new medical mobile van will be in the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center's parking lot M, MacPhail and Tollgate roads, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. Free blood pressure, sleep disorder and body fat analysis screenings will be offered. Also available are: cholesterol screenings for $10; osteoporosis screenings for $15; and cardiac risk assessments for $20 (cash or check only). Please note that osteoporosis screenings require a scan of the bare foot. Information: 800-515-0044.

Dr. Phuong X. Nguyen has joined the surgical department at Mercy Medical Center, where he will focus on general surgery. Nguyen graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder and earned his medical degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Bonnie Eareckson has been appointed the chief of human resource management service for the Veterans Affairs Maryland Health Care System. Eareckson earned her undergraduate degree in 1983 from Southern Career Institute. Dr. Deepak Kashyap has joined the Endocrine and Diabetes Center at Franklin Square Hospital Center.

So you think that little video camera in your closet is a marvel of miniaturization? Imagine trying to stick it through your navel.In what has become common procedure, doctors are performing surgery by viewing their patients' innards through a skinny video tube -- a laparoscope -- and by poking long-handled scalpels through a few half-inch slits in the belly.Although the procedure is nothing new in gynecological surgery, it began getting popular for general surgery in 1989, says Dr. Mark A. Talamini, a Johns Hopkins University surgery professor.

Hospital names head of professional staff Dr. Michael Macon has been named president of the professional staff of Howard County General Hospital. Dr. Michael E. Silverman has been named vice president, and Dr. Edward J. Lee, secretary-treasurer. Macon is section chief for general surgery at the hospital. A member of the Maryland Surgeons practice, he received his medical degree from George Washington University School of Medicine, and he completed his internship and residency at St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore.

The gracious cocktail party was perfectly suited to its genteel surroundings -- the library of Evergreen, the 1858 mansion that once was the home of Baltimore's Garrett family. Peabody pianist Paul Wyse provided piano passages in the background as the more than 70 party guests conversed and nibbled hors d'oeuvres. They had come to honor Edward J. Brody and Dr. Stuart B. Bell, who are leaving their respective posts of board chair and chief of staff for Union Memorial Hospital. Among those circulating through the soiree were John McDaniel, MedStar Health CEO; Harrison J. Rider III, Union Memorial president; Greg Szoka, incoming board chair; Barbara Bonnell and Mary Ellen Thomsen, board members; Dr. Samir Shureih, incoming chief of staff; Dr. Bill Howard, Union Memorial Sports Medicine founder; Dr. David Nasrallah, chief of general surgery; and Dr. Peter Innis, hand surgeon.