MDNews - San Antonio

++++++++++++++++++++++ + +++ + COVER FEATURE U+++ ++++++++++++++++++++++ CO M I N G BAC K TO G IVE BAC K Southwest General Hospital has the rare opportunity of having two native San Antonians providing outstanding obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) care for the women of the area. Roberto Trevino, Jr., M.D., 2012 President of Bexar County Medical Society, explains that having Drs. Nichole Van de Putte, M.D., OB/GYN, and Leticia Vargas, M.D., M.B.A., OB/GYN, stay in San Antonio is a boon for the hospital and the city. "We're always complaining about physicians training in our state and then leaving," Dr. Trevino says. "They decided to stay in the area where they grew up and render their services to the public. They came to an area of San Antonio that's badly in need of good, qualified physicians." Many young people constantly look to move on to bigger and better things. Drs. Van de Putte and Vargas, 32 and 40 years old, respectively, look to bring the bigger and better things to San Antonio's Southside. Dr. Van de Putte emphasizes that she and Dr. Vargas didn't come to Southwest General Hospital to set up shop in hopes of springboarding to patients these aren't procedures designed to save your lives — they're designed to improve your lives." Easy Access to Excellent Care The same spirit of collaboration extends to physicians who refer patients to Southwest General, which is a more accessible location for many people needing complex OB/GYN procedures, consultations or follow-up. "We're convenient for people because our hospital and office are right off Interstate 35, so patients don't have to go all the way into town and deal with a lot of traffic," Dr. Vargas says. "Providers may send their patients to Southwest General's emergency room for evaluation and call us to follow up with them. We also accept referrals for patients whose conditions may be too complicated for some general practitioners, and they may send them to us, knowing we will be able to care for their patients and communicate back to them." The OB/GYN physicians are on call around the clock, and when patients or physicians call the office, they don't have to navigate a complicated automated system; instead, an office member answers and directs the call. If a physician wishes to refer a patient for evaluation or treatment, Drs. Van de Putte and Vargas ensure follow-up communication, beginning with something else in the near future. Both an initial thank-you letter or fax delivered the same or following day of the patient's visit, providing the referring physician with specific details of the exam and any resulting findings, as well as any studies that need to be ordered. "We take a tremendous amount of pride in being able to take care of referring physicians' patients, so we do everything we can to answer their questions and return their patients to them," Dr. Van de Putte says. To schedule an appointment for one of your patients with Dr. Van de Putte or Dr. Vargas, please visit www.swghdocs.com or call (210) 921-6150. I "I want to say how proud I am that area professionals "An all-female practice like ours is something this community hasn't had," who understand our heritage Dr. Van de Putte notes. "To have this practice at Southwest General Hospital and are fluent in Spanish is good for all of us, but it's particularly have returned to practice good for the women of the Southside and South Texas. That's what we're really women's health in our about — taking care of women." neighborhoods. It's a great thing for Southwest General Hospital to be able to recruit this caliber of young physicians, and it shows there's a new generation of people who want to utilize the services in the southern sector of Bexar County. Great for you [Southwest General Hospital]. And great for the City of San Antonio." physicians have high hopes for growing their practice in the decades ahead. — State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, Dr. Van de Putte's mother 8 | San Antonio MD NEWS I MDNEWS.COM

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