If you or a loved one required medical treatment, which physician would you choose?
That’s the question dsm posed in a recent survey to about 1,330 Greater Des Moines physicians in an effort to identify some of the area’s most highly regarded doctors. In the lists on pages 138-140, you’ll see the names of physicians their peers voted to be among the best in seven specialties: cardiovascular disease, general internal medicine, general surgery, obstetrics/gynecology, ophthalmology, orthopaedic surgery and otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat). We limited the survey to seven
specialties to keep it manageable; if we repeat it in future years, we’ll include other specialties. (See the complete explanation of the survey’s methodology, right.)
If you don’t see your physician’s name on the list, does that mean he or she isn’t outstanding? Certainly not. We understand that this kind of survey has limitations. Although the number of responses we received made the poll statistically valid, the survey is still subjective, reflecting the individual opinions of the doctors who chose to participate. Also, we acknowledge that it takes a strong team—including support staff, nurses and other doctors—to deliver high-quality health care and that some physicians are uneasy about being signaled out for an honor like this.
Nonetheless, we’re confident the survey’s results reveal some of the metro area’s first-rate physicians, who help deliver a stellar level of health care that benefits our entire community.
Below are the top physicians, by specialty. The doctor who received the most votes in each specialty is listed first; for two specialties—cardiovascular disease and obstetrics/gynecology—there was a tie. Other physicians in each category who were among the top vote getters are listed in alphabetical order. Physicians are listed with the practice they were associated with when the survey was taken.
Cardiovascular Disease
A tie:
Amar Nath, M.D.
UnityPoint Health/Cardiology at Penn Avenue
and
William Wickemeyer, M.D.
Iowa Heart Center
Michael Fraizer, M.D.
Iowa Heart Center
Joel From, M.D.
Iowa Heart Center
Jonathan Fudge, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
David Laughrun, M.D.
Iowa Heart Center
James Lovell, D.O.
The Iowa Clinic
Pamela Nerheim, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
General Surgery
Gerald Baker, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Susan Beck, D.O.
Frederick and Ann Katzmann
Breast Center
Scott Hamling, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Daniel Kollmorgen, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Willie McClairen, M.D.
General Surgery Physicians
Michael Mohan, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Dennis Whitmer, D.O.
Mercy Surgical Affiliates
General Internal Medicine
Jeffrey DeFrancisco, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Daniel Allen, M.D.
UnityPoint Health, Internal Medicine at Lakeview
Jose Angel, M.D.
Mercy Jordan Creek Internal Medicine Clinic
Kevin Cunningham, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Sean Cunningham, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
John Heffernan, M.D.
UnityPoint Health, Internal Medicine at Penn Avenue
Eric Holm, M.D.
UnityPoint Health, Methodist Plaza Internal Medicine
Carol Horner, D.O.
Mercy Capitol Internal Medicine Clinic
Obstetrics/Gynecology
A tie:
Enrique Bedia, M.D.
UnityPoint Health, OB/GYN at Lakeview
and
Dennis Dornbier, D.O.
Obstetrical & Gynecological Associates
Amy Bingaman, M.D.
UnityPoint Health, OB/GYN at Methodist Plaza
Steven Keller, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Gregg Polzin, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Ophthalmology
George Clavenna, D.O.
Des Moines University
Elizabeth Brown, M.D.
Physicians Eye Clinic
Syed Husain, M.D.
Associated Ophthalmologists
Eugene Sarno, M.D.
Des Moines Eye Surgeons
Donny Suh, M.D.
Wolfe Eye Clinic
Orthopaedic Surgery
Stephen Taylor, M.D.
Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons
Jeffrey Davick, M.D.
Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons
Kyle Galles, M.D.
Iowa Orthopaedic Center
Devon Goetz, M.D.
Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons
Craig Mahoney, M.D.
Iowa Orthopaedic Center
Matthew Weresh, M.D.
Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons
Otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat)
Richard Rinehart, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Marshall Greiman, M.D.
Mercy Ear Nose & Throat Clinic
Steven Herwig, D.O.
The Iowa Clinic
Corey Mineck, M.D.
Mercy Ear Nose & Throat Clinic
Douglas Schulte, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
Timothy Simplot, M.D.
Iowa ENT Center
Mark Zlab, M.D.
The Iowa Clinic
How the Top Docs Were Chosen
The Top Docs survey was conducted by polling actively practicing physicians in Greater Des Moines. The doctors were asked:
If you or a loved one required medical treatment, which physician would you choose?
A ballot listing doctors in seven medical specialties was mailed to the business addresses of 1,133 physicians in Altoona, Ankeny, Carlisle, Clive, Des Moines, Johnston, Norwalk, Pleasant Hill, Urbandale, Waukee, West Des Moines and Windsor Heights. The physicians were asked to vote for one person in each of the specialty categories in which they felt they had sufficient knowledge to make a fair selection. The ballots were returned to Business Publications Corp. Inc., dsm’s parent company, for tabulation. The number of responses was statistically valid.
The Office of Statewide Clinical Education Programs (OSCEP) at the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine compiled the list of physicians and their specialties. It was derived from OSCEP’s inventory of more than 5,600 physicians actively practicing in Iowa. That roster is updated continuously and re-verified every six months with a personal call to each physician or a representative of his or her office.
While some physicians identify themselves as specialists in a given discipline, others don’t identify themselves as specialists even though they have extensive training and experience in that discipline; therefore, they may not have been listed on the ballot with their specialty. Likewise, some physicians may identify themselves as practicing in a given discipline—for example, obstetrics/gynecology or general surgery—though they may actually solely focus on a subspecialty, such as reproductive endocrinology or pediatric surgery.
The survey was conducted by the editorial department of Business Publications Corp. Inc. with assistance from support staff. The advertising department was not consulted prior to the survey and had no involvement in the process. Any advertising purchased by physicians was done after the final survey was completed and had no influence on the outcome.
