July/August 2005

Top Docs for Women

Who Makes the Cut? We Asked Their Fellow Physicians to Give us the Inside Scoop

By Karen Haywood Queen

It’s no secret women have high expectations (for their families, friends, careers and especially themselves)—and that doesn’t change when trying to find the best medical specialist to meet their needs. Women don’t just want a doctor—they want a mixture of expertise, caring and flexible appointment times to fit busy schedules. We hope Top Docs for Women can simplify the process and make life (well, this part anyway) a little easier for our female readers.

Last year, Hampton Roads Magazine brought you Top Docs for Kids, a listing of the best pediatric physicians and specialists in Hampton Roads. This year, we mailed surveys to physicians’ offices and hospitals asking, "Which doctor would you refer your mother, sister, aunt, best friend—or visit yourself—for any one of the specialties listed in the enclosed survey?"

We tallied the results and have listed the doctor or medical professional who received the most votes in several categories/specialties we feel are important to women. Some categories tied for first; those are noted with an asterisk. Our list includes top doctors in fields such as gynecology/obstetrics, oncology, osteoporosis, cardiology and reproductive, endocrinology & infertility—to name just a few.

Coverage also includes a closer look at the winners in four specially selected categories—breast specialist (because almost every woman is concerned about early detection of this common cancer); cardiology (heart disease is now the leading cause of death in women); reproductive, endocrinology, & infertility (doctors in this field help growing numbers of women realize their dreams of becoming mothers); and dermatology (well, because, what women doesn’t want glowing skin?). Frequent contributor Karen Haywood Queen sat down with the doctors to discover the man or woman behind the MD title.

The doctors profiled include three second-generation physicians, one third-generation physician and one who was the first in her family to finish college. One graduated from the University of Virginia and another briefly taught there. Two others came to Hampton Roads because of work at Eastern Virginia Medical School, one is a native of Minnesota and another briefly lived there before deciding it was too cold. Regardless of their individual backgrounds, however, a common theme stood out—most made it a point to say they care about their patients as people and not just as embodiments of medical problems.

And lastly, as we always tell readers in regard to our Top Docs surveys, although their colleagues respect the doctors on this list, the listing is no guarantee of your satisfaction. Nor does absence from our list suggest anything against any physician. If you have a good relationship with the doctor or specialist you see, we encourage you to maintain those relationships—even if your doctor isn’t on this list.

Readers who would like to participate next year but didn’t receive a questionnaire, please send complete contact information to .

For the rest of this story, you can order the July/August 2005 issue of Hampton Roads Magazine.