How to Choose a Doctor

If you have tried to navigate the healthcare industry online to find a new personal doctor, dentist, eye doctor or specialist of any kind, it can be daunting. Your health is everything. Being nervous about choosing the right medical professional is to be expected.

Doctor review sites, insurance providers, and social platforms are all great resources to do research, but when it boils down to it, word of mouth from your inner circle is often the most powerful influencer for choosing a medical provider of any kind. Friends, co-workers, and relatives recommendations take precedence. Followed by reviews and insurance verification. When a doctor makes a “Best of” list, that also helps, as many of these honors are given through peer reviews.

Dr. Paul J. MacKoul, Washingtonian 2015 Best Doctors

The next step to truly getting to know a surgeon takes a face to face conversation, and a willingness to walk away if it does not feel like it will be a partnership. It helps to know what you should expect.

At The Center for Innovative GYN Care, our minimally invasive GYN surgeons take pride in creating a patient experience that establishes a partnership from the beginning. In addition to understanding your condition, and having the skill and experience necessary to treat it, Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD and Dr. Paul J. MacKoul, MD take into consideration patients plans for the future, especially when it comes to personal health concerns or fertility. They take the time to explain exactly what is happening in a thorough and personalized consultation, and then discuss options for treatment.

“We encourage patients to ask a lot of questions, and to always get a second opinion,” said Dr. MacKoul. “When it comes to GYN conditions, open procedures are never necessary, and in our practice, the minimally invasive techniques we developed never require a power morcellator. Too many women are being directed to open, robotic or other laparoscopic procedures that use a power morcellator, and aren’t encouraged to seek second, or even third opinions. We have a lot of patients like Heidi who refused to have a robotic procedure and kept doing research until she found us.”

Feedback is important to any medical practice. At CIGC we encourage patients to share their thoughts online or offline, so that we can always be focused on giving women the best possible experience.

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Doctor Reviews & Patient Stories

Dr. Natalya Danilyants Reviews

Vitals, RateMDs, Google Plus, Wellness, and UCompareHealthCare.

Dr. Paul J. MacKoul Reviews

Vitals, RateMDs, Google Plus, Wellness, and UCompareHealthCare.

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Many of our patients want to share their stories so that other women don’t have to delay getting treatment.

Dr. Danilyants Patient Story Highlights

Remove Large Fibroids Safely: Jenny’s Story

Jenny traveled from Wisconsin to have a minimally invasive myomectomy in Maryland with Dr. Danilyants. The LAAM technique developed by the CIGC specialists uses just two small incisions to remove all fibroids, no matter the size or location. 

“As a physical therapist assistant for the elderly, I have to be able to lift and be there to support my patients,” said Jenny. “It’s a safety issue. And, like many women, I can’t afford to be away from my job for 6 weeks, either.”

“After my consultation via phone with Dr. Danilyants, I was able to have minimally invasive fibroid surgery 2 weeks later!” said Jenny.  “I had no hesitation in deciding to travel. Once I got (to Maryland), I felt very supported by the staff and that made it easier on me so I didn’t have to worry.”

Brenda, Life After GYN Surgery

When Brenda met Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD, she found out that minimally invasive surgery is possible for women with large fibroids. Brenda had a hysterectomy using DualPortGYN, and was able to return to a more active lifestyle with her husband.

“I had perfect attendance for 18 years, and it was a sense of pride and I just wanted to get back to work as soon as I could, and get back into my regular routine,” said Brenda, hysterectomy patient at CIGC. “I didn’t like the idea of a full large incision and the recovery time.”

“Now I don’t have that pain any longer and it’s a different world for me. I just feel so much better. I have so much more energy and I’ve lost weight.”

Celeste’s Story: Getting Fibroid Free: My Journey to the Lighthouse

Celeste recently shared her story with emPower Magazine, recounting her story of suddenly finding herself with rapidly growing fibroids threatening her ability to get pregnant. Her story is similar to many women who struggle to find a solution to inconvenient and frequently debilitating symptoms. 

“…My weight ballooned quickly to over 150lbs, when typically I hovered around 135-137lbs. I didn’t have heavy, uncontrollable cycles like some women have, but I was having painful sexual intercourse. All of this in addition to my stomach, which looked like a 3-month pregnancy, caused me to immediately seek guidance…During my initial visit, Dr. Danilyants was optimistic about performing the procedure and seemed confident that I could keep my uterus… I am fibroid free and kept my uterus. While I am not pregnant yet, Dr. Danilyants made our dream of having a baby a real possibility.”

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Dr. MacKoul Patient Story Highlights

Rashetta’s Story: The Watch and Wait Method For Large Fibroids Doesn’t Work

Many doctors tell patients that if fibroids aren’t bothering you, you can wait for surgery. The problem with fibroids, especially large fibroids is that they will continue to grow. Once a fibroid is large, recommendations like changes to diet, or hormone therapy don’t have a significant effect on size. 

“For years I saw the same doctor, waiting and watching my fibroids grow, and for a while, the pain wasn’t altering my daily activities. But then, the pain got progressively worse. I found myself in bed, crying in pain.”

“Even from my first consultation, the feeling that you get when you first meet someone and feel comfortable, that’s how I felt. When I first met him and he walked me through the procedure, he was so thorough. He drew out what was going on with my fibroids, and I realized in talking to him that I shouldn’t have done the watch and wait approach.”

Lisa’s Story: Welcoming a Baby After Minimally Invasive GYN Surgery

Having a child later in life is increasing as many couples are waiting until they are more stable. Fertility problems also increase as women get delay getting pregnant, as Lisa discovered.

“Despite the size of the tumor, Dr. MacKoul said he could leave my uterus intact,” said Lisa. “I really appreciated being asked about whether or not I wanted to have children. Being over 40, I was worried. I’ve always been very healthy, and had tried a holistic approach to reduce the size, but it was getting bigger. My back was hurting and I had intense pelvic pain.”

“I was apprehensive about surgery. After I had met with Dr. MacKoul, and he said he could remove the tumor laparoscopically AND make it possible for me to try to get pregnant, I was relieved.”

Beth’s Story: Back in the Saddle After Endometriosis Surgery

“I felt back to myself almost immediately versus the other surgeries where I had multiple incisions… Dr. MacKoul and his partners gave me my life back.”

After endometriosis surgery, Beth has begun to reclaim parts of her life that she had to put on hold. She is literally back in the saddle. 

“The first time I got back on Thunder in 3 years was like riding a bike,” said Beth. “[The surgery] changed my life for the better in so many ways, I can’t even repay Dr. MacKoul enough for what he’s given back to me in my life, and my family.”

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BOOK A CONSULTATION

GYN surgical specialists can often see women sooner because they are focused entirely on surgery. Each patient gets detailed, in depth attention from Dr. Natalya Danilyants and Dr. Paul MacKoul. This personalized care helps patients understand their condition and the recommended treatment so that they can have confidence from the very start. Our surgeons have performed over 20,000 GYN procedures and are constantly finding better ways to improve outcomes for patients.

Book a consultation today with Dr. Paul MacKoul, MD or Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD.

CIGC TRAVEL PROGRAM

Even if you are not from the DC area, many patients travel to The Center for Innovative GYN Care for our groundbreaking procedures. We treat women from around the world who suffer from complex GYN conditions.

Learn more in our travel program.