About Me

Welcome to my Web page. I am an internist and adult nephrologist and though I primarily work as a physician administrator, I still enjoy seeing members one day a week. Currently, I serve as physician consultant to our kidney (renal) program and also help out with renal programs in other Kaiser Permanente regions. My goal is to make sure that our kidney patients receive the best possible care. I am extremely proud of our members’ results.

Biography

I was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and attended both college and medical school at the University of Minnesota. I was also a professional musician before I went to medical school. When choosing a medical residency program, I decided to come to Southern California, hoping to participate in the music scene. While I never worked as a professional musician again, I did meet my wife-to-be during my residency. We have two sons who are already grown up. So, I’m glad I moved to Southern California. Also, if I hadn’t moved to Southern California, I would probably not have had the opportunity to join Kaiser Permanente!

About my practice

At the Woodland Hills Medical Center, we now have six full-time kidney specialists who provide all services, including hospital and dialysis care. I help my colleagues by seeing many of the patients with early kidney disease who do not have to be on dialysis. Helping patients who have early chronic kidney disease understand what is happening, and helping them to avoid dialysis, is very satisfying work. I also enjoy using our electronic medical record system. I believe this system is improving the quality of care for Kaiser Permanente patients.

How I thrive

As I have gotten a bit older, I have learned to better appreciate the value of regular exercise. I now exercise almost daily, walking or pedaling an exercise bike. It has made a big improvement in my energy and alertness. I also still dabble in music and songwriting. I love attending musical theater whenever I can and look forward to some interesting travel every year.