UHS Vascular Surgeon Named to America’s Best Vascular Surgeons List

Leonard Anderson, MD, FACS, UHS Medical Director of Surgical Services, was recently named one of America’s Best Vascular Surgeons by Newsweek. The list includes just 200 of the country’s 3,500 vascular surgeons; only surgeons in the 20 states with the highest number of practicing physicians were eligible for consideration. Said Dr. Anderson, “It’s an honor to be recognized by a reputable, independent organization among a relatively large group of surgeons.”

In partnership with data intelligence platform Statista, Newsweek compiled the list to assist patients in their search for the right vascular surgeon. Inclusion was based on physician performance data from Medicare gathered by clinical analytics provider CareJourney, as well as an online survey of medical experts, a quality-of-care score from each surgeon’s peers, patient satisfaction scores, and consideration of American Board of Surgery certifications.

Board-certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Vascular Medicine, Dr. Anderson has been in practice since 1991 and with UHS since 1993. “At that time, UHS had no vascular surgeon. I saw it as a great opportunity and I’ve been here ever since. It’s been exciting to watch the specialty evolve to include more minimally-invasive options,” he said. Dr. Anderson also serves as the site director for SUNY Upstate Medical University’s Binghamton Clinical Campus – Upstate medical students spend their third year in the area, and the school’s fourth-year general surgery residents spend time at UHS to broaden their experience.

Dr. Anderson sees patients at Wilson Square in Johnson City, and performs about 600 procedures per year. His most commonly-performed surgeries include carotid endarterectomy (removal of fatty deposits to prevent stroke), abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, lower extremity revascularization to treat inadequate circulation, venous ulcer treatment and more.

UHS’ vascular surgery department now includes two permanent surgeons plus one part-time. Said Dr. Anderson of choosing vascular surgery as his specialty: “Vascular is highly demanding – the surgeries are quite technical and it has to be perfect. We’re unique – every other surgical specialty has an intervening specialty, such as cardiologists who refer to cardiac surgeons. Vascular surgeons have a lot of ownership of the medical aspect of patient care.”

Dr. Anderson highlights clinical excellence close to home as the reason to choose UHS for vascular surgery needs. “You don’t have to travel to a big city to get the most modern and specialized care – we provide a full spectrum right here as a regional referral center for vascular surgery. We pay attention to patient outcomes and patient satisfaction, and we see so many quality-improvement efforts borne out in a recognition like this.”

Click here to view the Newsweek list.