The Doctorpedia Podcast

Chhavi Gandhi, MD

Allergy & Immunology

• Board certified physician in Adult and Pediatric Allergy & Immunology, treating patients for over 14 years.
• Has held leadership positions as the President of the Illinois Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, Chief Medical Resident in Internal Medicine at UC San Diego
• Published in peer reviewed journals, authored a chapter in a Northwestern University affiliated Allergy & Immunology textbook and serves as a liaison for local schools on allergic and immunologic concerns.

Dr. Gandhi attended Rush Medical College where she graduated with AOA honors in 2003. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency, where she was chosen to be a Chief Medical Resident by her program, and then pursued an Adult and Pediatric Allergy/Immunology fellowship, all at the University of California San Diego.

She has since returned to the Chicago area and has been in practice treating patients of all ages. Her patients are given care based on the latest guidelines for the treatment of asthma, nasal/eye allergies, atopic dermatitis (eczema), food allergy, urticaria (hives), angioedema (swelling), medication allergies, and immunodeficiencies. She is an advocate for vaccines and understands their public health impact, immunologic importance and safety. In addition, Dr. Gandhi has had specialized training in Allergic Contact Dermatitis testing/treatment, Periodic Fevers (PFAPA), Familial Cold Autoinflammatory Syndrome (FCAS), and the management of aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (Samter’s triad).

Dr. Gandhi’s career passion is patient education. She believes that when patients are invested and understand their illness, their compliance and quality of life improve. Each of her patients are given a thoughtful assessment with a full explanation of their personalized treatment plan. A combination of recommended environmental control measures, medications and immunomodulation are offered, as appropriate. Patients are given written instructions and personalized handouts to aid in their journey to better health.

Dr. Gandhi has had personal experience with multiple allergic concerns, both as a patient and a mother. She understands the impact these diseases have and has experienced the practical aspects of implementing treatment. She has two children who are the loves of her life. In her free time she enjoys cooking, listening to music, dancing, decorating, organizing and traveling.

‍

Qasim A. Butt, MD

Nephrology

• Passionate patient educator who produces health video content, does public speaking and active on social media
• Double board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology, also certified in Interventional Nephrology
• Physician leader with roles including Chief of Medicine, Vice Chief of Medicine and Board Member/Treasurer of non-profit

Dr. Qasim Butt is a highly skilled and well rounded physician that serves the San Antonio area. He not only practices clinical nephrology, but is also a certified interventional nephrologist able to handle all issues related to dialysis access (fistulas, graft, catheters, etc.). He is board certified by the ABIM in both internal medicine and nephrology. He is also a skilled interventional nephrologist and is certified by the American Society of Diagnostic and Interventional Nephrology. He received his training at LSU Health Science Center (Shreveport, LA), completing a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in nephrology.

Dr. Butt goes above and beyond his clinical responsibilities, as a physician leader serving the community. He has had numerous leadership roles, including current Chief of Medicine of Metropolitan Methodist Hospital and previous Treasurer of Board at the Texas Kidney Foundation. In 2019 had been nominated for the Grace Ann Durr Award by Methodist Healthcare System. Also, in 2020 he received the Texas Rising Stars Doctors Award by Texas Monthly Magazine. He enjoys mentoring young aspiring physicians, allowing them to shadow him and giving real life practical advice that will help them on their journey to a career in medicine. He also is a mentor for several years with Big Brothers Big Sisters, trying to improve the life of an adolescent from an underprivileged background.

Dr. Butt is also very passionate about not only raising awareness of kidney disease, but also the epidemic of poor health in our nation. He has worked with the for many years, volunteering for health screenings, fundraising walks and engages in public speaking events to the general public about kidney disease. He also has a professional Facebook (@qasimbuttmd) and YouTube Channel (Your Kidneys Your Health) where he does fun, entertaining videos that breakdown health related topics in a simple way. Dr. Butt is a nephrologist that takes his time addressing patient concerns. He enjoys discussing lifestyle modifications, fitness and diet. He thoroughly explains kidney disease and encourages patients to bring family members to the office, as well. He consistently receives high satisfaction ratings from his patients on numerous online surveys.

Education/Training

• MD: St. George’s University School of Medicine Grenada, West Indies
• Bachelor of Business Administration (Economics and Real Estate): Baylor University
• Nephrology Fellowship including Interventional Training: Louisiana State University Health Science Center Shreveport, LA
• Internal Medicine Residency: Louisiana State University Health Science Center Shreveport, LA

‍

Steven Gange, MD

Urology

• Board Certified Urologist and Director of Education at Summit Urology Group
• Has held numerous other leadership positions including President of the Utah Urological Society, Chair of the Utah Cancer Action Network, Chief of Surgery at St. Mark’s Hospital, and member of the Practice Management Committee for the American Urological Association
• Founder & President , The Utah Healthy Living Foundation – a non-profit dedicated to improving quality of life in Utah through health education and screenings

Dr Steven Gange graduated from the UCLA School of Medicine in 1986 and then completed Urology training at the University of Kentucky in 1991. He served in the US Army from 1991-1996 as a teaching urologist, fulfilling an ROTC obligation. He joined Western Urological Clinic in Salt Lake City in 1996, now Summit Urology Group, where he is Director of Research and Education. Through ongoing investigation and clinical experience he has developed particular expertise in Men’s Health Urology, emphasizing minimally invasive procedures for BPH and Prostate Cancer. As a clinical investigator he was the first urologist in North America to perform UroLift for BPH, and first in the world to perform UroLift in the office under local anesthesia. He was lead-enroller in NeoTract’s RCT. Since FDA-approval he has successfully performed nearly 900 UroLift in-office procedures using his refined local anesthetic technique, and has taught UroLift to hundreds of fellow urologists across the US and in Canada, as well as to urologists in a dozen other countries virtually. He has also lectured on BPH and UroLift at numerous meetings and has co-authored 10 of the pivotal UroLift papers, including a review paper on emerging BPH technologies. Additionally he performed the first Rezum procedure in North America and was lead-enroller in NxThera’s RCT. Dr Gange was also the first urologist in the Intermountain West to perform Sonablate HIFU for prostate cancer in 2009, and continues to offer this minimally invasive option to his patients.

Dr Gange is dedicated to educating the public and medical providers. In 2001 he founded The Utah Healthy Living Foundation, a CME-accredited non-profit educational 501c3 corporation dedicated to improving quality of life in Utah through health education and screenings, and he remains its President. He has held numerous other leadership positions including President of the Utah Urological Society, Chair of the Utah Cancer Action Network, Chief of Surgery at St. Mark’s Hospital, and member of the Practice Management Committee for the American Urological Association. He has been listed in Top Doctors in America, voted there by his peers. He regularly lectures to physicians and lay groups on various aspects of urology and was instrumental in the creation of the Urology section of WebMD.

‍

Douglas Walled, MD

Diagnostic Radiology

• Board certified by the American Board of Radiology in Diagnostic Radiology
• Sub-specializes in advanced cardiac imaging, oncologic PET-CT, and nuclear medicine procedures
• Founder of Dokter Doug Productions, LLC – an online resource for radiology residents preparing for their board examination

With over 10 years of in-person and online experience as a medical educator, Dokter Doug will be an online resource for radiology residents preparing for their board examination. 2020 will see its first week-long, in-person comprehensive physics and nuclear medicine board review in the Northeast, as Dr. Walled builds the beta version of the teaching website.

Education

MD: Yale University School of Medicine

Internship and Residency in Radiology & Nuclear Medicine at Yale-New Haven Hospital

‍

Nassir Azimi, MD, FACC, FSCAI, FASNC

Cardiologist

• Quadruple board certified in internal medicine, cardiology, nuclear cardiology, and interventional cardiology
• Served as the Chief of Medicine Department and Chief of Endovacular Medicine at Sharp Grossmont Hospital and he is currently the chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at SGH
• Recognized among San Diego’s Top Interventional Cardiologists by San Diego Magazine and Castle Connolly several times

Dr. Azimi received a scholarship to Columbia College of Columbia University where he completed his B.A. in Chemistry and pre-medicine. From there, he attended Dartmouth Medical School and completed his residency at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He finished his fellowships in Cardiovascular Medicine, then nuclear cardiology and cardiac and peripheral interventions at the prestigious Yale University.

Dr. Azimi has been in private practice in San Diego, CA for 15 years, establishing a thriving clinical practice for cardiac patients and treating patients for peripheral vascular disease. He is active in Interventional Cardiology and Peripheral Interventions, and he does structural heart interventions, including transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), transeptal procedures such as the Watchman left trail appendage closures. Dr. Azimi has served as the Chief of Medicine Department and Chief of Endovacular Medicine at Sharp Grossmont Hospital and he is currently the chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at SGH.

He is a national expert in anti-platelets and anticoagulants and has been a national speaker on anti platelets anticoagulants, intravenous iron treatments and diabetic treatments. He has been an investigator in multiple clinical research studies for various cardiac and peripheral disease indications, and Dr. Azimi is a Fellow of The American College of Cardiology and serves on the board of governors of the California chapter of the ACC. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology and a Fellow of the Society of Coronary Angiography and Interventions.

Dr. Azimi is the recipient of numerous awards. From being a Castle Connolly top Interventional Cardiologist in San Diego 2012-2020 and has been voted by his peers six times as San Diego’s Top Interventional Cardiologist as published in San Diego Magazine from 2013 to 2019. He is also been awarded the designation of a National ST elevations MI Champion for his outstanding heart attack care.

‍

David Armstrong, DPM, MD, PhD

Podiatric Surgeon

• Professor of Surgery at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine
• Founder and co-Director of the Southwestern Academic Limb Salvage Alliance (SALSA)
• Founder and co-chair of the International Diabetic Foot Conference (DF-Con) – the largest annual international symposium on the diabetic foot in the world
• Co-Editor of the American Diabetes Association’s Clinical Care of the Diabetic Food – now in its third edition
• Appointed Visiting Professor of Medicine at the Manchester College of Medicine
• Produces more than 475 peer-reviewed research papers and over 80 book chapters
• Appointed Deputy Director of Arizona’s Center for Accelerated Biomedical Innovation (ACABI)
• Youngest ever recipient of the ADA’s Roger Pecoraro Award – the highest award given in the field.
• Selected as one of the first six International Wound Care Ambassadors
• Recipient of the inaugural Georgetown Distinguished Award for Diabetic Limb Salvage
• In 2008, he was the 25th and youngest-ever member elected into the Podiatric Medicine Hall of Fame
• He was the first surgeon to be named University Distinguished Outreach Professor at the University of Arizona
• The first podiatric surgeon to become a member of the Society of Vascular Surgery
• The first US podiatric surgeon named fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, Glasgow
• Past Chair of Scientific Sessions for the ADA’s Foot Care Council
• Past member of the National Board of Directors of the American Diabetes Association
• Former commissioner with the Illinois State Diabetes Commission
• Sits on the Infectious Disease Society of America’s (IDSA) Diabetic Foot Infection Advisory Committee
• US appointed delegate to the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF)

Education

• MS: University of Wales College of Medicine
• PhD: University of Manchester College of Medicine

‍