Two New Docs at Gifford

Gifford Medical Center in Randolph has announced the hiring of two new doctors. Dr. Susanne Trost is an endocrinologist and Dr. Navin Pancholy is a general surgeon.

Dr. Susanne Trost

Endocrinologists are rare in the state, and with the increase in disorders such as diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity and metabolic syndrome, the need is rapidly increasing. Dr. Trost has joined Gifford in Randolph and will also practice in Berlin as a Gifford provider. A medical school graduate of the Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg in Germany, Dr. Trost did her internship, residency and endocrinology fellowship training at Fletcher Allen Health Care. She is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and eligible for certification in endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism.

Endocrinologists specialize in hormonal imbalances, a category of illnesses that includes diabetes, overactive thyroid, adrenal gland failure and bone disease, such as osteoporosis.

A Randolph resident, she is the wife of cardiologist Dr. Markus Meyer and the mother of two young sons, two-year-old Matteo and baby Vincent. An arts and exercise enthusiast, Dr. Trost brings to Randolph a love of the area ("I've always wanted to ski out of my house," she says) and a love of her trade.

Dr. Trost will help Randolph and central Vermont area patients with type 1 diabetes; some type 2 diabetes sufferers needing extra help managing their diabetes; those suffering thyroid problems, including thyroid cancer; lipid abnormalities and metabolic bone disease including osteoporosis. She will work with the hospital's new bone density machines and Gifford's Diabetes Clinic.

"I am very pleased that Dr. Trost has joined us to provide care for patients needing help in the area of diabetes, thyroid disease, osteoporosis, obesity and other endocrine disorders such as hormonal replacement therapy," says Gifford Medical Director Dr. Louis DiNicola. "The entire central Vermont area with a population of over 50,000 has had, until now, very limited access to the specialty of endocrinology."

Dr. Trost can be reached at 728-2470 or through a referral from a primary care doctor.

Dr. Navin Pancholy

General surgeon Dr. Navin Pancholy brings to Gifford more than 30 years of surgical experience, including extensive experience in vascular surgery. Dr. Pancholy was last a general surgeon and chief of staff at North Valley Hospital in Tonasket, Wash. North Valley Hospital is a 25-bed critical access hospital, similar to Gifford.

Certified by the American Board of General Surgery, Dr. Pancholy has worked in India, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kansas. A graduate of the B.J. Medical College of Ahmedabad, India, Dr. Pancholy interned at Good Samaritan Hospital in Dayton, Ohio, South Side Hospital in Pittsburgh and Provident Hospital in Baltimore. He completed a cardiovascular fellowship at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston and a general surgery fellowship at the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

In addition to performing general and vascular surgery, Dr. Pancholy has been a transplant surgeon, worked 12 years in a trauma center with critical, intensive care unit patients, and performs laparoscopic and endoscopic surgeries. He has also been involved in numerous teaching engagements.

So far he is impressed by Gifford's organizational structure and its number of specialists, he said.

The opportunity to work at Gifford and a move to the East Coast, where he is closer to family, is what brought Dr. Pancholy to Randolph. He has two grown children and enjoys cultural events, economics, politics, conversing and charity work in his free time.

"We're enthusiastic about having a new general surgeon to provide additional coverage and good care to our area patients in need of general surgery," said Gifford Chief of Surgical Services and orthopedist Dr. William Minsinger. "We feel Dr. Pancholy is a great choice for Gifford because he has been at another critical access hospital and knows what is needed at a small hospital."

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