Dr. Simone Thavaseelan is a urologist with Brown Urology who sees patients in a number of Rhode Island hospitals, including The Miriam Hospital, Women & Infants Hospital and Rhode Island Hospital. She serves as chief of urology at the Providence VA Medical Center, and is the director of the residency program at the division of urology in the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University.
Thavaseelan, a recent recipient of the Rhode Island Medical Society’s 4 Under 40 award, is also a board member of the Society of Women in Urology and has co-authored several research papers on the use of technology in the field.
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PBN: You recently oversaw an activity at the Big Bang Science Fair that involved a ureteroscope, a device used to treat kidney stones. Does familiarizing people with new treatment methods take the “scare” out of visits to the urologist?
THAVASEELAN: One of the most effective ways to encourage people to check on their urology health is to engage them in fun and novel activities [such as] the one we had at the Big Bang Science Fair. It was exciting for us, as urologists, to show what a ureteroscope looks like and how we maneuver equipment to see into the urinary tract.
These types of demonstrations illustrate how we diagnose and fix a kidney stone in a way that is easy to understand for everyone. Participating in this event was an incredibly rewarding experience that I hope will help more people improve their overall well-being and health.
Ideally, individuals who have urologic disease will take what they’ve learned from this experience to seek more answers and health care services from a urologist who [has] received extensive training in preventing and treating common conditions of the urinary tract.
PBN: How has technology contributed to better modes of treatment for urological conditions?
THAVASEELAN: Urologists have always been at the forefront of integrating technology into real advances in patient care. These medical advances in techniques and surgeries have played an important role in improving outcomes for patients.
Using open or traditional incisional surgery, as well as endoscopic, microsurgical, laparoscopic, and robotic-assisted technology techniques, urologists have advanced the process of caring for patients and reduced recovery times for millions of patients.
In my area of expertise, advances in miniaturized scopes have allowed us to offer minimally invasive procedures without the need to “open” up a patient. Through small incisions, we can remove painful kidney stones and help patients feel better, more quickly. These are just some of the advances in urology that have resulted in a greater number of subspecialized surgeons. Together, they are making a significant impact in treating individual disease.
PBN: Is there enough focus on preventative treatment when it comes to urology?
THAVASEELAN: Preventative treatment for urological conditions is challenging to address for a few reasons. The main challenge could be tied to the difficulty of distinguishing between healthy habits and tips that are specifically related to urology health. For instance, everyone knows that drinking water is healthy for you. Urologists would also recommend drinking plenty of water as a way to help prevent kidney stones.
Another challenge stems from physicians’ inability to provide the same recommendation to everyone. Every person’s body works differently. While some people will be encouraged to cut out certain foods from their diets, it may not be necessary for someone else. Physicians in our field have done a good job in delivering individualized care to patients. However, more could be done to remind the public about preventative care as it directly relates to urology.
Also, routine screening for urology cancers, such as prostate cancer through a blood test and a physical exam can also have a significant impact in early detection and prevention of advanced disease.
PBN: What is one thing that people can do better to improve their urological health?
THAVASEELAN: We take for granted how our urinary systems work all the time. As long as people are eating and drinking regularly, individuals are unlikely to give their urinary system a second thought. It is usually after men and women experience pain or discomfort that they consider improving their urology health, or meeting with a urologist.
Speaking broadly, individuals can maximize their urinary function by staying hydrated and using the bathroom in recurring intervals. In the simplest terms, our kidneys filter out blood to make urine and the bladder stores it. The real process is far more complex, and when the urinary system is not working properly, a variety of obvious and silent symptoms may emerge. With this in mind, people can improve their urological health by scheduling an appointment with their doctor who might refer them if they have a problem with their urinary or reproductive system.
PBN: Is the field of urology attracting enough young physicians in Rhode Island?
THAVASEELAN: Urology is an extremely small surgical subspecialty that trains about 350 urologists a year. With an increasing population that is aging, we are witnessing an increased global burden of urology disease, as conditions such as prostate cancer, prostate enlargement, bladder cancer, incontinence and erectile dysfunction are common in the aging population.
As you could imagine, the ratio of urologists to patients is a challenge across the country, not just in Rhode Island. Another factor impacting the field is the direction the health care landscape is heading towards. Consolidations across health care systems, medical schools and hospitals are changing the way physicians practice. This could also make it more challenging to compete with neighboring states and institutions in New England.
There are still independent organizations, and there will likely continue to be practices that specialize in urology. For instance, Brown Urology, one of six foundations that comprise Brown Physicians Inc., has many generalists and subspecialists that focus on treating urologic diseases. Brown Urology provides patients with access to pediatrics, female pelvic floor medicine, urologic oncology, endourology, male infertility and andrology, and reconstruction surgical services. Physicians in these specialties receive advanced training to care for some of the most complex conditions, which can be very rewarding for doctors who want to make a difference in the lives of patients.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN staff writer. She can be reached at graham@pbn.com.
