Joanne H. Van Woert, MD

For 30 years, I have practiced internal medicine in a 100-year-old building in my hometown. I am proud to say that I have maintained an independent medical practice, much like my father, Irving Van Woert, Jr., MD, who ran his own radiology practice as the first medical imaging center in Delmar, New York. I have had the good fortune to practice alongside my younger sister, who is also a physician.

I first became interested in medicine when, as a young girl, I visited my grandfather, Irving Van Woert, Sr., who was a general practitioner with his office at the back of his residence, for over 50 years. He loved to share stories about his patients, and he gave me suggestions about how to care for people. The point he would always come back to was the importance of listening carefully to a patient's concerns.

I feel as though my patients are part of my extended family. I love to get to know their family and learn about their occupations and hobbies. Because I have more time to get to know them well,  we can discuss a problem more deeply when they come in not feeling well.

Thanks to my affiliation with MDVIP, I can spend more time with my patients. Ifound the traditional medical practice model was pinching the amount of time that I could spend with each patient because of increased overhead costs and stagnant or even declining insurance reimbursement. 

If you come to my MDVIP-affiliated practice, you can receive services, including comprehensive, advanced health screenings and diagnostic tests, that go far beyond those found in concierge medicine practices. I focus on the prevention of cardiovascular disease with an emphasis on nutrition, exercise and weight loss.

I aim for my private office building to provide comfort like home. There is convenient parking adjacent to the building. My staff is welcoming. A live person answers the office phone. We don’t use voicemail. I’d like to think that the practice operates with the warm, personalized service that used to be associated with the practice of medicine in my grandfather’s day.

As an avid gardener, I created a perennial garden at the office for the enjoyment of my patients. When I get a chance to view the perennial garden  between patient visits, I often recall the words of A. Bartlett Giamatti, formerly a president of Yale University and commissioner of Major League Baseball, at my college graduation: "As you go forward, realize all that you have learned, let your energy take root, and as you touch the lives of others, the answers will grow."