Our Doctors in the News

"Best Doctors in America"

Drs. William Parker, Amy Rosenman and Ingrid Rodi have all been selected for the
Best Doctors in America list for the second consecutive time. We believe we are the
only GYN practice on the entire West Coast to have all members of a practice included in
this exclusive and honored group of physicians. We are committed to the private practice of medicine. In addition to providing the best quality of care available, we provide sensitive and unhurried care, something hard to find in medicine today.
 
Our Doctors
Our physicians are very active in research and teaching in their specialized areas
of interest. Here are some of their recent accomplishments:
 
Dr. William Parker
Dr. William Parker completed his term as President of the American Association of Gynecologicz Laparoscopists (AAGL). The AAGL is an international society of 5,000 gynecologists from 53 countries who share an interest in minimally invasive treatments
for women’s health care problems. The year concluded with the AAGL Annual Meeting in
Orlando. Attended by 1,500 gynecologists from around the world, this conference was
enormously successful. Dr. Parker continues his work with the AAGL as a Past President
who retains membership on the Board of Trustees.

Dr. Parker completed eight years of leadership as Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology
at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center. He continues as a Clinical Professor at the
UCLA School of Medicine, the highest position a private practitioner can hold at the
medical school.

Dr. Parker authored a book chapter on “Laparoscopic Hysterectomy” for Clinics of
Obstetrics and Gynecology of North America. He also authored “Ovarian Surgery in the
21st Century” for the Journal of the American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists.

Dr. Parker was the scientific program co-chair for a medical education course
presented to a combined audience from the American Urogynecologic Society and
the AAGL in Miami. He lectured on a number of incontinence topics. Dr. Parker gave
Grand Rounds at UCLA School of Medicine on “Childbirth and Incontinence: Is the
Cesarian Section Rate Too Low?” He recently passed his certification examination
from the North American Menopause Society as a Menopause Clinician.
 
Dr. Amy E. Rosenman
Dr. Amy Rosenman has been reappointed vice-chair of Saint John’s Health
Center’s multidisciplinary credentials committee and as Chairperson of the
Santa Monica-UCLA risk management committee. These committees are designed
to oversee the quality of care to patients at these hospitals. She has been appointed as
the Medical Director of the Center for Healthy Aging that has a grant to screen
low-income women, ages 50-65, for breast and cervical cancer. Dr. Rosenman serves as
co-director of the Pacific Continence Center here in Santa Monica.

Dr. Rosenman continues to co-direct the UCLA Urogynecology Fellowship in
conjunction with Harbor-UCLA, one of the few national programs in the new Pelvic floor
dysfunction and surgery fellowship which combines gynecology, urology, and colorectal
specialties for comprehensive care of women with incontinence and prolapse. This new
three-year fellowship program has just received accreditation. Dr. Rosenman has been
named the first president of the American Urogynecology Foundation, a fund
raising arm of the American Urogynecologic Society. The Foundation’s mission is to raise
money for research in the areas of incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. We wish her
well in this challenging endeavor.

She has also been appointed ad hoc reviewer for the AAGL Journal reviewing peer
scientific articles for possible publication. She continues to lecture in Southern California
and the southwest on subjects of interest involving incontinence and prolapse. She recently passed her certification examination from the North American Menopause Society as
a Menopause Clinician.
 
Our New Book on Women’s Incontinence
Dr. Parker and Dr. Rosenman, along with Dr. Parker’s wife Rachel, have a new book
on women’s incontinence just published by Simon and Schuster in 2002. Incontinence
affects approximately 12 million American adults, the majority of whom are women.

The numbers of women suffering from loss of bladder control make it an enormous public health issue. Consider these facts from a recent medical study:

Sadly, despite the prevalence of bladder problems, most women are reluctant to discuss it.
Since many physicians are poorly trained to diagnose and treat incontinence, the proper
questions are often not asked during an annual exam. Research shows that many of the
concepts and treatments for incontinence taught over the past 25 years were wrong. And,
childbirth, especially prolonged labor, has been identified as the main event leading to the
changes in pelvic muscles and nerves that eventually lead to incontinence. So, many women
who opted for prolonged labors rather than a Cesarian section may now be paying the
price with incontinence.

The good news is that effective ways to diagnose and treat incontinence are available – we
are now able to help many more women with bladder problems. Both non-surgical and surgical treatments can help, and even women with the most persistent problems can get relief.

The incontinence book Dr. Parker and Dr. Rosenman have written will provide a clear and
comprehensive look at bladder problems and state-of-the-art solutions. We want to help
end the silent suffering of incontinent women.