Trinitas branches out to offer convenience and continuity of care.
By Caleb MacLean
If you’ve ever needed to get a simple referral for a special test or treatment, you know that often there is nothing simple about it. Much of the frustration one experiences as a patient in a typical medical practice stems from a lack of communication. In that regard, there is nothing “typical” about the Trinitas Medical Group, where communication, service, and follow-through define the patient experience.
The offices, located in Elizabeth and Clark, are owned by Trinitas, and the physicians and staff are employed by the medical center. In addition to primary care physicians, the Trinitas Medical Group encompasses a wide range of specialty care practices. For the consumer, that translates into a level of convenience that is difficult to find at traditional practices.
“Our primary care patients receive one-on-one personalized treatment and care,” says Nancy DiLiegro, VP of Clinical Operations and Physician Services. “You’re not a number here. Everyone knows you.”
“The sharing of information internally between the practices enables us to interface with the hospital and other services and care providers,” adds Frank Andreola, Director of the Trinitas Medical Group. “So all the paperwork is handled within the practices. If you need one of the ancillary services, we’ll make the call for you and arrange everything. Our staff will make all your appointments for whatever you need.”
Two doctors who have been an integral part of the Trinitas Physicians Practice team are Dr. Vasyl Pidkaminetskiy and Dr. Sergio Baerga. Both appreciate the value of expanding Trinitas’s healthcare services and network of medical professionals beyond the bounds of the flagship hospital in Elizabeth into local communities within Union County. Dr. Pidkaminetskiy (Dr. P to his patients and staff) has worked almost three years in the offices located in Clark, and he is pleased with this unique opportunity to be part of what he calls “a very special group of physicians.”
Dr. Pidkaminetskiy is especially impressed with the community-oriented approach of the practice, as well as the convenience of close contact with his colleagues to expedite immediate consultations and sharing of vital patient information. Patients similarly appreciate the wide range of medical services and treatments provided by Trinitas and the ease with which care can be both delivered and accessed at the various practice offices.
Everyone in the practice network, he adds, is focused on delivering the best possible care and inspiring the utmost patient confidence.
Dr. Baerga, a surgeon in the Clark office, echoed Dr. P’s sentiments, adding that “the wide variety of clients keeps me on my toes, keeps me thinking and keeps me challenged.”
Ask him how his patients feel about the practice and you’ll get a smile. “I hope they feel okay,” he says. “I think I would hear about it from them if they weren’t pleased about coming here!”
Dr. Baerga also says that he enjoys taking his time and not rushing his patients—something that is emphasized throughout the Medical Group: “I like to get to know them and to learn what’s happening in their lives.”
Jazmyn Thomas (pictured right), a current patient of the Medical Group, appreciated Dr. Baerga’s kindness before, during, and after having minor surgery. “He was very supportive,” said the Elizabeth resident. “I called him with questions every day, sometimes more than once, and he never made me feel like I was a bother. Even when he wasn’t in the office, he managed to get back to me right away. He made me feel a lot better about everything, especially because I had never had surgery before.”
According to Dr. Baerga, as a satellite to the main Trinitas campus, the location of the office in Clark offers the opportunity to meet other professionals in other communities, and to treat a wide variety of clientele— including many of whom speak Spanish. “In fact,” he says, “some days I get to practice so much of my Spanish that I have to remind myself to speak English when I get home.”
Dr. Sergio Baerga
The list of services includes general surgery, endocrinology, and hematology-oncology and surgery, gastroenterology, ear-nose-throat, breast health, medical oncology, hematology, and radiation oncology, OBGYN and urology.
The availability of doctors for appointments both in Clark and Elizabeth—as well as the availability of specialists— is something that surprises the group’s new patients.
“If your primary care physician wants you to go for a test or be evaluated by a specialist, we can get you in within a week, if not sooner,” says DiLiegro, who adds that another advantage that the Trinitas Medical Group offers is that it accepts any insurance the hospital does, and vice-versa.
“This is a jewel,” says DiLiegro. “We have quality, boardcertified physicians and a multilingual staff providing efficient and timely care in a very difficult landscape where, frankly, a lot of people with good insurance still can’t get to see a practitioner.”
A TEAM EFFORT
The Trinitas Medical Group offers a large and growing staff of physicians and providers, including…
Dr. Nazima Abarova, OB/GYN
Dr. Abu Alam, OB/GYN
Traci Alves, NP
Dr. Sergio Baerga, General Surgery
Dr. Gerardo Capo, Oncology/Hematology
Symptom Management
Dr. Michelle A. Cholankeril, Medical Hematology/Oncology
Dr. Ari S. Eckman, Chief, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism
Dr. Clarissa Febles Henson, Chair, Radiation Oncology
Dr. Clyde T. Jacob, OB/GYN
Dr. Eddy Joseph, OB/GYN
Dr. Rachel Kaye, Otolaryngology/Surgery
Dr. Barry Levinson, Hematology/Oncology
Dr. Prakriti Merchant, Gastroenterology
Dr. Boris Pashkover, Otolaryngology/Surgery
Dr. Jack Perrone, OB/GYN
Dr. Vasyl Pidkaminetskiy, Internal Medicine
Dr. Mark Preston, OB/GYN
Dr. Vincent Salerno, Hematology/Oncology
Dr. Adriana Suarez-Ligon, General Surgery
Dr. Richard Tai, OB/GYN
Dr. Oscar Verzosa, Internal Medicine
Dr. Michael Viksjo, Gastroenterology
Midwives:
Carol Rose Trzaska, CNM
Shirley McDuffie, CNM
Chantal Berry, CNM
MaryBeth Weimer, CNM
Editor’s Note: For more information on the Trinitas Medical Group, visit TrinitasMedical.Group or call (732) 499-9160. The Clark Office is located at 67 Westfield Avenue.
