By Jeanne Sager
ROSCOE — October 8, 2004 – The doctor is in – at least on Thursdays.
Dr. Mamdouh Lozah has just joined the staff at the Delaware Valley Hospital clinic on Rockland Road in Roscoe.
The Egyptian-born internist has taken up where Dr. Laura Weylman left off in the small hamlet – seeing patients once a week and slowly finding his way into the community.
Lozah said he’s already found in Roscoe what he found when he signed on to practice medicine at Delaware Valley Hospital in Walton – people with warm hearts and friendly personalities.
“You don’t feel like you’re a stranger,” he said. “I don’t feel like I’m a foreigner.”
It’s an attitude that has Lozah already sure he’s going to be a permanent fixture at Delaware Valley and in the Roscoe clinic – he celebrated his one-year anniversary with the hospital on August 25 and signed up for another three-year stint.
Medicine is a true calling for Lozah – he graduated from medical school in Egypt in 1982 and went to work as a surgeon until 1996.
Lozah and his family emigrated to the United States in 1997, and he quickly sat for the national boards, scoring within the top 10 percent in the nation.
He went on to a residency in internal medicine at Brooklyn Jewish Hospital, setting up a home with his wife and three children in Staten Island.
When it came time to find a full-time job, Lozah cast his net in all directions around the city.
He received offers from hospitals right in his area, but none seemed to fit.
The job at Delaware Valley in Walton would mean a long commute, but Lozah said it just seemed right.
He decided to commute once a week, spending four days in Walton and returning home after his office hours in Roscoe on Thursdays.
It’s proven to be the right choice.
“When you work in a small community, it’s good to know people – you have a continuity of care,” he explained. “When I worked in Brooklyn Jewish, every time I saw a patient, I knew I wouldn’t see this patient again.”
Here he sees a patient for their initial visit, their follow-up appointment, even their yearly physical.
Lozah has also found a camaraderie with the other staff that’s unmatched.
The nurses, he said, are of the highest quality – even compared to those who work in major metropolitan hospitals.
“They have a high level of decency and morals,” he said. “A nurse’s job is very important part of your work.”
He’s also melded into the team already practicing in Roscoe – full-time Nurse Practitioner Connie Spielman who has manned the office since the clinic opened in the 1980s, and Pediatrician Dr. Gary Preiser and OB/GYN Dr. William Baerthlein who each come in on different days during the week.
Spielman is happy another doctor was found so quickly to fill Weylman’s vacancy.
“This area needs healthcare providers due to the distance of the local hospitals,” she said. “I really like the experience of working with Dr. Lozah because of his knowledge and his rapport with the patients.”
Lozah said he’s looking forward to meeting all the residents of Roscoe during Thursday office hours.