Here are some excerpts from posts, letters, emails and other correspondence regarding experiences sent to me by some of my patients as well as their families.
When I graduated medical school at Penn in 1984, my advisor and mentor, Dr. Alden H. Harken, gave me a book called “In Search of Excellence.” On the inside cover, he wrote, “This is a very people-oriented book.” Dr. Harken always stressed the importance of prompt and proper communication with patients and their families. He then signed the book with words that I will never forget… words that have guided me through my career… simply put, he wrote, “Remember Ray, there’s a lot more to medicine than science.”
This video is about a special patient, Mr. Andrew Fazio, who underwent triple valve surgery, but needed a repeat operation on one of the valves only 4 years later. Often such a scenario might cause the patient to doubt the surgeon and seek care elsewhere. But instead, because of just a few kind words by me on a Sunday years ago, by just saying, “I’m here for you!” —made all the difference.
Mr. Fazio traveled from Scranton, PA, to Jefferson Einstein Montgomery, East Norriton, PA, for his second operation because of the faith and confidence he had in me. The lesson is, words do matter. They have a great impact. Teaching communication, empathy, and how to develop long-standing personal relationships with patients, families, and colleagues, are paramount, not only for success, but for the pure enjoyment of being a doctor. Thank you to Mr. Fazio for reminding me what really matters in healthcare.
“𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚,” —𝘼𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙃. 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙣, 𝙈𝘿, 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙮, 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙨𝙮𝙡𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙖 𝙎𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙈𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙚, 𝙂𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙪𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘾𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙮, 1984
“Dr. Singer performed at least 7000 plus Valve Replacement surgeries and of course, I was not going to let anyone else operate on my dad 4 years ago and my mother-in-law now. I could not say enough about Dr. Singer the human and the amazing surgeon he is.
We love you and are fortunate to know you. Thank you for another successful surgery. My mother-in-law got an Aortic Valve replacement and a Mitral Valve repair among other things that were wrong. Thank you for giving her another chance to enjoy life and her grandchildren.”
– Jovian Hanna, 1/2023
Thank you for all that you have done for my dad. We understand that it turned out to be a much more difficult surgery than expected, and we’re very grateful for your expertise. We deeply appreciate you for saving my dad’s life. You are truly an angel sent from heaven to do God’s work to save people’s lives.
You have an amazing team and we truly appreciate everyone!
The departure of Dr. Raymond Singer from the Lehigh Valley marks the genuine loss of a local treasure. How fortunate for us that Dr. Singer chose to grow his career here, healing hearts and saving lives with the skills of a world-class cardiothoracic surgeon. For close to three decades, patients drawn to his practice for his superior skills and outcomes received an unexpected bonus of marvelous care and personal attention — along with the comforting surety that they were in the best of hands. Thank you, Dr. Singer, for your outstanding dedication to your craft, community, and especially, your patients.
I started out by going to someone local. Well, I had my surgery date set but I was uncomfortable about the Dr. He evaded my questions. Questions that to me were extremely important. While
You have made my father’s open heart surgery a confident, comfortable operation. I just wanted to say thanks for all that you have done, you’ve saved his life along with our feelings and emotions. the bears are wonderful! Thanks for everything we will always remember you and the tremendous work you have done for our father. There will always be a place for you in our hearts!
Dr. Singer saved my father’s life. In spite of my father’s age of 90, and in spite of a perioperative MI, which altered my father’s chances, Dr. Singer went ahead and performed two bypasses…. What makes Dr. Singer so special is that he…has wonderful human qualities. He exudes caring and concern for his patients and instills confidence. He has a human touch that heals more than pure medicine.
Dr. Singer is an exemplary practitioner “in the new paradigm in medicine in which the patient is an active partner participating in treatment rather than a passive recipient of doctor knows best medicine.” He is a superb communicator and more importantly an attentive listener. If you want the best, you can find them…as long as we continue to have doctors like Dr. Singer.
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I just wanted to thank you for everything you did for my dad….during his hospitalization…. You are truly a doctor who cares about your patients and I believe that’s an important aspect of medicine that sometimes gets lost in such a stressful proffesion. It was so encouraging to see the attention and care that you gave to my father. You showed me that your concern was genuine and heartfelt. You use your expertise in medicine to not only save lives, but to also make your patients and their families feel reassured during such difficult times. My father was very lucky to have such a skilled and compassionate surgeon. You bring humanity and sincerity to the lives you touch and I am so grateful for all of your time and concern during my father’s stay. Thank you again for everything.
Allow me to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your kindness and willingness to operate on my ailing heart. I have lost all hope that anybody can help me when my artificial valve implanted in Europe started failing. Then my daughter, who is a doctor in Philadelphia, told me that, after reviewing my condition, you suggested that you can help me and redo the operation in the United States. We immediately jumped on the airplane and came over to see you… Now, few weeks after the surgery, I have a feeling that I was given a new lease on life thanks to you. I cannot express how grateful I am to you and to your staff. I will never forget what you have done for me. I will take the teddy bear with me back to Europe and will think of you often.
I am a 36-year-old female with a rare disorder known as Marfan’s disease. I was told by my doctor that I needed my aortic valve replaced. The Chief of Cardiac Surgery…saw me but said I was too high-risk and should go to a transplant center. Instead I went…for a second opinion….Dr. Raymond Singer did my operation without difficulty. I was able to go home after only five days in the hospital.
…I was immediately impressed with Dr. Singer’s approach, obvious knowledge and experience and more importantly his ability to put me at ease in discussing what was to be a major surgical procedure (by-pass surgery for multiple blockages). There is no way I can really show my appreciation for Dr. Singer’s skilled surgery. Thank you…for giving my heart, and me, a renewed opprotunity for life.
