|
Dr. Harold Sullivan achieved Board Certification in Gastroenterology following his initial training. What does ‘Board Certified’ mean? To become certified by the Board of Medical Specialties, a physician must take the required 2-3 year training in a graduate medical education program approved by the Board of Medical Specialties for that particular specialty, in his case, Gastroenterology. Having completed the training, the candidate must then be favorably recommended by his or her training director to sit for the Board Certifying examination. At that point, the candidate is ‘Board Eligible.’ After passing a nationally standardized written examination, the candidate is then awarded a diploma from the Board and is called ‘a Diplomate’ and is ‘Board Certified.’
Dr. Sullivan has been Certified in Gastroenterology to demonstrate his professionalism and mastery of the knowledge required to practice Gastroenterology at the highest level of excellence. Please see the ‘Our Staff’ section on this website for more specific information on his educational training and background.
Casco Bay Endoscopy Center is also committed to excellence. After only about two years in
operation, the Endoscopy Center was carefully inspected by the national peer review organization
AAAHC and in the summer of 2005 achieved the highest award, a three year accreditation.
Achieving this accreditation was completely voluntary on our part and was undertaken to
demonstrate our commitment to excellence in every aspect of patient care at Casco Bay
Gastroenterology. In the summer of 2008, after another inspection, CBG received another three year certification.
We know that endoscopic procedures such as colonoscopy can be painful, embarrasing and
frightening for our patients. We sedate our patients carefully and completely to make endoscopic
examinations as pain free as possible. Our techniques for sedation take a few more minutes but
we will always take the time needed to provide the complete comfort our patients deserve.
Casco Bay Endoscopy Center has five recovery beds to allow our patients to recover completely
from their sedation prior to leaving for home. As our patients prepare to leave our facility, they
receive a satisfaction survey to take home and complete, to tell us how well we achieved our goals
of excellent patient comfort. All of our patients rate the comfort level as ‘excellent’ or ‘good.’ Nearly
all of our patients have no recollection of their procedures. Of course, if our patients wish to be
awake for their procedures, we are happy to sedate them lightly or not at all. Please see the
section on ‘Pain Free Colonoscopy’ for more information on this topic.
Casco Bay Gastroenterology believes most patients requiring the services of a Specialist have
exhausted their options to solve their healthcare issues and a timely appointment is imperative.
To aid in this, we have carefully trained four highly skilled and experienced Nurse Practitioners.
The Nurse Practitioners help our Gastroenterologists establish and maintain contact with our
patients. This concept and collaboration allows our Gastroenterologists to work closely with the
Nurse Practitioners. It also allows a significant expansion of our capacity to see patients in a
timely fashion. We will make every effort to see a new patient within one week and if desired,
even the same day. This often will help avoid a hospitalization by providing timely evaluation
and treatment as an outpatient. Every new patient is interviewed and examined by the
Gastroenterologist on their first visit. This use of Nurse Practitioners is not a new concept
and it is endorsed by the American Gastroenterology Association. We believe that we are the
first Gastroenterology practice in Maine to use Nurse Practitioners in a 1 to 1 ratio with Physicians.
Patients established with our practice always receive timely call-backs when they call with
questions or concerns. Follow-up visits can occur within one or two weeks, or even sooner when
needed, so outpatient evaluations can proceed at a rapid pace.
Casco Bay Gastroenterology believes your concerns are important and that answering machine
systems can sometimes be confusing and impersonal. When you call Casco Bay Gastroenterology,
you will always be speaking with a person. Our administrative assistants are thoroughly trained to
provide the service you need when you call.
They will make your appointments for diagnostic tests such as CT scan or ultrasound for you as soon
as possible, usually within one week. Many insurance plans require pre-authorization for these tests
now. We will call to obtain pre-authorization for you so that your insurance will cover the cost of your
diagnostic test.
If you undergo an EGD or Colonoscopy at Casco Bay Endoscopy Center, we prepare the procedure
report on a computer, finalizing it before you leave. We then mail a final report to your PCP on the
very same day. We evaluate your lab results and biopsy results promptly and send you and your
PCP a written report as soon as possible, usually within one week.
We are always available for your calls to ask questions about your test results.
Casco Bay Gastroenterology was the first medical organization to offer Capsule Endoscopy in Maine.
In this procedure, a tiny video camera, battery and transmitter is enclosed in a capsule swallowed by
a patient. As the capsule travels through the small intestine, 40,000 digital images are transmitted to
a recording device worn by the patient for 8 hours. This cutting edge technology allowed doctors for
the first time the opportunity to directly visualize and record digital images of bleeding sites such as
tumors anywhere in the small intestine, previously out of range of all functional standard endoscopes
such as those used for EGD and Colonoscopy. Although most insurance plans were not paying for
Capsule Endoscopy at the time we purchased the system, we recognized that this was a great leap
forward in our specialty and we wanted the people of Maine to have access to this important new
technology. Most insurance plans now recognize the usefulness of this technology and pay for the
procedure for various indications such as intestinal bleeding and Crohns Disease.
We also were the first Gastroenterology practice in Maine to acquire the newest esophageal function
testing known as impedance testing. This is part of the testing patients need prior to undergoing
anti-reflux surgery to treat Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD). Our Sandhill equipment is the
finest available anywhere. The esophageal function testing conducted at our office is considered by
many surgeons to be the highest quality available and use our facility exclusively.
Casco Bay Endoscopy Center utilizes the highest quality technology to insure proper scope disinfection
and safety. Each of our two Custom Ultrasonics scope disinfection machines is considered the state of
the art in the field. There are just no finer machines or better techniques anywhere.
At Casco Bay Gastroenterology and Casco Bay Endoscopy Center, we are constantly monitoring and
assessing the latest techniques and equipment available as a means to meet your needs and make
your healthcare experience with us the best it can possibly be.
We look forward to serving you.
| 
