Surgeons - Merced, CA

" Review – Dr. Jennifer McEvoy Saturday, 25 October 2014 “All for the Love of a Cat” When I was told I had breast cancer and needed a mastectomy it was frightening. I was assigned to Dr. Jennifer McEvoy for the surgery. I live alone with my 12-year old cat, Antonio, Tony for short, and he is my ‘living’ teddy bear. When I awaken at night in fear with negative thoughts about my illness Tony is there to gently place his paw on my lips and tell me he understands my fear. Now I have another ‘living’ teddy bear in Dr. McEvoy. When she told me I might be in the hospital for one or two nights following the surgery my first thought was what to do with my cat. In his twelve years he has slept without me only one night at the veterinarian’s office. He has arthritis caused by age and needs stairs to climb onto the bed. Dr. McEvoy offered to check on Tony if I was hospitalized more than one night. This considerably eased my worries and fears. Though, after all, I was discharged from the hospital the next morning, the very thought that she cared about Tony, and in turn about me was all I needed to know I had found a friend in a superb surgeon. For this reason I keep a picture of her beside my bed and when I awaken in fear I now have two ‘living’ teddy bears to ease my fright: Tony’s picture and little cat paw on my lips on the one hand and Dr. McEvoy’s smiling photograph on the other to get my positive and life-saving thoughts back in gear again. On a cool evening in October I sit on my porch thinking of Dr. Jennifer McEvoy, General Surgeon at Mercy Merced Medical Center, Merced, California, wondering what I can say about her in praise of her many talents as a surgeon, a friend and a person. I am a 70 year old senior citizen with three different types of cancer: uterine, breast, and adrenal. Dr. Trung Nguyen of Memorial Medical Center in Modesto, California, operated on me in July 2014 for uterine cancer, performing a laparoscopic robotic total hysterectomy. He also diagnosed the breast cancer and referred me to Dr. Jennifer McEvoy in Merced, CA, as an expert surgeon for breast cancer mastectomies. In August 2014 she performed a lumpectomy and a month later in September she found it necessary to do a mastectomy. Dr. McEvoy is also a trained surgeon in laparoscopic surgical repairs such as cholescytectomy and inguinal hernia repair. She was very straightforward in telling me I needed the mastectomy and did a superb job in a three-hour operation. She treated me with respect and concern, and most importantly, love. She encompasses holistic medicine in her surgical practice and this makes for a perfect surgeon and person! It makes all the difference to the patient… 2 Finding the words to describe this surgeon is somewhere in the English language: words like kindness, expertise, care, positive-thinking and love. She was there before and after surgery to reassure and encourage me as a real person, not just a subject of her surgery. It takes a very tough character as well as a loving person to be able to face life-threatening surgical procedures on the one hand and still be able to comfort her patient with all his/her fears, doubts and pains. She is filled with love and compassion for all of her patients and follows through with them for the duration. If only more people were like her! Here I must admit that one should always follow her doctor’s orders. One can argue with her some but she will win in the end because she is the expert and one must know that she knows best. Besides, she does have a mellow temper when a patient is being unreasonable! The most meaningful and remembered thing Dr. McEvoy ever said to me was that “You’re stuck with me forever. I never let my cancer patients go…” To think that she would be a part of the rest of my life was heart-rendering and a most happy and comforting thought. No one has ever shown such concern for me. I am sure that God sent me to her for a definite purpose and that is to bring Him and meaning back into my life, for loving her has given me a most profound love for everyone and everything I face each day. Life has more purpose and meaning since she has been a part of it, and I surely have a new and dedicated friend. Even cancer seems like such a small burden to bear when I think of all that life has to offer and the many new and different things I have learned from Dr. McEvoy. Cancer is a serious illness but one that can be overcome with each individual’s innate ability to heal that he/she possesses within herself/himself with the help of a wonderful person like Dr. McEvoy. She has taught me this through associating with her. Even a simple smile from her can brighten one’s day and make life well worth living. Pain seems to dissipate and fears to disappear in her presence. It is a special talent she possesses that would be most beneficial for all doctors to develop. Dr. McEvoy has been married to her husband, Brian, for eleven years and they each have full careers, she being a surgeon and he managing our local Target store in Merced. They manage a household with two small boys and are both truly dedicated to family, careers, patients and customers. If one were to think of the American Dream family the Brian McEvoys would be a perfect fit. 3 I could go on and on with praise for Dr. McEvoy but for now I will only say that I would recommend her as a surgeon to anyone and everyone. When I get to know her better over the next few years I will write another similar review when she will be even more profoundly skilled and talented. Lastly, I should mention that she is a beautiful 37-year-old surgeon, an excellent wife and Mother, beautiful inside and out, and has been practicing surgery for four years and gets better as time passes. One cannot go wrong with her on their side. Think of an exceptional woman who spent twelve years studying medicine for the health and betterment of mankind. That is a sincerely dedicated person. With all the Love in My Heart, Sheryl R Wright A Recovering Cancer Patient “All for the Love of a Cat” "