Dr. Evan Goldfischer M.D. ’92 spends a lot of time in his Poughkeepsie operating room with a telescope in one hand and a laser in the other.
Over the course of his 21 year career, however, Goldfischer has expanded his work beyond the operating room. In addition to advancing the interests of independent urologists across the country, he has also authored books and papers geared toward doctors and patients, including the latest one, Even Urologists Get Kidney Stones.
Goldfischer, who said he has had two kidney stones himself, calls the experience “some of the worst pain a human being could ever know.” His book acts as a guide for patients on causes, treatments and prevention for the condition, which he says affects one in seven women and one in 13 men.
“You’re not gonna go to Barnes & Noble and pick this book up and say, ‘ahh kidney stones, this looks interesting,’” Goldfischer said, noting that he did add illustrations and some comedic relief, like the ‘celebrity stoners’ section, which includes examples of celebrities who have suffered from kidney stones like William Shatner and Roger Moore.
“I would say it’s written on an 11th grade level, you know you want to make it accessible to everybody.” Goldfischer said.
Goldfischer’s writing experience was grounded in his undergraduate career as a history major at Tufts University, as well as over 100 peer-reviewed articles and a book published in 2017 titled Practice Management for Urology Groups.
According to Goldfischer, the impetus for his first book came from a desire to help other urologists navigate the business side of their own practices.
“Having founded my group and built my group, I realized that not every doctor running their group has an MBA, so I got some of the smartest people I knew who had run practices [to] write chapters, and we put together a 370 page book on how to run a urology group,” Goldfischer said.
After a fellowship at Long Island Jewish Medical Center where he worked with Dr. Arthur Smith, ‘The Father of Endourology,’ Goldfischer developed an inclination towards kidney stone surgery and became the first practicing endourologist in the Hudson River region in 1998.
At the time, urology was undergoing a transformation that favored far less invasive surgeries that resulted in shorter recovery times for patients, according to Goldfischer.
“In the 70s and 80s, everybody was cutting everybody open, and the idea of doing the operations through telescopes was just getting going,” Goldfischer said in an interview with The Sun.
As an elected member of the Large Urology Group Practice Association, Goldfischer works to advance the causes of independent urologists across the country through educational programming and political lobbying, while still finding time to see patients.
“I’ve been able to contribute to my practice and I’ve been able to contribute to my profession on a national level, and that’s been incredibly rewarding,” Goldfischer told The Sun.