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By JOSHUA KEERAN Currents Editor RUSSELLS POINT – Since the passing of Dr. Paul Bonetzky, DO, in mid-July of 2011, arguably one of the most unique and interesting doctor’s office around has sat vacant on the banks of Indian Lake. Housed in the Aries Center, which was built by Bonetzky, the physician’s office is empty no longer now that Dr. Philip S. Perona, MD, has opened a practice at the 8200 state Route 366 location. “I’m ready to start seeing patients right away,” said Perona, who owns a residence at the lake. “We’ve been here for about two months, and we’ve been seeing occasional patients. Now, we are ready for more patients.” Perona said he is not taking over Bonetzky’s practice, he is just practicing in the same location. In fact, Perona, who is board certified in cardiology and internal medicine, specializes in services not readily available in the Indian Lake community, which is why he decided to open an office in Russells Point. “To my knowledge there is no internist here at the lake at this time, and everyone here I believe is a family physician, so my office will be a new addition of services for both internal medicine and cardiology,” he said. Perona brings to the area two decades of experience and a background that includes stints at some of the premiere medical facilities in the country. “I’m board certified in cardiology and internal medicine, and for the last 17 years, I’ve served as the solo practitioner at Allen County Cardiology,” he said. “I finished internal medicine training at the Los Angeles County USC Medical Center, and I completed my cardiology training with invasive cardiology at the Cleveland Clinic. I also competed a special fellowship in cardiac pacing, arrhythmia and electrophysiology at the Cleveland Clinic.” Patient care Perona’s office offers patients cardiology services like stress testing, echocardiography, pacemaker follow-up checks, automatic implantable defibrillator evaluations, Holter monitors and spirometry. “Much of what we do in cardiology looks at the heart, but internal medicine is also what I’m looking at expanding,” he said. “Our goal is to develop an office-based practice where we do cardiology tests as well as general internal medicine.” While visiting the office, Perona noted patients will be treated to a view unlike any he has ever seen before in his years of practicing medicine. “All the examining rooms are pretty interesting as they look out over the lake,” he said. “You won’t find another office like this anywhere.” When it comes to treating patients, Perona said nothing compares to helping those in need of medical services. “What I enjoy most about my job is caring for my patients and problem solving,” he said. “There are many patient problems that start in the doctor’s office that doesn’t require hospitalizations. With many years of experience, our goal is to be able to figure out what the patient’s problems might be and treat them in an office setting. “My number one goal is growing a successful practice with patients who are satisfied with their health care, and I think we excel at explaining things to patients and making sure they understand what the test results mean,” Perona added. To schedule an appointment with Perona, individuals simply have to call the office at 937-842-2500. “Patients don’t need to be referred to my office,” he said. “They can call and make their own appointments, and we take most insurances. “The type of patients were are looking for would be general internal medicine patients with problems that include high blood pressure as well as various other complex problems or complaints,” Perona added. “Cardiologywise, we care for patients with heart problems including shortness of breath, chest pain and loss of consciousness.” As of now, the office doesn’t have set hours. “As patients call and as we grow our practice, we will have more ideas as to established hours,” Perona said. “Initially, I’m flexible to meet with patients at different times.”
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