David Mayer Hoenig, MD

Manish Vira, MD, is a urologist at Northwell Health and the chief of urology at the Northwell Cancer Institute. He is also an associate professor of urology at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. He performs a wide array of surgical techniques, including laparoscopic and robotic surgery, and leads research in the development of diagnostic and surgical methods for urological cancers. "I knew I'd be a physician since I was young," he says. "Early in college, I spent time in India working at hospital camps, where I was exposed to surgery, and had my first experience in the operating room. It was inspiring to see that work, and I knew I wanted to be part of helping people in the same way."While attending Weill Medical College of Cornell University, he became interested in the surgical techniques involved with urology, particularly the use of technology and minimally invasive procedures in the field. He honed his surgical skills during residencies at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and deepened his interest in oncology with a fellowship at the National Cancer Institute. Since joining Northwell in 2007, he has helped expand cancer care across the region so that patients can access expert clinical services no matter where they live. That reduces the amount of travel patients need to undertake for high-level cancer care. Dr. Vira was also part of the surgical team that was the first in the area to use a single-port robotic system, which enables complex procedures to be done through a single, small incision.What appeals to him most, however, isn't any type of procedure or innovation-it's patient relationships. "Most of us who go into urology are drawn to the connection we have with patients," he says. "We don't just do a surgery and that's it. In urology, the relationship generally lasts the rest of their life, so there's a primary care aspect. You get to know them, their families, their lives."Every patient situation is unique, he adds, just as every cancer is unique in how it presents in that patient. Dr. Vira looks not just at the disease, but at the patient as a whole in order to understand needs, goals and desires. "That's what personal care is all about," he says. "You get the right treatment to the right patient."

Louis Kavoussi, MD, MBA, Director of teleintervention at Northwell. He is a world-renowned urologic surgeon who brings more than 30 years of specialized expertise in minimally invasive urological surgery. His area of focus includes treating a wide range of urologic diseases, including kidney obstructions, renal stones and urologic cancer. At the forefront of innovation, Dr. Kavoussi pioneered several new surgical techniques, including the first minimally invasive approaches to kidney surgery for kidney cancer and kidney donation. He was also part of the team that performed the first laparoscopic prostate removal for cancer. In 1999, Dr. Kavoussi received a Smithsonian Computerworld Permanent Collection award for his work in developing telerounding, the starting point of telehealth medicine-to facilitate physician communication with hospitalized patients. Before joining Northwell in 2005 as chair of urology, Dr. Kavoussi completed his medical degree at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He obtained his urologic training at Washington University of St. Louis and, directly following residency, was named chief of urology at the Jewish Hospital of St. Louis. In 1991, he was appointed assistant professor at Harvard School of Medicine and director of endourology at the Brigham and Women's Hospital. In 1993, he joined the faculty of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he was vice chairman of urology and named a Patrick C. Walsh Distinguished Professor. Dr. Kavoussi values a team approach to care, and often collaborates with other specialists to create personalized and comprehensive treatment plans. His patients appreciate his easygoing personality and thoughtfulness. As the Waldbaum-Gardner Distinguished Professor of Urology at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Dr. Kavoussi is passionate about training the next generation of surgeons. He has presented his work and given live surgical demonstrations at conferences around the world and has more than 500 academic publications.