Dr. Young U. Kim

With over 20 years of experience as a busy general thoracic surgeon, I am referred patients with cancers in the chest and other difficult problems involving all the organs of the chest that are not from cancer. One of the things that attracted me to the field is the long-term relationship with my patients. I tell all my patients that I’m their doctor for life. I see patients for many, many years. Back in 2000, when we had a 26-inch snow here -- it was a Tuesday -- on my clinic day, everyone said no one would come to clinic. But I actually had 23 or 24 patients show up in four-wheel drives. It’s not that I’m such a fabulous doctor that they came to see me. It’s that they are cancer patients and this was their annual visit or their follow up. It was important to them. So we were here for them, and they came. I enjoy seeing my patients back 12, 13, 14 years later and learning what they’ve been up to and what their families have been up to. That’s a bond you get in oncology that a lot of other fields don’t have that treat patients then turn them back over to their primary care physicians. We as a team follow people, and I like that. Dr. Harpole is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Subcutaneous Emphysema. His top areas of expertise are Lung Nodules, ALK-Positive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Subcutaneous Emphysema, Endoscopy, and Advanced Bronchoscopy.

A significant portion of my practice involves advanced minimally invasive techniques in thoracic surgery to treat diseases such as lung or esophageal cancer. Another part of my clinical practice is spent taking care of patients with severe lung disease, especially those needing lung transplantation. Patients from all over the world come to Duke for lung transplantation. Research demonstrates that experience is very important in taking care of complex medical problems, both on the surgical side and on the medical side. We have one of the largest transplant centers in the world with excellent survival statistics, as well as the shortest wait list time. Instead of the national average which may be four to six months, our patients wait an average of about two weeks. One of the best aspects of being a patient or working at Duke is the people who work here. No matter how challenging the medical problems may be or what problems may arise, I know there’s a world’s expert a phone call away who can help intervene and I know that my patients will be cared for by committed Duke staff from across the hospital. Dr. Hartwig is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Subcutaneous Emphysema. His top areas of expertise are Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), Hiatal Hernia, Esophageal Cancer, Lung Transplant, and Endoscopy.

The majority of patients that I see have abdominal emergencies, from either trauma or some type of infectious problem. I take care of a lot of patients with bowel obstructions, hernias, diverticulitis, cholecystitis (gallbladder trouble), and appendicitis. I also enjoy seeing patients in the office that need planned surgeries for their hernias, gallbladders, and intestinal problems. Dr. Montgomery is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Subcutaneous Emphysema. His top areas of expertise are Retroperitoneal Inflammation, Gallbladder Disease, Ogilvie Syndrome, Hernia Surgery, and Gastrostomy.