Dr Potkin’s cardiovascular
training included 4 years
at Rush University, Chicago, Illinois; 2 years at the University of
California at Irvine, California; 2 years at the National Institutes of Health,
Heart, Lung and Blood Institute in Bethesda, Maryland; 2 years at Cedars-Sinai
Medical Center in Los Angeles, and a final year at Washington Hospital Center
Heart Center, Washington DC’s premier cardiovascular center where senators, congressmen, and local dignitaries often received their cardiovascular medical
care. During these 11 post-graduate training years he published over 45
peer-reviewed manuscripts in prestigious journals and helped write several book chapters and
lectured in this country and in Europe. After completing general and sub-specialty
training Dr. Potkin moved from Washington D.C. to the Monterey Bay area in
1991. This was a major decision for him to leave the academic world and
enter the private practice world. This decision was initially
difficult to leave Washington, D.C. for the west coast, however, besides having
a great love and dedication to medicine, he wanted to raise a family in a safe
and beautiful area that would still allow him practice cardiovascular medicine
and participate in academic medicine in beautiful Monterey Bay area. Dr. Potkin
has been in our community for 31 years now and began practicing clinical and
Interventional Cardiology at our local hospitals and affiliated with Stanford
Medical Center and El Camino Hospitals since 1991 as a teacher and attending
physician. He is an expert in cardiovascular medicine including the
prevention and treatment of coronary artery disease, peripheral vascular
disease, cholesterol metabolism, systemic hypertension, congestive heart
failure, adult congenital heart disease, chest discomfort, valvular heart
disease, and TIA- stroke. He also has special expertise in rhythm
abnormalities including palpitations, pacemaker, defibrillator, biventricular
pacemaker management and implantation. Dr. Potkin regularly educates the
community and physicians through lecture series and tutorials. He is board certified in cardiovascular medicine, a fellow in the American College of Cardiology, and is also a Fellow in the Society of Cardiology and Angiography and
Interventions as well as a member of the Heart Rhythm Society and American
Heart Association. He is the founder of the Monterey Bay Cardiac and Vascular Center
and is committed to providing his patients exceptional care with special
attention to quality of life and alleviation of fear and suffering. He
wants his patients and their families to enjoy their precious lives.
Several of his simple but true adages are that the most important lesson he
learned in Medical school is that life is fragile and precious and not be taken
for granted. That the rare complication or adverse outcome, is not rare to the person who experiences it,
for that person it is 100%. These basic concepts keep him focused on providing
the best medical care for his patients and this may be a referral locally or to another state or city to provide the best possible current cardiovascular care available.