About Eugene Gastroenterology Consultants

Eugene Gastroenterology Consultants are collectively committed to serving the entire Eugene-Springfield community and beyond by providing the highest quality care as an independent, single-specialty group.

Located in Springfield, Oregon, Eugene Gastroenterology Consultants was established in 1977 and is the largest medical group specializing in gastroenterology south of Portland. Our doctors are board-certified in a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic gastrointestinal procedures. Patient and referral physician satisfaction is of paramount importance to us.

Our patient procedures are performed at either Oregon Endoscopy Center, adjacent to our clinic, or Sacred Heart Medical Center RiverBend Hospital Special Procedures Area.

We look forward to seeing you.

Gastroenterology involves the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the digestive system. These disorders may affect the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine (colon), rectum, liver, bile ducts, gallbladder and pancreas. A gastroenterologist is a physician who is trained in both internal medicine and the sub-specialty of gastroenterology. Diseases we diagnose and treat:

Acid-Peptic Disease
Barrett’s Esophagus
Biliary Disease
Celiac Sprue
Colon Polyps
Diverticulosis/Diverticulitis
Gallstones
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
Gastrointestinal Cancers
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn’s, Ulcerative Colitis)
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Liver Disease/Cirrhosis
Pancreatic Disease
Peptic Ulcer Disease
Small Bowel Disease
Viral Hepatitis (A/B/C)

As members of the Oregon Cancer Alliance, we work closely with leading cancer specialists to provide coordinated expert care. Alliance physician teams collaborate to provide every patient the very best care and patients are guided through the treatment pathway by trained navigators using expedited scheduling.

Mission Statement

Accreditation

Eugene Gastroenterology Consultants and our procedure partners are committed to providing Gold Standard care. This is reflected by our performance on quality measures. All of our physicians score well above all the quality measures specific for gastroenterology.

Oregon Endoscopy Center is AAAHC accredited, meaning that it participates in on-going self-evaluation, peer review and education to continuously improve its care and services. The center also commits to a thorough, on-site survey at least every three years, performed by AAAHC surveyors who are also healthcare professionals. Learn more about AAAHC.

AAAHC logo

Adenoma Detection Rate

It is common for growths to form in the colon. These are called polyps. Polyps can contain pre-cancerous cells; when this happens, we call these polyps adenomas or adenomatous polyps. Adenomas within the colon may progress to become cancer after many years of growth. The biggest preventive benefit from colonoscopy comes from finding and removing adenomas completely. By removing adenomas, we can prevent colon cancer from developing in the first place! Therefore, measuring the doctor’s success at finding and removing adenomas is an important measure of that doctor’s ability to provide quality colonoscopy. The best measure of this skill is called the adenoma detection rate (ADR), which measures the percentage of screening colonoscopies a doctor performs where they find and remove an adenoma. Doctors with higher adenoma detection rates (i.e., those who find and remove more adenomas) do a better job protecting their patients from colon cancer than those with lower adenoma detection rates. Below is the adenoma detection rate of the gastroenterologists at Eugene Gastroenterology and Oregon Endoscopy Center, compared to the national target, for males and females.

The ADR standards vary between sexes, as women, on average, grow fewer adenomas than men. Multi-society guidelines and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid support an ADR minimum of 25% for a mixed-gender population (20% in women and 30% in men).

ADR Chart

Cecal Intubation Rate

Another method to measure the quality of colonoscopy is the cecal intubation rate. Cecal intubation is the passage of the tip of the colonoscope to a point beyond the ileocecal valve so that the entire cecum (beginning of the colon) is visualized (refer to image), and the cecal intubation rate simply refers to the percentage of colonoscopies in which cecal intubation has occurred. Poor cecal intubation rates have been shown to correlate with an increased risk of post-colonoscopy colon/rectal cancer. The US Multisociety Task Force on Colorectal Cancer Guidelines recommends a minimum cecal intubation rate of 95%.
Colon Diagram
The cecal intubation rate of the gastroenterologists at Eugene Gastroenterology and Oregon Endoscopy Centers in 2022 was 99.72%.

Withdrawal Time

Another measure of colonoscopy quality is the colonoscopy withdrawal time. Withdrawal time refers to the time spent by the doctor examining the lining of the colon for polyps, tumors, and other abnormalities. The longer the withdrawal time, the more polyps and cancers doctors find, so longer is generally better than a shorter time. Multi-society guidelines recommend a minimum withdrawal time of 6 minutes.
Timer
The average withdrawal time of the gastroenterologists at Eugene Gastroenterology and Oregon Endoscopy Centers in 2022 was greater than 10 minutes.

Complications

Colonoscopy-related adverse events are very rare; however, with any procedure, there are risks of complications. Oregon Endoscopy Center monitors two complications: bleeding and perforation (a puncture or hole made in the colon wall). According to the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE)/American College of Gastroenterology Task Force on Quality in Endoscopy, the national average for post-polypectomy bleeding is < 1% of cases. The national average for perforations is less than 1 in 500 for all examinations and less than 1 in 1000 for screening colonoscopy.

The post-polypectomy bleed rate for colonoscopies performed at Oregon Endoscopy Center in 2022 was 0.6/1000 cases (0.06%) or 1 in 1667.

The perforation rate for colonoscopies performed at Oregon Endoscopy Center in 2022 was 0.08/1000 cases (0.008%) or 1 in 12,500.