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Physician assistants help meet patient demands

Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Dowling and his physician assistant

Photo credit: Newsdayphoto by Pablo Corradi | Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Dowling and his physician assistant Colleen Kelly of Long Island Spine Specialists of Commack on Tuesday November 3, 2009.

In the old days, orthopedic surgeon Thomas J. Dowling Jr. often found himself working side by side with a fellow surgeon in the operating room. One would perform the surgery, the other would assist.

This limited the doctors' availability for office visits, sometimes causing patients to wait weeks for an appointment. "If you're in back pain, you don't want to wait that long," Dowling says.

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