The Top Doctors

If Pennsylvania Avenue is the capital of the free world, then surely Longwood Avenue is the capital of the medical world. It's estimated that 200,000 people a year come to Boston's medical community, largely centered in the Longwood section, for one reason: the doctors. The government comes here for research, too; Boston gets more than a billion dollars a year in grants from the National Institutes of Health, more than any other city.

The hospitals here are so well known, they're recognized by their nicknames: Children's, Mass. General, the Brigham. It's an embarrassment of riches that can actually make it harder for Bostonians to find a doctor. Most ask around. Neighbors. Coworkers. They want to hear about bedside manner, punctuality, availability.

So did we. We compiled this exclusive list of Boston's best doctors by going straight to the people who know doctors better than anyone else — other doctors. We asked hundreds of physicians one simple question: If a loved one were sick, what doctor would you use?

We got back the names of 1,200 Boston-area doctors considered among the best. We narrowed it down to those who got the most votes, then checked public records and eliminated doctors who have been the targets of known complaints ranging from patient gripes about rudeness to lawsuits that resulted in large payouts.

Some of these doctors may not take new patients; they're the best, after all, and the best are the busiest. That doesn't mean they can't make a referral, including to others in the same practice. Because if there's one thing Boston has in abundance, it's world-class doctors.

However, keep in mind — as the accompanying story on medical errors ("Silent Treatment,") suggests — that no system is foolproof. Not even in Boston.

Allergy and Immunology

Jonathan Arm
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-278-0300

Richard Horan
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-278-0300

Curtis Moody
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7701

John O'Loughlin
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8441

John Saryan
Lahey Clinic, 781-273-8442

Lynda Schneider
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6117

Albert Sheffer
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-278-0300

Daniel Steinberg
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-232-1690

Francis Twarog
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6117

Cardiology

Frederick Basilico
New England Baptist Hospital, 617-232-3700

Mark Estes
Tufts-New England Medical Center, 617-636-5000

Mark Josephson
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-7393

Joseph Kannam
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-3960

Stan Lewis
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-7533

Bruce Mirbach
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8019

Gilbert Mudge
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-7140

Richard Nesto
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8962

Patrick O'Gara
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-726-3467

Cardiovascular Surgery

Sary Aranki
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-7678

Lawrence Cohn
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5500

William Cohn
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8383

Richard D'Agostino
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8681

Brian deGuzman
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8672

Ralph De La Torre
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8383

Frank Sellke
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8383

David Shahian
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8575

Stanley Tam
Mount Auburn Hospital, 617-354-1080

Christina Williamson
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8340

Dermatology

Kenneth Arndt
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-731-1600

Lynn Baden
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-558-0077

Jeffrey Dover
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-3000

Jessica Fewkes
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-3789

Stephen Gellis
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6126

Harley Haynes
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5771

Samuel Moschella
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8444

Suzanne Olbricht
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8348

Francis Renna
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-969-0210

Robert Stern
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-3753

Endocrinology

Martin Abrahamson
Joslin Diabetes Center, 617-732-2400

Gary Cushing
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8492

Gilbert Daniels
Massachusetts General Hospital, 617-726-8430

Robert Dluhy
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5661

Jeffrey Garber
Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, 617-421-1380

John Godine
Massachusetts General Hospital, 617-726-8722

Mary Beth Hodge
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8493

P. Reed Larsen
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5661

Joseph A. Majzoub
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7476

Ellen Seely
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5666

Norman Spack
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7476

George Tully
St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, 617-789-2818

Joseph Wolfsdorf
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7476

Family Practice

Susan Black
Saints Memorial Medical Center, 978-458-6900

David Chodirker
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 781-235-7900

Henry D'Angelo
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 508-660-1200

Joseph Gravel
Lawrence Memorial Hospital, 781-338-7478

William Holgerson
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-964-9070

Allan Pineda
Massachusetts General Hospital, 781-275-0811

Gastroenterology

Peter Banks
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6389

Stella Chow
Lahey Clinic, 978-538-4350

Ram Chuttani
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-0162

Richard Curtis
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-969-1227

Kenneth Falchuk
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8623

Myron Falchuk
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8623

Frederick Heiss
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8743

Mark Peppercorn
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-1071

David Siegenberg
Melrose-Wakefield Hospital, 781-245-5005

Andrew Warner
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8494

Jacqueline Wolf
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-9355

Infertility

Robert Barbieri
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5444

Janis Fox
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-4222

Andrè Guay
Lahey Clinic, 978-538-4655

Mark Hornstein
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-4455

Keith Isaacson
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-726-5523

Alan Penzias
Boston IVF/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 781-434-6539

Elena Yanushpolsky
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-4285

Internal Medicine

Mark Aronson
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-9600

Joseph Corkery
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8078

Charles Hatem
Mount Auburn Hospital, 617-868-2650

Robert Hughes
Massachusetts General Hospital, 617-724-6610

Phyllis Jen
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6038

Frannie Kronenberg
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5773

Edward Legare
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-964-9070

Guy Napolitana
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8697

Gerry Orfanos
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-5013

Jennifer Potter
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-7702

Martin Solomon
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-278-1700

Judith Waligunda
New England Baptist Hospital, 617-232-3700

Marshall Wolf
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6330

Beverly Woo
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6043

Nephrology

Robert Brown
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-2147

John Herrin
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6129

Samir Kassissieh
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8430

Julian Seifter
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5771

Ajay Singh
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5951

Edward Walshe
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8430

Henry Yager
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-735-8535

Christopher Ying
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8430

Neurology

Louis Caplan
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-632-8911

Paul Gross
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8495

Kinan Hreib
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-3803

H. Royden Jones
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8633

Michael Ronthal
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-3176

Allan Ropper
St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, 617-789-3300

Martin Samuels
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-7432

Obstetrics/Gynecology

Thomas Beatty
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-243-579

Melinda Birdsall
Lahey Clinic, 978-538-4370

Joseph Hurd
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8495

Mark Kaplan
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-735-8990

Jeffrey Katz
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-735-8800

Eric Lichter
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-4658

Robert McLellan
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8563

Raymond Reilly
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-731-3400

Todd Shapiro
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-734-9024

Oncology

Charles Fuchs
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 617-632-584

Stacey Gore
Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, 617-421-8726

Roger Lange
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-2127

Robert Mayer
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 617-632-3000

Joyce McCaffrey
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8410

Lowell Schnipper
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-3666

Lawrence Shulman
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 617-632-3000

Todd Shuster
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8410

Richard Stone
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 617-632-2214

Charles White
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8410

Ophthalmology

Dimitri Azar
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-523-7900

Amita Bhatt
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-964-1050

Don Bienfang
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-7432

Bonnie Henderson
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-3158

Jay Kaufman
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-523-7900

Joan Miller
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-5520

Sarkis Soukiasian
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8555

Fleming Denton Wertz III
Lahey Clinic, 978-538-4440

John Woog
Ophthalmic Consultants of Boston, 800-635-0489

Orthopedics

John Emans
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6766

William Healy
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8553

David Mattingly
New England Baptist Hospital, 617-277-1205

Michael Millis
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6773

Daniel Snyder
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-964-0024

Thomas Thornhill
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5322

Richard Wilk
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8227

Otolaryngology

Neil Bhattacharyyra
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-713-2000

Peter Catalano
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8450

Michael Cunningham
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-4250

Robert Dolan
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8450

Richard Fabian
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-4084

Gregory Randolph
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-5520

Mark Rounds
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-630-1699

Jo Shapiro
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5500

Pediatric Cardiology

Michael Freed
Children's Hospital, 617-355-4278

David Fulton
Children's Hospital, 617-355-8165

Jane Newburger
Children's Hospital, 617-355-4278

Edward Walsh
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7893

Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery

Pedro Del-Nido
Children's Hospital, 617-355-8290

Richard Jonas
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7930

James Lock
Children's Hospital, 617-355-4278

John Mayer
Children's Hospital, 617-355-8258

Pediatric Gastroenterology

Jeffrey Biller
Tufts-New England Medical Center, 617-734-2050

Laurie Fishman
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6058

Alex Flores
Tufts-New England Medical Center, 617-636-0135

Richard Grand
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6058

Esther Israel
Massachusetts General Hospital, 617-726-293

Maureen Jonas
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6058

Ronald Kleinman
Massachusetts General Hospital, 617-726-2930

Alan Leichtner
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6058

Harland Winter
Children's Hospital, 617-724-2005

Pediatrics, General

Shelly Bernstein
Weston Pediatric Physicians, 617-632-4917

Bruce Bunnell
Centre Pediatric Associates, 617-735-8585

John P. Cloherty
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7318

Michael Cunningham
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-4250

Deborah Frank
Boston Medical Center, 617-414-5251

Bob Michaels
Longwood Pediatrics, 617-355-7071

Alan Nauss
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8083

Sally Roth
Private practice, 617-232-2811

Mary Scott
Longwood Pediatrics, 617-277-7320

Claire Wilson
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8083

Gregory Young
Longwood Pediatrics, 617-277-7320

Plastic Surgery

Richard Bartlett
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6365

David Bryan
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8584

Mack Cheney
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, 617-573-3709

Joel Feldman
Mount Auburn Hospital, 617-661-5998

Charles Hergrueter
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-355-6082

Leonard Miller
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-735-8735

Julian Pribaz
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-639

Timothy Whitney
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8582

Pulmonary Medicine

John Beamis
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8480

Dennis Beer
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-243-6640

Anthony Campagna
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8480

Lynda Cristiano
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6770

Christopher Fanta
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5771

Anthony Gray
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8480

Richard Schwartzstein
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-4020

Andrew Villanueva
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8480

Timothy Wu
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8482

Rheumatology

Ronald Anderson
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5345

Jonathan Coblyn
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5347

Paul Dellaripa
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-8551

Stephen Goldring
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-623-8658

Jean Jackson
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5325

Robert Sundel
Children's Hospital, 617-355-6117

Michael Weinblatt
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-5331

Urology

William DeWolf
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 617-667-8903

Christopher Doyle
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6325

Gary Kearney
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-277-0100

Jeffrey Lamont
Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 617-527-1716

Michael O'Leary
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6325

Alan Retik
Children's Hospital, 617-355-7796

Jerome Richie
Brigham and Women's Hospital, 617-732-6674

Sidney Rubenstein
Melrose-Wakefield Hospital, 781-647-1300

John Smith III
Lahey Clinic, 781-744-2508