Stephen Wells

I grew up in Southern California, moved to Louisiana where I received my college education and medical school training, and moved back to complete my specialty training in Obstetrics & Gynecology at Los Angeles County / USC Medical Center. After a four-year stint working at the busiest university hospital in the country, I moved my beautiful wife to raise our daughters here in God’s country in the East Bay. Our intention was permanent residence in this wonderful area. I knew exactly what I was getting into when I decided to go into Obstetrics & Gynecology. My dad was an OB/GYN in Long Beach, CA. I vaguely remember as a child hearing the garage door open at about 2 a.m. and his car starting up and driving away to the hospital to deliver another baby. I didn’t think much of his sleep deprivation as I rolled over and drifted back to sleep.

In medical school, I spent 3 years wanting to go into Family Medicine. One of the last rotations in my third year convinced me to forever change the direction of my life. When I completed my rotation in Obstetrics & Gynecology, I understood why my dad enjoyed his career so much. After that wonderful experience, I applied to various OB/GYN residencies around the country. My desire, however, was to move back to California. Ten days before I was to marry my wife, I learned that I had been accepted to Los Angeles County / USC Medical Center which meant four years of grueling residency training. Thankfully, she still married me. I have been in practice in this area since 1994. I started in a partnership, and moved into a group practice.

After listening to patients who liked the care but didn’t like the big office atmosphere, my partners and I decided to divide the big group into 3 individual practices. In this way, our relationships with our patients would be improved and the office less hectic. I believe this change to have been a great benefit to our patients, and to our own families. Although my practice is very busy, I try my hardest to give all of my patients the time that they really need. Unfortunately, this often causes me to run late. But sometimes comforting a woman recently diagnosed with a miscarriage or explaining what a woman’s prognosis is upon hearing of a newly diagnosed cancer takes longer than the typical amount of time in a routine time slot. Not all things encountered during routine exams are expected. The important thing is to provide what a patient needs.

The basis of my treatment and recommendations for the women I see in my practice is a blend of two things. The first is based on what I have learned as a physician in the study of medicine. The second and probably most important is related to my thoughts of “based on what I know as a physician, what would I want for my wife, my daughter, or my mother if she were in this situation?”