How Did Dr. Rolando Rivera Become a Urologist?

Becoming a doctor in any field requires a great deal of dedication and determination. Medical school is known for its years of hard work, difficult tests, internships and endless nights of studying. The product of this hard work is the excellent care provided by dedicated professionals when we are in need of medical assistance.

Becoming a urologist requires a special kind of person. Urology is one of the more challenging specialties a doctor can choose. Urological problems are broad and can encompass issues ranging from urinary incontinence, overactive bladder, vaginal prolapse and kidney stones to the advanced realm of pelvic surgery. Urologists are required to have a large skill set in order to take care of their patients.

Although the extensive field of urology requires a great deal of work, it is also very rewarding. Because of the wide range of issues within this specialization, patients might have to see a urologist many times in their lives. This gives urologists a chance to build relationships with their patients and learn their unique medical needs over time. Urologists have the opportunity to create an almost primary care type relationship with their patients, which is rare in fields of specialty medicine.

The wide spectrum of needs in urology also works to the advantage of the urologist. There are some fields of medicine that can become routine over years of practice, where patients come in with the same set of issues, needing the same kind of treatment. This does not happen in urology. With a wide range of medical issues, requiring patient-specific treatment, the phyisican enjoys a greater degree of variety at work. And with treatment options ranging from prescriptions to various levels of invasive surgery, urology is consistently an interesting and diverse field of medicine for those who practice it.

One doctor who enjoys this ever changing field of medicine is Dr. Rolando Rivera. After shadowing a urology student and friend in college, Dr. Rivera knew that this was the medical specialty for him. And after graduating with honors from the University of Puerto Rico, he started a rewarding and cutting-edge career. Improving the quality of life for his patients has been the goal that motivates Dr. Rivera to provide the best care possible.

For those who are willing to put in the long hours and hard work required to become a urologist, the reward is a lifetime of making a difference in people’s lives while also never being bored with their profession. For anyone in need of seeing a dedicated urologist like Dr. Rivera, he and many more great doctors can be found at the Advanced Urology Institute. Their team of qualified and experienced specialists can help you with any concerns related to urological conditions. For more information, visit an Advanced Urology Institute location near you.

TRANSCRIPTION: 

I’m Rolando Rivera and I’m board certified in urology and female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery with Advanced Urology Institute. 

I actually wanted to be a pilot, but I had glasses and back then pilots didn’t have glasses so my brother is a physician and I got interested in medicine early. I went to the University of Puerto Rico for medical school and I did my residency in the University of Florida in Gainesville.

I actually got exposed to urology fairly early. I think I was a first year medical student and one of my brother’s classmates was a urology resident. I was walking down the hallway one day on a Saturday and he stopped me and said, hey, what are you doing? I said, I’m not doing much and he invited me to see one of his cases and after that everything had to compare to urology. I was hooked, yeah. You know, the most interesting thing about urology is of all the surgical subspecialties or of many of the surgical subspecialties is the one specialty where you can be very broad. I mean, I have relationships with patients that I’ve seen since I came into town 13 years ago so you can follow patients for a long, long time and have almost a primary care type relationship with your patients. 

You can be very obviously invasive and we do a lot of procedures and surgery and it’s open surgery, endoscopic surgery, very broad field and you never get really bored because it’s so diverse.

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