Samaritan Adds Cardiology Practice to Its Network

Published on: February 7, 2024

Samaritan is pleased to announce the recent addition of cardiology services under the Samaritan Medical Practice umbrella.  Samaritan Cardiology, formerly Cardiology Associates of Northern New York, will remain at its current location with the same providers, Dr. James Willis and Physician Assistant Kate Symenow. There will be very little change for current patients as the physical location, phone number and wonderful staff have not changed.

Dr. Willis, founder of Cardiology Associates, has been practicing in the region for 38 years and is committed to making sure the practice continues on as he looks forward to retirement. Samaritan and Dr. Willis came together to ensure this continuum of care will occur, as this partnership accounts for succession planning and physician recruitment.  Recruitment for new cardiology specialists is underway.

“I have built this practice and care deeply for my patients, so it is my number one concern that we remain in operation,” said Dr. Willis.  “After considering many partners, Samaritan was selected as they are as committed to this community as I am. The transition has gone smoothly, and it is evident to me that they want this to be successful.”

“We were not actively seeking this new partnership, but it is the right thing to do to keep this service in the community where it is very much needed,” explained Tom Carman, president and CEO of Samaritan Medical Center. “We have begun to recruit more cardiology providers to help serve the community, as there is a need and currently a long wait time for new patients.”

Samaritan has not operated an outpatient cardiology practice prior to this partnership, but has worked with local private physicians to ensure that cardiology services were available to hospital patients through on-call services in the emergency department within the scope of hospital privileges. 

Current patients of Cardiology Associates will notice a change in billing, as Samaritan will assume this process. In addition, echocardiograms (echo) once offered in the cardiology office will now be performed at the Samaritan Health and Wellness Plaza, 1575 Washington St., as part of the imaging and lab services.  This also means that existing Samaritan patients can have their echo done at this outpatient clinic with a provider order. 

Samaritan Cardiology is located at 19436 Howell Drive, Suite A in Watertown and can be reached at 315-786-2000.