General Surgery

General surgery refers to the treatment of diseases which affect almost any area of the body and as such crosses a broad spectrum of surgical conditions. The general surgeon determines the diagnosis and provides the pre-surgical, surgical, and post-surgical care to his or her patients. The general surgeon has both the medical knowledge and surgical skills to treat many conditions, whether located in the head or neck, abdominal cavity, or the extremities. The surgeries may be gastrointestinal or vascular in nature. General surgeons are trained to recognize complex problems.

Common general surgical treatments include surgery involving inflammation of the gallbladder, appendicitis, bowel resection, hemorrhoids or hernias. The general surgeon may perform laparoscopic surgeries or procedures, which involve minimally invasive surgical techniques using smaller surgical incisions and a laparoscope. Minimally invasive surgery significantly reduces the amount of time a patient may spend in the hospital and promotes a patient's quicker recovery.

We have a highly skilled and professional staff with state of the art facilities. General Surgery procedures are done at the Finger Lakes Surgery Center or Geneva General Hospital  depending on the level of care that is required for your surgical experience. All surgical patients have a pre-anesthesia appointment with a registered nurse that is determined by the physician’s office if it is in-person or by telephone. Many surgeries that are performed at Geneva General Hospital are done within 1 to 2 hours and you are discharged to home after the procedure.

From the moment the patient enters the hospital or the Finger Lakes Surgery Center, the focus is on them. The patient’s family is encouraged to stay with them until they enter the surgical suite. We make every effort to keep you informed of the patient’s progress. The patient always feels connected with our highly skilled professionals. 

Patients regularly mention that the friendliness and professionalism of staff and physicians surpasses their expectations.

To  make an appointment with Craig Collins, M.D., FACS, FASCRS, Kristin Baltazar-Ford, M.D. or Mark Ilko, M.D. the surgeons of Geneva General Surgical Associates please call (315) 787-5383.