I was drawn to medicine after watching my father, Dr. John Kroes, provide exceptional health care to our community. He has always been my inspiration. Even as a child, I strived to be just like him someday: a beloved doctor who took care of my community.
Early childhood
I was born and raised in Lafayette in the East Bay. Lafayette was a small community where everyone knew each other. It was a special place to grow up. The community was tightly knit and people really cared for one another. My mother was an attorney, and my father Dr. John Kroes was family doctor. He was a very kind and loving person, and his patients loved him.
He was a very kind and loving person, and his patients loved him. To him, each person was more than just a patient with a set of symptoms to be cured. He knew them as individuals and he knew their families. When someone was sick, my father was always available to take care of them. He didn’t only see people at his clinic, but often in their homes. Sometimes he took me along to his at-home visits. His visits were both health-related and social.
My father was not just a family doctor. He was truly an “old style” doctor. He was exactly what you think of when you think of doctors from the past: loving, caring and always available to his patients. Growing up, I witnessed firsthand how much love he gave to his patients and how happy they were to have him as their doctor. My dad was my biggest inspiration to join the world of medicine.
Dr. Kroes – a Family Doctor
As I began approaching the end of medical school at Stanford, I had a decision to make. I had to choose a specialty. This turned out to be an easy choice for me. I wanted to be a family doctor. Family medicine is the only specialty in medicine that covers everything in the human body from children to adults. I was fascinated with all areas of medicine. Choosing something more specific than family medicine would have felt like choosing a career that left a piece of me behind. Family medicine, in addition to being the most diverse specialty, is also considered one of the hardest to master. A family doctor needs to understand and be up to date on every area of medicine, including urology, dermatology, cardiology, psychiatry, pediatrics, women’s health, and geriatrics (among others). This specialty requires a deep understanding of the body as a whole. With this complexity comes the unique ability for the family doctor to be able to treat the whole person regardless of age, ethnicity, or gender, as well as their entire family.
Medical Practice
For the last 15 years, I’ve had the great pleasure of serving as a family doctor. I have been practicing medicine in the Bay Area and caring for the wonderful patients in my community. For the last 10 years, I’ve been practicing at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation Clinic. During my tenure there, I’ve had the privilege of caring for three generations of families at the same time. I know my patients intimately; this has been the most rewarding aspect of my practice.
Dr. Ian Kroes – A New Chapter – Peninsula Doctor
It’s been an honor to care for my patients over the last 15 years. Throughout my career, I’ve seen kids grow from babies to teenagers, then into adults with families. I’ve also cared for many elderly people in their later years. It’s been a true blessing to be part of so many families’ lives. Thank you! I have cherished the privilege of being your family doctor every single day, especially when I knew that my patients were feeling healthy and living their lives to the fullest potential. In May of 2016, I am going to transition from the Palo Alto Medical Foundation to my own private Medical Concierge practice: Peninsula Doctor.
My goal at Peninsula Doctor is to give my patients the kind of care and service that my father did when he was practicing medicine. With the changes in medicine over the last decade, that level of attention is getting harder to provide in large medical practices. I will always be available when my patients need me. I will combine the best of personalized diagnostics and preventative care. I want to treat the person as a whole. My goal at Peninsula Doctor is to help patients achieve their maximum health potential and live life to the fullest. I am excited for my next chapter, and I look forward to seeing you at Peninsula Doctor!
