Dr. Laurence Lyman Cram, MD

About Me After completing my education at Rice, Stanford, and the University of Colorado, I returned to live the American dream in the small central, coastal town where I was raised. Unfortunately, the practice of fee-for-service medicine in my home town included much more than just providing the best quality medical care for my patients. It included worries about the cost of tests, uncertainties abut insurance coverage for hospital care, and the lack of reliable information about cost- effective medication prescribing. The beauty of the Monterey Bay area is something I loved, but was increasingly unable to enjoy because of the unregulated hours I had to keep to maintain an independent medical practice. It has always been my belief that patients in this society should have access to comprehensive medical care at an affordable price. I was learning this was not the case for many people in my community. Initially it was with many regrets that I began to investigate alternatives to this situation. The more I learned about the structure and professional possibilities of joining Kaiser Permanente as a physician, the decision to change became easier. I have been with Kaiser Permanente Medical Group now for a number of years and this has been the best professional association of my career. I began my work with Kaiser Permanente in the Pleasanton office and immediately began to concentrate solely on the best care for my patients. In addition, I was given the opportunity to broaden my skills as a physician to include sigmoidoscopic colon cancer screening, cardiovascular testing, and comprehensive spinal evaluation as a member of the Diablo Service Area Spine Clinic. I enjoyed the patients in Pleasanton very much, being freed from so many of the extraneous issues of my former style of medical practice. Recently, difficulties of maintaining both the clinic practice in Pleasanton and increasingly complex hospital practice in Walnut Creek, dictated yet another career change. I became a founding member of the Hospital Based Specialty Group which took over inpatient medical care of the Walnut Creek Kaiser Permanente Hospital. This has been a wonderful challenge, allowing further professional growth, continued medical education, and the privilege of working with a wonderful group of ever younger physicians added to our group over the years. Additionally, I have been able to help with administrative affairs assuring high quality patient care with the Acute Care Peer Review Committee. I have been able to continue to do cardiovascular testing for the Cardiology Department to allow the cardiologists more time to concentrate on patient care requiring their expertise. I still have many friends, some former patients, and a few relatives that my wife and I visit from time to time in our old "home town". I help the golf coach at my former high school in the spring and enjoy the association with many wonderful student athletes. My wife and I find the Diablo Valley a wonderful place to live and are thankful for the many opportunities my association with Kaiser Permanente has afforded us. My Credentials Medical school University of Colorado School of Medicine, Denver, CO Internship University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, CO Residency University of Colorado School of Medicine, Denver, CO Board certification Internal Medicine, American Board of Internal Medicine