No one was surprised when Dr. Greg Heywood followed in the footsteps of his father and became a physician. What was surprising, at least to Dr. Heywood, is how closely he actually walked in his father’s well-respected footsteps.
“When you go to medical school, you’re usually either drawn to surgery or medical specialties,” Dr. Heywood says. “I was drawn to surgery, but also appreciated the relatively healthy patient base that came from obstetrics.”
Combine the chance to help patients surgically through the gynecological part of the specialty, with the unique — and mostly joyous — opportunities that come from obstetrics, and Dr. Heywood had found his home.
His dad was already a well-respected OB/GYN physician in West Virginia, splitting time between his practice and overseeing residents from the University of West Virginia.
The young Dr. Heywood was also attracted to teaching the next generation and found a perfect fit — joining his father in West Virginia.
“My family and I loved living in West Virginia,” he says. “We built a life and a great practice there, but we felt drawn to come back to Utah.”
Dr. Heywood’s grown children had mostly settled in Utah Valley, and he and his wife wanted to be close to them and the beloved grandchildren.
“Luckily, Utah Valley is known to have a need for obstetrics and gynecology,” Dr. Heywood says. “The team at Intermountain Summit OB/GYN — especially Dr. Wayne Young — made me feel like this was where we needed to be. Dr. Young and I have a lot in common. We have a similar approach to care, and this was the best opportunity to keep treating patients in the way I believe is best.”
Throw in the unique LDRP model of childbirth at Orem Community Hospital — where women labor, deliver, recover and enjoy postpartum care all in the same convenient, well-equipped suite — and the opportunity was more appealing for Dr. Heywood.
“I enjoy working at Orem Community Hospital because it has a much more intimate and personal environment for patients going through childbirth,” Dr. Heywood says. “She goes through labor, delivery and her postpartum recovery all in the same room. She doesn’t get shuffled from one floor to another during the process. The nurses do a great job of making it a warm and personal experience.”
For a number of years after his father retired from the post, Dr. Heywood spent much of his time mentoring medical residents through the same University of West Virginia program.
This responsibility gave him a unique balance between being an experienced physician who also stays up-to-date on the latest research, technology and procedures being taught in medical school. However, he still has the broad range of training not seen as often in today’s “specialize early” medical training climate.
“Physicians who graduate today see their area of focus narrow more quickly than it did when I was in school,” he says. “I trained in a time when you had a broader area of study and experience. This has allowed me to practice and help patients with issues that others would have to refer out to sub-specialists. Dr. Young has that similar breadth of experience.”
The variety of training and comfortable care Dr. Heywood bring to patients allows him to keep working with women through all stages of life — even as their healthcare needs change.
“Delivering babies as a young woman often leads to gynecological concerns later in life,” Dr. Heywood says. “I am able to help my patients as those concerns arise in an environment where they are comfortable.”
Dr. Heywood brought his experience cross-country in September 2019 and has been seeing patients since. In fact, he now can spend more time with patients — and deliver at more hospitals — since he spends less time training new physicians.
“I love what I do,” Dr. Heywood says. “I love helping my patients by performing surgery. But, there’s still nothing like obstetrics. Seeing a family break down as they hold a new baby — or helping a dad who is about ready to pass out — it never gets old.”
And Dr. Heywood knows a little something about dads. He learned from one of the best.
About Obstetrics & Gynecology
Obstetrics and gynecology is a branch of medicine that specializes in the care of women during pregnancy and childbirth and also in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases within the female reproductive organs.
It also specializes in other women’s health issues such as menopause, hormone problems, contraception (birth control), and infertility. Also called ob/gyn.
(Source: National Cancer Institute)
About Summit OB/GYN
At Summit OB/GYN, doctors care for the entire woman. From puberty through menopause, medical professionals are with patients every step of the way. Some of the services the clinic provides and the treated conditions include:
- Free Pregnancy Testing
- Pregnancy
- Childbirth
- Reproductive Endocrinology
- Infertility
- Oncology
- Urogynecology
- Global Women’s Health
- Genetics
- Menstrual Period Problems
- Menopause
- Urinary Incontinence
- Surgery