A gastroenterologist is a physician who specializes in disorders and conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, also called the digestive tract.

Gastroenterology deals with diseases of the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, colon and rectum, pancreas, gallbladder, bile ducts and liver. It involves a detailed understanding of the normal action of the gastrointestinal organs including the movement of material through the stomach and intestine, the digestion and absorption of nutrients into the body, removal of waste from the system, and the function of the liver as a digestive organ. It includes conditions such as colon polyps and cancer, hepatitis, gastroesophageal reflux (heartburn), pepticulcer disease, colitis, gallbladder and biliary tract disease, nutritional problems, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and pancreatitis.

Gastroenterologists regularly perform colon cancer screenings, removal of polyps, upper endoscopies and other procedures in the Gastroenterology Laboratories at Beaver Medical Group.