Getting Thyroid Care Right Starts with the Right Multidisciplinary Team

August 4, 2026
Bhanu Iyer, MD

Endocrinologist and Clinical Lead Bhanu Iyer, MD, takes a closer look at how the Atlantic Health Thyroid Center is simplifying the patient experience through a coordinated, multidisciplinary approach that helps patients get to the right specialist sooner while making the referral process easier for providers.

 

Most patients don't set out looking for a thyroid specialist. They start with a primary care physician. An OB/GYN notices an enlarged thyroid during an exam. A thyroid nodule appears incidentally on imaging ordered for something entirely unrelated. Lab work comes back abnormal. Questions follow, and so does uncertainty.

For referring providers, the challenge often isn't recognizing that something warrants additional evaluation. It's knowing where that patient should go next, how quickly they need to be seen and how to ensure they don't get lost moving between specialists.

That's exactly what the Atlantic Health Thyroid Center was designed to solve.

Originally established at Atlantic Health Overlook Medical Center and now serving patients across Atlantic Health Morristown Medical Center, Atlantic Health Newton Medical Center, Atlantic Health Hackettstown Medical Center and Atlantic Health Chilton Medical Center, the program brings endocrinology, endocrine surgery, nuclear medicine, pathology, medical oncology and other specialties together around a single, coordinated model of care.

For Bhanu Iyer, MD, and endocrinologist and Clinical Lead of the Atlantic Health Thyroid Center, that multidisciplinary approach was intentional from the beginning.

"Our vision was providing multidisciplinary, integrated, evidence-based, patient-centered care," she says. "We provide the most updated, evidence-based, patient-centric care to our patients and the community."

That philosophy extends well beyond having specialists under the same organizational umbrella. It is about creating a better experience for patients and a more seamless referral process for physicians.

Removing Friction from the Referral Process

Thyroid disease does not always follow a predictable path.

Some patients need an endocrinologist. Others should be evaluated by a surgeon first. Patients with thyroid cancer may ultimately require care from several specialties over the course of their treatment.

Rather than asking patients or referring physicians to navigate those decisions alone, the Thyroid Center provides a dedicated nurse navigator who serves as a central point of coordination.

The nurse navigator helps patients schedule the right appointments, coordinates care across specialties and helps guide them through what can often be an overwhelming process.

Just as importantly, she serves as a resource for referring providers.

As Dr. Iyer explains, physicians who are unsure whether a patient should first see an endocrinologist or a surgeon can simply reach out through Epic Secure Chat, a staff message or by contacting the nurse navigator directly. Instead of guessing where to send a patient, providers have immediate access to someone who can help direct them to the appropriate specialist.

That level of coordination may sound simple, but it removes unnecessary delays, reduces confusion and helps patients move into the right care pathway more efficiently.

Innovation That Expands Treatment Options

The Atlantic Health Thyroid Center continues to bring advanced thyroid care closer to patients across Atlantic Health.

One of the newest additions is radiofrequency ablation (RFA), a minimally invasive, ultrasound-guided outpatient procedure for select patients with benign thyroid nodules.

For appropriately selected patients, RFA offers an alternative to surgery while avoiding many of the risks associated with thyroidectomy, including permanent thyroid hormone replacement in some patients. The procedure can address nodules causing cosmetic concerns or compressive symptoms while allowing patients to return home the same day.

The program has also standardized thyroid ultrasound protocols across Atlantic Health, helping ensure patients receive consistent, comprehensive imaging regardless of where they enter the system. Combined with advanced biopsy techniques and molecular testing when appropriate, these capabilities support more informed clinical decision-making while helping avoid unnecessary repeat procedures.

Expertise Matters. So Does Connection.

Clinical excellence is expected at a leading thyroid center.

What stands out about Dr. Iyer is that she believes expertise alone is not enough.

"My treatment goals are maintenance of health, good quality of life, resolution of symptoms and prevention of disease," she says. "It's a team. I tell my patients, 'I want you to let me help you.'"

That perspective shapes every patient interaction.

She believes patients should feel comfortable asking questions, expressing concerns and participating in decisions about their care. Shared decision-making is not something that happens at the end of the visit. It is the foundation of the relationship.

Dr. Iyer is a firm believer in the importance of connecting with patients, and that patients should feel unapologetic about sharing their fears and being vulnerable without being judged.

"Unless that connection is formed," she says, "magic doesn't happen."

For referring providers, that philosophy offers something important. Patients are not simply entering a specialty clinic. They are entering a coordinated program designed to make thyroid care more connected, more navigable and more personal from the very first referral through long-term follow-up.