James S. Mills, MD

I had an OUTSTANDING experience with Dr. Mills and his incredible team in the cath lab. I'm a type A personality and was a bit stressed before I got there to put it mildly! From the time I was admitted for evaluation, Dr. Mills took the time to listen to my concerns, explained everything clearly, and made sure I was comfortable throughout the process. His expertise and professionalism were evident and I truly felt at all times I was in the best hands!! Can I add 5 more stars to this review??

I met with Dr. Mills for my yearly follow-up in late November. As before, I felt like he had all the time in the world to talk with me. I had about 5 questions I sent him in advance and we went through all of those and I never felt rushed. We also went over blood work I had done a month prior and he also checked out my lungs. Dr. Mills is a very good communicator and is definitely concerned with your health and well-being. He also keeps up with technology to make the appointments more efficient. He was able to record our conversation and at the end, the app processed everything and sent the notes to My Duke Health and everything we talked about was nicely summarized, only requiring a few manual tweaks. The transfer into My Duke Health was nearly instantaneous. Pretty impressive! ###################### I initially met with Dr. Mills around June of this year to discuss a very high CAC score (2534). He recommended an echo cardiogram and nuclear stress test. Thankfully both came back normal. I met with him for the second time last week as a follow-up. He came straight from the operating room to our meeting (still in his scrubs) and got right down to business. He sat down, pulled up my records and asked how I was doing, if I had any chest pain, shortness of breath, etc. since we last met. I had sent him some questions in advance and had them printed out for him to go over during our meeting. He went through every question I had and provided straight, detailed answers. One of my questions was about a study I had come across concerning statin dosages and how going from 10mg to 20mg only provided a 4%-7% reduction in LDL levels. I was asking if I could drop down from 20mg to 10mg because of the small decrease in LDL levels at a higher dose. He was familiar with the study but noted there are many other benefits to statins beyond their cholesterol lowering benefits and my cholesterol levels were really good at this time, so he wanted me to stay on the 20mg dose, which I'll be doing. Also, during our first meeting, he had recommended I go on a daily baby aspirin regimen. I had done it for a week or two but stopped after I read about a study from the USPSTF that recommended those 60+ should not take a daily baby aspirin. During this past visit, I brought this up to Dr. Mills. He noted that the study didn't take into account people like myself who have a high CAC score. When I brought up concerns about internal bleeding, ulcers and brain hemorrhage, he said my risk of heart attack was much greater than any risk posed by a daily aspirin. So based on that, I'll be starting a daily aspirin regimen again. Dr. Mills comes across as very knowledgeable, caring/concerned, personable and seems to keep current with various studies and recommendations. I trust what he's telling me and believe I'm in very good hands. Hopefully I'll never need any type of heart procedure, but if I do, I'd be very comfortable with Dr. Mills doing anything needed.

This Doc is wonderful. I had medical issues that needed to be addressed. He took care of me and my medical issues. Each time I left his office/care I felt emotional well, and had a sense that my medical issue was in skilled hands. There is something genteel in his mannerism. He explains everything, making sure you understand before you exit. I never felt rushed and always felt like he was my own personal doc. What a wonderful experience. I'm moving out of state soon and will need to find a new cardiologist in the state of Maine. Doctor Mills gives such great care I know its going to be difficult to find a Doc that equals him.

Dr. Mills is awesome. He is direct and straightforward while being friendly and warm. I would recommend him to any one.

He is FABULOUS! He is very professional, has great people skills, and is a remarkable cardiologist with special knowledge and skills related to leg circulation!