Citizens Medical Group - Our Medical Staff

Our Medical Staff

CMG is especially proud of our hard working medical and administrative professionals. Our health care team is the cornerstone of the medical services we provide. From our Family Physicians and Medical Technicians who provide great medical care, to our Administrative Staff who will help you with medical billing and scheduling issues, you can be assured of the very best of care.

Medical Staff Physicians
Joel Jaffe MD
Larry Brandis MD
Gordon Van Tassell. DO
Jeffery Harris, MD

About Our Doctors

Joel Jaffe, M.D.
Doctor Jaffe graduated from Swarthmore College in 1965 with a B.A.in Philosophy and did post-graduate study at the Sorbonne, Paris. After receiving his M.D. in 1970 from Temple University School of Medicine he completed a rotating internship at Highland General Hospital in Oakland, California. He spent two years as co-founder and general practitioner at the Rockridge Medical Center and then 2 1/2 years at Contra Costa Community Hospital as a member of the emergency room staff and a family practice physician. There he received specialty clinic training in gynecology, dermatology and otolaryngology. He has been co-medical director of Citizens Medical Group since 1978. Doctor Jaffe is bilingual/Spanish.

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Larry Brandis, M.D.
Doctor Brandis completed his undergraduate work at UCLA and his medical training at Chicago Medical School. He completed his internship and medical residency at UCLA and its affiliated hospitals. Doctor Brandis did a clerkship in Cardiology at the Royal Post Graduate Medical School in London, England. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and is a member of the American Board of Emergency Physicians. His past affiliations include Director of Emergency room at Canogo Park Hospital, staff member of the Emergency Department at Cedars-Sinai and Saint Johns hospitals. For the past 30 years, Dr Brandis has been practicing Family Practice and Internal medicine at Citizens Medical Group as a Co-Medical director with Dr. Jaffe.

Gordon Van Tassell D.O.
Trained in both osteopathic and traditional medicine, Doctor Van Tassell brings enthusiasms for his work and fourteen years of experience to Citizens Medical Group. His training includes Primary Care Internal Medicine at the University of Southern California and Family Practice at Western University of Health Sciences training site, U.S. Family Care Medical Center in Montclair, California. Doctor Van tassel studied undergraduate Chemistry, Psychology, and Biology at Occidental College, in Los Angeles. He earned his medical degree at Western University of Health Sciences. A recipient of a Public Health Service scholarship in medical school, Dr. Van Tassell served in rural/underserved medicine, including Indian reservations and migrant farm workers clinics in California. He is married to Dr. Karen Van Tassell and has two great kids.

"I believe that the doctor-patient relationship is at the heart of healing. Being able to make people feel better is very important to me. I really like urgent care, office surgeries, osteopathic manipulation, office orthopedics, especially cortisone injections, and family practice because I can often bring patients rapid relief from pain and other symptoms."

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Jeffrey Harris, M D
Doctor Jeffery Harris is a native of Canada and attended the University of Toronto for his undergraduate and graduate studies. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from University College, winning two scholarships for studies in biology, and then his medical degree through the Faculty of Medicine in 1974. He subsequently completed a Family Medicine residency at Woman's College Hospital and Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. Immediately after relocating to British Columbia, he was a resident at Cold Mountain Institute, studying alternative approaches to disease. He practiced traditional family medicine and alternative medicine in the Vancouver environs for three years before moving to Southern California in 1979.Doctor Harris has practiced in a variety of settings in the Los Angeles area from private practice to community clinics. He was the Medical Director at Centinela Hospital Medical Center Fox Hills, in Culver City, for 15 years. He joined Citizens Medical Group in 2006. Doctor Harris has Board Certification from the American Board of Family Medicine and from the Family Physicians of Canada.