Despite misinformation spread by anti-vaccine activists, social media bullies, and internet trolls, Dr. Eve Switzer understood that vaccines in childhood (and beyond) are too important to overlook. So instead of backing down, she stood up for vaccines – and won.
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Insights, challenges and success stories from practices like yours.
Continuously Evolving in Independent Practice with Dr. Hiral Lavania
One Family PediatricsCumming, GA
When Dr. Hiral Lavania opened her independent practice, she put creating a positive work environment first. This approach has helped her maintain a thriving independent practice through the ups and downs of COVID-19 and healthcare worker shortages. She reflects on the importance of clear communication, work-life balance, and continuing growth and education as a pediatrician.
In 2021, Dr. Arpita Gupta DePalma realized she had everything she had always dreamed of, and yet she was still unhappy. This realization catalyzed her to shift her mindset, regulate her emotions, and ultimately create greater balance and fulfillment in her life. Now, she coaches women physicians to do the same for themselves.
The Vaccine Machine, the brainchild of Dr. Katie Schafer and colleagues at Bloom Pediatrics, started a journey that led them to connect with the community in lasting ways they didn’t expect. Saying ‘yes’ and jumping in with only the beginnings of a plan – and a firm commitment to a good cause – taught the team to think outside the box and lean into the unknown.
As news of the war in Ukraine escalated in 2022, Dr. Kent Kleppinger listened in with increasing concern from his practice in Laramie, Wyoming. With the training of a career of pediatric independence, when Dr. Kleppinger decided to step in to help physicians in Ukraine, he didn’t hesitate; he went all in.
Gender-Affirming Care is Whole-Person Care: Integrating Behavioral Health and Independent Pediatrics
Tamalpais PediatricsMarin County, CA
Transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth are increasingly reaching out to pediatric providers for support—be it medical care, education, or referrals to specialist. Yet some providers feel less than prepared to meet the needs of TGD youth and their families. Licensed therapist Theresa Hall speaks to the unique experience of TGD youth in the healthcare system, and how pediatricians can best support them.
Camaraderie and Trust: Building and Maintaining a Large Pediatric Practice
Memphis Children’s Clinic • Pediatric Associates of Mt. Carmel
Leaders from Memphis Children’s Clinic and Pediatric Associates of Mt. Carmel talk about the challenges and rewards of running a large pediatric practice. From fine tuning management models to trying out new social media strategies, they share more about their practices’ goals for the future, as well as how they’re adapting and changing to better serve patients and families in their communities.
Close Communities from Far Away: Partners4Kids in the U.S. Virgin Islands
Partners4KidsU.S. Virgin Islands
Five years after a series of hurricanes devastated the U.S. Virgin Islands, Dr. Cecilia Penn is optimistic about the future of her practice, Partners4Kids. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt another blow to the community, she’s staying focused on the bigger picture, always coming back to the needs of the families she serves.
Glacier Pediatrics in Juneau, Alaska, serves communities along the Alaska Marine Highway, which snakes through 3,500 miles of coastline and connects 30 communities. The team is focused on expanding health care access in this rural region through implementing telehealth and partnering with pediatric specialists.
A government mandate in Tennessee has prohibited the Department of Health from doing vaccine outreach and education to Tennessee youth. What does this mandate signify about the relationship between the Tennessee legislature and the medical community? And how might the mandate impact independent pediatricians? Dr. Suzanne Berman, an independent pediatrician in Crossville, TN, speaks to the issue with an on-the-ground perspective.
Close Communities from Far Away: How Keānuenue Pediatrics Fights for the Underdog
Keānuenue PediatricsHonolulu, HI
In October of 2020, Dr. Jasmine Waipa founded Keānuenue Pediatrics in Honolulu, Hawai`i, with a goal to create a small practice atmosphere with a tech-forward approach. As a Native Hawaiian pediatrician, she is passionate about addressing health disparities.
The evidence is undeniable -- female physicians will continue to outnumber their male counterparts in the coming years. Dr. Katrina Skinner, founder of Women in Pediatrics, joins a panel of female practice owners to discuss how the face of healthcare and pediatrics is changing and to share advice they wish they had received when starting out on their own.
Building Community Ties in the Spindle City: Pediatric Associates of Fall River
Pediatric Associates of Fall RiverFall River, MA
At Pediatric Associates of Fall River, the practice’s eight pediatricians, one nurse practitioner and roughly 50 staff members – many of whom are locals – are united in a common goal to bring high quality health care to this underserved city in southern Massachusetts.
“Come Learn With Me:” Teaching the Next Generation of Pediatricians
Pediatric Associates at Mt. CarmelCincinnati, Ohio
Dr. Chris Peltier wants to help community pediatricians fall in love with teaching. He’s learned through more than two decades of experience how rewarding it is to help medical students and residents learn the art and science of pediatrics. He also knows it is possible to effectively teach while still meeting business objectives and offering top notch patient care.
Trust and Reassurance: Serving a Diversity of Patients in South Carolina
Pelican PediatricsCharleston, SC
Dr. Eliza Varadi, the owner of Pelican Pediatrics in Charleston, South Carolina, has made it her goal to serve a diversity of patients from a multitude of backgrounds. Spurred in part by her own immigrant experience as a child, she has built a team that reflects the community she serves.
When he made plans to open an independent practice in the spring of 2020, Dr. Scott Wissman could never have predicted the Covid-19 pandemic. Dr. Wissman discusses the challenges, triumphs, and poignant lessons of opening a practice during a global pandemic.
In the 17 years since its founding by Dr. Melisa Holmes and Dr. Trish Hutchison, Girlology has grown into a company with national reach focused on sharing information about health and adolescence with families.
Serving the Whole Family Through Developmental Pediatrics
Georgia Center for Autism and Developmental PediatricsAtlanta, GA
Dr. Mark Moncino is passionate about offering specialized care to children with developmental differences. Inspired by his personal journey with dyslexia, Dr. Moncino founded the Georgia Center for Autism and Developmental Pediatrics. He tells the story of discovering the holes in developmental screening and treatment, and his road to starting his own practice.
After 38 years in practice in East Hampton, N.Y., Dr. Gail Schonfeld has built deep and lasting relationships with families in her community. Her work as an advocate and innovator serves her patients and helps pediatricians across the country adapt to a changing healthcare landscape.
Getting Resourceful, Staying Close: Small Town Healthcare for a Growing Community
Skagit PediatricsMount Vernon, WA
In November 2019, The Independent Pediatrician visited Skagit Pediatrics in Mount Vernon, Washington. The managing pediatricians shared the story of the practice’s history, growth, and how despite consistent change, their independent culture has thrived after nearly 40 years.
How does a hundred-year-old practice maintain its mission, vision, and quality over time? El Paso Pediatrics offers a look into the structures, values, and patient-centered approaches that allow for continued success. Dr. Joseph Segapeli discusses the joys and challenges of working in this long-standing independent practice.
Increased access to pediatric care for rural poor populations could alter the course of a child’s life, and widespread access could change a community’s future. This part of the series highlights the challenges faced by Appalachian communities in securing access to pediatric care.
Rural America’s Invisible Patients, Part II: Tribal Lands
Committee on Native American Child HealthPine Ridge, SD
Increased access to pediatric care for rural poor populations could alter the course of a child’s life, and widespread access could change a community’s future. This part of the series highlights the challenges faced by Reservation communities in securing access to pediatric care.
Increased access to pediatric care for rural poor populations could alter the course of children’s lives, and widespread access could change a community’s future. Three distinct regions of the U.S. provide lenses through which to examine questions of access, utilization, and solutions for the future.
Collaboration and Cooperation: Integrating Mental Health Care into a Pediatric Practice
Parker Pediatrics and Adolescents | Upper Valley Pediatrics
At Parker Pediatrics and Adolescents in Colorado, Dr. Jay Rabinowitz took a leap into the unknown by bringing licensed mental health professionals into his practice as employees. Dr. Mark Harris went on a similar journey in Vermont, where he integrated mental health services into his practice, Upper Valley Pediatrics, in the 1990s. In both locations, integrated mental health care has been beneficial for patients and providers, filling a dire need in the community.
Education, Relationships, and Expert Care: Dr. Nneka Unachukwu’s Approach to Independent Pediatrics
Ivy League PediatricsLawrenceville, Ga.
From the University of Nigeria to her independent practice in Georgia, Dr. Nneka Una shares important lessons from a rich career in medicine. She offers her approach to independent practice management, whole-child care, and professional coaching—an approach that is grounded in strong relationships and education.
Goldstar Pediatrics Brings Comprehensive Care to California’s Inland Empire
Goldstar PediatricsFontana, Calif.
Goldstar Pediatrics, founded in 2016, emphasizes comprehensive care for families in Fontana, California. As the practice’s founder and sole pediatrician, Dr. Irmgard Tackie develops lasting relationships with her patients and goes above and beyond to help them connect with services and resources they need.
Caring for Kids & Families: Pediatric Associates in Western Colorado
Pediatric AssociatesMontrose, Colo.
For many families in Colorado’s Delta and Montrose counties, Pediatric Associates is the first and primary point of care for their children. With a focus on innovation and quality improvement, the group has for 30 years adapted to the changing needs of the diverse communities it serves in the Western Slope region.
All students with disabilities in the United States are legally guaranteed individualized special education services, so that they have the opportunity to learn and succeed, yet many schools fail to properly help these struggling children. Dr. Adrienne Classen of North Carolina steps up to fight for these students’ rights.
Passing the Baton: Keeping Your Practice Independent When You Retire
Busy Bee PediatricsBountiful, Utah
After almost 40 years in independent practice, Dr. Douglas Coombs wanted someone who would carry the practice’s vision, work well with current staff, and show up with the most up-to-date processes and practices, all skills possessed by Dr. Bonnie Feola.
In 2015, Dr. Rita Fox traveled to the rural village of Ekudzeni, in Swaziland, to set up and staff a medical clinic. She has since returned two more times to provide medical care to the community, building lasting relationships with a generation of children who have lost parents and family members to HIV/AIDS.
After 44 years as an independent pediatrician, Dr. Rick Oken offers a unique perspective on the forces shaping the field today. He advocates for a focus on quality care and deep, meaningful relationships with families even as the healthcare landscape continues to shift and change.
Springtime in Texas: A Husband and Wife Team Put Community, Family First
Springtime PediatricsKaty, Texas
Founded by husband and wife team Ahmed and Yasmine Monib, Springtime Pediatrics in the rapidly growing community of Katy, Texas, focuses on delivering high quality patient care for a diverse range of patients.
Sandhills Pediatrics and Palmetto Pediatrics, two of the largest independent pediatric practices in the Midlands region of South Carolina, have joined forces to create South Carolina Pediatric Alliance. Their goal is to deliver high quality care while gaining efficiencies of scale, reducing costs, and maintaining the independence of their practices.
Kids Plus Pediatrics: Using Innovative Thinking to Engage Patients, Support Community, and Grow a Dynamic Business
Kids Plus PediatricsPittsburgh, Pa.
At Kids Plus Pediatrics, dreaming big is the name of the game. Their out-of-the-box thinking keeps them at the cutting edge of the business of pediatrics, all while building commuinity and fostering patient engagement.
Family, Community, Country: The Power of Patient-Centered Pediatrics in South Texas
Pediatric Center at RenaissanceEdinburg, Texas
Dr. J.J. Saenz views his pediatric practice as an extension of his family—in fact, the practice is his family. While striving to meet the needs of their diverse community, Dr. Saenz and his children have been providing quality, evidence-based care for children in the Rio Grande Valley for 30 years.
As medical director of the Health Network at Cincinnati Children's, Dr. Colleen Kraft plays a key leadership role in an organization modeling innovative ways to deliver healthcare to kids. Now, she's bringing her skills and expertise to her new role as president-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Dr. Richard Schwartz on the Benefits of Thinking Big and Staying Small
Advanced PediatricsVienna, Va.
An exemplary pediatrician draws on his long career to describe his obsession with science, the rewards of gutsy perseverance and why he can't work for someone else.
The practice was busy, the doctors were happy, and the business was profitable. But something was amiss. Tiger Pediatrics had a long journey to becoming independent, and still have a long road ahead to stay that way.
Nine years after opening her own practice, Dr. Warner knows going solo was the right choice for her practice.
Dr. John Ivan Sutter: Pediatrician, Activist, and Champion of Physician’s Rights
NuHeights PediatricsClifton, N.J.
Dr. Sutter fought a decades-long legal battle against one of the big insurers that went all the way to the Supreme Court and resulted in a landmark decision. Why did no one seem to care?
Absent Adolescents: Solving the Problem of Continuity of Care Through the Teenage Years
Center for Pediatric and Adolescent CareDover, Del.
Annual well visits with a trusted pediatrician are the best forum to address the physical, social, and emotional changes adolescents face today.
With a passion for health policy, Dr. Penn looks to understand her patient population at the community level in order to better serve them.
Dr. Alison Nash continues a family tradition/calling as successor
to the pediatric practice her father, Dr. Homer Nash, opened six
decades ago in north St. Louis.
Aging Out of Pediatric Care is All Relative at Pediatric Wellness Group
Pediatric Wellness GroupRedwood City, Calif.
Northern California pediatricians Drs. Niki Saxena and Eileen Chan discuss the rewards and challenges of expanding their pediatric practice to include services for adolescents and young adults.
Need for Adolescent Specialists Grows as Pediatric Subspecialty Evolves
Children’s & Women’s PhysiciansValhalla, N.Y.
It was during his pediatric internship that adolescent health specialist Dr. Gilberto Velez-Domenech realized he had the passion, talent, and the patience it takes to tackle the diverse health needs of adolescents.
Treating Adolescents Using Compassion, Curiosity & Clinical Care
Pediatric and Adolescent CareTulsa, Okla.
Oklahoma pediatrician Dr. James Hendricks explains how his participation in clinical research projects gave him a leg up on conducting the anticipatory guidance that is so critical to ensuring the physical, emotional and mental well-being of adolescents.
Beyond the Nuts and Bolts: One Doctor’s Vision for the Perfect Pediatric Electronic Health Record
CareMount MedicalNew York State
Dr. William Zurhellen is a New York City metropolitan-area pediatrician who parlayed a personal interest in early computer technology during the 1970s into a viable electronic health record system used by more than a dozen pediatric practices around the country.
Dr. Mary Kiepert is an independent pediatrician in Las Vegas, Nevada, who has successfully negotiated the delicate balance between work and family life.
Judy Rapoza, a practice administrator in Fall River, Massachusetts, and Jayme Spangler, a biller from Hershey, Pennsylvania, represent staff at independent pediatric practices everywhere who keep their offices up-to-date and compliant with the demands of a fickle health care industry.
Dr. Susan Sirota is a Chicago-area pediatrician who, along with 39 other independent-minded practitioners from seven practices, met the spectre of hospital consolidation head-on by forming their own “group without walls.”
Dr. Jill Stoller and Dr. Krekamey Craig are New Jersey pediatricians from neighboring counties who, believing there is strength in numbers, helped form a merger that puts theirs and three other practices in a position to thrive.
Dr. Bryan Sibley is an independent practitioner in Louisiana whose early experience as a hospital-employed physician taught him that nobody will ever care about his business as much as he does.
In 2009, Dr. Gayle Smith, of Richmond, Va., did the research and found there was a desire among families for the type of highly personalized well care that concierge practices do best. Four years later, Dr. Smith’s fee-based concierge practice is flourishing.
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