Dear Mindful Pediatrics families:

It is with both excitement and sadness that I am writing this letter. For as long as I can remember, being a Primary Care Doctor has been both my dream and my reality. When I opened the doors of Mindful Pediatrics in 2006, it was a pediatric model that didn’t exist anywhere else. For the last 15 years, I have provided care for so many of your children and families in this way and it has been my extraordinary privilege and honor. I cannot thank you enough for your trust and confidence in both me and my work.

As the demand at Mindful Pediatrics started to grow beyond a single-provider practice, I diligently worked to meet that need by hiring our amazing Physician Assistant, Ara, in 2018. Adding a second practitioner, in conjunction with the increased volume of patients, also brought with it an increased organizational complexity. Then add in a worldwide pandemic, which resulted in a shortage of employees seeking work in the medical field. This made it very difficult for our office to maintain long-term support staff for the first time ever.

While I have felt both humbled and grateful for the increased interest in Mindful Pediatrics, I recently found myself at a crossroads. I realized that I either needed to put my energy into growing the practice and assuming a more managerial role, or to scale back and reconnect to my real passion: being a doctor. For me, the choice was very clear. Being a Holistic Medical Doctor and caring for my patients is my true calling.

The NEW Mindful Pediatrics Model

Each year, my practice has had a growing percentage of patients who come for consultations rather than for primary care. Currently, this now makes up more than 50% of my practice. These families have their own primary care doctor, generally one who accepts their insurance. 

They may come to me, either on an as-needed basis or at regularly scheduled intervals, because they are seeking a more comprehensive evaluation, need more support with a complex or chronic condition, a new health issue has emerged, or even for basic pediatric advice. Parents often tell me that while their current doctor fills a specific need, they simply don’t provide the partnership they desire—or the expertise to look at the big picture holistically.

Because offering a combination of primary care and consultative pediatrics has become increasingly difficult, beginning December 1, 2021, Mindful Pediatrics will no longer be offering primary care services and will be moving to a consultation only model. This will allow me to use my unique set of skills to assist the greatest number of patients.

What does this mean for your family?

For the majority of our patients who already have another primary care doctor and who have utilized me for consultations, this change will not affect you at all. You can continue to consult with me on any topic and schedule appointments as you always have.

For those families who have come to Mindful Pediatrics as their sole primary care pediatric practice, you will need to find another primary care provider for the following services, which we will no longer be offering beginning December 1, 2021.

Continuing our work together

I want to assure you that I will continue to be available for your family and children, but in a different way for some of you. You will still be able to schedule appointments for any concerns you may have about your children’s health and well-being.

Because I will not be performing Well-Child exams, giving immunizations, and providing emergency care, this opens my schedule so that I will be available for longer discussions on the medical and behavioral topics that are most important to you.

I believe that the time we spend together is one of the most important aspects of care. This new model will allow me to have the time and availability to understand the unique physical, emotional, psychological and social needs of each patient and family that I consult with.

Treatment plans will be guided by a thorough and comprehensive history and through the ordering/reviewing of blood, urine, stool, or other testing. As always, my recommendations will include the most appropriate evidence-based conventional and holistic treatment modalities, including dietary and lifestyle suggestions, nutritional supplements, and pharmaceutical medications, as needed.

3 TIME-SENSITIVE & IMPORTANT action steps for Mindful Pediatrics patients

1. Records Request: To request records, you will simply need to email me and we will put a copy in your patient portal so that you can share them with whomever you choose. Please do so as soon as possible.
2. Cancelling your upcoming Well-Care appointment: We will still be offering Well-Child appointments until December 1, 2021. (Please note: I will be out of the office November 17-30 for a family vacation.) We completely understand that some of you will find your new primary care provider before then and we ask that you give us as much notice as possible so that we can accommodate other patients who need to be seen. Keep in mind that we will still be enforcing our 48-hour cancellation policy and missed appointments or cancellations with less than 48-hours notice will be charged accordingly.
3. Changing a Well-Child appointment to a consultation appointment: If you have a Well-Child appointment scheduled after December 1, 2021 and would like to convert that to a consultation appointment, simply email me and I will be happy to do so.  

Frequently Asked Questions

While I sincerely wish that I could sit down and have a personal conversation with each of my patients, I want you to know that I am available to discuss any question that you may have.

We know that many of you will have questions and we tried to anticipate some of them in advance. If you have any additional questions, please email me directly and I will either respond to you or we will let you know that we’ve updated the FAQ.