Medical Staff

At the HSC Pediatric Center, our goal is to provide the best possible care for children with special health care needs. As a result, HSC has partnered with Children’s National Medical Center (“CNMC”), to provide exceptional care for children at HSC. Every day clinicians from HSC and CNMC work hand-in-hand to provide our patients the most advanced rehabilitative, sub-acute and transitional care available in the region.

Hospitalists – pediatricians who specialize in caring for hospitalized children – and pediatric nurse practitioners from CNMC’s nationally-recognized hospitalist division play a central role in the medical care of every admitted patient. These medical staff members work closely with patients, families, and other providers throughout the admission and the transition to home, overseeing and coordinating each child’s overall care plan. Hospitalists also staff the hospital 24 hours-a-day, 365 days-a-year, ensuring that a physician is always close at hand if needed.

For patients with significant rehabilitation needs, physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists – also known as physiatrists – play a major role. Physiatrists lead the development of an individualized plan for each child to reach his or her fullest potential and provide oversight and guidance to the physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, and other rehabilitation professionals on the care team.

When children require prolonged hospitalization, mental health needs can be just as important as physical needs – in fact, the two often go hand-in-hand. Recognizing this, HSC has collaborated with CNMC to provide on-site psychology services to hospitalized patients. The psychologists at HSC have developed an expertise in providing care to our unique population and see patients both in the hospital and on an outpatient basis.

As a result of our close relationship with CNMC, many hospitalized patients are able to see medical specialists from CNMC right here at HSC, without the need to travel from one hospital to the other. At present, providers from the following specialties regularly see patients at HSC:

• Cardiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Neonatology
• Ophthalmology
• Neurology
• Developmental Pediatrics
• Gastroenterology
• Pulmonology

Of course, not every provider is able to come to HSC. When a specialist visit is needed during an admission for a provider that does not see patients at HSC, we will coordinate the transportation for the medical visit.

Last but not least, in recognition of the importance of dental care in children with special health care needs, HSC has its own dental clinic in the hospital. Dental care is provided by an HSC dentist three days a week; on an additional day each week, dental patients are seen by a senior dentist from the Howard University School of Medicine, in conjunction with dental residents. Dentists are also available as needed to see hospitalized patients.

While our medical staff roster is too long to list in its entirety, we have listed names of some of our staff below. For additional medical staff questions, please contact Sonia Prince, our Medical Staff Administrator, at 202-635-6138.

Staff

Medical Staff Administration

• Zev Waldman, M.D., M.P.P.
  Chief Medical Officer and President of the Medical Staff

Hospitalist Pediatricians

• Melanie Anspacher, MD
• Laura Badwan, MD
• Shimona Bhatia, DO
• Priti Bhansali, MD
• Rebekah Conroy, MD
• Aisha Davis, MD
• Anu Dayal, MD
• Gabrina Dixon, MD
• Karin Gray, MD
• Samar Hussein, MD
• Quan Johnson, MD
• Jeremy Kern, MD
• Amina Khan, MD
• Sonaly McClymont, MD
• Michelle McGarry-Hansen, MD, PhD
• Kavita Parikh, MD
• Neha Shah, MD
• Habib Shariat, MD

Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

• Mary Blaber, CPNP
• Demi Oliver, PNP-BC
• Lisa Samanta, CPND
• Michelle Wines, PNP-BC

Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (Physiatry)

• Sarah (Sally) Evans, MD, Director of Physical Medicine
• Olga Morozova, MD
• Jeffrey Rabin, DO

Psychology

• Carolyn A. Wurm, PhD, Director of Psychology
• Joette James, PhD. Neuropsychology
• Elaine Goldberg, PhD.
• Erik Scott, PhD

Cardiology

• Linda Bradley-Tiernan, MD
• Sheila Bostelman, CPNP

Dentistry

• Vaughan Wright, DDS
• Melanie Thwaites, DDS (from Howard University School of Medicine)

Developmental Pediatrics

• Elliot Gersh, MD

Gastroenterology

• Ali Bader, MD
• Virginia Gebus, APN
• Muhammad Khan, MD
• Seema Khan, MD
• Sona Sehgal, MD

Infectious Diseases

• Bernhard (Bud) Wiedermann, MD
• David Hyun, MD

Neonatology

• Mary Revenis, MD
• Louis Scavo, MD

Neurology

• Maria Acosta, MD

Ophthalmology

• Jonathan Taylormoore, MD

Pulmonary Medicine

• Jenny Lew, MD