About Me

“When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.” This is a quote from author Paulo Coelho. Medicine is a field of service, and your comfort with me as your personal physician is very important. Hopefully this page may help you get to know me as your partner in health.

Biography

I have always felt a passion to serve others since early childhood, which ultimately brought me into this field. Having grown up in California, my family moved to the Philippines to help me realize my dream of becoming a pediatrician. I graduated from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, then completed pediatric residency training at Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago prior to moving to sunny Southern California to train in the Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Program at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. I have a particular interest in understanding cultural diversity in the context of care, to address behavioral health disparities. I am a member of The Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, and a graduate of the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Program under the Maternal Child Health Bureau. My hope is to continue to serve my community and to create positive change by helping children grow up healthy, and through advocacy for family needs.

About my practice

Medicine as a career is a very special opportunity to connect with people in a meaningful way. As health providers, we use medical skills and knowledge, translating for families what may be difficult to grasp while actively listening and responding to what members need. A developmental-behavioral pediatrician uses a biopsychosocial lens to understand the complex interplay of physiologic, cognitive, environmental/social, adaptive, and behavioral factors on a child’s ability to function in day-to-day activities. By hearing your hopes and concerns, I hope we can work together to identify your child’s strengths, evaluate areas of challenge, and develop a plan to hone skills to improve these areas. Helping children with special needs is a privilege and seeing individuals make progress has been my greatest joy. It is an honor to be entrusted with your child's care as I strive to support the steps it takes to ensure our children and youth reach their full potential.

How I thrive

We all aspire to learn to keep balance in life, and I try to incorporate Kaiser Permanente’s philosophy of “total health” daily. I draw my greatest strength from spending time with people. I enjoy avidly learning about cultures (especially through food), travel, and activities where one can appreciate nature. Time with my family and friends feeds my heart, serving the community feeds my spirit, music soothes my soul, and dance as well as running keep my body strong. I am happiest spending quiet time with loved ones and with my Shih Tzu, and I try to practice daily gratitude.