By Sandra Zunino

For a parent, when your child is sick there’s nothing more important than getting the best care possible. From newborns to teens, Julio A. Ramirez, M.D., P.C., a medical practice specializing in children and adolescents, has been providing top-notch pediatric care for more than 18 years.

Dr. Ramirez, a board certified pediatrician, established his practice in 1999, after completing his pediatric training at the Brooklyn Children’s Hospital in New York from 1995 to 1998. Before he moved to the United States, he graduated from medical school in El Salvador, where he practiced as a surgeon in general surgery. In the training rotation of medical school, he was torn between the fields of pediatrics and surgery, but his love for pediatrics finally won out.

His practice thrived after opening his first office in Chestertown, prompting him to open a second office in 2004 in Centreville. To meet the needs of a growing patient base, Dr. Desalegn Nega, also a board certified pediatrician, joined the practice four years ago.

Dr. Ramirez demonstrates his devotion to his patients with his same-day appointment policy and remaining on call 24-hours a day. “Patients can contact us any time after office hours and we will respond,” he assures.

Thanks to Dr. Ramirez diverse medical background beyond pediatrics, he is able to handle some cases in his office that might otherwise be referred such as treatment for simple fractures and sutures for lacerations. Additionally, Dr. Ramirez cared for infants in Intensive Care in the neonatal unit at Brooklyn Children’s Hospital, giving him valuable insight when tending to premature babies.

In fact, he cared for a baby that was born at only 33 weeks of gestation. The youngest premature baby treated at the Chestertown Hospital, she might have been sent to another facility in other cases. By keeping the baby there; however, the family was not displaced and the mother was able to stay with her child until the baby was stable enough to go home.

Infants especially are vulnerable to attack from contagions that might be lurking in the waiting room. For this reason, Dr. Ramirez sequesters his sick patients to a room separate from the waiting room for well-visit patients. “We want whomever is healthy to stay healthy,” he says.

At this practice, the Hispanic population need not fear any language barriers when seeking medical care for their children. Not only does Dr. Ramirez speak fluent Spanish, his staff members are also bilingual, extending his care by helping patient in the front desk, examining room and on phone calls.

Dr. Ramirez acknowledges his friendly, reliable staff for helping the practice grow. With low turnaround, the staff members offer familiarity to patients and their families. “They are very helpful,” says. Dr. Ramirez. “They feel they can never do enough to give their best care to each patient.”

That is exactly the attitude Dr. Ramirez says he wants to portray for the practice. “We put ourselves in the position that will are giving the best care possible for our patients.”