More Top Physicians

 

Serving the South Florida community since 2007, Dr. Diane Sanders-Cepeda is a family medicine physician at Florida Medical Center and is a board certified geriatrician. At Florida Medical Center, Dr. Sanders-Cepeda serves on the Physician Leadership Group and will be the medical director of the Geriatric Specialty Care Unit, which will open in the Spring of 2014. The goal of the Geriatric Specialty Care Unit is to improve the quality of life for hospitalized older adults. Under Dr. Sanders-Cepeda’s leadership, specialized patient centered care will be provided to meet long term care needs. She actively works with the Sickle Cell Disease Association of Broward County and founded the Sanders-Cepeda Kids Project.

 

Dr. Sanders-Cepeda received her Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine from the University of Health Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kansas City, Missouri and completed a fellowship in Geriatrics at Nova Southeastern University. She is Board Certified by the American Board of Osteopathic Practitioners in Family Medicine and Geriatrics.

 

 

Dr. Mohammad Latif-Jangda specializes in psychiatry at Florida Medical Center and is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in the fields of General Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine and Addiction Medicine. He has served as a member of the Medical Executive Committee, the P&T Committee and the CME Committee at Florida Medical Center.

 

The Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Services at Florida Medical Center treats adults with a variety of mental health concerns and Dr. Latif-Jangda works alongside an interdisciplinary team of professionals to deliver quality care to meet every patient’s individual needs. However, Dr. Latif-Jangda’s leadership qualities extend beyond the walls of the hospital. Since 2008, he has volunteered his time at the Universal Heritage Institute Medical Center which provides care for the underprivileged community in Miami Lakes. He is also a member of the Board of Directors and Trustees at a local private school that implements academics and moral principles.

 

 

Dr. Diana Franchini has specialized in Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease for over 20 years and has been with Catholic Hospice since January 2014. She is bilingual in both English and Spanish and has treated patients of multiple cultures and beliefs. She brings her knowledge, experience, and compassion to her position as Hospice and Palliative Care Physician. As the new leader of the Palliative Care Program, she will work in conjunction with the families as part of the interdisciplinary team that will provide palliation and management of the patient’s terminal illness and related conditions, as well as promote awareness and understanding of the mission, vision, and values of Catholic Hospice.

 

 

Dr. Gostal Arcelin is the chairman of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at West Boca Medical Center. His specialties include advanced laparopscopic and hysteroscopic gynecologic techniques and minimally invasive surgery using the da Vinci Robotic Surgical System. Dr. Arcelin graduated from Tufts University with a double major in biology and international relations. In 1993, he graduated from the Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington DC. He continued his education with a four-year residency training program in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Florida Health Science Center in Jacksonville, FL. Dr. Arcelin was the chief resident in his final year and obtained his board certification in 1999. He has been in private practice since 1997. Dr. Arcelin also serves as an Affiliate Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University. He is fluent in English, Spanish and French.

 

 

Dr. Randy Kimmelman is a board certified general surgeon and the chief of surgery at West Boca Medical Center. Dr. Kimmelman graduated from medical school at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford, NJ in 1992. He continued on at the same school to complete his post-graduate training in general surgery. During his last year of medical school, Dr. Kimmelman received an award for Outstanding Achievements in Surgery. He served as Chief Resident from 1996-1997 and was honored with the Chief Resident Award. Dr. Kimmelman is certified in Advanced Cardiac Life Support and Advanced Trauma Life Support. He is a member of the American Osteopathic Association and the American Medical Association. Dr. Kimmelman is fluent in English and Spanish, and in his spare time, he enjoys scuba diving, traveling and boating.

 

 

Peter Swischuk, M.D., is a board certified radiologist at Jackson North Medical Center, where he serves as the vice chief of radiology, chief of interventional radiology and the director of interventional radiology for Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine.

 

Dr. Swischuk specializes in complex interventional radiology procedures, including arterial and venous endovascular treatments, interventional oncology, and other image guided procedures. He has expertise in atherectomy, stenting, uterine fibroid embolization, radioembolization of the liver, and stent grafting repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm.

 

Prior to joining Jackson North in 2008, Dr. Swischuk was fellowship director for interventional radiology at University of Florida/Shands Jacksonville and later served as co-chief of Interventional Radiology for the Memorial Healthcare System.

 

Dr. Swischuk received his medical education from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. He completed his radiology residency and interventional fellowship at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital.

 

 

Elias Chousleb, M.D., is a bariatric surgeon at Jackson North Medical Center.

 

Dr. Chousleb is an assistant professor of surgery at the Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, and has clinical expertise in general surgery and advanced minimally invasive surgery, including bariatric surgery, adjustable gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy, and gastric bypass. He has published a book, and has written more than 16 book chapters and several peer reviewed papers.

 

Dr. Chousleb completed his medical education at Anahuac University in Mexico City and completed his general surgery residency at New York Hospital Queens, Weill-Cornell program. He then returned to Cleveland Clinic Florida to serve as clinical fellow in the Department of Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery, prior to joining Jackson.

 

 

Charles Parker Windham, M.D., is a senior psychiatry attending on the crisis unit at Jackson Behavioral Health Hospital.

 

Dr. Windham’s work involves treating emergency patients from the police, other hospitals, and any other source. He and his colleagues manage immediate and in-the-moment self-destructiveness, violence, psychosis, intoxication, withdrawal syndromes, in a medically complex population.

 

Dr. Windham’s 22 years of emergency psychiatry practice has included shelter work, street outreach, mobile crisis, community clinics, and emergency room work.

 

Dr. Windham teaches residents and medical students, and he is a University of Miami and Florida International University volunteer faculty member.

 

 

Mercy Gonzalez, M.D., is psychiatrist working as attending physician of Jackson Behavioral Health Hospital.

 

Dr. Gonzalez is involved in the treatment of patients with severe and persistent mental illness in the psychosocial rehabilitation program and adult outpatient clinic.

 

She is an advocate of special programs, such as the jail initiative and jail diversion programs, services which are provided to the mentally ill in the criminal justice system. She also provides sensitive, skilled and compassionate care to those who are managing affective, psychotic and anxiety disorders. She has many years of experience in outpatient detoxification and is Suboxone certified.

 

 

 

Sanjay Razdan, M.D., MCh., is the director of the Urology Center of Excellence at Jackson South Community Hospital.

 

Dr. Razdan is well known for his expertise in robotic prostate surgery for the treatment of prostate cancer. He continues to lead South Florida in the number of robotic prostatectomies performed. With his vast experience in robotic prostate surgery he is able to provide his patients with the outstanding results that they expect – being cancer free, having excellent urinary control, and good erectile function, the so-called “trifecta” of prostate surgery.

 

Dr. Razdan has been at the cutting edge of medical innovation and research and is credited with pioneering the minimally invasive, highly effective Holmium Laser Enucleation of Ablated Prostate (HoLEAP) procedure for benign prostate enlargement (BPH). Dr. Razdan is also the first urologist in the world to use human amniotic membrane to help improve erections after robotic prostate surgery.

 

He currently also serves as an associate professor of urology at Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine.

 

Moises Jacobs, M.D., FACS, is a bariatric surgeon at Jackson South Community’s Gastric Sleeve Center. He is world renowned as a pioneer in laparascopy and has taught and mentored hundreds of surgeons throughout the world.

 

Dr. Jacobs has been performing advanced laparoscopic procedures since 1990 and is credited with performing the first laparoscopic colectomy in 1990.

 

He hosts a biannual “minimally invasive” conference where the latest and most innovative surgical techniques in laparoscopic bariatric surgery are presented by the world’s experts.

 

Dr. Jacobs earned his medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine and completed his general surgery residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital. He has published several research articles and textbooks and has been awarded United States patents for his innovative surgical instruments.

 

 

Judy Schaechter, M.D., M.B.A., is associate professor and interim chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the University Of Miami Miller School Of Medicine. She also serves as chief of service at Holtz Children’s Hospital at the UM/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. Dr. Schaechter is a general pediatrician with special interests in adolescence, prevention, education, and community health.

 

In 2000, she founded the Injury Free Coalition for Kids of Miami, reaching more than 20,000 families and child service practitioners annually with injury prevention messaging in three languages.

 

Dr. Schaechter – who has a regional and national reputation for advocating child safety, access to care and health promotion – has been recognized with numerous awards, including a Home Town Hero, Woman of Valor and the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Health Care Heroes. She currently serves by gubernatorial appointment as the health policy expert on the Florida Healthy Kids Corporation Board.

 

As chair of The Children’s Trust’s Health Committee, Dr. Schaechter was instrumental in establishing health teams in 165 of Miami-Dade County’s public schools and creating a countywide home visitation program.

 

 

Satinder Sandhu, M.D., is a Professor of Pediatrics and the director of the pediatric cardiac catheterization lab at Holtz Children’s Hospital at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. In addition she is also the director of the Adult Congenital Heart Disease program.

 

She earned her medical degree at Government Medical College in Jammu, India and completed her medical residency at Hershey Medical Center/Penn State. She completed her fellowship in pediatric Cardiology at St. Christopher’s Hospital For Children/Temple University in Philadelphia. She started her career at the University of Michigan and has worked at Louisiana State University and the University of Chicago. Dr. Sandhu, a UM/Jackson pediatric cardiologist has participated in the multicenter trials for the Amplatzer ASD, VSD and PDA device prior to the device being released into the market.

 

 

 

Rhea B. Sancassani, M.D., is a medical director for Jackson Medical Group’s cardiology practice. She has extensive training in clinical cardiology involving the management of patients with both typical and complex cardiovascular disease in a variety of clinical settings.

Dr. Sancassani is a non-invasive adult cardiologist with an interest in women’s cardiovascular health. She obtained extra board certification in echocardiography, nuclear cardiology, and cardiac CT.

 

She earned her medical degree from the University Of Miami School Of Medicine and completed her internal medicine residency, as well as a cardiovascular medicine fellowship, at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

 

 

Eftichia V. Kontopoulos, M.D., Ph.D., FACOG, is a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and fetal surgeon with the Jackson Medical Group’s obstetrics and gynecology practice. She is the director of the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Division and director of Ob/Gyn Ultrasound. Dr. Kontopoulos received her medical degree from the Semmelweis University of Medicine in Budapest, Hungary. She completed her residency and a fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine at the University of Medicine and Dentistry–Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/Saint Peter’s University Hospital in New Jersey. Dr. Kontopoulos is board-certified in obstetrics and gynecology as well as in Maternal-Fetal Medicine. Her clinical interests include prenatal diagnoses and ultrasound, genetic testing, multiple gestation, fetal therapy and surgery.

 

 

Kevin L. Dalal, M.D., is a physical rehabilitation physician at Jackson Rehabilitation Hospital and an assistant professor of clinical rehabilitation at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is also the associate program director of the rehabilitation medicine residency program and the medical director of the spinal cord injury unit at Jackson.

 

His clinical responsibilities include consultation for all spinal cord injured patients admitted through Ryder Trauma Center at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. He follows them through preventive rehabilitation at Jackson Rehabilitation Hospital, and long term community follow-up and health maintenance through his outpatient clinics. He is also involved in research protocols at The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.

 

Dr. Dalal graduated from Duke University and Medical College of Virginia. He completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Tufts Medical Center and his spinal cord injury medicine fellowship at UM/Jackson.