LAC+USC Division of Neonatology
LAC+USC Medical Center
The neonatal intensive care unit at the LAC+USC Medical Center has 39 licensed beds and the faculty and hospital staff care for neonates with disease complexity and severity ranging from very high-risk, often extremely premature critically ill neonates born at the LAC+USC Medical Center to less premature and more stable infants requiring care during the immediate transitional period and beyond. In addition, the unit accepts critically ill patients transferred in from different NICUs and the hospital’s emergency room who benefit from the highly specialized and developmentally oriented patient care provided in the NICU at LAC+USC Medical Center. This LAC+USC NICU also offers specialized neonatal care including treatment of neonatal surgical conditions, Therapeutic Hypothermia Program for neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and a CCS-accredited comprehensive high-risk neonatal follow-up at the LAC+USC Medical Center. USC Division of neonatology runs the Molecular Biology laboratory located at the Keck School of Medicine focuses on preterm lung injury and repair mechanisms. Basic and translational research with active funding from federal and private foundations are conducted in this laboratory. Additionally several multicenter clinical trials are conducted in this NICU.
PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital
The level II NICU at PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital has 23 beds and provides comprehensive care for critically ill and often extremely premature neonates born at PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital. Many pregnant women with complex medical conditions are treated at PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital and their babies often need intensive care in the unit highly specialized to provide state-of-the-art services for this patient population.
Dream it.
Build it.
Grow it.
Melinda Star Guido
One of the world's smallest surviving babies born anywhere in the world
24 Weeks, 270g born at LAC+USC Medical Center
FACULTY
Rangasamy Ramanathan, MBBS, MD
Medical School: Stanley Medical School, Chennai, India
Residency in India: Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children, Madras Medical College, Chennai, India
Residency in USA: Lincoln Medical Center, NY
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Positions since Fellowship:
Research Fellow, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, CA
Director, High Risk Infant Follow-up Program, Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Assistant Professor and Co-Director, NICU, Olive View Medical Center, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Chief Medical Officer, Pediatric Critical Care Management Group, CHLA
Interim Division Chief, USC Division of Neonatology, CHLA & LAC+USC Medical Center
Associate Division Chief, Division of Neonatal Medicine, LAC+USC Medical Center & CHLA
Senior Associate Division Chief, Division of Neonatal Medicine, LAC/USC Medical Center & CHLA
Chair, Department of Pediatrics, Good Samaritan Hospital, LA, CA
Attending Neonatologist, Good Samaritan Hospital, LA, CA
Attending Neonatologist, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, LA, CA
Attending Neonatologist, San Gabriel Valley Medical Center, LA, CA
Attending Neonatologist, Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center, LA, CA
Attending Neonatologist, Providence Tarzana Medical Center, Tarzana, CA
Description of Current Position:
Professor and Chief, Division of Neonatology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
Chief, Neonatology Section, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital
Program Director, NPM Fellowship
Director, NICU and Neonatal Respiratory Therapy Services
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital and CHLA
Research Interests: Surfactant Rx for RDS/ARDS; Noninvasive Ventilation, Monitoring of Oxygenation in PT and Term neonates, Free-radical mediated disorders in Neonates
Manoj Biniwale, MD
Medical School: B J Medical College, Pune, India
Residency: Pediatrics, Boston Combined Residency Program (Boston Children's Hospital and Boston Medical Center), Boston, MA
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine:
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Yale University, New Haven, CT
Positions Since Residency:
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY
Description of Current Position:
Associate Professor of Pediatrics at USC Keck School of Medicine
Attending Neonatologist at LAC+USC Medical Center and PIH HealthGood Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Director of Neonatal Resuscitation and Simulation Program at LAC+USC Medical Center
Research Interests: Neonatal clinical trials, surfactant therapy, neonatal resuscitation and simulation, noninvasive ventilation, bronchopulmonary dysplasia
Rowena Cayabyab, MD, MPH
Medical School: University of Santo Tomas Manila, Philippines
Residency: Pediatrics, LAC+USC Medical Center
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Positions since Residency:
Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine
Description of Current Position:
Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center and PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital
Associate Medical Director, NICU, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital
Research Interests: Epidemiology and Outcomes research
Manuel Durand, MD
Medical School: San Marcos University Medical School, Lima, Peru
Residency: Pediatrics, University of Texas at San Antonio
Fellowship: Pediatric Pulmonology, McGill University, Montreal Children’s Hospital
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine:
McGill University, Montreal Children’s Hospital, Montreal, Canada
University of Manitoba, Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
University California San Francisco/Children’s Hospital, Cardiovascular Research Institute
Positions Since Residency/Fellowship:
Director, USC Neonatology Fellowship Program 1990-2002
Attending Neonatologist, Arcadia Methodist Hospital, Arcadia, CA
Attending Neonatologist, San Gabriel Valley Medical Center, San Gabriel, CA
ECMO Research Program, Huntington Hospital, Pasadena, CA
Description of Current Position:
Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
Director, Clinical Pulmonary Research/Pulmonary Function
Courtesy Staff, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center and BPD clinic
Research Interests:
- Developmental pulmonary physiology/ pulmonary function in infants with acute and chronic lung disease (BPD)
- Respiratory mechanics and long-term outcome in preterm infants treated with antenatal steroids/postnatal corticosteroids
- In-utero smoke, vitamin C and newborn pulmonary function
- Episodes of hypoxemia in preterm infants
- Follow-up of infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD)
Smeeta Sardesai, MD
Medical School: Goa Medical College, University of Bombay, India
Residency: Pediatrics, Martin Luther King, Jr/Drew Medical Center
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Masters in Medical Education: Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Positions Since Residency:
Staff Neonatologist, Cedar Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Medical Director, San Gabriel Valley Medical Center, San Gabriel, CA
Courtesy Staff, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Attending staff, Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Staff Neonatologist, Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Description of Current Position:
Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Associate Director of Neonatology, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Medical Director, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Chair Department of Pediatrics, PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Fiona Wertheimer, DO
Medical School: Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Residency: Pediatrics, University of Florida-Jacksonville
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Positions Since Residency:
Chief Resident in Pediatrics, University of Florida-Jacksonville
Description of Current Position:
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center and PIH Health Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles, CA
Amy Yeh, MD, MPH
Medical School: Michigan State University, College of Human Medicine, East Lansing, MI
Residency: Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine:
LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Positions Since Residency:
NICCU Hospitalist, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Chief Fellow, USC/LAC+USC Medical Center Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship, Los Angeles, CA
Description of Current Position:
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Director of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship Education, USC/LAC+USC Medical Center Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship, Los Angeles, CA
Neonatal Database/Neonatal Quality Improvement Program
Lorayne Barton, MD, MPH
Medical School: UC Irvine
Residency: Pediarics, LAC+USC Medical Center
Fellowship, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine: LAC+USC Medical Center
Positions Since Residency: Fellow in Health Administration
Maternal & Child Health and Health Promotion, Loma Linda University
Description of Current Position:
Associate Professor, Keck School of Medicine
Neonatal database administration
Attending Neonatologist, LAC+USC Medical Center
Neonatal Quality Improvement Program lead physician
Point of Care Echocardiography in the Neonate
Mahmood (Mac) Ebrahimi, RDCS
Instructor in Clinical Pediatrics
Bijan Siassi, MD
Medical School: University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Residency: Pediatrics, CHLA
Fellowship, Pediatric Cardiology: UCLA
Description of Current Position:
Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics & Cardiology, Keck School of Medicine
Director of Point of Care Echocardiography in the Neonate
Director of Program for development of Neonatal Echocardiographic Simulation
Basic Science Research
Changgong Li, PhD
Graduate School:
1987 - B.S., Cell Biology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
1990 - M.S., Biochemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
1996 - Ph.D., Chemistry, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois
Postdoctoral Training:
1996-2000 - Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Pediatrics, Women's & Children's Hospital, USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles
Description of Current Position:
2016 - Associate Professor of Research Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Women's & Children's Hospital, USC Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles
Grants:
NIH, NHLBI
Wnt5a Regulates Lung Maturation $1,849,960
RO1, HL144932, Changgong Li & Parviz Minoo, Co-PIs
March 2019 – February 28, 2023.
NIH, NHLBI
Postnatal Alveolar Formation $2,195,048
RO1, HL143059, Parviz Minoo, PI, Changgong Li, co-Investigator
August 2018 – July 30, 2022.
Parviz Minoo, PhD
Graduate School: University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
Postdoctoral Training: Mayo Graduate School of Medicine
Description of Current Position:
Hastings Professor of Pediatrics
Director of Research, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
Section Editor, Journal of Pediatric Research
Grants:
NIH, NHLBI
Postnatal Alveolar Formation $2,195,048
RO1, HL143059, Principal Investigator
August 2018 – July 30, 2022.
NIH, NHLBI
Wnt5a Regulates Lung Maturation $1,849,960
RO1, HL144932, Co-Principal Investigator
March 2019 – February 28, 2023.
NIH, NHLBI
Beyond the barrier: alveolar epithelial cell $4,200,000
biology in health and disease
R35 HL135747, Co-Investigator
July 2017- June 2024