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Purcellville gets new pediatrician
When Lisa Irvine set out to start her own practice, she knew Purcellville was the place for her.
“Two or three people actually said I should start my own practice, and that Purcellville was the place to do it,” Irvine said. The town -- with a population over 6,200 people – only has one other practice that offers pediatric services.
The need for Irvine's services were apparent, and she saw just how much when she opened the doors to Purcellville Pediatrics on May 12.
“In the past month, I have seen about 50 patients,” Irvine said. And she said more people have had their medical records sent to her office -- she just hasn't seen them in person yet.
Irvine earned both an M.D. and a Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 2000, and completed her internship and residency in pediatrics at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She has been practicing pediatrics in Northern Virginia since 2003.
Along with the need for her services in the western part of the county, Irvine said she decided to open her own practice because she wasn't very happy working in larger practices.
“I really want to spend time with my patients,” said Irvine, a Leesburg resident who used to work at a larger practice in Sterling. “It is about quality, not quantity.”
Irvine gets this message out to potential patients via the motto she has spread across the Purcellville Pediatrics logo: “Practicing modern medicine with a hometown touch.”
And she said she delivers every time by not over-booking her days and spending at least 30 minutes with each patient.
“With [the younger patients], I have them demonstrate their skills for me so I have a good understanding of where they are,” she said. “And with teenagers, it just takes a little longer to get them to open up and talk.”
Irvine sees patients from birth to 18 years old. She has a personal interest in newborn care, pediatric cardiology and behavior and development.
“I really love interacting with kids and educating and helping families through behavioral issues by giving tips and pointers,” she said.
Irvine has designed her office to help her interact with her patients. She decorated all the rooms to make children feel more comfortable. Each of the three exam rooms has a theme – arctic, under the sea and jungle.
“This lets the children have something to focus on, and it gives me something to talk to them about,” Irvine said.
Irvine knows she will have to bring some other pediatricians into the practice in the future, but she plans to keep it small.
“It depends on how quickly we grow,” Irvine said about the timetable of adding more doctors. “But it will stay small, because I don't want patients to get lost in the shuffle, and I want the patients to know that they are going to see the same doctor.”
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