Community Partners for Pediatric Primary Care Residency

Coastal Pediatrics

Kim Caristi, M.D., FAAP supervises the primary care residents during their “Community Nursery” portions of their primary care blocks. Dr. Caristi works in several community nurseries and works together with residents to manage newborns, do newborn discharge planning and perform circumcisions. She grew up in Parkersburg, WV and went to medical school at West Virginia University. She completed residency training at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).  Dr. Caristi is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.  Her medical interests include autistic spectrum disorders, developmental/learning disabilities, asthma and allergies. Kim is very active in her community, serving on the Board of Directors for Pattison's Academy, and working extensively for the March of Dimes.

University Pediatrics - Northwoods

Anna Dunn Hoffius, M.D., FAAP – Northwoods Resident Rotation Director and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at MUSC Children’s Care, Northwoods. She graduated from MUSC in 2011 after taking a year in medical school to complete an internship with the Centre for Infectious Disease Research-Zambia, focusing on Quality Improvement Initiatives within the Ministry of Health. She then completed a Community Pediatric Residency at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC. She has worked at MUSC Children’s Health Northwoods since 2015. As a clinician, she loves the opportunity to work with the diverse population that Northwoods serves, and is particularly focused on improving access, care for uninsured, mental health, autism, LGBTQ care, sexual health, and family centered care. She loves helping learners find their passion and personal styles in primary care. She is the Lead Clinician for MUSC Children’s Health University Pediatrics on QTIP, a state-wide pediatric quality improvement initiative that implements annual improvement projects and frequent PDSA cycles.

Henry Lemon, M.D., MSCR – Lead Physician and Community Faculty at MUSC Children’s Care, Northwoods. Dr. Lemon is a Board certified Pediatrician who spent 3 years in group private practice where he supervised ambulatory Pediatric resident training as a clinical preceptor for the University of South Carolina (USC) Pediatric Residency Program in Columbia, SC. He served as the Vice Chief of Pediatrics for Lexington Medical Center (Lexington, S.C.) and was responsible for Pediatric Quality Improvement initiatives and case review. He completed his Masters in Clinical Research from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston with clinical and teaching responsibilities for Medical Students and Pediatric Residents as Instructor in the Department of Pediatrics. He became Medical Director for MUSC Children’s Care Clinics, a Medical Home initiative, and continues to instruct and supervise 3rd year Medical Students through outpatient clinical rotations and 3rd year Pediatric Residents during advocacy electives. From Dr. Lemon and his staff physicians, the Primary Care residents learn how to provide culturally effective care, write program grants to support community outreach, and how to participate in practice-based research and quality improvement while also maintaining a busy practice.

Rachael Zweigoron, M.D. is the assistant program director for the Primary Care Residency Program. She divides her time between clinical practice at the MUSC Children’s University Pediatrics Northwoods clinic, precepting residents in continuity clinic, and non-clinical responsibilities. She graduated from medical school at MUSC in 2006 before training in pediatrics at UNC Chapel Hill and Lutheran General Children’s Hospital. She subsequently completed a General Academic Pediatrics fellowship at the Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. Her interests include community pediatrics, primary care delivery, underserved populations, lactation/newborn care and medical education. She and her husband have three children.

Riverside Pediatrics

Jonathan Elias, M.D., FAAP is a board certified pediatrician originally from New York, completed his training in 2009 and moved to South Carolina with his wife. He has been working in Georgetown as a pediatrician since moving here and has found great joy and fulfillment in serving the community. He has been here long enough to see his patients grow up to be driven, caring, compassionate and intelligent young people. His desire to become a pediatrician began when he was in high school caring for children in a pediatric rehabilitation hospital and brought him to where he is today. His interests lie in providing comprehensive and compassionate primary health care to the children of this community. His training in a high acuity children’s hospital has made him a very versatile primary care physician.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree from Cornell University, Dr. Elias completed a master’s degree in Natural Science from the University of Buffalo. He then completed his medical degree at Tulane University and completed his pediatric residency at Schneider Children’s Hospital. During his residency Dr. Elias spent 1 month in the Dominican Republic working in a clinic in the capital of San Jose and working on his Spanish. Being one of the few physicians in town to speak Spanish, he enjoys being able to give back to this community.

Since moving to South Carolina, Dr. Elias and his wife have welcomed two beautiful children; and when he is not whistling his way through the work day, he can be found enjoying the outdoors with them.

Michelle Steffen, M.D., FAAP is a board-certified pediatrician and has been practicing pediatrics since 2001. She graduated with honors from the University of Louisville School of Medicine and completed her residency at the nationally recognized Cincinnati Children’s Hospital with an emphasis in primary care pediatrics. After four years working in the emergency department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Dr. Steffen transitioned to primary care pediatrics in northern Kentucky. In 2012, Dr. Steffen and her family relocated to Pawleys Island, South Carolina, where they fell in love with the beautiful landscape and the warm and inviting community. She has practiced pediatrics in Georgetown since relocating and could not imagine a better place to care for children and adolescents.

Dr. Steffen’s interests include early childhood development, pediatric mental health, parenting support, and oral health care. Since moving to South Carolina, Dr. Steffen has championed several pediatric programs in Georgetown including Healthy Steps for Young Children, Reach Out and Read, Legacy for Children, and the AAP’s Brush, Book, Bed primary care pilot program.

Dr. Steffen is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the MUSC Department of Pediatrics.  She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics and Alpha Omega Alpha National Medical Honor Society.  She previously served as the SC American Academy of Pediatrics co-Chapter Oral Health Advocate and co-Chair of the Early Childhood Physicians Advisory Council.  

Dr. Steffen’s greatest joy can be found in her family. She has four beautiful and rambunctious kids and an equally busy husband with a necessary excellent sense of humor. Medical training in pediatrics combined with the practical “education” in parenting involved in raising four children provides a unique perspective for families that Dr. Steffen enjoys sharing in the office.

HopeHealth

Michael K. Foxworth II, M.D., FAAP provides an eclectic range of services to his patients at the Federally Qualified Health Center, HopeHealth, in Florence. Board certified in Pediatrics and Pediatric Infectious Diseases, he has a large general pediatric population, but also provides care in his HIV transitional clinic for patients, generally age 16-24, living with HIV. Dr. Foxworth provides consultation for patients referred for perinatal HIV exposure and other Pediatric Infectious Diseases concerns. He has been qualified through the South Carolina Child Advocacy Medical Response System (SCCAMRS) to provide forensic medical exams for the children referred to the child advocacy center, The CAREHouse of the Pee Dee.  Dr. Foxworth completed his undergraduate degree at USC followed by medical school at MUSC. He completed his post-medical school training at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond in Virginia as a resident, chief resident, and fellow.

In addition to clinical duties at HopeHealth, Dr. Foxworth is an active member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, both in the South Carolina chapter and nationally. In the past, he was an AAP Section on Early Career Physicians Contributing Section Editor to the publication, AAP Grand Rounds.  Having received both Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) Resident and Implementation grants in the past, he has been one of the South Carolina Chapter CATCH Grant Facilitators for the past 5 years. Dr. Foxworth was selected and completed the 3 year AAP leadership training program, Young Physicians’ Leadership Alliance in 2017. He just recently completed his 3 year service as the Assistant District Representative for District IV on the Section on Early Career Physicians Executive Committee. Dr. Foxworth is the lead physician for his practice site in the Quality through Technology in Pediatrics (QTIP) program which works to improve healthcare for children in South Carolina by working on quality measures, collaborating with other practice sites to foster quality improvement projects. He currently serves on the SC QTIP Advisory Council.  When not performing his usual pediatric duties, Dr. Foxworth can be found spending time with his 3 daughters and wife exploring the state parks of South Carolina, exercising with his local F3 Region, and potentially tweeting about all of the above!   

Charlene Chalmers, M.D. earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Psychology from the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and a Doctor of Medicine from Mercer University School of Medicine in Macon, Georgia. She then completed her residency at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the South Carolina Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Medical Association. She has served as an educator and administrator at a primary school in Berega, Tanzania and is currently the director for Lighting the Way Tanzania, a non-profit that supports the continued education of children in Tanzania. Her clinical interests are global health, education and prevention of chronic illness, and vaccinations.