Stacy L. Waneka, M.D.
Dr. Waneka is a board-certified Family Medicine physician. She received her medical degree at the University of California at Davis, completing her residency training at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center. She has been in private practice in the Santa Monica area since 2000, and began practicing in Pacific Palisades in 2003.
Dr. Waneka enjoys a varied practice, combining the care of both children and adults. To facilitate longer visits with her older patients and eliminate the need for them to travel to her office, she regularly rounds at the Sunrise Assisted Living facility in the Palisades. She is also a team physician with Roze Room Hospice, a program that provides services to the terminally ill and their families. Dr. Waneka harbors a unique and personal interest in Travel Medicine. She spent part of her early life in Saudi Arabia and has since traveled extensively, including such adventures as trekking through Nepal and motorcycling across India. She's also engaged in more serious ventures as when she provided emergency relief care to Kosovar refugees during the Bosnian conflict.
Active in the physician community, Dr. Waneka sits on the Board of the American Private Physician’s Association, an organization committed to providing quality medical care in a difficult regulatory environment; and helped establish the Professional Women’s Health Collaborative to help female health care providers balance their personal and professional commitments. A member of both the Pacific Palisades and Topanga Chambers of Commerce, Dr. Waneka resides in Topanga with her husband, two cats and one dog.
M.D. DEGREE - UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS, SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
CERTIFIED by the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM)
AFFILIATIONS:American Academy of Family Physicians
Los Angeles County Medical Association
California Medical Association
International Society of Travel Medicine
American Private Physician’s Association
Dr. Patsy McDermott, M.D. Her ten year-old twin boys keep Dr. McDermott very busy which is why she is only working part-time and exclusively with out-patients. A native of Boston and a graduate of Harvard University, she received her M.D. degree from the University of Massachusetts. Dr. McDermott first came to Southern California in 1980 for her residency in Family Medicine at USC Medical Center. She has since spent more than 20 years in practice in Manhattan Beach and Santa Monica. For the past three years she has been filling in for Dr. Waneka when necessary and finally joined the practice in June of 2008. Working in her substitute capacity has given her a leg up she says, "I am familiar with many of our families already."
Undergraduate - Harvard University
M.D. Degree - University of Massachusetts medical school
Residency - University of southern california
Karen Sullivan Karen Sullivan, our Medical Assistant/Receptionist, is a California native who grew up largely in Hawthorne, except for the five years she spent in Alaska. She has 6 daughters and an annual pass to Disneyland. Karen married her high school sweetheart after reuniting with him at their 30-year reunion. She loves spending time with her children and grandchildren and watching college football, especially her favorite UCBerkeley Golden Bears. With that background, it's no wonder she calls herself a "people person," saying, "I have always been compassionate. I guess that makes for, in my mind, a good medical office receptionist. I like being able to get to know the patients, to make them feel comfortable in situations where they may be not be feeling well and could be facing the unknown."
Amie Tran Amie Tran, Medical Assistant, was born in Vietnam and grew up in southern California. Her experiences in war-torn Southeast Asia were her inspiration for a health services career.
“I've wanted to be nurse since I was a little girl,” she says, “During the war time I saw so many people needing medical attention but there weren’t enough nurses to help all those patients so, I thought to myself, I want to be one of those people. So, here I am today, still working on becoming a nurse."
As the first step in building her career, Amie attended Bryman College to become a Medical Assistant. She found that she liked it, “I love everything about my work! I like drawing blood, giving injections, educating patients. If you're not happy with what you’re doing, you're not going to put that 120% into the work which can make a big difference in people’s lives.Amie’s outside interests include arts and crafts, shopping, decorating, cooking, bowling, golfing, billiards and BBQ. She’s still working to become, “a travel nurse, to travel the globe to help as many people as I can — and to eat all the good food around the world.”
Jackie McCalister
Jackie McCalister, Administrative Assistant, gets a lot of satisfaction from her job as it allows her “to help people who need help. To assist or just be there if needed.” Indeed, she views her mission in life as, “listening to people’s concerns and helping to find a solution.” In her spare time, Jackie likes to, “listen to music, spend time with family and friends, go to movies or concerts, and sometimes—to do nothing." Jackie marks as her proudest day, “the day I realized that I do enjoy helping people. When I first became a Certified Nursing Assistant and I liked what I represented.”Judy Lauzon
Judy is a Pomona, CA native who grew up in Diamond Bar. She helps us out part-time Tuesdays and Thursdays when Amie Tran attends classes. As a Medical Assistant, she most enjoys "helping patients and their families." When not on the job, Judy likes going to the beach, surfing, and riding her bicycle. Her dream is to own a horse ranch, grow her own vegetables and have her whole family living with her. Besides her wedding day, Judy's proudest day was when her granddaughter, MyKayla was born. Naturally, she always finds pleasure in interacting with her.
[Family Medicine] [pediatrics] [travel medicine] [patient guide]
[contact us] [our staff] [home]881 Alma Real Drive, suite 316 Pacific Palisades, California 90272
