Doctor Is In for Long-Haul at Roxborough Pediatrics

His face may appear new to Ridge Avenue, but Dr. Emlliano Tatar wants to assure patients that he's here to stay as the face of Roxborough Pediatrics.

Tatar took over the Einstein Healthcare Network practice at 6001 Ridge Ave. eight months ago from Dr. Danielle N. Casher and has quickly made Roxborough his home. He admitted that during the transition period, he lost some clients. But he emphasized that the instability at Roxborough Pediatrics is through.

"People get attached to their pediatricians. All of a sudden it's like, 'Who is this guy?... But over the last six months, I think people are beginning to realize that I'm here for the long run. And the people who stuck around have given us great word of mouth exposure," he said.

Tatar comes to practice with a diverse background. A native of Argentina, Tatar also lived in Israel, before attending college at Temple University and graduating from Drexel University College of Medicine. He did his residency at St. Christopher's Children's Hospital before coming to Einstein.

So far, he's noticed a diverse cliental at Roxborough Pediatrics. Many families from the Cook-Wissahickon Elementary School are patients, but it also draws from Germantown, Mt. Airy and Lower Merion Township—the latter is where he lives in Merion.

Tatar says he can meet unique backgrounds. The practice is bilingual, with him also speaking Spanish.

In addition to Tatar's pediatrics experience, Dr. Alicia Lwin joins the office twice a week. Her expertise lies in family medicine.

"I think it's more comfortable for girls to have a female doctor, and I see a lot of young adults at my other office," she said, adding patients can stay on with her at Germantown Professional Associates, 5753 Wayne Ave. or with the joint office mates from Internal Medicine at the 6001 Ridge Ave. facility.

Tatar comes to Ridge Avenue after serving as a staff doctor at a practice in the Northeast. When Tatar assumed Roxborough Pediatrics, he focused on establishing better customer care and improving the work flow. 

"It's important that people are not in the waiting room for eight hours... We want to respect people's time and get them the most face-time with doctors," he said, adding the registration and scheduling process should be easy for his patients.

Since completing his residency, Tatar's worked for Einstein. He said he understands a certain corporate stigma associated with a large network, but he said the benefits of specialists, centralized billing and acceptance of nearly all insurance make sense to him. Additionally, he feels a local connection.

"Because under Einstein, it may sound like it's a McDonald's. But when you come through the door this is your local doctor's office... I'll be in Acme buying fruit next to you," he said.

Interested patients may schedule a visit by calling 215-487-1450. The practice does prenatal visits for expecting families.

Editor's note: An earlier version incorrectly listed Tatar's previous position and has since been corrected.