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GI for Kids, PLLC
East Tennessee Children's Hospital Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Services
GI for Kids, PLLC is East Tennessee's premier pediatric gastroenterology group. We are staffed with four of the area's finest board certified pediatric gastroenterologists, in addition to two nurse practitioners, a psychologist, registered dieticians, and research coordinator. We serve all of east Tennessee and the surrounding areas. Our doctors see over fifteen thousand outpatient visits, and perform hundreds of endoscopic procedures annually.
GI for Kids, PLLC has offices in Knoxville and Kingsport, Tennessee. We are affiliated with East Tennessee Children's Hospital in Knoxville, which has a new state-of-the-art Endoscopy Suite equipped with cutting-edge technology. Our Endoscopy Suite is specifically designed to meet the needs of the children it serves, and is staffed with trained pediatric professionals.
Our group is skilled in treating all types of pediatric gastroenterologic disease processes. In caring for our patients, our staff takes into account the unique social, emotional and nutritional needs of each child. Our physicians include Youhanna S. Al-Tawil, MD, Medical Director, Clarisa Cuevas, and Alexandra Eidelwein, MD. We also have two nurse practitioners, Janice M. Mills, CPNP-AC oversees our inpatients' needs, and Tara L. Dempster, FNP, who works in our clinic. In addition, our registered dieticians, Sandy R. Altizer, RD, LDN, & Ashley Rogers, MS, RD, LDN provide assistance to pediatric patients facing a wide variety of nutritional and dietary issues. Our psychologist, Regina Hummel, PhD, is also on staff to offer support to those patients and families who need assistance, as various stressors and emotional issues go hand in hand with gastroenterology problems.
Our staff recognizes the importance of research in order to learn about new ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat gastroenterologic diseases. Our research coordinator, Kathy F. Butcher, MPH oversees our studies, which currently include research on Eosinophilic Esophagitis as well as IBD (Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis).
In addition to the above services, we are proud to offer both Remicade infusions and food allergy testing within our clinic. By receiving Remicade infusions within our clinic rather than the hospital, patients reduce exposure to illness and disease. This service also offers the benefits of timeliness and convenience. In order to make the experience of receiving this treatment as pleasant as possible, our infusion room is equipped with a TV and comfortable reclining chairs.
Regarding food allergies, we offer skin prick testing in order to screen for allergies as they are a major cause of GI disease. We also accordingly make referrals to an allergist if this is necessary.
Obesity is a serious health concern in children and adolescents. The prevalence of obesity is growing in all age groups. Children who are overweight are more likely to become obese adults. The following health risk factors are associated with childhood obesity: Cardiovascular disease, Type II Diabetes, High blood pressure, High cholesterol, and Low self-esteem.
Early and appropriate intervention is valuable in decreasing the risks for the growing health concerns linked to childhood obesity. GI for Kids, PLLC has developed a four-month family based pediatric weight management program called Bee Fit 4 Kids to help overweight children and their families make better lifestyle and dietary choices. Please visit our website at www.BeeFit4Kids.com for more information.
Our practice also sponsors a support group, which was established by Dr. Al-Tawil, for those with Celiac disease. You may visit the group's website at www.celi-act.com. In addition, our registered dieticians now offer a diet class for newly diagnosed Celiac patients. For further information about the diet class, support group, or Celiac disease please see the information concerning Celiac Disease/Gluten Intolerance in the nutrition section of this website.
Dr. Al-Tawil has established a support group named KidsFACT for those patients with Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis. Please visit our website at KidsFACT.org for more information.
Our office produces a quarterly newsletter for area physicians. Each issue features a different topic, including the related resources our clinic has to offer.
Our doctors are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week to handle emergencies that arise. We accommodate referrals, new patient consultations and second opinions. We follow our patients closely, and always communicate our advice to our patients' primary physicians.
Our office is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, exclusive of holidays. We can be contacted at (865) 546-3998.
