Our History of Pediatric Care in Phoenix, AZ
Our history here at Agave Pediatrics started in 2005 when Rajeev Agarwal, MD first moved to the United States from his original home in India. Since those early years, our team has remained devoted to our core mission: Providing the best possible pediatric care in Phoenix. We believe in the importance of personalized care, and we focus on fostering growth and child development.
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2023 - An incredible group of providers joined our team, including Lydia Powers, DO, Tori Fillingame, NP , Lexi Bosak CPNP , Shook Yap MD.
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2022 - An incredible group of providers joined our team, including Kaitlin Allen, NP, Eric Arreola, PA-C, Alexandra Brenwall, PA-C, and Susanna Rantanen, PA-C.
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2021- Agave Pediatrics continlued to flourish.Dr. Agarwal achieved the Top Doc award.
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2020 – On May 4th, the highly anticipated Goodyear location opened. Senior team members Ruben Hernandez, Maria Woods, and Tanequa Hughes moved to our Goodyear location. We also expanded our lactation support and tongue tie support with the hiring of Michaela Zach, IBCLC; and Mona Waheed, IBCLC. Even with the added challenges of COVID-19, Agave Pediatrics never closed, and kept patient care and safety a priority. Dr. Agarwal was featured on the cover of the Maricopa Medical Society magazine.
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2019 – Agave Pediatrics continued its growth when joined the team Michelle Hottya, IBCLC joined the team.
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2018 – We welcomed Laurie Jones, MD, IBCLC to our team, as well as our first dedicated lactation consultant, Sharon Olson, IBCLC. Dr. Agarwal presented at conferences in Dubai, Phoenix, Switzerland, and Canada.
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2017 – Our team welcomed: Marisa Farinella, DO to Agave.
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2016 – We opened two new locations; one in Chandler and one in Glendale. With these new locations came a new provider Jessica Etchells, PA-C, who was a student prior to joining the team.
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2014 – Patient volume doubled from 2012! Nichole Thomas, DO earned the prestigious “Parents’ Choice Award”. Dr. Agarwal presented at conferences in Phoenix and Tucson educating medical professionals on the importance of breastfeeding and the effects of tongue ties. The staff grew and Melissa Brown joined the team as the Billing Supervisor. We continued to receive awards, including the “Talk of the Town Award” and the “Patient’s Choice Award” from Vitals.com.
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2013 – Our Scottsdale office moved to a larger location with double the number of exam rooms and staff members. Cynthia Harding, PNP and Dr. Eric Noel joined the team! The team continued to receive awards, including the “Most Compassionate Doctor Award” from Patients’ Choice, the “Phoenix Top Doc Award”, and the “Patients’ Choice Award” from Vitals.com.
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2012 – Patient volume doubled from 2009! We outgrew DRCC and moved into a new facility in Phoenix. New growth and a new location meant more exam rooms and more staff. Our team received more awards, including “Most Compassionate Doctor Award” from Patients’ Choice, the “Patients’ Choice Award” from Vitals.com, and Talk of the Town’s “Award for Excellence in Patient Satisfaction”.
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2011 – Our Scottsdale location opened with three exam rooms. Senior team members Victor Perfecto and Ruben Hernandez moved to the Scottsdale location. Tonya Bublik, MA joined the team this year as well. Dr. Agarwal received several awards, including the “Patients’ Choice Award” from Vitals.com, Phoenix Magazine’s “Top Doc Award”, and the “Most Compassionate Doctor Award” from Patients’ Choice.
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2009 – The patient volume doubled from 2007! Nichole Thomas, DO joined the practice, along with Brita Overly, PA-C, after completing her pediatric rotation at DRCC as a student. We also welcomed LaDana Cook, LPN; Maria Woods, RN; Ruben Hernandez, MA; and Chris Cheaney to the team.
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2007 – DRCC began training students in the physician assistant (PA) and pediatric nurse practitioner (PNP) programs. After completing her time as a student at DRCC, Diane Smith, CPNP joined the team. Victor Perfecto, MA also joined the team to manage front office, back office work, and referrals. This was the year that Dr. Agarwal discovered his passion for helping moms and infants with breastfeeding and the “Tongue Tie Project” was created. The practice began to receive recognition within the Phoenix community.
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2005 – In 2005, Dr. Agarwal moved to Arizona. By July 2005, Desert Ridge Children’s Center (DRCC) opened with a total of seven exam rooms. We had one employee, one provider, and zero patients!
