“The good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease”
- William Osler
Specialties
Caring for adults & children
Managing chronic disease
Preventive & lifestyle medicine
Behavioral modification
Healthy cooking / meal planning
Medicine
A graduate of Loyola Medical School in Chicago, and the Johns Hopkins Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Urban Health Residency Program, Dr. Ortiz is currently a member of the academic community at the University of Pennsylvania as a member of the National Clinician Scholars Program.
Yoga
Dr. Ortiz was a dancer and choreographer prior to her medical training. Though she still dances, dance brought her to the current practice of yoga. She studied yoga philosophy, "pranayama" (or breath work), and meditation in India in 2015. There she learned the true definition of yoga is "unity". Unity with the inner self is equivalent to bringing homeostasis, or balance and ease, in the body and, therefore, health (lack of dis-ease). She has experienced that mindfulness, practiced in every day life even without yogic "asanas" (or postures), is the means that brings this union and ease to the human experience. She has also completed trainings with the American Society for Clinical Hypnosis, trauma informed yoga for youth with the Transformation Yoga Project, and numerous mindfulness trainings.
Science
Inquiry is the backbone to self healing. Scientific inquiry is the backbone to change in ourselves and the world. Dr. Ortiz has pursued research since the start of her career. Her training has included multiple programs at the National Institutes of Health and she has authored over 10 manuscripts and been awarded over 12 grants in her short career.
Diet
Dr. Ortiz believes "food is thy medicine" and a whole foods plant-based diet is the key to preventing and reversing many common chronic diseases including diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. She has studied plant-based nutrition, promotes its ethical sustainability in practice.
Equity
We are each only as healthy as the world we live in. Healthy choices cannot be made when they are not available. Dr. Ortiz believes that all of the above should be available at the needs of all. She is dedicated to bettering individual, societal, and public health.