Skip to main content

Department of Pediatrics

About Us

Dedicated to understanding and promoting child health.

What We Do

Faculty Spotlight

Tram L Luu

Clinical Instructor of Pediatrics (Community Based Primary Care)

My goal is to establish a long-term relationship with you from the first newborn appointment to the last pediatric visit before college or trade school. I aim to provide you with quality medical care in a child-friendly environment. I am happy to meet with you, for wellness visits and school/sports/camp physicals, to provide your family with guidance for optimal health and wellness.

Bessey E Geevarghese

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Infectious Diseases)

I am interested in caring for children with any pediatric infectious disease. I primarily cover inpatient and outpatient infectious disease at Central Dupage Hospital in Winfield, IL. My clinical interests include bone & joint infections, Kawasaki disease, prolonged and recurrent fevers, lymphadenitis, skin and soft tissue infections. I work with the medical providers at CDH to implement appropriate clinical guidelines, develop hospital specific antibiotic stewardship, as well as various quality improvement projects to enhance safety and effectiveness of treatment provided to our patients.

Justyna Grothaus

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Neonatology)

My academic interests are primarily focused on improving neonatal care and neonatal patient safety through quality improvement efforts.  I participate in both Illinois Perinatal Quality Collaborative (ILPQC) and Children's Hospital Neonatal Consortium initiatives.

Hiroyuki Hirai

Research Assistant Professor of Pediatrics

Dr. Hirai joined Northwestern University in July 2018 from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Dr. Hirai completed his postdoctoral training in Molecular pharmacology at Northwestern University, Chicago and Stem cell biology at University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Nicholas R Zessis

Instructor of Pediatrics (Hospital-Based Medicine)

Dr. Zessis is a hospital pediatrician at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. His academic and clinical interests include Hospital Medicine on the medical floor and intensive care unit, medical education, quality improvement, and advocacy. He is a member of the Feinberg Academy of Medical Educators and is currently enrolled in the Medical Education Certificate Program. 

Marcelo R Malakooti

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Critical Care)

As Associate Chief Medical Officer of Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and Medical Director of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, my research is focused on generating innovative solutions to improve patient outcomes and quality of care, while fostering dynamic strategies to minimize waste, optimize resources, and streamline patient throughput and access to care. In particular, as Director of Innovation (IGNITE Innovation) I build multi-disciplinary innovative strategies and platforms for novel idea generation, solutions for costly systems including patient care processes, a...

Nana Matoba

Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Neonatology)

I am a neonatologist in the neonatal intensive care units at Prentice Women’s Hospital and Lurie Children’s Hospital. Unique to this position, I also see patients up to 5 years of age in the Developmental Follow-up Clinic, where I frequently witness disparities in neurodevelopmental and physical health outcomes among preterm infants. Although decades of research have focused on racial disparities of preterm birth itself, little is known regarding determinants of disparities in mortality, or subsequent outcomes among the survivors of prematurity. Combining my clinical experience and public heal...

Roger A de Freitas

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Cardiology)

I completed complete training in pediatrics and pediatric cardiology as well as adult internal medicine and adult cardiology. This affords me both a unique perspective on the long-term management of patients born with congenital heart disease, but allows me to fully integrate into the care of patients across the full age spectrum. This is reflected in my clinical responsibilities, which range from attending on the consultation service at Lurie Childrens, assessing pediatric patients from neonates to adolescents, to my primary responsibilities attending to adults with congenital heart disease a...

Kirsten M Simonton

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Child Abuse)

I joined the Child Abuse Division at Lurie Children’s Hospital in December 2016. I completed residency training in pediatrics at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte NC, and remained there as Chief Pediatric Resident. I then completed fellowship training in Child Abuse Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, where I developed a particular interest in the health of children in foster care. Since joining the faculty at Lurie Children’s, I have developed projects focused on clinical quality improvement and understanding the experiences of marginalized youth within foster ...

Uchenna C Ewulonu

Instructor of Pediatrics (Hospital-Based Medicine)

Uchenna Ewulonu is a pediatrician in the department of Pediatrics, Hospital-Based Medicine. She works at both Lurie Children's Hospital, Prentice Women's Hospital and Central Dupage Hospital. She enjoys caring for children of all ages, from neonates to adolescents.

Our Home

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

Lurie Children's is the Fein­berg School of Medicine's affiliated hospital dedicated to pediatric care. Lurie Children's is Illinois' only freestanding hospital exclusively for children and offers pa­tients access to world-class care in a modern, kid-friendly environment.

Visit Lurie Children's

Faculty Development

Our faculty is one of our greatest resources. To support them on the paths to successful, fulfilling careers, we make faculty development a priority.<

Learn More

Diversity & Inclusion

The Department of Pediatrics strives to create and maintain training programs that mirror the diverse patient population we serve in Chicago. We believe that diverse faculty, residency and fellowship programs are essential to our long-term success as leaders in academic medicine.

Learn More

Physician-Scientist Training & Resources

We offer a wide range of resources, mentorship opportunities and formal training programs to help our residents and fellows excel as physician-scientists. Explore all of the resources and hear from housestaff who are making research a major part of their career development plans.

Visit the Starzl Academy Site

Follow Pediatrics on