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Dr. Paul Califano, Visiting Podiatrist

A visiting foot specialist at the Borrego Medical Clinic for the past five years, Paul Califano first became interested in podiatry as a young doctor working at the Naval Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida.  After establishing a practice in podiatry and surgery in La Mesa, he was named by the California Podiatric Medical Association as “Podiatric Physician of the Year” in 1993.  In 1999, former California Gov. Pete Wilson appointed him to the state Board of Podiatric Medicine and he later became the board’s president.  Dr. Califano is also past president of the San Diego and California Podiatric Medical Associations.  Retiring from full-time practice in 2002, Dr. Califano became a visiting specialist at the Borrego Medical Cloinic and acquired a second home in the Borrego Springs community of Montesoro.

Dr. Craig Dillman, visiting chiropractic

With 25 years of experience as a chiropractic, Dr. Dillman specializes in the treatment and evaluation of patients who have mobility problems associated with arm, leg and back pain that often result from spinal disorders such as disk herniations, arthritis and spinal stenosis.  A 1972 graduate of San Diego State University, he earned a doctorate in 1980 at the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic. He did post-doctorate work in chiropractic orthopetics and became board certified in 1989.  He also did post-graduate work in several other disciplines, among them applied kinesiology, Maharishi Ayurveda medicine and clinical neurology.

Valerie Ebert, DO, Pediatrician

After earning a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree in 2004 at the Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Vallejo, Valerie Ebert, DO completed three years of residency at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach, the major pediatric teaching hospital for the School of Medicine at the University of California, Irvine.  She joined the Borrego Community Health Foundation in 2007, serving as a staff pediatrician at the Coachella Valley and Thermal clinics and visiting the Borrego Medical Clinic once a week.

Dr. Dennis Ehrlich, Internal Medicine

Dr. Ehrlich became board certified in internal medicine in 1983 after earning his medical doctorate at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and completing an internship and residency at the University of California, Irvine.  He established private practice in San Diego in 1983 and became widely known for developing geriatric and senior health care programs, receiving the San Diego Heroes of Medicine award in 2003.  After He was medical director at Sharp Senior Health Center, St. Paul’s Community Care Center and Mission Bay Senior Health Center before joining the Borrego Medical Clinic as medical director from 2002 to 2005.  For the past two years, he has since been a staff internist at the Borrego Medical Clinic, focusing on  preventive primary care for all ages and geriatric medicine.

Dr. Javier Hernandez, Pediatrician

Dr. Hernandez has been a full-time pediatrician at the Borrego Community Health Foundation’s Cathedral City and Coachella Valley clinics for the past four years and makes office visits at other BCHF clinics as the need arises.  He received his medical degree at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and completed his residency at the Kapiolani Medical Center in Hawaii.

Dr. James Huot, Primary Care

In 2007, James Huot transferred as a general-care physician from the Borrego Community Health Foundation’s sister clinic in Cathedral City to the Borrego Medical Clinic.  Prior to joining the BCHF, he provided primary care for about six years at the Palm Springs Family Care Clinic operated by the Riverside County Department of Public Health.  After earning a doctorate in medicine and completing residency at the University of Minnesota, he worked for several years at the Park Nicolette Medical Center in Minneapolis.

Dr. Siavash Karimian, Family Practitioner

Dr. Siavash Karimian earned a Doctor of Medicine degree at Mexico’s Autonomous University of Guadalajara School of Medicine in 1998.  Before joining Centro Medico El Cajon in 2007, he completed an accredited family practice residency at San Pablo Hospital in Bayamon, Puerto Rico and at the Eastern New Mexico Medical Center in Roswell, N.M..  He also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering, an Associate of Arts in aeronautics and a commercial pilot license. He left a career in aviation to begin premedical studies in 1991 at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. A U.S. citizen, he is originally from Tehran, Iran and is fluent in Spanish and Farsi.
Dr. Karimian is married with two children and loves to fly and sail in his spare time.

Dr. Pamela McEvoy, Psychology

A licensed clinical psychologist, marriage and family therapist and school psychologist, Pamela McEvoy worked intermittently at the Borrego Medical Clinic beginning in 1993 and recently returned full time to develop future group programs for the clinic’s new Behavioral Health Department.  She holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from United States International University and a master’s degree in counseling from the University of La Vern. 

Dr. H. Keith Merrick, Primary Care

H. Keith Merrick earned an M.D. degree as the top student in the Class of 1964 at the University of Manitoba Medical Facility. He and then served three years in the Royal Canadian Air Force before completing a year of residency at the University of Manitoba and another year at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.  Dr. Merrick conducted a private general practice in Winnipeg for ten years prior to his 1979 move to Mission Viejo. He joined the Graybill Clinic in Escondido from 1994 to 2000 and subsequently opened practice at the Julian Medical Clinic with his wife, Registered Nurse Jean Marie Merrick.  He currently serves in a dual role with both the Julian Medical Clinic and Borrego Medical Clinic. 

Dr. Alfredo Ratniewski, Medical Director

Since taking over as medical director in early 2007, Dr. Ratniewski has concentrated on building a highly competent, united network of medical providers stretching from Borrego Springs to satellite clinics at Coachella Valley, Thermal, Cathedral City, Julian and El Cajon.  After completing training in internal medicine in Mexico City and setting up private practice in Chula Vista in 1986, Dr. Ratniewski recognized a tremendous need to treat underserved people in the United States. Over the years, he has become dedicated to establishing clinics in Southern California that offer top-notch medical care to people of all ages and in all walks of life.

Dr. Robert Thomas, OB/GYN

A visiting specialist at the Borrego Medical Clinic, Robert Thomas earned his medical degree at the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara in 1980, Dr. Thomas completed a two-year internship at Providence Hospital, an affiliate of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.  He practiced family medicine in Maryland and San Diego before completing a four-year residency as an OB-GYN at St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore. In 1991, he opened practice in El Centro as an OB-GYN and joined the staff at El Centro Regional Medical Center.