Rachel A. Lewis, MD

I became a pediatrician because I treasure the growth and changes that children go through from birth to adulthood. Being part of making those years healthier and safer is a privilege that I value every day.

I am a general pediatrician at Columbia West Side Pediatrics on West 86th Street. During my time there, I have nurtured it from a small, single-physician office to a thriving seven-physician practice that forms the core of Columbia's general pediatrics presence outside of the main hospital. My colleagues and I provide high-quality, seamlessly integrated care to children from birth through 20 years, whether they need routine care and vaccinations or have complex medical conditions. Because we are an experienced group with a strong history of collaboration with our specialist colleagues, we can help you with all of your child's needs, from management of therapy for congenital heart disease or rare genetic anomalies, to optimizing your child's asthma medications, or just choosing the right multivitamin.

My mission as a pediatrician is to provide care for the whole child: no matter what diagnosis a child may have been assigned, she is still a child, whose parents may need advice about sleep training, solid foods, school success, or sibling rivalry. My goal is to ensure that families get exceptional medical care while still recognizing each child's unique characteristics and needs.

In addition to my clinical work, I am the associate chief medical information officer (CMIO) for ColumbiaDoctors. In this capacity, I work on the design and implementation of electronic health records for the medical system. Most recently, this work culminated in the February 2020 launch of Epic, the electronic health record that has unified all clinical systems, both inpatient and outpatient, at Columbia University, Weill Cornell Medical College, and the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital network. Epic makes our medical system capable of efficient and highly integrated care coordination, enables robust communication across specialties, and ensures excellent continuity of care for patients at all levels of care. My area of focus is the optimization of clinician EHR use, with the goals of improving quality of care, increasing physician and patient satisfaction with the EHR, and facilitating communication between providers sharing responsibility for patients.