Andrew Garcia, MD

Dr. Garcia, (he/him/his), is a native of the East Los Angeles area. His passion for helping others and scientific curiosity led him to pursue a career in medicine. Early on he understood that a patient should be seen as more than just a disease to be treated, but as a person in need of compassion and care. He found particular interest in family medicine and the ability it allows a physician to not only care for a single patient, but for their family unit and community as well.

He completed his family medicine residency at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he worked largely with the underserved and underrepresented Latinx, Hmong, and Somali immigrant communities. During this time, he came to understand the importance of being heard and understood as a patient, and that even when faced with serious illness, one’s quality of life should be maintained as best as possible. For this reason, he pursued fellowship training in hospice and palliative medicine with the University of Minnesota.

Dr. Garcia’s training in family medicine, palliative medicine, and hospice care has given him the advanced communication training and clinical skills necessary to ensure he is able to deliver excellent whole person/patient centered care. He is adept at working with multi-disciplinary teams to ensure that all the patient’s needs are being met by their health care system. He is able to care for patients of all ages, with illnesses of any stage, and help them not only understand their condition but improve their overall quality of life regardless of their condition.

He has a strong passion for patient advocacy, clinical education, communication training, and has particular interests in LGBTQ+ health, geriatrics, and those dealing with serious illnesses.

• Laparotomy complications on extracorporeal life support: Surgical site bleeding does not increase mortality J Pediatr Surg. 2019 Sep; 54(9):1736-1739. . View in PubMed
• An appeal from fellows J Pediatr Surg. 2018 06; 53(6):1259-1260. . View in PubMed
• The biological prosthesis is a viable option for abdominal wall reconstruction in pediatric high risk defects Am J Surg. 2017 Sep; 214(3):479-482. . View in PubMed
• Tubularized Gastric Conduit is More Desirable in Pediatric Patients Treated with Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy and Gastric Pull-Up J Laparoendosc Adv Surg Tech A. 2017 Apr; 27(4):427-429. . View in PubMed
• Outcomes of congenital diaphragmatic hernia repair on extracorporeal life support Pediatr Surg Int. 2017 Feb; 33(2):125-131. . View in PubMed
• Management of Complicated Gastric Bezoars in Children and Adolescents Isr Med Assoc J. 2015 Sep; 17(9):541-4. . View in PubMed
• The ErbB4 ligand neuregulin-4 protects against experimental necrotizing enterocolitis Am J Pathol. 2014 Oct; 184(10):2768-78. . View in PubMed
• Low doses of celecoxib attenuate gut barrier failure during experimental peritonitis Lab Invest. 2013 Dec; 93(12):1265-75. . View in PubMed
• International surgery provides opportunities for residents to serve and learn Bull Am Coll Surg. 2013 Aug; 98(8):33-7. . View in PubMed
• Combined laparoscopic-endoscopic placement of primary gastrojejunal feeding tubes in children: a preliminary report J Laparoendosc Adv Surg Tech A. 2013 Feb; 23(2):170-3. . View in PubMed
• Necrotizing enterocolitis: contemporary management and outcomes Adv Pediatr. 2013; 60(1):263-79. . View in PubMed
• Management of rectal pyogenic granuloma with transanal mucosal sleeve resection J Pediatr Surg. 2012 Sep; 47(9):1754-6. . View in PubMed
• Bicycle helmet legislation and injury patterns in trauma patients under age 18 J Surg Res. 2012 Apr; 173(2):327-31. . View in PubMed
• Total colonic aganglionosis with skip lesions: report of a rare case and management J Pediatr Surg. 2012 Mar; 47(3):581-4. . View in PubMed
• P-glycoprotein induction by breast milk attenuates intestinal inflammation in experimental necrotizing enterocolitis Lab Invest. 2011 Nov; 91(11):1668-79. . View in PubMed
• Right-sided congenital diaphragmatic hernia, hepatic pulmonary fusion, duodenal atresia, and imperforate anus in an infant J Pediatr Surg. 2011 Jul; 46(7):1432-4. . View in PubMed
• A blessing and a curse Bull Am Coll Surg. 2010 Sep; 95(9):20. . View in PubMed
• Robotic-assisted thymectomy Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2008; 20(4):326-31. . View in PubMed