Home: Los Angeles, CA. Age: 44. Organization: MyPreop Inc., Priventa Health. Title: CEO/Co-Founder, Founder/Exec Director. Alma mater: University of California, Davis School of Medicine. Languages spoken: English, Spanish, Farsi.
Current project: Driving innovation and change in delivering healthcare in the preoperative care space. Recent recognition: Podcast with Tom Levine on Mother’s Day 2024. Latest accomplishment: Starting a company and a nonprofit simultaneously. Latest contribution to others: Led a medical mission to underserved parts of El Salvador, treating over 1,000 patients. What’s been your big (or biggest leap)? Starting my own physician and medical practice group right out of residency. Recent travel or adventure: Northern mountain ranges of Peru for a hiking/camping trip. Recent unique acquisition: My coffee cup that I received from a girl whose family I treated during my medical mission.
Personality profile: Respectful, ethical, compassionate, unafraid, decisive. Moral compass: The teachings of the Bahai Faith. How do you define an ideal business relationship? Honesty, shared goals and values, and a desire to enact positive change. What is your greatest joy? Waking up every morning. What is your favorite place (or way) to spend money? Booking a unique experience, preferably travelling to a foreign country. What is at the top of your bucket list? Spending a week with the native/indigenous people in the Amazon rainforest. How do you relieve stress? Playing with my dog. What ingredient is essential to your perfect vacation? Sightseeing, historical sites.
What was your favorite childhood toy or game? Operation. What’s prominently featured on your home or office wall? A handmade Persian rug, gifted to me by my family. Besides your parents, who has had the greatest influence on your life? My late uncle, the only doctor in our family. What’s the best advice you received growing up? Keep working hard, good things will come. What’s the best advice you received in your career? If it was easy, everybody else would be doing it too. What world event has had the greatest influence on your life? The Iranian revolution of 1979.
What is your big idea?
Doctor-patient interaction on video and at-home testing may be better than in-person visits.
What change are you working on to effect in your profession or field? Trying to drag doctors and the medical community into the 21st century. What change would you like to see in the world? Countries resolving their differences peacefully through negotiation and not by force. What message do you want to send out into the world? No matter how crazy your idea is, express it, share it, see it to fruition, you never know how far it’ll go. What widely held belief do you reject? That people are limited to the circumstances they were born into.
What title would you choose for the movie about your life? The Doctor with a Second Act in Life. What actor would you choose to play you in the movie about your life? George Clooney. Who would you like to spend an evening with, in heaven? Albert Einstein. After your loved ones, what object would you first save from your burning home? My dog. How would you choose to spend tomorrow, if you knew it was your last day on earth? On top of Mauna Kea in Hawaii, meditating and observing the world beneath me. What advice would you give your younger self? Don’t be shy about voicing your thoughts. What day in your life would you choose to re-live? The day I was accepted into medical school.
Personal mission: Bringing the best of modern healthcare to those less fortunate across the world. Personal motto: Heal with intention. Build with vision. Favorite quote: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others” (Gandhi).
