By Matt Wiley | September 14
Watching children develop from newborns to college scholars is a joy usually reserved for parents. However, José Jiménez, M.D., the one physician who has been seeing all of the patients at Small World Pediatrics (now located jut north of S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel) for the past decade, has been right there with the parents in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel area help those kids stay healthy as they have grown and matured from babies and young children into teenagers and young adults.
Now located (since 2010) in the Windguard Professional Center across Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. from the new Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC), Small World Pediatrics is a full-service pediatrics practice that cares for children from the time that they are born through their college years (usually to about age 21).
Among the services Dr. Jiménez provides are physical exams for school and sports, vaccinations for daycare, school and college entry, and treating a wide range of pediatric illnesses.
Dr. Jiménez originally opened Small World Pediatrics in 2003 in the Northwoods plaza on BBD near Target, about a mile closer to the Hillsborough County line than his new office. He says that becoming a pediatric physician is something that he knew he wanted to do since his sophomore year at prestigious Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.
“I had studied engineering my first two years because of my love for math and science, but I felt I would be happier using my scientific knowledge caring for people on a day-to-day basis,” Dr. Jiménez explains. “It turns out that I was right. I love my job, and I love coming to work every day.”
Dr. Jiménez earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida in 1992, after transferring from Cornell during his junior year. He earned his M.D. degree from the University of South Florida (USF) College of Medicine in 1996, and completed his pediatric residency at USF in 2000.
“I chose pediatrics because I love working with children,” Dr. Jimenez says. “I get to smile every time I walk into a patient’s room.”
Dr. Jiménez adds that he really wanted to live in and be a part of the community where he was practicing.
“I decided to open a practice in Wesley Chapel because my wife and I loved the area,” says the Meadow Pointe resident. “Wesley Chapel has a small town feel, yet it is very close to the city of Tampa and just across the county line from New Tampa. This is a great place to live, raise a family and work.”
It’s easy to feel like a kid walking into Dr. Jiménez’s office, which is decorated on every wall with Disney characters and other cartoons. Animated movies are constantly being shown on the lobby’s flat-screen TV. The exam rooms, too, make children feel right at home with colorful cartoon characters adorning the walls.
On Call From Day One
McCauley with Zoey’s mom Jessica in one of the practice’s Disney-themed exam rooms.The entire office is decorated in the same fashion.
An advantage to being located across from FHWC for Dr. Jiménez is also having doctor privileges at the new hospital. (Note-He also has privileges at Florida Hospital Tampa on Bruce B. Downs {BBD} Blvd. {at E. Fletcher Ave.} and at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital on W. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd.) This allows him to begin caring for children as soon as they are born and make daily visits throughout the baby’s stay at the hospital and through their formative years.
Dr. Jiménez follows the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommended schedule for well-child visits when the baby is a newborn — at 2 weeks, and then at the specified monthly intervals (1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 15 & 18 months old), followed by annual physicals. During exams — which include a complete physical exam, assessment of growth and development, as well as updating all vaccinations — Dr. Jiménez takes time to discuss with parents such important topics as proper nutrition, fitness, healthy sleep habits, school progress, child safety and issues unique to each age group.
“We provide an atmosphere where our patients and their parents can feel at home,” Dr. Jiménez explains. “We treat our patients and their parents with a personal touch, so they feel comfortable here from the time they make the appointment to the time they leave the office.”
Small World even can make same-day appointments for sick children, which is a common issue as kids make the transition from summer into a new school year. Dr. Jiménez says that, lately, he has been treating quite a few patients with the common cold, sore throats, vomiting and diarrhea, ailments that hand washing is the key to minimizing.
Feel as if you child hasn’t been performing as well as in previous school years? It could be due to a hearing or vision issue, and Small World Pediatrics does provide screenings for these problems.
“Keep in mind that vision and hearing screenings are a very important part of (a physical) exam,” Dr. Jiménez explains. “Often children are thought to have learning disabilities or are simply just not performing well in pre-school or school, when the real problem may be that the child needs glasses, or they are having trouble hearing.”
In addition to vision and hearing screenings, Small World also can provide testing for anemia, diabetes, influenza, mononucleosis, pregnancy and strep throat, as well as screenings for scoliosis and tuberculosis.
Other health issues that Dr. Jiménez can treat include asthma, cardiac issues (such as chest pain and evaluations of heart murmurs and other cardia irregularities), gastrointestinal issues, genitourinary issues (such as bed wetting or urinary tract infections), as well as musculoskeletal, neurologic, skin and systemic issues.
“Our philosophy is that we can have a positive impact in the lives of the child(ren) and the parent(s) at every visit and we strive to make the office visit the best possible for both,” Dr. Jiménez explains. “We care, and I believe that shows every time you visit.”
And, Small World Pediatrics does have quite a few satisfied families singing the praises of Dr. Jiménez and his staff.
“I wouldn’t trust my little one to anyone else,” says Denean Griffin, the mom of a Small World patient. “We’ve been going there since she was a few weeks old and she just turned 5 years old this month. I’ve referred seven people to him and each one has been pleased. I can’t say enough good things about (Small World). We are blessed to have found them.”
Ten years of a practice is quite an accomplishment, and Dr. Jiménez says that he is thankful to the community for making it possible.
“It is an amazing feeling to be able to celebrate 10 years of serving and caring for the pediatric patients of the Wesley Chapel and New Tampa area,” Dr. Jiménez says. “We as an office staff feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment and pride in our longevity. I say ‘we’ because our present staff has been together now for seven years, and we all contribute and take a lot of pride in our service to this community.”
Small World Pediatrics is located at 2527 Windguard Cir., Suite 102, and accepts virtually all major health insurance plans but, for a specific list, please visit SmallWorldPediatric.com. To make an appointment, please call 907-8001.
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