Alexander plans to join AdventHealth
Former neonatologist at Orlando Health
Dr. Gregor Alexander, a renowned and beloved neonatologist who suddenly left Orlando Health a year ago under ambiguous circumstances, plans to join AdventHealth for Children.
He will be practicing part-time, according to an AdventHealth spokesman, who added after the story published online that the details of Alexander’s employment are not final.
“[AdventHealth] is offering me the opportunity to write my own (last) chapter of my professional career, and for that I’m very grateful,” said Alexander in a statement. “I’m walking into the AdventHealth’s NICU with a humble and open heart, and with a lot of happiness and excitement to meet the team and continue to contribute and care for critically ill infants.”
Dr. Rajan Wadhawan, senior executive officer of AdventHealth for Children and AdventHealth for Women, said in a statement that even though part time, “we look forward to Dr. Alexander lending his wealth of experience to our team and caring for our youngest patients.”
Alexander was a neonatologist at Orlando Health for more than 40 years — 42 years, seven months, and nine days by his count — caring for more than 45,000 critically-ill babies at Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies.
For the last 16 years of his work there, he was the director of the neonatal intensive care unit, which is named after him.
But last September, he suddenly stopped practicing at Orlando Health. The circumstances of his departure remain unclear.
At the time, the health system
said that Alexander was put on medical leave and shared a letter with his signature, in which he said, “I recently underwent a third-party medical evaluation, the results of which required me to quickly step away from the practice of medicine until my evaluation is released.”
But during a recent interview with the Orlando Sentinel, Alexander, 73, disputed any claims about his health.
“I would like to be make everybody aware that were concerned about my health, and had some misconceptions, that I’m very strong and healthy, from the physical and mental point of view, and fit for duty,” he said.
Alexander, who worked at Orlando Health via a national physician group called MEDNAX, ended his employment with the company and medical privileges at the health system earlier this year but said that he will once again practice here in Central Florida.
“I know a lot of people my age will be looking at me like, `this guy is out of his mind,’ because the majority of the doctors, especially in my specialty, will be retiring in their mid- to late 60s,” said Alexander. “But I have tremendous love for what I do. … I decided be a baby doctor when I was 7 years old and started medical school at 16 and graduated at 22.”
Alexander grew up in Colombia and arrived in the U.S. in 1972 with two pieces of a luggage and a dream to become a neonatologist.
During his time at Orlando Health, he built a strong support community of parents and NICU babies who have grown up to have their own babies. So when he suddenly stopped practicing at Orlando Health, the families were outraged.
They created a Facebook page in his support and wrote an open letter to Orlando Health executives, demanding his reinstatement.
The sudden stop wasn’t easy for Alexander, either.
“It’s like driving your car up to 100 miles-per-hour and all of a sudden press the brakes and stop,” he said. “But this stop has strengthened my desire to continue making a difference in the lives of babies and families.”
Lura Readle Scarpitti, who has been one of Alexander’s supporters and whose son was Alexander’s patient 17 years ago, said in an interview on Tuesday that she began crying when she found out that he will soon start practicing again.
“I told my two kids and they were yelling and shouting,” she said. “This is basically what the man was born to do.”