Meet the doctor...
Amanda Harris, MD, MPH
I’m a board certified Family Medicine physician. I live in Brooklyn, NY not far from where I opened this practice.
Training
I graduated from SUNY Downstate Medical School where I earned both an MD and an MPH (Master of Public Health) and completed residency training in Urban Family Medicine at Mt. Sinai-Beth Israel Medical Center / Institute for Family Health in Manhattan. Before opening this practice, I worked with NYC Health and Hospitals at both Kings County Hospital (as a primary care doctor) and with Correctional Health Services (as a primary care and women’s health physician, medical director, and Assistant Chief of Medicine).
In a distant past, I studied literature both as an undergraduate at the University of California, Irvine, and as a graduate student at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis and at New York University. I later worked for many years as a freelancer doing website design.
Vision
I also know that there is great strength in diverse communities–this is why I love New York City so much. At the same time, I am troubled by the way the scale of the city and the scale of health care delivery systems themselves tend to alienate and anonymize patients. I believe that relationship-based medicine can work in NYC on a small scale, by combining the “feel” of your friendly neighborhood doctor with the technological savvy of larger medical practices.
It seems unjust to me that patients with fewer financial resources have to endure more complex bureaucracies to achieve similar or even lesser health outcomes, so part of my mission is to keep things simple and straightforward. By keeping overhead costs low, I hope to be able to provide the same relationship-based care that every patient deserves, regardless of what insurance card they carry in their pocket and without any fees for “concierge” service.
Community Engagement
I currently serve in the NYC Medical Reserve Corps. I coach and play softball in the Prospect Park Women’s Softball League.
I am a member of the following professional organizations:
Awards
2019
- Correctional Health Services – Leadership Award
2015
- John J. Falencki Memorial Award for “Thinking Outside the Box”
- Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors Resident Advocate Award
2012
- Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award
- John J. Conley Award for Excellence in Medical Ethics and Humanities
- Hyman Merenstein, MD Excellence in Family Medicine Award
- John J. Walsh, MD Award for Extraordinary Leadership in and Commitment to Improving the Health of Individuals and Communities
2011
- Inducted into Gold Humanism Honor Society, SUNY Downstate Chapter.
2007
- Women’s History Month Award for Outstanding Leadership and Work in the 20th Senatorial District, presented by State Senator Eric Adams
- Mary Velez Emergency Room Award for Excellence, NY Methodist Hospital
To learn more about role that Family Physicians play in healthcare, watch this video:
Family physicians are personal doctors for people of all ages and health conditions. They are a reliable first contact for health concerns and directly address most health care needs. Through enduring partnerships, family physicians help patients prevent, understand, and manage illness, navigate the health system, and set health goals. Family physicians and their staff adapt their care to the unique needs of their patients and communities. They use data to monitor and manage their patient population and use best science to prioritize services most likely to benefit health. They are ideal leaders of health care systems and partners for public health.