Our Clinicians
Sylvain Weinberger MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Weinberger founded Premier Pediatrics over 30 years ago. He is trained as a neonatologist as well as a general pediatrician. He has cared for thousands of young families with a deft and caring hand and has received multiple acknowledgements including New York Magazine’s “Best Physicians in NYC”.
Barry Price MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Price joined Premier Pediatrics in 1995 and over the past 2 decades, he has helped to shape Premier into the thriving practice that it is today. His dedication to his patients has led to a large and loyal following. He has a background in psychology which has served him well while working with all his patients as well as young parents coping with the challenges of parenthood.
Jon Sarnoff MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Sarnoff joined Premier Pediatrics in 2006. Dr. Sarnoff is the architect of The First Month. He realized that the pediatrician is in a unique position to help build a team of dedicated healthcare workers to work with parents facing the many challenges of early parenthood. He is the managing physician of the Parenting Fundamentals section of the program.
Julie Capiola MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Capiola joined the practice in 2008. During her time at Premier, she has developed a strong interest in working with mothers who have decided to breastfeed to meet their goals. She is obtaining board certification as a breastfeeding expert and is the Physician Director of the Feeding Success section of the program.
Deena Blanchard MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Blanchard joined Premier in 2009. She has a particular interest in helping young parents manage their own emotional highs and lows during the early days of parenthood. She is passionately involved in educating the public about the prevalence of postpartum depression and anxiety and advocating for parents who need help. She is the Physician Director of the Emotional Wellness section of the program.
Aditi Patel MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Patel joined Premier in 2013. With her compassionate bedside manner and strong pediatric knowledge base, she has quickly built a large patient base.
Ann Riffle MD
Pediatrician
Dr. Riffle joined the practice in 2015. She worked for 13 years in both hospital and private practice settings in the Bronx and Westchester. She is a seasoned pediatrician and a wonderful addition to the Premier family.
Melissa Paschte LCSW
Psychologist
Melissa is the director of Postpartum Depression Brooklyn. She leads postpartum depression group sessions in Manhattan and Brooklyn. In addition, she offers individual therapy when appropriate. Melissa has generously agreed to see patients of The First Month at the Premier offices at a discounted rate to help new moms navigate this trying time.
Jordana Turkel, RD, CDN, CDE
Nutritionist
Jordana is passionate about helping clients reach their nutrition goals. She believes it is essential to treat an entire family in order to make individual change. At Premier, she helps families make realistic behavioral and lifestyle modifications and aims for long term sustained success. With the start of The First Month, she has dedicated herself to helping young families create excellent nutritional goals while adapting to the challenge of a newborn.
Sarah Puccio RN, BSN, CLC, IBCLC
Lactation Specialist
Sarah joined Premier Pediatrics in April of 2014 as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. She has practiced as a Maternal Child nurse for 15 years. It was there that her love of breastfeeding began. Sarah became so passionate about assisting mothers through the breastfeeding process that she decided to become a Lactation Consultant in July 2014. Sarah is currently seeing patients in the Brooklyn office.
Marie DiDonato, RN, BSN, MSN, IBCLC
Lactation Specialist
Marie began her career as a Labor and Delivery nurse in 2009, and her interest and love of breastfeeding began shortly after. Marie became certified as an IBCLC in 2012 and has been humbled by the opportunity to provide breastfeeding support to new mothers. She believes that each woman’s breastfeeding journey is personal and unique to her and her baby. Marie is currently seeing patients in the Manhattan office.