Dr. Smita Parulkar has combined her interest in medicine and helping people into a career as an internist at Reliant Medical Group. Her inspiration to become a doctor came from her family. “I come from a family of physicians on both sides. My whole family is involved in medicine, including my father and my husband. My daughters have also taken an interest in medicine as a career. When you grow up surrounded by doctors, it definitely has an influence on you.”

Dr. Parulkar enjoys the challenge of internal medicine and the variety it offers. “Although internal medicine focuses strictly on adults it is very broad in scope and allows me to focus on areas like women’s health, geriatrics and rheumatology issues. My practice is really varied, I see the younger population with their set of problems and my geriatric patients with a completely different set of problems,” she explains.

One of the things Dr. Parulkar has learned as a physician is that providing good care starts with being a good listener. “I once had a patient who came in complaining of cramps after swimming. She didn’t think it was that important but the way she described her symptoms combined with her medical history had me concerned. I had an ambulance take her to the hospital immediately and she had a massive heart attack after she arrived. Sometimes just the way a patient describes a symptom can be very important, so I always listen as carefully as I can. Fortunately this woman was fine after getting the treatment she needed.”

Dr. Parulkar is a true “people person” and it shows in every aspect of her care. “I really love the interaction with people I get everyday, and as an internist I am able to follow the patient throughout their course of care. Even when I was working in a hospital I would never discuss patients by their bed number, always by their name. To me, medicine is about people, I enjoy learning people’s likes and dislikes and how their families interact. Everyone is so different…”

Dr. Parulkar is a strong believer in helping patients achieve their health goals. “Everyone’s needs are different. Sometimes it’s healing people, other times it’s helping families make decisions about care – such as placing a loved one in hospice at the end of life. I try to see every patient as an individual and help them as much as I can.”

During her free time away from Reliant Medical Group, Dr. Parulkar enjoys cooking and traveling. She is also interested in art and loves to sketch and draw as well as write poetry. The mother of two children who are twins, she also likes to visit her family in India when she has the time.