MERCEDES – A new family practice clinic in Mercedes has opened to see patients of all ages, from children to adults and seniors, as part of a new Knapp Medical Center / UTRGV Family Practice Residency Program for the Mid-Valley.
The brand-new clinic opened on Monday, August 21, 2017. It is housed in a recently-constructed 13,800-square-foot building, conveniently located right off Expressway 83 at the N. Mile 2 West Rd. exit in Mercedes, at 2810 W. Expressway 83. The clinic is across the street from “Med High” (the South Texas High School for Health Professions) and the Science Academy of South Texas, and located next door to the new Mid Valley Nursing & Rehabilitation skilled nursing facility.
The family medicine clinic is now open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The clinic is under the direction of Dr. Miguel Tello, Family Medicine Physician and Associate Program Director for the Knapp / UTRGV Family Practice Residency Program.
The new clinic now boasts new furniture and medical equipment, with 18 exam rooms. The initial group of six family practice resident doctors will utilize those exam rooms includes experienced physicians who have treated patients in a variety of settings – ranging from colonias in the Valley to remote jungles and other challenging environments in South America and elsewhere. Those physicians are: Eddy Berges, MD; Diego Moreno, MD; Eliana Costantino Burgazzi, MD; Miguel A. Sanchez Rivas, MD; Carolina Gomez de Ziegler, MD; and Marita del Pilar Sanchez Sierra Marino, MD. They are fluent in English and Spanish.
“We needed a seasoned group of physicians who would be able to handle the stress of being a first-year class,” Dr. Tello said. “Their varied experiences and backgrounds really add a unique dimension to this class.”
One of the residents, Dr. Eddy Berges — who practiced medicine in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico before coming to the Valley — noted that family medicine physicians provide a wide range of services, including preventive health, to people of all ages.
Dr. Carolina Gomez de Ziegler, who practiced medicine in Venezuela before coming to the Valley, added that family practice is a very complete specialty.
“You can take care of everything for a person – for her environment, and her family,” she said.
Rene J. Lopez, CEO of Knapp Medical Center, noted the historical nature of the program, which represents an expansion of medical education into the Mid-Valley.
“The Knapp/UTRGV Family Practice Residency Program will help create more opportunities in the Mid-Valley for those who would like to receive training as family medicine physicians,” Mr. Lopez said. “In addition, the educational and clinical components of this exciting project will be great assets for the entire Mid-Valley, thanks to our partnership with The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, the City of Mercedes, and the Knapp Community Care Foundation.”
For more information on the family medicine clinic, please contact Alexandra Smith, GME Program Coordinator for the Knapp / UTRGV Family Practice Residency Program at KnappFamilyMed@utrgv.edu, or visit our Family Practice Residency Clinic or www.utrgv.edu/som/residency/family-medicine-kmc. To make an appointment to be seen by one of the physicians, please call (956) 973-3531. Walk-in patients are also being accepted.
A new family practice clinic in Mercedes is now open to see patients of all ages as part of a new Knapp Medical Center / UTRGV Family Practice Residency Program for the Mid-Valley (photo by Paul Chouy / UTRGV).
Six new family practice resident physicians are now seeing patients at the new Knapp / UTRGV Family Practice Residency Clinic in Mercedes. From the left are Dr. Miguel A. Sanchez Rivas, Dr. Marita del Pilar Sanchez Sierra Marino, Dr. Diego Moreno, Dr. Miguel Tello (Associate Program Director),
Dr. Eliana Costantino Burgazzi, Dr. Eddy Berges, and Dr. Carolina Gomez de Ziegler (photo by Paul Chouy / UTRGV).

