Immigrating to the US as a child when you don’t speak the language is a DAUNTING experience. For Dr. Avisheh Forouzesh, however, she took that challenge as a twelve-year-old and made the best of it, always focusing on following her dreams of becoming a doctor. Today, she’s an Infectious Disease Specialist, the owner of her own practice, and an all-around inspiration living in the Mile Square. As this week’s Hoboken Girl of the Week, keep reading to find out all about Dr. Forouzesh’s most unique of specialties, what a typical day for her is like, and what she loves most about living in Hoboken.
Tell us about yourself.
I am an infectious disease specialist/internist. Advanced Infectious Disease Medical – I opened my practice five years ago, however, I was doing mostly consultations at the hospital, in July 2018 I moved to a new office location and now I’m concentrating on building my outpatient practice.
“Gathering all the information and putting it all together to try to solve the underlying issue, is sort of like solving a puzzle.”
I concentrate more on providing preventative health care and I encourage my patients to be proactive. I believe the best medicine is prevention and hence it’s important to stay up to date with all the preventative screening exams and vaccinations.
Also, as an infectious disease specialist, I see a wide variety of different conditions including skin infections, Lyme Disease and other tick-borne illnesses, flu and viral illnesses, HIV, Hep C, and Hep B. I also provide travel medicine and travel vaccinations and pre-travel counseling.
I first became interested in infectious disease during my residency in internal medicine. I found it fascinating because it required gathering all the information and putting it all together to try to solve the underlying issue, sort of like solving a puzzle.
See More: Hoboken Girl of the Week: Maria Marino {of Sports Net New York}
Who is your biggest source of inspiration?
My biggest source of inspiration are my parents {they are amazing!} and also my patients; they inspire me to be the best physician I can be for them.
What are your goals for this year?
My goal for this year is to be able to provide the best medical care to my patients and build my office practice, and also to be more involved in the local community by having lectures and talks at local venues to reach out to more people in the community as a source of information for them.
And to be better at time management. It’s an ever-evolving challenge to balance work/home/social life, but I believe if we can manage our time efficiently it is all possible.
I’m passionate about my field, it’s an ever-evolving field and I feel so lucky that I have the privilege to help people live better, healthier lives and that, honestly, is my passion. Also, on a side note – I love to travel and discover new cultures and to sing.
What does a typical day look like for you?
A typical day for me includes going to the hospital to make rounds on my patients and then head to the office to see my office patients and vice versa depends on the schedule.
Once I’ve finished seeing my patients I start to f/u {Editor’s Note: f/u = follow up} with patient phone calls and pharmacy phone calls and finish paperwork and call patients with their lab results.
The highs of my day are when I see a really interesting, challenging case that usually really piques my interest. Also, when I hear positive feedback from my patients or when I’m able to make it makes me very happy and fulfilled. The lows of my day are paperwork.
“To accomplish my lifelong dream was a great sense of achievement.”
Once my work day is done, my husband and I try to make time to have dinner together and either watch a movie, or depending on the weather, go out for stroll by the waterfront or we make it a date night and go out to one of our local favorite places to eat or hop on the path and go to the city for a quick bite. Also, sometimes if we both get home at a reasonable hour, we go to the gym together.
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
The highlight in my career was when I finished med school; it was many years of hard work, sleepless nights, and sacrifices — but since it was always my childhood dream to be a doctor, it was a huge sense of achievement.
I came to the US from Iran when I was 12 without speaking any English, so to be able to not only overcome the language barrier but to accomplish my lifelong dream was a great sense of achievement.
What do you do on your days off?
Days off {you never have real day off once you run your own practice}, however, on my weekend days that I’m not going to the hospital I love to explore new restaurants and just take long walks around the neighborhood or to go to the city with my husband and discover new cafes, restaurants, museums, as well as hang out with friends and family on the weekends. We also take short trips to discover the nearby small cities {loved Cape May}.
Read More: Things to Do in Cape May {Jersey Shore Getaway}
Hoboken + Jersey City Favorites
What is your favorite restaurant in Hoboken?
Top 5:
1. The Brass Rail
2. Elysian Cafe
3. My new favorite pizza/Italian place: Zero Otto Uno café
4. Seven Valleys – first Persian food in town – yay
5. La Isla
What’s your favorite boutique in Hoboken?
I don’t have a favorite boutique in town, but I do like Dor L’Dor and Anthropologie.
What do you love most about Hoboken?
Accessibility, walking by the waterfront, the view, and proximity to NYC.
How long have you lived in Hoboken?
I’ve lived and worked in Hoboken for 7 years.
What’s your favorite outdoor place to spend time in Hoboken?
Favorite Outdoor place – Pier A park. House of ‘Que outdoor seats in summer, and Pier 13 on summer nights. Also, I love Little City Books.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out their career?
Be passionate about what field you want to pursue and do it for the right reasons.
Don’t compare your life to others, we all have a different journey to take and if you love what you do that is the measure of true success.
Be ready to make sacrifices to achieve your goals.
Be humble.
Want to be featured or nominate someone as an upcoming Hoboken Girl of the Week?
Email hello@hobokengirl.com about your/her story.
