Sun Health Generous Living - Summer 2022

Doctor Shares What Keeps Him Resilient Dr. Pedro Rodriguez Guggiari Dr. Pedro Rodriguez Guggiari says he will always remember where he was when he discovered his life’s purpose and his passion to become a physician. He was a boy at summer camp in Paraguay, South America.

—DR. PEDRO RODRIGUEZ GUGGIARI

“I was one of the kids at camp who had a terrible time with allergies, and I had a sprained an ankle and hurt my fingers,” Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari remembers. “Our camp counselor took care of me, and later in his life he, too, became a doctor. I experienced firsthand what it was like to have someone help me and it was such a good, comforting feeling.

After practicing for 26 years, 19 in Arizona, Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari says he loves practicing in the West Valley. In 2014, Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari and his wife, Dr. Marta Gonzales, opened their practice True Care MD in Peoria.

‘This feels right. I want to do the same for others,’ I thought to myself.

Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari also finds great fulfillment in being a mentor to the next generation of physicians as a member of the teaching faculty at the University of Arizona-College of Medicine Phoenix.

“I experienced firsthand how someone helped me and it was such a good feeling. I thought to myself, this feels right for me to do the same for others. It was one of the greatest camps in my life.” Today, an Internal Medicine Specialist and Chief of Staff at Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center, Dr. Rodriguez’s Guggiari’s passion has only grown stronger and serves to keep him resilient and dedicated to caring for his patients in the evolving world of healthcare. “Medicine is both my passion and a calling,” he says. “Helping others fulfills me intrinsically.”

8

“It is the conviction I have that I’m doing something meaningful and relevant that keeps me resilient,” he says. “Practicing medicine is the best place to start and end my day.”

Resiliency has been the mainstay his practice of medicine. Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari has had to adapt to the changes in healthcare delivery through the years including those stemming from COVID-19. He has both a resilient mindset and one of gratitude. He is thankful for all the good in medicine that he says outweigh the challenges. “It is the conviction I have that I’m doing something meaningful and relevant that keeps me resilient,” he says. “Practicing medicine is the best place to start and end my day.”

Dr. Pedro Rodriguez Guggiari

Dr. Rodriguez Guggiari says he also is grateful for the generosity of West Valley residents. “There are simply things we cannot achieve without them. They helped make possible advanced equipment that can perform lifesaving, life-improving procedures in orthopedics, cancer, urology and beyond. I can’t stress enough how important these are today and for our future.” “I’m very committed to the community and to the hospitals and feel intrinsically attached to the people here,” he says. “I don’t see myself anywhere else.”