Welcome to the Pediatric Center!

Our practice has been in existence for nearly five decades and we continue to offer family centered compassionate care to the children of Fairfield County and Westchester.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, a medical home is "a model of delivering primary care that is accessible, continuous, comprehensive, family-centered, coordinated, compassionate, and culturally effective."

This is what we have strived to be and what we have been committed to become since our inception...long before the term, Medical Home was created.

Our ultimate goal as a practice is to provide a warm, comfortable, and friendly environment where you know your child will receive the best possible care.

Our practitioners:

Sanford L. Swidler MD
Dr. Sanford L. Swidler received his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine. He did his pediatric training at Bellevue Hospital/New York University Medical Center and was also the Chief Resident in Pediatrics at Bellevue Hospital/ NYU Medical Center. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University School of Medicine and is a past Associate Pediatrician-in–Chief at Stamford Hospital. Dr. Swidler is also a past chairman of the hospital credential's committee and past member of both the Pediatric Executive committee and the Stamford Hospital Medical Executive Committee. He serves as medical consultant for various schools, daycares, and camps in the community. Dr. Swidler is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Paule Couture MD
Dr. Paule Couture received her medical education at McGill University in Montreal. She went on to do her pediatric training at the Boston Children's Hospital/Harvard Medical School. Dr. Couture also did a fellowship in ambulatory and developmental pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital Medical Center. She is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She is an active mother in the community and speaks French and Spanish. She is currently involved in teaching medical students from New York Medical College.

Timothy Kenefick MD
Dr. Timothy Kenefick received his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College. He did his pediatric training at New York Hospital/Cornell University Medical Center and was also the Chief Resident in Pediatrics at New York Hospital. Dr. Kenefick retains his academic affiliation with Cornell University Medical College. He is the Medical Advisor to the Darien Public School System. He is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Lisa Rooney MD
Dr. Lisa Rooney received her medical degree from New York University School of Medicine. She did her pediatric training at Bellevue Hospital/New York University Medical Center and was also the Chief Resident in Pediatrics at Bellevue Hospital/ NYU Medical Center. Dr. Rooney was in private practice in Los Angeles prior to joining The Pediatric Center. She is the co-author of a book for adolescent girls entitled Your Body Yourself . She serves on the Pediatric Executive Committee at The Stamford Hospital, and is a member of the Board of Directors for The Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut. Dr. Rooney is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Monique Gagnon MD
Dr. Monique Gagnon received her medical degree from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. She did her Pediatric training at Tufts University Medical Center in Boston. She did a Clinical Fellowship in Adolescent Medicine also at The New England Medical Center and is an active member of the Society of Adolescent Medicine. She is board certified in Pediatrics by the American Board of Pediatrics and a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Susan Lasky DO
Dr. Susan Lasky completed her degree at the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine, where she graduated with highest honors. She did her residency training in Pediatrics at the Maria Fereri Children’s Hospital/ Westchester Medical Center. Following completion of her residency program, Dr. Lasky joined the faculty of Westchester Medical Center as Chief Resident. Dr. Lasky is board certified in Pediatrics and is also a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Julie Sweeney MD

Dr. Julie Sweeney received her medical degree from New York Medical College. She completed her residency training in pediatrics at the Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital/ Westchester Medical Center. Dr. Sweeney serves on the Board of Directors of Darien EMS-Post 53 and is a Board Member of the Darien Domestic Abuse Partnership. She is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Joan Gildea, APRN
Joan M. Gildea received her nursing diploma from Lenox Hill Hospital School of Nursing, NY. , her BSN from Farleigh Dickenson University of Rutherford , NJ, her MA from Columbia University, NY , and her post masters PNP certificate from Hunter College, NY. Certified as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, she has extensive experience in pediatric nursing and nursing education particularly at the NYU Medical Center. She is active in the community and volunteers as an EMT with Darien EMS and is the community training coordinator for the American Heart Association.

Linda Kornblau, APRN
Linda Kornblau graduated from Columbia University School of Nursing and received her masters in nursing with certification as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner from the University of California, San Francisco. She is also certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. Linda has special interest and training in pediatric neurology, breast feeding, and childhood temperament/behavioral issues. She is a volunteer at the Bereavement Center of Westchester where she facilitates groups for young families who have experienced the death of a parent or child.

Psychiatric Services

The Pediatric Center offers specialized short-term treatment of psychological and behavioral problems in our office with an experienced child and adolescent therapist, Veda Tyson. Veda has frequent hours to provide evaluations and/or short-term therapy for our patients. If you would like to make an appointment, please talk to your doctor or nurse practitioner for more information. Ms. Tyson consults with psychiatrist Andrew Lustbader.

Veda Tyson
Veda Tyson is a board certified Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner and a licensed Master's Social Worker. Veda earned a master’s degree in social work from Columbia University and a master’s degree in nursing at Yale University. Veda has a post-master’s certificate in child and adolescent therapy and has trained at the Beck Institute of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. She specializes in the treatment of children and adolescents and has worked in inpatient, outpatient, school-based and pediatric settings. Veda is up to date on evidence-based treatments that focus on anxiety, OCD, mood disorders, behavioral problems, family and parenting issues.

Andrew Lustbader MD
Dr. Lustbader is a triple-board certified physician in child and adolescent psychiatry, general psychiatry, and pediatrics and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Lustbader trained at the Yale University School of Medicine for all three disciplines after graduating from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. He has been a practicing physician in Connecticut since 1991. Dr. Lustbader is an Assistant Professor at the Yale University School of Medicine. He also serves on the clinical faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at Yale-New Haven Hospital. In addition to supervising Ms. Nash and other APRNs in several pediatric offices throughout Fairfield County, Dr. Lustbader is Co-Director of the Psychopharmacology Clinic at the Yale Child Study Center, Medical Director of the Child Guidance Center of Mid-Fairfield County in Norwalk and he also serves on the clinical faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Hospital Affiliation: The Stamford Hospital www.stamhealth.org