Integrative Medicine

Dr. Sexton earned her Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine is from Bastyr University, Seattle Washington. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Washington in the Departments of Pharmacology/Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, studying the endocannabinoid system and roles in neuro-inflammation and neuro-degeneration. Her NIH-funded pre-doctoral and postdoctoral research investigated cannabis use in patients with Multiple Sclerosis and impact on inflammatory markers. Dr. Sexton has presented her research internationally and published in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Sexton’s clinical practice is based on naturopathic principles.

Melanie Fiorella, MD, is a board-certified family medicine doctor. She provides primary care for patients of all ages, including preventive care and treatment of acute and chronic diseases. She has a special interest in women's health, mood disorders, back pain, gastrointestinal disorders and sleep problems.

Dr. Fiorella integrates lifestyle medicine - such as nutrition, mindfulness-based stress reduction and yoga - into the medical care of her patients. Where indicated, she refers patients to complementary therapies such as osteopathic manual therapy, acupuncture and massage. She also offers consults in integrative medicine through UC San Diego's Center for Integrative Medicine.

As a professor of family medicine, Dr. Fiorella is involved in training medical students and residents at UC San Diego School of Medicine. She is the director of the Integrative Medicine in Residency program.

Dr. Fiorella completed her residency at UC San Diego School of Medicine and earned her medical degree at State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine. She is board certified in family medicine and completed fellowship training in integrative medicine.

Daniel Slater, MD, is a board-certified family medicine physician and offers integrative medicine through UC San Diego's Center for Integrative Medicine, which focuses on whole-person wellness by addressing physical, lifestyle, psychological, and spiritual needs. Integrative therapies recommended often include, but are not limited to, complementary modalities such as acupuncture, osteopathic manipulation, mindfulness, acupressure, specific movement therapies, and natural supplements.

Dr. Slater strives to partner with his patients, building mutual trust and communication to individually tailor their care. He believes that a physician and healthcare team ideally treat a person's entire health, both body and mind, not merely their disease or diagnosis.

Dr. Slater is associate team physician for the San Diego Padres and team physician for UC San Diego Tritons.

As professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, Dr. Slater trains medical students and residents at UC San Diego School of Medicine. He is a faculty member in the Division of Global Public Health and an executive team member of the Center for Integrative Medicine.

Dr. Slater completed a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona and a residency in family medicine at UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica. He earned his medical degree from UC San Diego School of Medicine. He is board-certified in both family medicine and integrative medicine, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians (FAAFP).

Dr. Slater was born and raised in Southern California, and is bilingual in Spanish.

When he is not caring for his patients, his number one priority is spending time with his family. Dr. Slater also enjoys traveling, music and fitness.

Dr. Sozanski’s academic foundation is rooted in the University of Arizona, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, graduating Summa Cum Laude, followed by his Doctor of Medicine. He completed his residency in Family Medicine at the same institution and is board-certified through the American Board of Family Medicine. To further refine his expertise in holistic health, he completed a Fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine.

His practice is deeply informed by an international perspective on healing, having completed extensive training in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture across the United States, Thailand, and China. He holds active medical licenses in California and Arizona, and is also licensed by the Medical Council of Thailand. This international background, combined with his early experience in hospice volunteerism, underscores his commitment to compassionate and versatile medical care.

Deepa Sannidhi, MD, is board-certified family medicine, obesity medicine and lifestyle medicine physician. Trained in preventive medicine, Dr. Sannidhi provides chronic disease management and also helps people prevent and treat disease through lifestyle and integrative medicine. Her expertise includes women's health, integrative medicine, and lifestyle medicine, which uses evidence-based therapeutic approaches such as nutrition, exercise, stress management, sleep and other non-drug modalities, to decrease disease risk and illness. She is also trained and proficient in using medications in the management of overweight and obesity, and practices obesity medicine at the UCSD Center for Digestive Diseases Weight Management Clinic.

Dr. Sannidhi created and runs a shared medical appointment program called the Supervised Lifestyle and Integrative Medicine Program, or SLIM Program for Weight Management and Lifestyle Related Disease, which is offered by the UCSD Center for Integrative Medicine in partnership with UCSD Weight Management Clinic. Patients are able to see her individually and in groups to get assistance with managing their disease through evidence-based integrative treatments and lifestyle management that is individualized to their needs. The SLIM Program is a structured weight management program consisting of 17 group medical visits and five one-on-one visits.

As an associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine, Dr. Sannidhi enjoys teaching residents and medical students at UC San Diego School of Medicine about lifestyle medicine and nutrition. Her research interests include obesity and behavior change, as well as the implementation of clinical models of care that allow physicians to practice in line with their values within the confines of today's healthcare system.

Dr. Sannidhi completed her family medicine residency training at Hunterdon Medical Center in Flemington, N.J., one of the first six family medicine residencies in the country, and trained as a resident in the UCSD/SDSU General Preventive Medicine Residency program, where she also served as chief resident and now serves as core faculty. She earned her medical degree from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.

She is a member of many professional organizations including the California Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Preventive Medicine, the Obesity Medicine Association, The Obesity Society and the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, where she serves as chair of the research committee.

Dr. Sannidhi is married to her high school sweetheart and they have a young daughter. Outside of work, she enjoys eating at healthy restaurants and finding new ways to cook healthy and delicious food.

In addition to English, Dr. Sannidhi is fluent in Telugu and conversational in Hindi and medical Spanish.

Ariel Portera, DO, is a physician who provides primary care for patients of all ages with a special interest in women's health, integrative medicine and nutrition. She also performs inpatient and outpatient osteopathic manipulative treatment – a hands-on approach to treating a wide variety of illnesses and musculoskeletal injuries.

Providing general integrative medicine consults through the Center for Integrative Medicine, she utilizes lifestyle medicine to address the root cause of chronic disease. She also integrates and frequently refers to other complementary modalities including but not limited to acupuncture, massage, mindfulness and culinary medicine.

She enjoys treating the mind, body and spirit to optimize health and wellness, and partnering with patients on their health care journey.

Dr. Portera completed a residency in family medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine and she earned her medical degree from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, Fla. She is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Academy of Integrative Health Medicine, the Institute for Functional Medicine and the American Osteopathic Association.

In her free time, Dr. Portera enjoys spending time with family and friends, travel, hiking, cooking and meditation.

Megan Jolicoeur, DO, is a board-certified family medicine and integrative medicine specialist. She is also an Institute of Functional Medicine Certified Practitioner (FMCP-M).

She serves as an assistant professor of family medicine in the UC San Diego School of Medicine and currently sees patients at UC San Diego's Centers for Integrative Health. Through a holistic perspective, Dr. Jolicoeur empowers her patients to reach optimal wellness from a whole body and integrative approach that includes physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

Dr. Jolicoeur has a passion and expertise in integrative medicine, medical acupuncture, osteopathy, lifestyle medicine, nutrition and functional medicine. She currently holds additional certifications in medical acupuncture, mind body medicine, Ayurvedic counseling, Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT),  and is a 200-hour certified yoga teacher.

She previously served as an active-duty naval officer and physician at Naval Branch Health Clinic Port Hueneme while also leading as the senior medical officer. During her time of service, she participated in a humanitarian mission called Pacific Partnership 2015 aboard the USNS Mercy and also established an integrative medical and acupuncture clinic for active duty, retired veterans and dependents.

Following her service with the Navy, she completed an integrative medicine fellowship at the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine while also serving as a clinical instructor for UCLA. She completed her internship and residency at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton. She served an additional year focusing on integrative medicine while also serving as a junior attending physician.

Dr. Jolicoeur earned her medical degree at Touro University School of Osteopathic Medicine-California. She completed a bachelor's degree in physiology and neurobiology from The University of Connecticut.

She is a fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians (FAAFP) and a member of the American Board of Integrative Medicine (ABOIM).

Her hobbies include spending time with family, running, hiking, cooking, and traveling. She uses yoga, meditation, and time in nature to stay grounded and grateful.