Chicago North Shore Moms is thrilled to shine a special spotlight on two outstanding pediatricians, Dr. Nina Alfieri and Dr. Rob Sanchez of Lurie Children’s, co-hosts of the Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast—a must-add to your queue!
Parenting comes with plenty of questions, and when it comes to children’s health, having trusted experts in your corner makes all the difference. That’s where Dr. Nina Alfieri and Dr. Rob Sanchez step in—not just as experienced pediatricians at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, but also as co-hosts of the Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast. With their deep knowledge, passion for children’s health at all stages, and firsthand experience as parents, Dr. Alfieri and Dr. Sanchez launched the podcast to help families navigate everything from sleep struggles to mental health challenges. Their podcast delivers easy-to-digest, expert-backed advice on common childhood health concerns—offering reassurance and real solutions.
We chatted with Dr. Alfieri and Dr. Sanchez to learn more about their backgrounds and what inspired them to bring this invaluable resource to parents everywhere.
Hi Dr. Alfieri and Dr. Sanchez! Please introduce yourselves.
Dr. Alfieri: Hi! My name is Nina Alfieri. I grew up in Chicago in a suburb just north of the city and find joy and magic in all four seasons (even winter, brr!). I met my husband in medical school in Chicago, and stayed for most of our residency and fellowship training. We continue to call Chicago home because of our love for this amazing city and all it has to offer, the people here, and the great opportunities to continue to help patients and their families through our work. I’m a primary care pediatrician, medical educator and child health advocate at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.
Dr. Nina Alfieri
Dr. Sanchez: My name is Rob Sanchez and I was born and raised in San Antonio, TX but have called Chicago home for over 10 years now. I moved here for medical school and then stayed to continue my medical training. I met my wife in residency and now we both live and work here along with our two boys. I’m also a pediatrician at Lurie Children’s Hospital where I provide primary care for families who visit our clinics and serve as a faculty instructor for Pediatrics residents and medical students.
Tell us about your children and feel free to gush away!
Dr. Alfieri: We have two incredible daughters who are currently one and three, and I also have to shout out Gnocchi, who is our 7-year-old golden retriever. Our oldest daughter is bright, funny, and incredibly curious. I love exploring the world through her perspective. She is creative, and we love doing nature walks, messy science experiments, and arts and crafts together. Our youngest is very into Elmo right now, belly laughing with her big sister, eating all kinds of new foods, AND she is newly on the move – just started walking! As a family, we love spending time outside (gardening, snow walks, beach days) and reading books together (the sillier and more dramatic, the better!).
Dr. Sanchez: Our boys are wonderful and full of energy and curiosity! My three year old loves reading books, being active with sports or dancing, and lately has been enjoying lots of pretend play as Spiderman. My one year old loves music and dancing at all times, and is as good of an eater as you could ask for as a parent. We have a lot of fun exploring different fun experiences in the city, with our latest favorite being the Garfield Park Conservatory.
What are one or two interesting things to know about you?
Dr. Alfieri: I really like cooking, traveling and having fun doing toddler arts and crafts. 😊 I used to be an accomplished Pianist and Golfer back in the day!
Dr. Sanchez: I used to play drums in a Beatles cover band with some other doctors and helped us win a local “Battle of the Beatles Cover Bands” contest during residency. I still play drums and guitar in my free time and have fun connecting with other musicians through work and friends. I’m always down to join a jam session!
What are your favorite local places, spaces and eats to frequent?
Dr. Alfieri: We love adventuring at home and away! Some of our favorite activities are going on bike rides, going to the beach and to our local pool, to museums and the Shedd Aquarium, our local farmer’s market, and exploring new restaurants. Our favorite date night restaurant without the kids is Bavette’s and we also love Piccolo Sogno (and especially the patio there, where we got engaged many years ago!). We have a new Saturday morning family tradition where we sit outside of a local coffee shop when it’s nice out while eating donuts and watch the trains go by (there are usually a lot of excited screams from my 3-year-old and belly laughs and squeals from her younger sister!). It’s amazing how fun something so simple can be.
Dr. Sanchez: With the kids, my latest favorite is to go to Garfield Park Conservatory. It’s a wonderful space at all times of the year, but especially in the winter (no matter how cold outside it gets, the fern room or the desert house is always cozy and warm!) In the summer we enjoy going to 31st street beach or biking down the lake shore path to Promontory Point and getting a bite to eat at our favorite spots in Hyde Park.
We love a good cold weather rec…. What are you reading and watching?
Dr. Alfieri: Top Chef, Ted Lasso, Shrinking and Schitt’s Creek are some of my favorite shows lately. These days, I spend most of my reading time acting out stories with my kids (though do love listening to podcasts and audiobooks on my commute). Our current family favorite is a book called Knight Owl – it’s adorable, whimsical, funny, and delivers a deep message simply about the beauty of bravery, friendship and the power of sharing pizza. 😉
Dr. Sanchez: Severance is our recent favorite! So enthralling, especially as a winter show to watch since it’s usually also cold and snowy outside just like it is in the show. I feel like it adds a little something extra to our viewing experience.
Let’s get down to business. Tell us more about your work with Lurie Children’s.
Dr. Alfieri: I joined Lurie Children’s in 2013 after medical school, excited to complete my Pediatric residency training at a top tier institution that was unparalleled in its commitment and ability to care for children with any level of illness or complexity, educate trainees to become the highest caliber leaders in child health, and importantly, there was a feeling of warmth and collegiality I picked up on that I still feel today. After my residency training, I was selected to serve as a Pediatric Chief Resident from 2016-2017, and then completed a two-year fellowship in Pediatric Health Services Research and Population Health in the Division of Advanced General Pediatrics, earning my Master’s in Health Services and Outcomes Research from Northwestern (2019).
I am currently a faculty member in the Division of Advanced General Pediatrics at Lurie Children’s, and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Clinically, I work as a primary care pediatrician, and I love connecting deeply with families and working with other colleagues and specialists to provide the best care for my patients. When I am not seeing patients, I am working to train the next generation of pediatricians in my roles as an Associate Program Director for the Pediatric Residency Program and Continuity Clinic Director for our resident clinics.
Dr. Sanchez: Professionally, I have a passion for the care of children and young adults with medical complexity. I feel so lucky to work at Lurie Children’s where every day I get to care for families and collaborate with the best specialists in the country to provide excellent and comprehensive care for our community. I’m also driven by an interest in medical education and mentorship, and I get to work with our outstanding residents and medical students to provide them with training and guidance in the care of patients and in growing to be knowledgeable and compassionate physicians.
What do you think makes Lurie Children’s the number one hospital in Illinois?
Dr. Alfieri: I love being a part of the Lurie Children’s family. Three of my favorite reasons I enjoy working here are:
- The patients and families we get to serve are incredible and teach me something in every encounter.
- The colleagues I collaborate with to care for my patients are top notch – brilliant, incredible, and kind, and everyone has an “all hands-on deck” mentality for helping the children who need us.
- Lurie Children’s is a standout and steadfast leader in clinical care, research, education and advocacy, and the mission is clear: we are here to improve the health and well-being of all children. The resources and connections I can access as part of the Lurie community allow me to constantly dive into new projects and initiatives to improve the lives of children and their families.
Dr. Sanchez, you recently started a podcast together that covers various topics of health and wellness in children. When did you start the Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast and what was the impetus behind starting it? What are a few topics you’ve covered thus far?
Dr. Sanchez: I joined in on the project with Dr. Alfieri back in 2023. When I heard about the idea, I absolutely loved it and was all-in. I loved the prospect of using the podcast medium to connect with parents and share the expertise of the wonderful specialists we get to collaborate with at Lurie Children’s. We’ve covered a whole host of topics, with some of my favorites ranging in scope from navigating food allergies, to supporting teen mental health, and building better sleep habits. The episode I did with a couple of our colleagues on fatherhood and family health is one I especially loved getting a chance to do because it resonated so strongly with me and it’s something I can share regularly with friends and patients’ families in clinic.
Dr. Alfieri, what are a few topics you’ve covered thus far on the Kids’ Wellness Matters Podcast?
Dr. Alfieri: We have covered a wide variety of topics (with many more to come!) but a few of my all-time favorites have been How Reading Impacts Early Brain Development with Dr Glusman, the Fatherhood and Family Health podcast with Drs Garfield and Parker, Safely Integrating Dogs and Babies in the Home with Dr Ballantyne (this was a cool episode because she is actually a veterinary behaviorist, not a pediatrician!), and, hands down – each of the episodes covering a mental and behavioral health topic because it is so important that pediatricians and parents have tools to support children struggling with mental health concern. I truly love each episode and learn something from each guest, though, so you could just include them all here!
Dr. Alfieri, in a recent episode 18 released in January, 2025, you covered the topic of building confidence in a shy or anxious child. Knowing there’s no one-size-fits-all approach, can you give us a nutshell summary of things parents can do to help their child overcome these challenges?
Dr. Alfieri: I really enjoyed this interview with Sara Budowsky, LCSW, who is a clinical social worker and child and family therapist at Lurie Children’s. I have had the privilege of caring for patients together with her and have learned so much from her over the years and it was very cool to “peel back the curtain” and hear her thought process behind the amazing care she provides! In this episode, we discussed several topics: the difference between shyness and anxiety, parenting strategies that can be useful in supporting a child through a challenge or an anxiety-provoking situation, ways to help build confidence in a child, red flags that would signify when parents should consider seeking help for their child, and the types of help that a child therapist, pediatrician, or psychologist or psychiatrist can provide.
Sara and I talked about some things that parents can do to help children overcome challenges, and she gave some great advice about how we can model bravery for our kids, how to help them break scary things down into smaller steps, and how parents can balance holding a child’s hand through something scary while also helping them face the challenge just enough to help them grow and overcome their fear. I really liked when Sara explained anxiety as a “built in alarm system” that sometimes misfires and I have found that this way of approaching anxiety allows us as parents to address it by helping kids figure out if the threat deserves that level of alarm or not (many times, the threat or fear is conquerable with the right approach and support!). Mostly, I want parents and caregivers to know that anxiety is very treatable and if you know someone struggling with it, there is a lot of support out there for you and your loved one.
Dr. Sanchez, episode 19 seems to be a tougher subject to discuss opening. You both led a discussion on eating disorders and how the different types of disorders relate to different populations and signs to look out for. Tell us more about your conversation with Dr. Montalto.
Dr. Sanchez: This was a truly excellent conversation, and I was grateful to delve deeper into this topic with Dr. Montalto. We discussed the evolving nature of eating disorders in the context of social media and the importance of promoting a healthy body image in children, while also noting what might be some of the early warning signs that could help lead to early recognition and intervention. What was clear in our conversation is that this is a complex issue, and it’s important to recognize the role of family in treatment and the necessity of open communication between parents and children regarding eating habits. Dr. Montalto’s focus on making this care equitable was so evident throughout and I hope this conversation can reach others who also want to ensure that we work to improve the care and outcomes for children affected by these conditions.
Is there anything else you’d like us to know about the Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast?
Dr. Alfieri: If we can help just one family with our Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast, then it was all worth it. I hope families find the conversations interesting and useful and can forgive us for our corny jokes in the intros. 😉 If you find the podcast helpful, please share it with your neighbors and friends. We hope to cover the topics that are most important to you, so please let us know if there is anything you would like us to include in future seasons!
Dr. Sanchez: I think I’d add that it’s truly something we hope listeners find valuable and that we’re always thinking about topics to cover. We know the world is changing and there are a new areas to talk about all the time in terms of the wellbeing of our kids. We’re committed to sharing the guidance and thoughts of some of our top leaders in the field through our podcast.
You can listen to Kids’ Wellness Matters podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And you can follow @LurieChildrens to get expert pediatric advice right in your feed.