Dr. Cristina Funghi: An Advocate for Our Future
Children are our future. They are an essential part of our community, and their health and happiness are directly tied to our future as a society. Children are also among our most vulnerable populations; they need people in their corner advocating for them, championing for their care.
As the head of pediatrics at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton, Dr. Cristina Funghi is one of our community’s champions for children. She has dedicated more than a decade of her life to helping sick children and their parents navigate emergencies or difficult diagnoses, and she considers her vocation both an honor and a privilege. “Sometimes I’m there for the absolute worst day of a parent’s life; I’m glad that I can be there to help either facilitate or ease just a portion of that day,” Dr. Funghi said. “I like to be that buffer. I feel so honored to be part of that process; it’s the biggest honor that anyone can give.”
When Dr. Funghi was in high school, her grandmother was diagnosed with colon cancer, and walking with her family through that journey is what initially inspired her to go into medicine. “I loved her family doctor. I thought I’d be a family medicine doctor,” she said. As she attended UC San Diego for her college education, she volunteered at a local hospital’s burn unit. It was there she fell in love with working with children, and as she went through medical school at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and specifically her rotation in the OB unit, working with babies in the NICU, she knew for certain she wanted to focus her career on pediatrics. “Pediatric patients are the rock stars of medicine,” Dr. Funghi said, describing their attitude and resilience in the face of some of the most difficult circumstances. “I enjoy being part of the journey and working with the families during that difficult time in their lives to help make it as much of a typical childhood as possible. We want them to be able to grow and thrive.”
Dr. Funghi’s love and care for pediatric patients isn’t only professional; there is also a personal element. She experienced being the parent of a patient firsthand when her eldest was born with a congenital heart defect, requiring surgery as a newborn. “I’m personally well acquainted with the surprises of life, having to deal with that journey and the effects of it, not just in that moment but in the long term,” she said. “If anything, it’s made me a better physician, having that personal experience.” It also gave her a unique connection with the parents of her patients, helping her deliver difficult diagnoses with compassion and honesty. “I don’t sugarcoat it or do euphemisms,” she said frankly. But above all, she emphasizes that she will walk alongside them for the entire journey. “That’s what I love about my job, getting the parents to where they need to be to help their child thrive,” she said. “At the end of the day, parents are their child’s advocate. We’re not adversaries. We’re on the same team.”
Her compassion is rivaled only by her intellectual curiosity and her humility. She loves solving problems and learning new things to help her patients and find solutions in the midst of the chaos, whether she’s diagnosing rare diseases or helping solve something that’s plagued a patient for years. “I love that there are puzzles out there to challenge us physicians, and when we do figure it out, we make a huge impact on a patient’s life in a positive way,” Dr. Funghi said. But in the midst of solving the puzzles, she never loses sight of her limitations and is the first to admit she doesn’t know something. “We are not all knowing,” she said. “You cannot predict the future, and you have to be okay with the ‘I don’t know.’”
St. Joseph’s recently both renovated and expanded its pediatric unit, a move that demonstrates their dedication to Stockton’s growing population and its future. “It’s investment in the community, an investment in the care of our families and our community,” Dr. Funghi said. “We’re here to take care of children and their families.” As the only pediatric care unit in San Joaquin County, they want the community to know that they don’t have to drive hours for excellent care for their children during emergencies or illness; St Joseph’s has a pediatric hospitalist on staff 24/7. “We have holistic family care,” she said, and she emphasized that above all, they see themselves as advocates for their community’s health. “We’re not a customer service; we’re a care service. We want people to be healthy; we want people to thrive.”
1800 N California St, Stockton, CA 95204 | Dignity Health – St Joseph Medical Center
