Sarah Ilahi, DO

Dr. Ilahi joined Kids First in summer 2022 and is passionate about caring for and educating children. Even before medical school and residency, all her jobs involved working with children. “After deciding to become a doctor, pediatrics was a no brainer,” she says.

Dr. Ilahi attended medical school at New York College of Osteopathic Medicine. A doctor of osteopathy (DO) has the same medical training as MDs: they go to four years of medical school and complete the same boards and licensing exams. They also focus on philosophies on how the mind and body are associated and are trained in manual medicine (hands-on techniques to treat structural and functional issues of tissue and muscles).

After medical school, Dr. Ilahi completed her pediatric residency at Goryeb Children’s Hospital in Morristown, New Jersey. She went on to be a pediatric hospitalist there, taking care of newborns in the nursery and sick kids admitted to the pediatric floor.

Although she is very passionate about helping kids and their families get through stressful illnesses during hospital admissions, she realized she was missing the opportunity to form long-term relationships with children. Wondering how her patients were doing after hospitalization led her to transition to outpatient pediatric medicine. “There is nothing more rewarding than caring for children, forming a bond with them and seeing them grow and flourish,” she says. 

Dr. Ilahi moved to Illinois so her husband, Imran, can pursue his passion in NICU. She loves the liveliness of Chicago, and both she and her husband love traveling, exploring different cultures and cuisines, hiking and enjoying life with family and loved ones.