MIAMI – The late Dr. Sanjiv Bhatia, esteemed pediatric neurosurgeon, was honored with a street renaming ceremony at Nicklaus Children's Hospital on Wednesday, July 9. Dr. Bhatia's wife, Dr. Rita Ghose Bhatia and the couple's children, along with former patients and colleagues of the beloved doctor were joined by Miami-Dade County Commissioner Rebeca Sosa to dedicate Southwest 60 Court and 30 Street as "Dr. Sanjiv Bhatia Way."
The ceremony opened with a touching tribute by former patient Lacy Jerome, who underwent lifesaving neurosurgery in the care of Dr. Bhatia. Lacy and her parents joined a group of 70 of Dr. Bhatia's former colleagues, including doctors, nurses and staff, who attended the event to pay homage to his legacy. Commissioner Sosa also presented the Bhatia family with a proclamation designating July 9, 2019 as Dr. Sanjiv Bhatia Day.
Dr. Bhatia served as Chief of the Department of Surgery and Medical Director of the Operating Room at Nicklaus Children's Hospital. He dedicated his life to healing children and was a renowned leader in surgical treatment of children with complex medical conditions. Dr. Bhatia was also an advocate for bringing world-class neurosurgical care to children in developing nations. He participated since 2003 as a volunteer with Project Medishare and Haiti Healthy Kids on numerous humanitarian mission trips to Haiti to evaluate and operate on children with hydrocephalus.
The Bhatia family, Commissioner Rebeca Sosa and members of the hospital leadership.
Lacy Jerome and her mother Jaime.
About Nicklaus Children's Hospital, Where Your Child Matters Most ™ (2025)
For 75 years, Nicklaus Children's has stood as a beacon of hope for children and families across the state of Florida and beyond. Nicklaus Children's Hospital is South Florida's #1 nonprofit, freestanding specialty licensed hospital exclusively for children serving close to 70 percent of children in the Miami metropolitan community. In addition, Nicklaus Children's offers care within NCH North Hospital in Naples, Jupiter Medical Center's De George Pediatric Unit and select Baptist Health Hospital pediatric emergency units. The hospital and its network of more of nearly 35 outpatient care locations offer lifesaving care in in Miami-Dade, Broward, Martin, and Palm Beach counties. These outpatient locations include an array of urgent care, pediatric primary care, and subspecialty care centers and are either hospital-based or outpatient locations under Nicklaus Children's Pediatric Specialists, LLC (NCPS). Providing a pipeline of future physicians and groundbreaking research, Nicklaus Children's is an academic and clinical affiliate of Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. Nicklaus Children's is home to centers of excellence including the Helen & Jacob Shaham Cancer & Blood Disorders Institute, the Nicklaus Children's Orthopedics, Sports Health and Spine Institute, Nicklaus Children's Neuroscience Institute and Nicklaus Children's Heart Institute. The 325-bed hospital is renowned for excellence in all aspects of pediatric medicine, with many programs routinely ranked among the nation's best by U.S. News & World Report since 2008. Nicklaus Children's also includes a nonprofit physician practice subsidiary with over 40 specialties, and an ambulatory surgery center. For more information visit, https://www.nicklauschildrens.org.