Jennifer Nguyen, MD

I was born and raised in sunny Southern California. My interest in endocrinology began while learning about organ systems in my high school biology class, where I became fascinated by the intricacies of hormone physiology and the elegance of feedback mechanisms. This scientific curiosity, combined with a passion for teaching and helping others, ultimately sparked my decision to pursue a career in medicine.

I attended medical school at New York Medical College followed by pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where I had the opportunity to apply these scientific principles to real-life clinical scenarios and saw how it positively impacted the lives of patients. During these years, I developed a specific interest in caring for children with Type 1 diabetes—spending summers volunteering at Camp Conrad Chinnock, a summer camp for youth living with Type 1 diabetes. As a pediatric endocrinology fellow at CHLA, I continued to explore this same passion while also expanding my areas of interest to caring for patients with Type 2 diabetes and obesity. For my fellowship research project, I conducted a prospective study examining how anti-obesity medications affect glycemic variability as measured by continuous glucose monitoring in youth with obesity without associated diabetes.

As a pediatric endocrinologist, I enjoy the mix of inpatient and outpatient work as well as the exposure to a wide array of age ranges and pathologies. Being a provider in this field also allows me to build long-term relationships with patients and their families, which is one of the things that drew me to medicine in the first place.

In my free time, I enjoy traveling the world, exploring the outdoors with my dog Pabu, and spending time with friends and family.