By Martine St. Hilaire
Claude Alain Innocent, M.D. was born in New York but grew up in Port-au-Prince, Haiti most of his life. Dr. Innocent moved to the United States to complete his residency in internal medicine at Sound Shore Medical Center of Westchester in New-Rochelle, New York with honors. He’s married and has two children, a son and a daughter. His wife is an occupational therapist, and both of his parents were in the medical field: his father was a dentist and his mother was a laboratory technician. He currently resides in Florida, where he has lived for 22 years.
At the end of Dr. Innocent’s third year of postgraduate training, due to his outstanding track record as a resident he was selected to be the chief resident for an additional year. In August 2000, he took his board certification exam and was certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, and in 2012 by the American Board of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
His greatest achievement is successfully representing the Haitian community through a medical practice he co-owns with another Haitian doctor, Alande Brezault, M.D., in Miami called I and B Medical Associates (I&B). His other achievements include becoming the vice-chief of the medical staff and chairman of the credentialing committee at North Shore Medical Center. He’s also an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine.
I&B was established in 2002. Dr. Innocent and his medical team faced the same financial constraints most new businesses face – and a steep learning curve. They also had fierce competition, but they persevered. “We put our community first and aim to represent it well in everything we do,” says Dr. Innocent.
Dr. Innocent treats all types of various health conditions in the realm of internal medicine. Specifically, he’s dedicated to the treatment of hypertension, diabetes, and obesity and its associated complications. He displays compassion and innovation on a regular basis. His focus is on wellness and encouraging his medical team to maintain a united spirit that will allow them to offer the best possible healthcare services to their patients.
“Put down your distractions, work hard, dream big, read a lot, and develop a strong discipline in everything you do.”
As for humanitarian efforts, Dr. Innocent’s provides constant financial support to communities in Haiti, medical missions, and educational initiatives in Miami directly through AMHE (Association Médicale Haïtienne à l’Etranger) and I&B. He’s interacted with the Haitian community by creating and producing content for several educational media platforms such as Island TV, Radio Mega, Radio Piman, and AMHE.
The advice Dr. Innocent would give to young Haitians is to aspire to become inspired. “Put down your distractions, work hard, dream big, read a lot, and develop a strong discipline in everything you do,” he says. He also encourages young people to exercise to keep healthy and aim to help others as much as possible.
Dr. Innocent is an avid learner who continues to update his skills, knowledge, and understanding of others for the benefit of the community he serves. In his ideal healthcare environment, patients would be empowered to create and maintain the health they deserve.
In five to ten years, Dr. Innocent plans to scale I&B’s business model of high-quality healthcare and wellness services to other South Florida locations. He intends to remain in the healthcare industry, but he’s also interested in exploring other life sciences.
In his spare time, Dr. Innocent enjoys spending quality time with his family, traveling, exploring other cultures, power yoga, meditation, spending time at the beach and swimming. He takes pride in working hard but also knows how to enjoy life to the fullest.
I & B Medical Associates
9400 NW 12th Ave, Miami, FL 33150
Phone: (305) 835-9264
website: www.iandbmed.com
