Providers
Endocrinologist
Dr. Huffman attended North Carolina State University and received his BS in Chemistry and Biology in 1977 and a MS in Biochemistry in 1979. He received his MD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1982, and completed his Medical Externship in Medical Service at John Umstead Hospital in Butner North Carolina in 1983. His Internal Medicine Internship, Residency, and clinical/research Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism Fellowship were completed at Baylor Affiliated Hospitals in Houston TX. In 1989 he moved to Chattanooga TN, with his wife Dr. Terry Melvin. He was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at the age of 12.
A Day in the Life .........
Diabetes: A personal and professional challenge
In a four-part blog series from the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Dr. Huffman discusses a typical work week.
Endocrinologist
Dr. Seagrove provides expert care in our Center for Diabetes Excellence and in Thyroid Disorders, in addition to general Endocrinology and metabolism. Decades of personal experience with type 1 diabetes and thyroiditis make her ideally suited for those needing the greatest expertise to live well with these conditions. Dr. Seagrove also studies and offers advanced treatments for obesity, polycystic ovarian disease and complications of insulin resistance.
While in undergraduate college, Dr. Seagrove coordinated research studies at UDEC, participating in clinical and original research in type 1 diabetes and other endocrine disorders. She graduated with a D.O. from Lincoln University and undertook medicine residency and endocrine fellowship at East Carolina University Hospitals. Thereafter she held a faculty position in the Endocrinology Division, Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina. She returns to her hometown of Chattanooga to renew family ties and care for those she knows best, those with hormonal disorders in East Tennessee..
Registered Dietitian
Juliana Burnette has lived in Chattanooga, TN since 1996 after graduating from University of Southern Mississippi with a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics. She has worked as a Registered Dietitian for nearly 20 years and Certified Diabetes Educator with Dr. Huffman’s practice for past 10 years. She has gained experience in many areas including intrinsic coaching, mindfulness and mindful eating approaches, preventative nutrition, corporate wellness programs, plant based diets, weight management, cardiovascular nutrition, geriatric nutrition and eternal feeding nutrition. She is a member of American Association of Diabetes Educators and enjoys partnering with individuals on a journey to assist them in finding best solutions as they pursue their goals.
Endocrinologist
Doctor Grigoryan is a Chattanooga native, graduated from Girls Preparatory School and is really happy to be back home after training. She obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA and her doctor of medicine degree in Moscow, Russia. Seda completed her internship and residency in internal medicine in Michigan State University and her Endocrinology fellowship training in University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She also was an NIH research grant recipient in the field of metabolic bone health in post-menopausal women.
Her areas of interest include metabolic bone disease, thyroid, obesity, but she enjoys other aspect of endocrinology as well. She likes to focus on the patient as a whole, targeting the treatment to include lifestyle modification and not simply focus on medications.
Seda is fluent in English, Armenian, Russian and has a minor in Spanish.
In her free time she loves to spend time with her son, hike, travel, garden and dance.
Physician Assistant
Hannah Weitz is a resident of Ringgold, GA. She graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion in 2011. After receiving her undergraduate degree, Hannah returned to the Chattanooga area to gain clinical experience working as a Patient Care Technician for Memorial Hospital in the Clinical Decision Unit. Hannah received her Masters in Physician Assistant studies from South University in Savannah, GA and joined the team at University Diabetes and Endocrine Consultants in June 2016. Hannah loves running and everything outdoors. She has been living with Type 1 diabetes since age 11. She has 1 cat named Thomas Jefferson and a dog named Mattie.
Diabetes Educator
Claire Blum is a Registered Nurse, Certified Diabetes Educator, and Certified Health & Wellness Coach through Wellcoach®. She holds a Masters degree in education, and her training includes studies in family and consumer economics, nursing, nutrition, social work, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), experiential learning, and adventure-based outdoor education. She serves as insulin pump specialist at University Diabetes & Endocrine Consultants in Chattanooga TN; and program coordinator for Partners & Peers for Diabetes Care, a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to empowering people with diabetes to actively participate in their health care through partnerships that promote trust and enhance learning. Throughout her years of work as a diabetes educator and health coach she has learned that it is easy to tell others what they should do in order to manage their diabetes. But, as a person who also lives with diabetes, she knows that managing diabetes takes much more than factual information. It requires inner wisdom, a willingness to listen to that inner wisdom, and a great deal of compassion. It is an ART that can be learned, which adds dimensions to life that are often missed. Claire has lived with Type 1diabetes for more than 35 years, and worn an insulin pump since 1986.