New York State Academy of Family Physicians
STATEMENT
For Immediate Release
May 15, 2025
Contact: Vito Grasso, Executive Vice President at 518-469-5237/ vito@nysafp.org
New York City Family Physician Awarded NYS Academy of Family Physicians’ 2025 Family Physician of the Year
The New York State Academy of Family Physicians (NYSAFP) announced today the winner of an award for excellence in family medicine in New York. The NYSAFP’s Family Physician of the Year Award recognizes Anita Ravi, MD, MPH, MSHP, FAAFP as an exemplary member of the family medicine profession and praises her dedication to providing and educating other service providers on trauma-informed care as the President, CEO, and Co-Founder of the PurpLE Health Foundation, a non-profit organization.
Dr. Anita Ravi was nominated by her patients, students, and colleagues for her devotion to Family Medicine and outstanding service to survivors of gender-based violence. Prior to co-founding PurpLE Health in 2019, Dr. Ravi graduated from Washington University in St. Louis and received her Medical Degree from the University of Michigan School of Medicine. She also founded and was the medical director of the PurpLE Clinic – a “clinic in a clinic” model piloted within a larger community health center in New York City. This clinic served as a primary medical home for people who had experienced human trafficking and other forms of trauma, including domestic violence and sexual assault. She also received her Masters in Public Health from Yale University, her Masters in Health Policy research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and is a graduate of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation/Veterans Affairs Clinical Scholars Fellowship Program.
In addition to her clinical work as a physician, Dr. Ravi has collaborated with survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking in a variety of settings, including Rikers Island and immigration detention centers, developed policy on local and national committees focused on health equity and human trafficking, published peer-reviewed research in this field, and conducted educational trainings and workshops centered around integrating trauma-informed care principles in healthcare delivery. She regularly writes, draws, and speaks at events across the country about how the healthcare system must radically change to meet the needs of survivors. Dr. Ravi’s unique approach to healthcare and advocacy has garnered national recognition, including being selected as a 2021 “40 Under 40” Leader in Minority Health by the National Minority Quality Forum, a 2022 Presidential Leadership Scholar, and selected for the Rockefeller Foundation’s 2023 Bellagio Center Residency Program.
Dr. Anita Ravi will be officially recognized for this honor during NYSAFP’s Congress of Delegates in Albany on May 17th.
NYSAFP represents nearly 6,000 family physicians, residents and students across the State. NYSAFP Family Physicians are board-certified and specialize in family medicine. Family physicians focus on the whole patient providing care throughout their lifetime. They provide comprehensive healthcare services to treat diseases and injuries in all age groups from newborns to the geriatric population and across all medical fields. Family Physicians focus on prevention, wellness and overall care coordination for patients and family medicine is the only specialty to focus on the care of the entire family unit. Family Physicians are also a main source of primary health care in New York and across the country.