ABOUT US
Company History
After 8 years in practice with Memorial Health, Dr. Christi Ghaleb and her husband, Dr. Pete Ghaleb, started their own medical practice, Family Medicine of Pooler, in 2010 to better serve patients in the style they've known to love: efficient, caring and attentive.
With increasing pressure from government and private insurance plans forcing the practice to see more patients in less time, they made the bold decision to disrupt the health insurance industry by transforming their practice in 2017 into the first Direct Primary Care (DPC) practice in the Greater Savannah area. Their disruption paved the way for a dozen more DPC practices to get established in the area.
Dr. Pete handles the business side of things so that Dr. Christi can focus her full attention on providing excellent medical care for their patients. This synergy has resulted in a very stable practice which provides exceptional care.
MEET THE DOCTORS
CHRISTI GHALEB, M.D.
Board Certified Family Medicine Physician
Born and raised in Fresno, California, Dr. Christi Ghaleb received her undergraduate degree (B.S.) in Biology from the University of California, Fresno in 1997 and her Medical Doctor (M.D.) degree from Ross University School of Medicine in 2002.
After completing her residency training in Family Medicine as the Chief Resident at Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah, Georgia in 2005, Dr. Ghaleb worked as Clinical Assistant Professor at Mercer University School of Medicine and Medical College of Georgia, as well as an Attending Physician at Memorial Health University. She also briefly worked at St. Joseph / Candler Urgent Care prior to starting Family Medicine of Pooler with her husband, Dr. Pete Ghaleb, in 2010.
Dr. Christi Ghaleb is married with two children and enjoys outdoor activities with her family, such as riding bicycles, off-roading, scuba diving and boating... just to name a few.
PETE GHALEB, M.D.
Practice Administrator
Born and raised in Miami Beach, Florida, Dr. Pete Ghaleb received his Bachelors of Science (B.S.) degree in Biology from Florida International University in 1997 and his Medical Doctor (M.D.) from Spartan Health Sciences University School of Medicine in 2002.
Dr. Pete moved to Savannah in 2002 and became involved with academia and created a company that helps medical students become physicians. With Dr. Pete serving as its President and Chief Operations Officer, that business has been at the forefront of the medical education industry, literally helping thousands of people to fulfill their dreams of becoming a doctor. In 2010, Dr. Pete started Family Medicine of Pooler with his wife, Dr. Christi Ghaleb.
Dr. Pete is married with two children, is very active at church, and enjoys water sports such as boating and scuba diving. He also coaches his kids in multiple sports and DJ's with his daughter.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
SOUTH'S GREATEST DOCTORS 2022/23 -
DRS. CHRISTI & PETE GHALEB - FAMILY MEDICINE
January 5, 2023 by South Magaine
"Listening to our patients is so important because they know their own bodies better than anyone else. So we always try to listen to our patient’s concerns, thoughts and ideas, then we can provide them with our input, and together, we can find the best solution that is going to better their health."
SOUTH'S GREATEST DOCTORS 2021/22 -
DRS. CHRISTI & PETE GHALEB - FAMILY MEDICINE
December 27, 2021 by South Magazine
"In our down time, we enjoy off-roading in our vehicles aptly named ‘Beauty and The Beast’. We have been told that ‘Beauty’ fits Dr. Christi’s personality since she is the face of the practice, always showing kindness and compassion when providing medical care to patients. ‘The Beast’ better represents Dr. Pete as the voice of the practice, who consistently advocates for lower and transparent healthcare pricing."
SOUTH'S GREATEST DOCTORS 2020/21-
DRS. CHRISTI & PETE GHALEB - FAMILY MEDICINE
December 11, 2020 by South Magazine
Drs. Christi and Pete Ghaleb of Family Medicine of Pooler are partners in life and business—demonstrating the power and effect of family values in healthcare.
Who: At Family Medicine of Pooler —run by the husband and wife duo, Christi Ghaleb, M.D. and Pete Ghaleb, M.D.—medicine might be their middle name, but it’s family that gets top billing
DIRECT MEDICINE: IS IT RIGHT FOR YOU?
Featured Article by South Magazine on December 10, 2019
THE SHORT ANSWER IS YES (UNLESS YOU’RE AN INSURANCE MIDDLEMAN, THEN PROBABLY NOT).
If you haven’t been following the news over the last decade or so, it may shock you to find out that the world of medicine is woefully inefficient. Giant megacorporate healthcare firms, labyrinthine insurance protocols and an overriding ethos of putting profits over patients have created a system that might line the pockets of shareholders and CEOs, but doesn’t do much for you when you’re in need of medical care.
Physicians Pete and Christi Ghaleb, founders of Family Medicine of Pooler, spent eight long years as part of that system. From their vantage points inside the machine, they saw how the system almost seemed designed to make them provide worse care, shuffling patients in and out of their offices and battling stacks of insurance paperwork rather than caring for those who needed it.
“We just knew something had to change,” said Pete.
They took the bold step of not only going out on their own, but structuring their practice around the principles of direct primary care. Essentially, this model cuts out the middleman of insurance and governmental regulations, giving you direct access to your doctor. When you sign up as a patient, you pay a registration fee and then a monthly fee akin to a subscription service, and in return you get truly individualized care and direct access to your doctor.