Panda Pediatrics
We exist to provide quality and compassionate health care to all children & adolescents in Lawrence and surrounding areas – focusing on integrated, patient-centered care.
As part of the Heartland Community Health Center Family, Panda Pediatrics accepts all patients regardless of income or insurance status.
We’re there when you need us, we have a physician on call 24-hours-a-day and a nurse triage line for all of your questions.
Services
Primary Care
Our pediatricians provide high quality primary care for newborns to teenagers – evaluating physical, mental, emotional and social development. From routine check-ups and vaccinations to managing complex medical needs, we prioritize whole-child health. Whether it’s your baby’s first visit, or care at our walk-in clinic, our team is here for your family every step of the way.
Pediatric Dentistry
- Dental and oral health care including cleaning, x-rays, fluoride, fillings, sealants, and extractions
Mental Health & Psychiatry
- Mental health services such as individual & family therapy, play therapy, and treatment of anxiety, depression, ADHD and more, as part of a whole-person treatment plan
Pharmacy & Medication Assistance
- Convenient and affordable medication at River City Pharmacy Now with free delivery.
Healthy Futures
- Community-based program that brings free comprehensive dental care to area schools
Walk-In Clinic
Open every week day, Panda Pediatrics is the only walk-in clinic specializing exclusively in pediatric care in Lawrence.
Established patients can visit the walk-in clinic for non-emergent sick symptoms such as: ear infections, fever, cough, respiratory symptoms, vomiting and diarrhea.
The walk-in clinic is located at 1803 W 6th Street and is open to patients from 8am – 10am, Monday – Friday. Same-day and sick appointments are also available weekday afternoons.
Provider Spotlight
Dr. Jepson
NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
"It has been a great privilege to serve the children and caregivers of our community every day, sharing the joys and challenges that come with pediatric care. Our clinic has a diverse group of providers with a wealth of experience, and I enjoy the opportunity to have been welcomed into the Heartland Panda Pediatrics family".
Caressa Kuy, APRN, CPNP-PC
NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
Caressa is living her dream of caring for children at Panda Pediatrics. She is deeply passionate about building lifelong, trusting relationships with families.
Payton Jaimes, APRN, CPNP-PC
NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
Payton is passionate about providing compassionate, high-quality care to patients of all ages, while providing support for the whole family.
Megan Hottman, APRN, CPNP-PC
NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
“As a mom to two girls, I understand what parents are going through. I try to bring a warm, empathetic approach to every visit, and I truly believe in whole-child care. I’m here to support your family in every part of your child’s well-being.”
Pediatricians and Providers
Dr. Rundquist
Pediatric MD
Dr. Beth Rundquist has been practicing medicine in the Lawrence community since 1988. She earned a B.A. in Chemistry from Bethany College, then attended the University of Kansas School of Medicine, and completed her pediatric residency there in 1988. She is proud to be a Kansan and blessed to be a Jayhawk!
Dr. Rundquist’s friendly disposition and personal approach with infants and children has endeared her to countless young people who continue to confide in her throughout their teen and college years. She strives to address acute and chronic illness in the realm of well care by encouraging healthy life habits and by paying close attention to development and emotional well-being. Her priority is to help children and families develop into healthy, productive members of our community.
Dr. Rundquist is certified through the Pediatric Board and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She is also a member of the Kansas Medical Society. As with all of our physicians, she is a member of the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Department of Pediatrics.
Dr. Rundquist is married and the mother of two very active, non-smoking, helmet wearing, seat-belt clicking, fully immunized young adults. For more than 10 years, she has bravely fought breast cancer and emerged with renewed strength of faith and passion for life! She enjoys baking, gardening, dark chocolate, Diet Coke and has earned T-Shirts at Red Dog’s Dog Days for more than 15 years. She is passionate about the arts and children’s literature, frequents our local art galleries and theaters, and never misses the Walnut Valley Music Festival in Winfield.
Dr. Whitney
Pediatric MD
Dr. Krista Whitney is one of our most skilled physicians and heads our pediatrics team at Panda. She trained at Washington University in St. Louis for her doctorate and gained her pediatric specialty training at the University of Texas Southwestern in Dallas, Texas. After residency, she was elected to the prestigious Chief Resident position for her final year of training. As if that were not impressive enough, she’s a published researcher, speaks Spanish, and has an interest for public health and prevention.
Dr. Whitney, since working at Panda, has presented to the American Academy of Pediatrics ECHO program, a national tele-mentoring group for other physicians, on our COVID-19 safety measures, showing how much she cares for families and public health. In short, she’s a fantastic doctor and our clinic and the community at large is lucky to have her her.
Dr. Jepson
Pediatric DO
Now accepting new patients
Dr. Jepson earned his medical degree from Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences (KCUMB) in 2011 and completed his pediatric residency at Akron Children’s Hospital in Akron, Ohio in 2014. He then returned to Kansas, practicing at Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHCSEK) in Pittsburg from 2014 to 2018, followed by seven years at GraceMed in Topeka from 2018 to 2025. Throughout his career, Dr. Jepson has gained extensive experience in both rural and urban healthcare settings, with particular expertise in the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) environment.
Dr. Jepson resides in Lawrence with his wife and two sons. Outside of his medical practice, he enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing disc golf, attending theater performances, and playing board games.
Dr. Jepson looks forward to contributing to the health and wellbeing of our community’s youngest patients and their families at Panda Pediatrics.
MAUREEN CARO
APRN
Maureen (Mo) is a Family Nurse Practitioner and sees people throughout the age range. She has her BSN/RN from Creighton University in Nebraska in 2006 and her MSN from Case Western Reserve University in Ohio in 2010. She worked at Minute Clinic for 8 years, then went into family medicine.
Mo learned Spanish in school and working in a primarily Spanish-speaking family medicine clinic in Olathe. She started working in addiction medicine in 2020.
She is a lifelong learner and likes to quilt and knit in her spare time. She has two dogs, a partner, and three children.
Caressa Kuy
APRN, CPNP-PC
Now accepting new patients
Caressa is a Primary Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with her Master’s of Science in Nursing and Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing.
For 4 years Caressa worked in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Children’s Mercy serving the most vulnerable population. At Children’s Mercy her leadership roles consisted of being on the Delivery team, Resource Team, and the Small baby team.
Caressa’s clinical experience consists of the Dermatology clinic, ENT clinic, Development & Behavioral Health clinic, the Emergency Department, and Gynecology clinic. She is passionate and dedicated to creating lifelong trusting relationships with patients and their families.
In her free time, she likes to read, hike, and take her two dogs on walks. She has always dreamed of working in a pediatric primary care setting and is excited to give back to the community.
Dr. Kelley
Pediatric MD
Dr. Marshall Kelley became a partner in Panda Pediatrics in 1994. He moved to Lawrence from Salina, Kansas where he completed a 4-year rural healthcare program after graduating from the University of Kansas School of Medicine and completed his residency and internship at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. As an undergraduate at the University of Kansas, Marshall was in the School of Pharmacy and was a varsity member of the KU Men’s Gymnastics team. His record for high bar can still be seen in the Booth Hall of Athletics.
Dr. Kelley loves to interact with families and help guide them through their child’s growth and development. With studies showing 1 in 8 kids have ADHD, it gives him much gratification to provide patients and parents the tools needed to optimize academic and life success. Dr. Kelley thrives in the world of computers and for 20 years has been committed to keeping the practice on the cutting edge of technology.
Dr. Kelley is a credentialed member of the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Department of Pediatrics and has served on the board of directors for Douglas County CASA (Court Appointment Special Advocates), TinyK, and The Children’s Shelter. In his spare time, Dr. Kelley enjoys the art of woodworking. Many of Marshall’s woodworking projects have been donated to these organizations for their annual fundraisers. Dr. Kelley has been married for over 20 years to Beth and they enjoy time with their 5 children and 7 grandchildren.
Dr. VanderVelde
Pediatric MD
Dr. Katie VanderVelde joined our practice in January of 2022. She earned a B.A. in Biochemistry from the University of Kansas. Following graduation, she served as an AmeriCorps volunteer at Heartland in its early stages running the Women’s Health Initiative Program prior to attending medical school at the University of Kansas School of Medicine.
Dr. VanderVelde completed her General Pediatrics residency training at Phoenix Children’s Hospital where she was selected to serve as a Chief Resident. She completed a 3-year fellowship in Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City in 2021 prior to moving to Lawrence. Her fellowship research projects were targeted at the diagnosis and management of pediatric antibiotic allergies, improving medical education feedback methods, and implementation of immunizations in the pediatric emergency department.
Dr. VanderVelde is certified through the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). She is a member of the AAP Section on Infectious Diseases where she serves on the Education Committee. She considers herself a lifelong learner and is currently completing her Masters in Public Health through the University of Kansas School of Medicine.
Dr. VanderVelde is married, and she has three daughters (two of which are twins!) – who she credits as her most influential teachers throughout her pediatric career.
Cindy Mast
PA-C
Cynthia Mast, Physician Assistant-Certified, has been with Panda Pediatrics since 2003. She was a 1996 graduate of Lawrence High School and went on to study Human Biology at the University of Kansas. She graduated from KU in 2000 and completed Physician Assistant Studies at Wichita State in 2002. Cindy is certified with the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants.
The patients and staff of Panda Pediatrics love Cindy’s youthful energy, compassion and sense of humor. She strives to address illness with attention to the overall health and lifestyle of the patients. Cindy sets a good example of wellness and fitness as an active runner with a history of participation in marathons and cross-country throughout school. Cindy is active with her church and enjoys being outdoors. She and her husband have four beautiful children.
Payton Jaimes
MSN-FNP
Now accepting new patients
Payton is a Family Nurse Practitioner who is passionate about caring for patients of various ages. She obtained her BSN/RN from the University of Missouri in Columbia, with a minor in Spanish.
Payton spent her career as an RN caring for the smallest and sickest of patients in the neonatal ICU. During this same time, she was a flight nurse for the hospitals critical care neonatal transport team. Payton is passionate about caring for the individual patient and their families.
She obtained her MSN-FNP from The University of Missouri Kansas City. She has experience as a Nurse Practitioner in the walk in clinic setting, caring for patients of all ages. Payton is eager to provide the most quality of care for the families of Lawrence.
In her free time, Payton enjoys exercising and spending quality time with family, friends, her husband and two dogs.
Megan Hottman
APRN, CPNP-PC
Now accepting new patients
On-Call and After Hours Service
After hours, patients can take advantage of our on-call service by calling (785-842-4477). After calling, you will be directed to the On-Call Physician or, in some instances, the Children’s Mercy Hospital Nurse Triage line.
The CMH triage nurses are pediatric nurses with extensive training who will help answer your questions, or direct you to an after hours provider, should your child require one immediately.
FOR EMERGENCIES DIAL 911
Access links to important pediatric health and wellness information below. Resources include symptom checker from American Academy of Pediatrics, Car Seat Safety tips from The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and more.
IF THIS IS AN EMERGENCY PLEASE CALL 911.
Integrated Care at Heartland
Patients of Panda Pediatrics, along with their entire family, get access to Heartland’s full-service Health Center.
Family Medicine, Mental & Behavioral Health, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Medicaid/Medicare Assistance, Care Cupboard Food Pantry, and more at Heartland Community Health Center.
Connect with Panda Pediatrics
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Our practice has won the “Best of Lawrence” community vote since 2013. We are also a 5-star Kansas Breastfeeding Friendly Practice.