Meet Our Team
Our team at Virginia Child Neurology Specialists is compassionate, caring, and dedicated to child health and welfare.
Sanjai C. Rao, D.O.
Dr. Rao has more than 20 years of experience in child neurology and has been in the Richmond area since 2016. Prior to opening Virginia Child Neurology Specialists, he was an attending child neurologist at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU Health from 2016 to 2022. While working at VCU Health, he was on the faculty for their school of medicine and served as the ambulatory medical director for child neurology. His main accomplishments while working at VCU Health include establishing and serving as the Director of the Pediatric Headache Program and being their first board-certified headache specialist.
Before coming to Virginia, Dr. Rao worked as an attending child neurologist and was on the faculty at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. In recognition of his dedication to teaching, he was awarded the Alexander J. Shaffer Teaching Award. Dr. Rao’s peers have voted him a Richmond Top Doctor for Child Neurology from 2017 to 2022.
Military Service
Before his medical career, Dr. Rao served as a surface warfare officer in the U.S. Navy from 1990 to 1993. He is proud to be a Navy veteran. He has extreme admiration, respect, and gratitude for those who continue to serve in our military.
Education
- Navy ROTC, 1990
- B.S., Union College, 1990
- D.O., New York College of Osteopathic Medicine, 1999
- Child Neurology training at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, 2004
Dedicated Staff
Although Dr. Rao is the only child neurologist at our practice, our team also consists of new administrative staff members. They are committed to creating their own careers in healthcare through continuing education, working, and volunteering. As our practice continues to grow, more information will be made available about each of them.