Kara Starnes, DO

Kara Starnes, D.O., FAAP, knew she wanted to be a pediatrician from a very young age, as she loved visiting her pediatrician "Dr. Vanilla Doo" (Dr. deVilleneuve). As an only child, she would get creative and line up her dolls for "clinic". If only Doc McStuffins had been around back in those days!

Now, Dr. Starnes has three sons who, like typical boys, like to fall out of trees and break things, get cuts that require stitches, so the dolls from her childhood have now become her sons lined up for "clinic" at home.

Dr. Starnes began her journey in medicine by earning her degree in Microbiology from Texas A&M University with minor studies in business and she continued that journey in medical school at Texas College of Medicine in Fort Worth and in residency at Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock. While in medical school, she determined that the joy in medicine came not only through performing procedures to help a child, but in making a treatment, visit or procedure as painless and easy as possible. She worked with Child Life specialists in residency to develop techniques to put children at ease and make going to the doctor less fearful.

Out of residency, Dr. Starnes became a general pediatrician, practicing in McKinney, TX. Her love for procedures and helping children who had more significant illnesses and injuries translated into working in the urgent care setting as well as the emergency department. She determined that her niche in medicine was ultimately urgent care, and she is now the medical director over Cook Children's Urgent Care Services. She enjoys teaching, implementing new ideas and helping all of our urgent care physicians and advanced practice providers to keep the Promise of Cook Children's always at heart.