Shilpa Hari | Peoria, IL

Dr. Shilpa Hari brilliantly blends clinical excellence with compassion in her work with abused and neglected children. She serves as a Child Abuse Pediatrician and Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria (UICOMP). This work involves providing trauma-informed medical evaluations and leading training programs that strengthen the response to child maltreatment throughout the region. Stephanie Johnson, the Executive Director of UICOMP’s Pediatric Resource Center, praises Shilpa’s tireless advocacy. “Her work at the Pediatric Resource Center not only protects children—it inspires systemic change and hope. She embodies the kind of leadership that transforms lives quietly but powerfully.”

Dr. Hari’s impact reaches beyond central Illinois. She contributes to national efforts through the Ray E. Helfer Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics. She has written peer-reviewed articles and is herself an editorial reviewer.

Shilpa was born in India but immigrated to Oman with her family as a one-year-old. Then in 2000, they moved again, this time to Canada where her parents and older sister still live. Her ideas of a future profession were as diverse as the places she called home, including being a journalist, an editor or a children’s clinical psychologist. Her mother’s work as a physician also led Shilpa to consider medicine. All these different dreams caused her to question her career path in her early 20s. But Shilpa’s calling was confirmed when she attended the annual Ray E. Helfer conference for child abuse and met like-minded peers. “After joining the field of child abuse pediatrics, I was able to be an editor, write articles and work closely with children with a history of child abuse. In that sense, this career let me do everything I wanted to grow up to do as a child.” Now, Dr. Hari can’t imagine doing anything else.

With many influential mentors to consider, Dr. Hari actually admires her 10-year-old niece the most. “She taught me how important it is to advocate for your agency and speak your feelings or concerns to others no matter how much they minimize it. It’s heart-warming to see the next generation being authentically themselves.”

Much of Dr. Hari’s lifestyle is driven by her passion for the environment and climate change. She became a vegan five years ago and tries to buy zero waste products. “One of my favorite stores is Intuition Coffee because they stock Riley’s Vegan Sweets.”

Although most of her immediate family lives in Canada, Shilpa enjoys her life in central Illinois. “I like to try a lot of restaurants that have vegan options. I tend to spend my time at West Main Street near Bradley University or by the Peoria Riverfront.” Shilpa lives in Peoria with her cat, Ted.