Department: Medical

Dr. Lakshmi Polavarapu is Interim Chief Medical Officer at Sadler Health Center, where she provides clinical leadership to the medical department in support of high-quality, integrated, whole-person care for patients. At Sadler, she practices family and addiction medicine. She is certified in providing MOUD (medications for opioid use disorder) and serves on the Task Force on Opiate Prescribing with the Partnership for Better Health.

Outside of Sadler, Dr. Polavarapu is a clinical assistant professor of family and community medicine at Penn State College of Medicine and trains medical students from both Penn State Health and UPMC.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in medicine and surgery (MBBS) from Kamineni Institute of Medical Sciences in India and completed her residency at Genesys Regional Medical Center in Michigan, where she became board certified in family medicine. She has experience in outpatient clinics, inpatient hospital care and nursing home care.

In her spare time, she enjoys cooking and hiking.

Originally from Bellefonte, PA, Miller-Griffie earned a nursing diploma from the Altoona Hospital of Nursing, Altoona, PA. She achieved a Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing from the University of Delaware and graduated Magna Cum Laude. She attended the University of Maryland University College and graduated with a Master of Science degree with a concentration in Healthcare Administration. Recently, she completed her Master of Science degree in Nursing with a concentration as a Family Nurse Practitioner from Walden University.

Prior to joining Sadler, Maureen worked in the Emergency Department at UPMC-Carlisle as a Staff Nurse.

She is married and has three children – all boys plus a new grandchild, also a boy! She enjoys gardening and hopes to further her education in healthcare by obtaining a doctorate in nursing practice.