The staff at The Health & Wellness Center has one goal: to make sure you feel your best (and stay that way). Our team has years of experience managing the health and wellness needs of patients in St. Louis, MO and beyond. Led by Dr. Secil Schodroski, our providers take the time to understand each patient's goals and health issues before building a customized plan designed to address them. When you're in our care, you can rest assured that you are receiving the best we can offer: superior treatments and outstanding customer service.
Dr. Joseph Yazdi is a board-certified neurosurgeon who has been in private practice since 2001. His areas of expertise are minimally invasive spinal surgery, diagnosing and treatment of traumatic brain injury, pain management, and regenerative medicine. Dr. Yazdi is an engaging, innovative and experienced neurosurgeon who is committed to providing exceptional outcomes for his patients.
Dr. Yazdi graduated from Hahnemann University School of Medicine (now known as Drexel University Medical School) in 1994. He did the first five years of neurosurgical residency at Hahnemann University Hospital. He completed the last two years of his residency at University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (now known as Rutgers University Medical School) in 2001. He then joined the neurosurgery group at the Toledo Clinic in Toledo, OH. In 2008, he relocated to the St. Louis area where he worked at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Belleville, Illinois. In 2015, he began working at SpineMore Surgical Associates in Missouri. He opened his own practice as Arch Neurosurgery, LLC in August 2018.
Dr. Yazdi has offices in Clayton and Festus. His patient centered approach allows him to design individualized treatment plans for each patient. Some of the services he offers include:
Dr. Yazdi joined Veterans’ Advantage Urgent Care (VAUC) as its medical director in April 2020. His multifaceted experience has enabled him to design a very unique and encompassing program for veterans suffering from various aspects of head and body injuries. One of the distinctive aspects of this program is that all treatment options are provided in one location. This patient-centric modality, along with centralized scheduling of the different treatment options, creates a less stressful and more rewarding experience. By combining these treatments with various aspects of regenerative medicine, Dr. Yazdi’s goal is to rehabilitate veterans’ as close as possible to their pre-injury state.
My name is Sophai Tach, and I am a certified family nurse practitioner. I started my career in nursing in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in nursing from St. Louis University. I completed my doctorate in nursing practice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2019. I have worked in community health for the past five years and have spent three years in obesity management research. What these experiences taught me was the enormous impact of the environment on health and behavior. Each individual’s environment, behavior, and genetic makeup are unique, warranting personalized health treatment plans.
Outside of the clinic, you can find me working out, playing sand volleyball, learning healthy recipes, and hanging out at coffee shops. I look forward to learning about you and providing care for you.
My name is Taron Blount, MBA, BS, and I am the business/practice manager. I was born and raised in St. Louis, MO. During middle school, I decided that I wanted to be an electrical engineer. I thought it would be cool to make the parts that make electricity. This changed during my senior year in high school. After a talk with my Uncle Ronald, who I have looked up to for many years, I decided that getting my MBA was a better choice. Since that time, I have accomplished that goal. Now I can proudly say that I am working side-by-side with my amazing sister and a great team. I am married and I have two handsome and smart sons.
My goal is to help anyone get their life filled with happiness, healthiness, wellness, and fulfillment. I can only help those that want my help. I can say with the help of my sister, I am not only the manager but also a patient. I love my sister, I love this center, and I love what we stand for with the health and wellness of the community. I am on a mission to help as many people as I can to live a strong and healthy life.
My name is Shasta Demecs. I currently live in St. Louis with my six-year-old son, Tristin, and our dog, Tonka. I found that my place in this world is anywhere that I can help educate and care for people in trying to achieve their highest level of health using my skills as a registered nurse.
My journey began at a small nursing home in Cape Girardeau, MO. This is where I became a certified nursing assistant. I cared for the elderly and specialized in an ambulatory Alzheimer’s unit. It is where I began to see the reward I felt when I could bring joy, peace, and quality care to the people I was responsible for. In 2000, I graduated from Applied Technologies Licensed Practice Nurse Program, which is where I met Secil for the first time. I stayed in orthopedics for about another year. From there, I did agency nursing. I worked as a home health nurse, in nursing homes, and at a couple of local hospitals. I saw in myself that I could do more but was limited as a practice nurse. I went to Lutheran School of Nursing where I graduated in 2004, second in my class.
Immediately after graduation, I started working at Des Peres Hospital in the intensive care unit that specialized in cardiac care. I worked at Des Peres for a total of ten years. After three years of ICU, I joined the float pool team. I worked in all areas of the hospital, including endoscopy, cardiac cath lab, orthopedics, acute care for the elderly, cardiac telemetry, general medical-surgical, cardiac care unit, and outpatient surgery. The administration team then offered me a position to become a part of that team as a house supervisor. This opportunity showed me a whole other side to working in the medical field. Still a member of the float pool team, I was then "floated" to the cardiology practice, advanced heart, and vascular. I once again was introduced to an entirely different aspect of nursing as an office nurse. After a year there, I was offered an opportunity to work in a larger cardiology practice.
I have also been fortunate to have developed relationships with so many caring, competent, and successful people. The one relationship I am most thankful for in my journey is the one I have with my best friend, Secil. We have come a long way in our nursing careers, and we both have taken different paths. I believe that our method is going to play a huge role in making our community healthier and happier, one patient at a time.
My name is Derek Christopher, and I am a board-certified family nurse practitioner, born and raised here in St. Louis, MO. I started my career as a registered nurse nine years ago in an acute care setting on the kidney/liver transplant floor at Barnes Jewish Hospital. While transplant was my home, I also worked in many different areas of the hospital from time to time, even including a small stent in the emergency room. Having gained that overall experience, I began to realize that while I loved helping people get better, I more so wanted to help prevent people from getting sick, which is what led me to become passionate about getting involved in health promotion and prevention. I wanted more than to help treat a short hospital stay, I wanted to help treat a full lifespan.
That being said, I jumped back into school, and in 2016, I graduated with my nurse practitioner degree from Maryville University. I soon thereafter embarked on a journey across the country to Nevada to begin my new career working in family medicine in a rural clinic. While there, I became introduced to the world of aesthetics and later obtained certification in both BOTOX® and dermal fillers. Now, back in this great ole city of St. Louis, my mission, should you choose, isn’t for YOU to be the person I think you should be but to help you be the person YOU want YOU to be.
My name is Antionette Collins, and I am a medical assistant at The Health & Wellness Center. I have been in the healthcare industry for 15 years. My goals with the company are to provide the best patient care and satisfy all requirements the best I can.
In my free time, I like to travel. I’ve been to Belize, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Key West; those are some of my favorites. My dream trip is to finally go to Paris, France. I look forward to meeting each of you!
My name is Sarah Mujdzic. I am a former paramedic and currently attend a university for a Bachelor of Science in biology and psychology with a minor in gender studies. Once that is complete, I will further my education with a doctorate in physician assistant studies. My ultimate goal is to help the people of my community and provide a smooth healthcare experience.
Outside of the clinic, you can find me relaxing at home with my dogs and cat or taking spontaneous last-minute trips.
I’m big on nature and mountains so a lot of my trips take place in scenic areas. Also, I am a foodie so on your next visit, I’d appreciate any restaurant recommendations.
My name is Sarah Dolan. I was born and raised in southeast Missouri. I have been working in the healthcare field since 2008. I have a passion for helping people and love working with the public. When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my four children, cooking, road trips, and attending concerts.
Hi, my name is Jo'Ail. I am a medical assistant here at The Health & Wellness Center. It is a pleasure working here servicing all the patients' healthcare needs.
I have been a medical assistant for seven years now. It has truly been an amazing journey of medical assisting.
I am a determined, dependable, accountable, easily adaptive to change, work-driven medical assistant. I always remember the saying, "Through hard work and perseverance, you will achieve your greatest potential."
Hi my name is Annie! I love working with Dr. Secil at THWC! My goal here is to help everyone feel their best!