Sylvia Batong, MD  has experience in both primary care and urgent care. She earned her medical degree from New York Medical College and did her internship and residency in family medicine at Dewitt Army Hospital in Fort Belvoir, VA.

Dr. Batong’s interest in medicine started in her teens. “First, I watched my grandmother deal with cancer. Then I read an article in Life Magazine about the life of a country doctor in the Midwest and the way his work was entwined in the life of his community. I put the two together and knew what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be.”

After residency, Dr. Batong served out her military service commitment as a Family Physician at Fox Army Hospital in Huntsville AL, including a 6 week Tropical medicine course followed by a 6 month tour in Honduras.

Upon completion of her military service, she moved to Calvert County to raise her family and work in private practice. She left private practice in 2008 to join Johns Hopkins Community Physicians in Charles County, while continuing to work in Calvert County in CMH’s Urgent Care Centers.

Dr. Batong has demonstrated commitment to community throughout her life. She was a US Peace Corps Volunteer in the Philippines for two years, working in the Health and Community Development Program. She volunteered one day a week in the schools her children attended throughout their elementary school years, as well as with the Girl Scouts. She even coached soccer while her children were growing up. “Being part of a community is an essential piece of being a family doctor. That’s one of the reasons I love Calvert County, and why I am thrilled to be part of CalvertHealth Primary Care and the CalvertHealth system – we are a community based system serving the health needs of our community in a holistic way. It can’t get better than that!”

As a doctor of family medicine, Dr. Batong enjoys working with patients of all ages. “I love the days when I see a couple in their eighties and then an 18-month old baby. I can also be very direct and am good at reading people. I can tell when someone is hemming and hawing, that there is something delicate but important that they want to say. I just tell them, ‘I am your doctor. You can’t shock me. Just tell me.’ Then they give a sigh of relief or a chuckle and tell me what is bothering them.”