Dr. Eric Cornidez

Family, Faith and Caring for the Community 

By April Bourie

Dr. Eric Cornidez wanted to be a doctor since he was a young boy growing up in South Tucson. He has built his career around faith, family and impacting the health and well-being of others. 

The Father of the Year’s journey was shaped by his childhood experiences.  

“When I was 10 years old, my dad got a back injury working as a copper miner,” Cornidez recalled. “He lost his job because of it, and all of our financial and healthcare resources went out the window. Whenever someone got sick and home remedies no longer worked, we went to ‘El Doctor’ in Nogales because it cost less.  Each time, the anxiety, tension and stress we felt on the drive down was lessened on the drive home because he could make whoever was sick feel better. I wanted to have that kind of impact on others.”

Today, Cornidez is the owner, managing partner and chief medical officer at the Pain Institute of Southern Arizona. He initially wanted to be a pediatrician, but his mentors at Stanford University encouraged him to go into both the clinical and administration sides of healthcare to make a bigger impact. 

“My ultimate goal was to be a CEO of a hospital group and use their resources to build clinics in underserved areas,” said Cornidez. “I noted that many hospital directors and CEOs had an anesthesia background, so that’s what I chose as my focus.” 

“Being from South Tucson, I often felt like I didn’t belong at Stanford,” he said. “My mentors there encouraged me to embrace who I truly am. This helped me to discover that I had something to contribute to the medical environment.”

Cornidez wants to do the same for his employees. 

“I want the Pain Institute of Southern Arizona to not just be a great medical practice, but also a pillar in the community,” he said. “My employees understand that through compassion and innovation, we will make an impact on the lives of individuals and the community. I encourage them to see they are part of something that is bigger than themselves.”

Mentorship is also important in the community organizations in which Cornidez is involved. 

“I’m involved in the Tucson Metro Chamber because I feel it is my responsibility as a leader to empower small businesses to be successful,” Cornidez said. “On the national level, I’m seen as a mentor and someone who is making a significant difference in the delivery of pain management. I encourage focusing on impact over income and significance over success. I’m always asking what kind of mentorship programs we can develop to provide opportunity for those newer to the industry.”

As a family man, he underscores the role his faith plays in raising his children.

“I’m known for my faith, my family, and my organization and the impact it makes. This beautiful wife and my incredible kids are borrowed to me. They belong to God first.”

His wife, Ariana, said his faith was one of the things that initially impressed her.  

“The main thing that makes him the best husband and father is that Christ is in the center of his heart,” she said. “This is truly the best part about him. He does everything 100%. He loves hard. He’s a good disciplinarian, and he plays hard. He embraces every opportunity, whether parenting or being a husband or any role he plays.” 

The couple have four children: Maddie, 12, Eric, 11, Camila, 9, and David, 7. 

“He encourages our children to be the best version of themselves, and he’s able to inspire them to do things that others can’t,” said Ariana.

Juggling his career with fatherhood is both rewarding and challenging for the physician, who credits Ariana for making the most of their time as a family. “I think as a man and a father, you always have this guilt that you’re not doing enough,” said Cornidez. 

“Ariana maximizes my presence but minimizes my absence,” he said. “I make sure that when I am at home, the time spent is 100% quality family time, but my family understands that what I’m doing is much bigger than myself and the paycheck. 

“They’re being raised with a tolerance for my absence because they understand this. However, as my growth professionally has skyrocketed, one of the things I want to make sure to never forget is why I’m doing this. God has blessed me with special talents to fulfill my mission. I can’t forget to take care of what’s most important, and that’s my family.”

Pictured Above: Back Row − Eric and Ariana. Front Row − Eric, Camila, David, Madeleine. Photo by Chris Mooney