Rafael E. Valenzuela-Tapia, DO

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Get to know Nephrologist Dr. Rafael E. Valenzuela-Tapia, who serves patients in Florida.

Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia is a fellowship-trained nephrologist & Certified Hypertension Specialist. He is a part of the team of professionals at Kidney and Hypertension Specialists, P.A. in Delray Beach, Florida.

Kidney & Hypertension Specialists, P.A. is a highly respected subspecialty nephrology practice established in 1999. It provides comprehensive consultative services for management of diseases of the kidney, complex and essential hypertension, and dialysis.

The physicians at Kidney & Hypertension Specialists, P.A. were trained at top medical centers including Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, Washington University in St. Louis, and University of South Florida in Tampa. Their experience is evident in the many varied positions they have held, including hospital positions, chief of medicine, credentials committee, chairman of pharmacy and therapeutics committee, peer review committee, and utilization committee. They even find the time in their busy day to train medical students and resident physicians.

A native of Ecuador, Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia graduated valedictorian from the University of Guayaquil School of Medicine in 1999.

Years later, in 2016, he graduated with a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine. He then performed his residency in internal medicine at Palmetto General Hospital from 2016 until 2019, and his fellowship in nephrology at the University of South Florida from 2019 until 2021.

Specializing in the care and treatment of the kidneys, the doctor is board-certified in both nephrology and internal medicine by the American Osteopathic Board of Internal Medicine (AOBIM). The AOBIM is an organization that provides board certification to qualified Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine who specialize in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease in adults. He has also been designated a Certified Hypertension Specialist by the American Hypertension Specialist Certification Program since 2021. On a professional level, he is an active member of the American Society of Nephrology and the American Osteopathic Association.

Furthermore, Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia holds ECFMG Certification, which is the standard for evaluating the qualifications of international medical graduates (IMGs) entering the U.S. healthcare system.

From August of 1999 until July of 2007, Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia worked at “Alfredo Palacio‟ National Institute of Cardiology in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He took care of patients in the emergency room as well as inpatients and outpatients, as well as performed resting and stress EKGs, echocardiograms, vector cardiograms, blood pressure ambulatory monitoring, and Holter monitoring for arrhythmias.

From November of 2005 until July of 2007, he worked at the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute, Valdivia Medical Center, diagnosing, treating, and managing cardiac pathologies for 300 patients monthly. He then worked within the Emergency Room at Public Health Ministry, Medical Center #13 in Ecuador from June of 2006 until July of 2006, taking care of patients with cardiac diseases.

Since July of 2021, Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia has been serving as an attending physician at Boca Raton Regional Hospital, Delray Medical Center, Bethesda East Hospital, as well as at US Renal Care at Delray and Boynton Beach.

As for his teaching experience, he began as a Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Guayaquil, Ecuador (May 2007 – July 2007), and was awarded a competitive position to teach internal medicine to 4th year medical students. He also served as an Instructor of Cardiology at the University of Guayaquil (June 2000 – May 2007). In America, his first experience with teaching was as a Phlebotomy Instructor at AMG Medical Institute (October 2008 – December 2010), teaching 10 students clinical lab skills such as blood draw. Additionally, he was a Proctor at the National Center for Competency Testing (February 2010 – December 2010), supervising Allied Health Programs’ graduates during the licensure examination process. In addition, he  worked as an Adjunct Professor at Essex County Community College (September 2011 – August 2012), teaching Anatomy and Physiology I & II and medical terminology to pre-medicine and pre-nursing students.

Nephrology is a specialty of medicine and pediatrics that concerns itself with the kidneys. It is the study of normal kidney function and kidney disease, the preservation of kidney health, and the treatment of kidney disease, from diet and medication to renal replacement therapy. Nephrologists have advanced training in treating kidney disease. They diagnose and treat kidney failure, as well as help patients by prescribing medications, offering special diet advice, and coordinating dialysis care or kidney transplantation when it becomes necessary.

Throughout his extensive career, Dr. Valenzuela-Tapia has conducted research, publications, and poster presentations.

On a more personal note, he is fluent in both English and Spanish.

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