For much of her life, Rocio Marceleno-Lopez, a family nurse practitioner, was engrained in the medical field. Not because she had a long line of doctors in her family or because she had any sort of medical issue herself – but because she was the go-between for her parents and their doctors. Growing up in a predominantly Spanish-speaking household, she was often the one who translated during their appointments.
“I know what it feels like to sit in a room and not fully understand what’s being said,” Marceleno-Lopez said. “Being able to care for patients and make sure they feel heard is something I’ve wanted to do for quite some time. It means a lot to come back home and offer that comfort to families in my own community.”
After years working in cardiac care and the operating room, Marceleno-Lopez is joining Northeast Georgia Physicians Group (NGPG) Internal Medicine at 1285 Sims Street in Gainesville.
The Gainesville native and Johnson High School graduate earned her bachelor’s degree from Piedmont University in Demorest, Georgia, before beginning her career at Northside Hospital Atlanta, caring for patients with heart failure and other cardiac conditions. She later transferred to Northside Hospital Forsyth, where she worked with surgical teams across multiple specialties.
“I enjoyed working inside the hospital, but I started to think about how I could help people throughout their life and maybe help keep them out of the hospital,” said Marceleno-Lopez. “I want to help educate and walk alongside my patients during their entire health journey.”
So, she went back to school, earning her master’s at the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega. During her nurse practitioner training, Marceleno-Lopez completed rotations at clinics across the region – from Lilburn to Jasper and from Cumming to Dahlonega. She also rotated at Prosalud Centro Medico in Gainesville, where she provided bilingual care for women in Gainesville’s Hispanic community.
Outside of work, Marceleno-Lopez stays busy by running local 5Ks and even recently completed her first half marathon in Mexico. She loves traveling, spending time with her cockapoo, Ollie, and getting together with her whole family, which lives in Gainesville, too.
NGPG Internal Medicine is open Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 770-219-8583 to schedule an appointment or visit ngpg.org/rocio to learn more.
NGPG is an affiliate of Northeast Georgia Health System.
