Cuccia Health Institute

Dr. Cuccia was born and raised in New Orleans. Being one of ten children, he learned the values of faith, family, integrity, hard work and perseverance. These values would guide him through two undergraduate degrees (BS- Biology, Magna Cum Laude, Southeastern La University; BA- Chemistry, Cum Laude, University of New Orleans) then his M.D. from LSU New Orleans School of Medicine where he then completed a double residency in Internal Medicine and Emergency Medicine at LSU Health Science Centers/Charity Hospital. He spent 10 years as a hospitalist and primary care physician, but then through his observation of the lack of meaningful impact of conventional medicine as well as his own health crises, he shifted his focus to eliminating the root causes of disease, rather than just covering up symptoms. He completed his certification in functional medicine through The Institute of Functional Medicine.

He is the founder of the Cuccia Health Institute which utilizes Functional Medicine strategies, testing and tools which help restore health and hope to patients and their families by empowering them with empathy, education and encouragement on their journey to healing. He is a former rugby player (National Collegiate All-Star), martial artist (Third Degree Black Belt) and all-around athlete. He enjoys the outdoors especially fishing and duck hunting. He loves spending time with his siblings and extended family. He and his wife Giselle have been married 30 years and are blessed with four amazing children: Chloe 25, David Jr 22, Caleb 20 and Luke 17yrs. They currently reside in Mandeville, La which is also home to the Cuccia Health Institute.

Whitney Sharpe – Lead Patient Coordinator

Whitney has been with our practice for 10 years. She has been an integral part of the Cuccia Health Institute team since the beginning. She will most likely be the first and last face you see upon visiting our office. She handles the scheduling for our patients as well as many administrative tasks that are vital to our day-to-day operations. She has an Associate’s Degree in Allied Health and is a wealth of knowledge. She loves talking with patients and coaching them through the functional medicine journey.

Outside of Cuccia Health Institute, Whitney enjoys spending quality time with her husband Kenneth and friends. Whitney loves to travel and always looks forward to new adventures.

Kim Thornsberry – Administrative Assistant

Kim joined our practice recently and is very passionate about functional medicine. Her own journey to health helped her to discover getting to the root cause of disease. Kim worked as a paralegal and has a background in wealth management. She has excellent customer service and communication skills. She has been a great asset to our practice. She alongside Whitney, schedules patients and performs our daily operations.

Kim is married to her husband David and together they have a blended family consisting of 3 girls ages 20-23. Kim loves her two rescue dogs, Thor and Beauregard and in her spare time, she enjoys serving on several charity boards, spending time with her girlfriends and traveling with her husband for his work in the movie industry.