EAT
SLEEP
MOVE
PLAY
Our Philosophy
We offer all the services you expect from a primary care practice, from comprehensive annual exams to urgent visits for sudden health concerns. When treating illness, we look for the most natural options first and then to conventional Western medicine when necessary.
We understand healing comes in many forms and believe finding a balance between healing modalities offers the most effective strategy for optimizing your health and wellness. We offer acupuncture, health coaching, nutrition consults, and nutraceutical recommendations as part of our membership program.
We believe nutrition, movement, stress management, quality sleep, and healthy relationships are fundamental to optimal health. Our Lifestyle and Functional Medicine approach means that during office visits we take the time to learn about your life and the way you live it, in order to help you stay healthy or make changes to feel healthier.
Our Practice
We practice using a collaborative care model with a focus on treating the whole person and whole family. We believe a trusting and ongoing doctor-patient relationship based on mutual respect is simply good health care. Our goal is to work together with you as a partner on your journey to optimal health.
Unlike a typical primary care practice where a physician has between 2,500 - 3,500 patients, our doctors limit their individual practice panel to no more than 250 patients. This means Dr. Dong and Dr. Johnny can spend the time necessary to know you and to understand your health goals, as well as having the time to think and proactively research your treatment and wellness plan.
Our Team
Jennifer Lee Dong, M.D.
INTERNAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN
Dr. Jennifer Lee Dong is a board-certified Internal Medicine physician and Fellow of the American College of Physicians, with more than a decade of experience caring for adults at Bellevue Hospital in New York City. She also served as a Clinical Associate Professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where she taught and mentored medical students and Internal Medicine residents.
Dr. Dong provides comprehensive, evidence-based primary care for adults across every stage of life. Her clinical interests include preventive health, cardiovascular and metabolic disease risk reduction, women’s health and menopause care, and the management of chronic and complex medical conditions. She also has experience with point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS), a bedside tool that can complement the physical examination and help inform clinical decisions when appropriate.
At the heart of Dr. Dong’s practice is the belief that good medicine starts with listening. She takes her patients’ concerns seriously, asks thoughtful questions, and works to understand not only their symptoms and medical history, but also their priorities and values. She believes that trust develops over time, through honest conversations, careful clinical judgment, and shared decisions about care.
Dr. Dong sees primary care as an ongoing relationship built over a series of visits. She values continuity and strives to remain accessible to her patients between appointments, helping them navigate questions as they arise, make informed decisions, and address health concerns before they become difficult to manage. Her goal is for patients to feel heard, informed, and supported by a physician who knows them and their health history.
At Portola Direct Primary Care, Dr. Dong offers a more personal model of Internal Medicine, with unhurried visits, direct physician communication, and an emphasis on long-term relationships and individualized, evidence-based care.
Dr. Dong earned her undergraduate degree from Yale University and medical degree from Stony Brook University. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two sons, and makes time for dance, music, and ice skating. She also speaks Mandarin and Spanish.
Medical School: SUNY Stonybrook, Stonybrook, NY. 2010
Residency: Internal Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NY. 2013
Board Certified: Internal Medicine 2013 – Current
Fellowship: Fellow of American College of Physicians (FACP). 2024
Certification: Integrated Sonography Course at NYU (I-ScaN). 2024
Johnny Tsai, M.D.
FAMILY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN
Dr. Johnny is a Los Angeles native who is willing to support the Lakers even when they were an underachieving team.
He now calls Irvine home and is grateful to practice Direct Primary Care here. He enjoys learning from his patients and listening to their stories in a relaxed and mindful manner, preferably with some coffee or tea in hand.
When not thinking about his patients, he is usually studying natural and traditional healing methods, reading about food and nutrition, contemplating health disparities, or learning about new technology and treatments in healthcare.
Outside of “work,” he enjoys traveling the world, practicing photography, learning the guitar and music production, tasting food and wine, and learning about architecture and design.
And in his spare time, you might find him at the beach surfing, up in the mountains snowboarding, around the house or garden tinkering, in the kitchen cooking with his wife, or around town hanging out with family and friends.
His other full time job is being a daddy to two wonderful girls.
Master's Public Health: Columbia University, NYC. 1997
Medical School: New York University, NYC. 2001
Residency: Family Medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA. 2004
Board Certified: Family Medicine 2004-2024
Acupuncture/TCM: East-West Center UCLA 2003, Academy of Pain Research 2010