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Our residency program is made up of 16 residents
with four residents in each year


R-1 Residents

Katrina JohnsonKatrina Johnson, M.D.

Katrina Johnson comes to us from a small farm in Galloway, Ohio. She attended Ohio State University and earned her bachelor's degree in microbiology. Dr. Johnson completed her medical studies at Ross University School of Medicine. Aspects of the med-peds program at WSU which appealed to her include the proximity to her family, as well as the welcoming nature of the faculty and residents during her interview. She says, "After meeting our program directors I knew that I would be able to trust their commitment to my educational guidance and mentorship throughout residency." The field of med-peds is an attractive option to Katrina because it provides flexibility for the resident’s future educational plans and an easier transition from pediatric to adult healthcare for patients. She is interested in pursuing a combined fellowship in Critical Care Medicine. When not racing around the wards, Katrina enjoys spending time with her husband, family and friends, especially in the outdoors. She and her husband enjoy golfing, cycling, hiking and playing their trumpets in local venues.


 Celine LaBrec-Salmons Celina Labrec-Salmons, M.D.

Celina Labrec-Salmons come to us from Columbus, Ohio. She attended Ohio State University and earned her bachelor's degree in biology. She is a home-grown resident, having attended Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine for her training. Celina was drawn to the area of med-peds because of the wide variety of options training for two boards leaves open for her. She liked the Wright State program because of the quality of the faculty and people involved. Dr. Labrec-Salmons enjoys spending time with her two beautiful sons and her husband. Following her training, she is interested in becoming a hospitalist and also is considering entering medical education. When not chasing after her sons, Celina formerly liked to bake, but says now, the clean-up makes this no longer appealing.


Amie Ogunsakin, M.D.

 


Garvin Patel, M.D.

Garvin Patel comes to us from Sayville, N.Y., but was reared in Long Island. He obtained his undergraduate degree in biochemistry at Northeastern University in Boston. Medical school brought him to a more seasonable climate at Ross University in the Dominica. For his clinical years, he returned to New York, where he enjoyed the cultural diversity in the little time he had away from wards. Dr. Patel chose a residency in IM-Peds because he equally enjoyed working with the pediatric and geriatric populations. The WSU program appealed to him because of the faculty, the friendly working environment at the hospitals and the "great group of residents." When not working his tail off, Garvin enjoys spending time outdoors and dreaming of the Caribbean.


R-2 Residents

Ashlee AmesAshlee Ames, M.D.

Dr. Ames hails from the town of Nashport, Ohio, which she left to attend Ohio Wesleyan University for her undergraduate adventures. After the ambitious undertaking of majoring in chemistry with biology and psychology minors, she matriculated to Wright State University School of Medicine. She received several scholarships while in attendance, which helped to put a tiny dent in the typical post-graduate debt she has since accrued. Her past history includes excelling in llama showmanship. She was attracted to the program because of the people in it as well as the community hospital setting. She also says she appreciates "the Ras minus the music." Ashlee is considering pursuing a career as a hospitalist versus entering a fellowship. When not saving lives, she enjoys quality time with Annie, her Shih Tzu.


Dhaval DesaiDhaval Desai, M.D.

Dr. Desai comes to us from Hotlanta. He attended Emory University with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. While an undergrad, he was able to study abroad in Spain. Dr. Desai continued to seek warm-blooded locales at the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine, where he sweated out the first two years of medical school, only to complete his clinical years in the less temperate climate of NYC. While still in the Caribbean , he received an "Outstanding Community Service Award" for his project to educate local youths about STDs and high-risk behavior avoidance. Dhaval taught Spanish to impressionable high schoolers in Georgia prior to taking the med school plunge. He was drawn to Wright State University's Med-Peds program because he appreciated the faculty, as well as the diversity of the residents and the opportunity to work in multiple hospitals and community settings. Eventually he would like to be a hospitalist in the best of both worlds. This dapper dresser likes to spend his sparse free time in pursuit of such activities as watching movies, trying new restaurants, traveling and running.


Saba RahmanSaba Rahman, M.D.

Saba Rahman comes to us from Long Island, and has always been a city girl. She attended SUNY Stonybrook, where she earned her undergraduate degree in psychology, and followed this up with medical school at Ross University. Dr. Rahman is quite the world traveler but loves to go back home whenever possible. She was drawn to the residency program at Wright State because of the great program director and supportive residents. Med-peds peaked her interest because of the opportunity to work with adults and children, because, as she points out, "we are all big kids at the end of the day." Her plans following residency include pursuing international education as well as possibly a fellowship in allergy/immunology. Her interests include traveling and cooking (especially sweets), and she plans on one day producing her own Bollywood film.


Jenny WaribokoJenny Wariboko, M.D.

Dr. Wariboko calls Miami, Florida, home. She attended undergraduate at the University of South Florida in Tampa, with quite a weighty undergraduate load, including majoring in biology as well as earning minors in mathematics, chemistry, and bio-medical physics. Thus, she did not let those sandy beaches interfere with her education. She relocated to another warm and tropical locale -- Ross University School of Medicine in the Caribbean -- for her medical studies. Jenny was attracted to med-peds because she thought it is "the best of both worlds," as well as leaving open multiple opportunities for fellowship in the future. She is currently weighing fellowships endocrine vs. allergy/immunology. However, she has not ruled out primary care, either. Dr. Wariboko is a first-degree black belt in karate and taught it, as well as tutoring math, while in Miami. She is "a huge fan of food," though she also enjoys working out, watching movies and television, and spending time with friends. Shopping serves as another form of stress relief and physical activity for this promising young physician.

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R-3 Residents

Alicia LowesAlicia Lowes, D.O.

Hailing from Sakets Harbor, New York, Alicia attended Clarkson University, where she received her bachelor's in bio-molecular science. At Clarkson, she served as a teaching assistant for microbiology and chemistry while providing some TLC for the local amphibians. Alicia later received her D.O. from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, after which she joined the Med-Peds program at Wright State. She says she appreciates the friendly atmosphere of the program and selected it with the hopes of improving care for adults and kids, especially those with cystic fibrosis. With this particular goal, she hopes to provide continuity of care for children with complex disease, and is considering focusing on care of patients with CF and possibly completing a pulmonology fellowship after residency. Her beloved husband Brian Lowes is a chemical engineer. Besides relaxing with her husband, Alicia enjoys baking, sewing and reading. She is a connoisseur of all things chocolate.


Jody MeredithJody Meredith, M.D.

Jody comes to us from the rolling hills of Mount Hope, West Virginia. She received her undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Kentucky and obtained her M.D. from St. Christopher's College of Medicine. She was a member of Gamma Beta Phi honor society during her undergraduate years. Jody also has been a paralegal and held the envious job as a manager at TCBY. She says internal medicine/pediatrics at Wright State attracted her because of the friendliness of the program and the opportunity to work in both civilian and military settings. She selected Med-Peds so that she could have "the best of both worlds" and is considering pursuing a fellowship in cardiology. In her free time, Jody enjoys sewing and baking, and is an avid participant in basketball and tennis. Her sweet disposition and Southern accent charm the patients and her coworkers.


Asish ThakkerAsish Thakkar, M.D.

Asish Thakkar comes to us from Strongsville, Ohio, home of the Rib Burnoff and the Mustangs. He earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Akron with a major in biology and attended Ross University for medical school. Things that he likes about the med-peds program at Wright State University include the program director and the opportunity to work at a free-standing pediatric hospital. He is a self-admitted sports fanatic and especially supports the Buckeyes and anything related to Cleveland.


R-4 Residents

Andrew HumpertAndrew Humpert, M.D.

Hailing from a small town in Kansas, Andrew attended the University of Kansas for his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering, and subsequently decided to stay there for his medical degree. He selected the rigors of Med-Peds for the opportunity to work with all age groups and was drawn to the residency program at Wright State for the variety of clinical experiences. When not healing the sick, Andrew enjoys running and mocking his fellow residents (see also, Dr. NJ and Dr. Surowiec), as well as dragging said Dr. S to social activities against his will. After completing his time here at Wright State, Andy is considering general practice in both internal medicine and pediatrics, or pursuing fellowships in cardiology or GI. He is best known for running down the studly Ryan Simon (see also: Quinn-Diesel) during the Air Force Marathon Relay in 2006.


Erin McConnellErin McConnell, M.D.

A native of Springfield, Ohio, Erin is the fourth child of two sets of twins. She is a graduate of Butler University in Indianapolis, where she obtained her degrees in chemistry and English literature. Prior to medical school, Erin had a fellowship in creative writing at Iowa State University. Then she came back to her home state to earn her M.D. from the Wright State University School of Medicine. In her spare time, Erin enjoys reading, writing poetry and watching comedians with her twin sister Jenny and her husband, Dustin Anderson, but her real passion is for running. Erin and Dustin have two badly behaved cats named Henry and Kali. She chose Internal Medicine/Pediatrics because "the people are so cool!" Wright state was a natural choice for her because she says the unique program allows her to work with the underserved, and it is well-integrated with categorical programs. Also, she likes the great clinic and close-knit group. After completing residency, Erin plans to pursue a career in academic medicine.


Matthew Noordsij-JonesMatthew Noordsij-Jones, M.D. (NJ)

Matthew Noordsij-Jones, alias NJ, comes to us from blustery Wisconsin, where he received his B.S. in biochemistry and genetics from the University Wisconsin at Madison. While there, he won two gold, one silver and one bronze (cough ..slacker) medal in the Rowing National Championship. Following his stellar undergraduate career, he worked in Boston as a biochemical analyst for Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. Shortly thereafter, he received the call and returned to Medical College of Wisconsin for his M.D. While there, he served as a research assistant for UW Hospitals in the area of pediatric infectious disease, studying Blastomycosis. Med-peds intrigued NJ because he enjoys the complexity of medicine as well as the personal aspect of pediatrics. He particularly appreciated the Wright State program because of the great faculty, as well as the variety of patient care settings. He plans to pursue a career in academic Med-Peds, and enjoys running, rowing and gardening/landscaping in his spare time. NJ speaks Spanish, enjoys swing dancing and has a specialty guacamole.


Richard SurowiecRichard Surowiec, M.D.

Richard was born in scenic Newark, Ohio, and attended St. Louis University, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in biology, as well as his M.D. He selected Med-Peds, because he says he could not choose between caring for adults and kids. Wright State was a good fit for Richard because of the primary care focus as well as the patient variety. He plans to pursue a career in primary care IM/peds after completing his residency. His past life includes employment at Best Buy, where he was a "merchandise specialist." His favorite pastime is technology, and he is a self-proclaimed computer geek. In addition, he enjoys reading, video games and the increasingly rare art form known as sleeping.


Erica TaylorErica Taylor, M.D.

Erica calls Columbus, Ohio, home. She attended Xavier University in Louisiana for her undergraduate degree with a triple major in biology, chemistry and psychology. She also completed some post-baccalaureate work at the Ohio State University before entering medical school at Wright State. Erica was drawn to the internal medicine-pediatrics residency for the opportunity it provided to serve in the community and selected the Wright State program because of the friendly residents as well as the in-depth knowledge and research-based practice management it offers. Erica is happily married to her work. In her spare time she enjoys the relaxing pursuit of sky diving, having gone solo in 2006. She also enjoys reading and playing basketball. At the completion of her residency, Erica plans to pursue general practice or perhaps a fellowship in sports medicine.

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