Residents, Fellows, Grad Students and Post-Docs News
Schoolwide
The Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS) recognizes individuals who exemplify humanistic
patient care and who can serve as role models, mentors, and leaders in medicine. All
awardees are selected through a nomination process and vote by the student body. Six
residents were selected for the Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award (HETA) and
membership into the LSUHSC New Orleans Chapter of GHHS:
- Ada Delatte, MD (Dermatology)
- Thomas Deiss, DO (Medicine)
- Saskya Etienne, MD (Obstetrics & Gynecology)
- Maggie Holohan, MD (Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery)
- Ellen Mire, MD (Medicine)
- McKenzie Schwarze, MD (Medicine/Pediatrics)
Anesthesiology
Dr. Nicholas Christakis was voted by the LSUHSC fourth-year medical students as the Aesculapian Society’s 2026
Outstanding Intern. He was honored at the Excellence in Teaching Awards Banquet held in April.
The department announced the following matches:
- Maritza Martinez, LSU New Orleans
- Noah Roberson, McGovern Medical School at UT Houston
- Patrick Quarles, University of Arizona
- Keneth Granados, Medical University of South Carolina
- Shahan Maqbool, LSU New Orleans
- Lauren Wilkin, Texas A&M – Dallas
- Lily Valiulis, LSU New Orleans
Cardiovascular Center of Excellence
Ayushi Patel, mentored by Dr. Eric Lazartigues, received a research award from the American Physiological
Society for her work on the mechanisms of central miR-410-3p expression sex-dependently
attenuates cardiometabolic dysfunction.
Cell Biology and Anatomy
Doctoral candidate Mohamed Sayed won second place in Graduate Student Oral Presentations at the 3rd Annual Neuroscience
Symposium in Baton Rouge.
Medicine
Numerous residents and interns were recently awarded for excellence or recognized
by the Aesculapian Society:
- L3 Resident/Fellow Award Winner: Dr. Chloe Spears (Medicine/Pediatrics)
- L4 Intern Award Winner: Dr. Nicholas Christakis (Anesthesiology); also recognized, Dr. Peter Bergeaux (Internal Medicine – Baton Rouge)
- L4 Resident/Fellow Award Winner: Dr. Connor Bennett (Internal Medicine – Baton Rouge); also recognized: Dr. Melody Salmanian (Internal Medicine – Baton Rouge) and Dr. Mary Holohan (Internal Medicine – Baton Rouge)
- L4 Staff Award Winner: Dr. Guido DeJesus (Internal Medicine – Baton Rouge)
The Louisiana Beta Chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society announced the following residents and fellows as members:
- Farhan Mohiuddin, MD (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Erika Haviland, DO (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Anna Chataginer, MD (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Michael Brands, MD (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation)
- Asad Mussarat, MD (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Gurtaj Mahil, DO (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Joshua Campbell, MD (Internal Medicine - Baton Rouge)
- Luke Sharrock, DO (Internal Medicine - New Orleans)
- Katherine Westbrook Cates, DO (Gastroenterology)
The Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation residency program announced new resident leadership for 2026-2027:
- Dr. Michael Brands will serve as Chief Resident for Clinical Affairs. (image below, left)
- Dr. Jeff Mauras will serve as Chief Resident for Academics. (image below, second from left)
- Dr. Drew Drouilhet will serve as Assistant Chief Resident for Medical Student and Community Outreach. (image below, third from left)
- Dr. Andrew Amedee will serve as Chief Resident for Quality Improvement and Scholarly Activity. (image below, right)
Dr. Parnia Choubdhar (Cardiology Fellow), Dr. Brad Rentrop and Dr. Mariam Rauf (Electrophysiology Fellows) had posters accepted and presented at the American College
of Cardiology Annual Meeting in New Orleans.
The 2026 LSUHSC-Lafayette Research Symposium was held for the first time since COVID, and highlighted a significant number of important case studies, quality improvement initiatives, and other scholarly inquiry. Winners include:
- Award for Scholarly Excellence in Medicine Presentation: Dr. Vy Luong, Department of Internal Medicine Poster "When Common Symptoms Hide Rare Diseases: A Case of Prolonged Arthralgia and Chronic Diarrhea Unveiled as Whipple’s Disease."
- Award for Outstanding Clinical Case Insight: Dr. Jonathan Deck, Department of Sports Medicine Poster "2nd Rib Fracture After 1st Rib Resection for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome in a Softball Pitcher."
- Award for Outstanding Innovation in Quality and Process Improvement: Dr. Natalie Touchet, Department of Family Medicine Poster “Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep: A Quality Improvement Initiative to Improve Infant Safe Sleep Practices."
- Award for Outstanding Clinical Research Impact: Dr. Kwasi Boateng, Dr. Jonathan Deck, Dr. Jake Fries - Department of Sports Medicine Poster "Protection or Perception? A Multi-Year Evaluation of Concussion Rates in Division I Football with and Without Guardian Caps."
Dr. Matthew Dear (IM Resident) was recently awarded a VA award for VA Health Professions Trainee of
the Year for 2025-26.
Dr. Farhan Mohiuddin (IM Resident) was named the winner of the research poster session at the American College of Gastroenterology Regional Postgraduate Course in New Orleans.
Dr. Mohiuddin, Dr. Laine Lyles (GI Fellow) and Dr. Nisha Loganantharaj (Gastroenterology) had a case report, "High-Grade Small Bowel Dysplasia Following Prior Adenocarcinoma in Small Bowel Crohn’s Disease,” published in Cureus.
Dr. Mary Moore (IM Resident), Dr. Alex Lapointe (Med-Peds Resident), and Dr. Hannah Zulli (IM Resident) together with Dr. Griffin and Dr. Shane Guillory (Hospital Medicine), recently collaborated on the peer-reviewed case report “Purple Urine Bag Syndrome in the Setting of a Percutaneous Nephrostomy: Case Report and Review of the Literature published in Journal of Brown Hospital Medicine.
Dr. Hayle Scanlan (Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellow) was voted the 2026 Fellow of the Year by the medical
staff at UMC and honored at a recent Doctor’s Day lunch.
Residents had an outstanding showing at the Louisiana ACP Residents and Students Meeting. All three programs were exceptionally well represented, with residents presenting unique and thoughtful clinical cases. Dr. Erika Haviland (IM Resident) and Dr. Pranaya Pakala (IM Resident) earned awards for Best Oral Presentation and Best Poster Presentation, respectively. Dr. Marley Lee (IM Resident) delivered an excellent mystery case presentation. In addition, Dr. Cade Bourgeois (IM Resident), Dr. Ellen Mire (IM Resident), and Dr. Anna Bushnell (IM Resident) did a phenomenal job representing LSU New Orleans, advancing the team all the way to the final Jeopardy question.
Dr. Najy Masri (Hospital Medicine) announced the largest incoming hospitalist track class since the inception of the program in 2011. The following residents have been accepted into the track:
- Dr. Maria Rodriguez - EM-IM third-year resident
- Dr. Mary Katherine Moore - IM second-year resident
- Dr. Dan Ta - IM-Peds second-year resident
- Dr. Anna Bushnell - IM first-year resident
- Dr. Emma Cole - IM first-year resident
- Dr. Mary Landry - IM first-year resident
- Dr. Brendan Tate - IM first-year resident
- Dr. Emily Villafarra - IM first-year resident
- Dr. Nathaniel Williams - IM-Peds medicine first-year resident
- Dr. Lauren Ziegenbein - IM-Peds medicine first-year resident
Dr. Michael Brands (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation), Dr. Joshua Campbell, Dr. Katherine Westbrook Cates (Gastroenterology), Dr. Anna Chataginer, Dr. Erika Haviland, Dr. Gurtaj Mahil, Dr. Farhan Mohiuddin, Dr. Asad Mussarat, and Dr. Luke Sharrock have been selected for membership into the Louisiana Beta Chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Honor Medical Society.
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation resident Dr. Brands also was awarded Resident of the Year Award at the VA.
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation resident Dr. Matthew Bennett presented the case report, "Calcific Tendinitis of the Conjoint Tendon due to Heterotopic
Ossification: A Case Report Highlighting The Utility of Dynamic Diagnostic Musculoskeletal
Ultrasound," at Physiatry ‘26, the annual Association of Academic Physiatrists meeting
held in San Juan in February.
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation resident Dr. Hannah Koster Long presented the case report, “Complication of Superficial Skin Necrosis After Dehydrated
Alcohol Neurolysis in a Patient With Chronic Post-Traumatic Knee Pain" at the ASRA
24th Annual Pain Medicine Meeting.
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation resident Dr. Jeff Mauras recently presented the case report "Cooled Radiofrequency Ablation, Kyphoplasty,
and Spinoplasty Combined to Palliate Painful Spinal Metastasis" at the ASRA Fall 2026
Conference in Austin, TX and was accepted to Cancer Advocacy Group of Louisiana’s
(CAGLA) Neaux Cancer Conference in March.
Orthopaedic Surgery
Dr. Andrew Pierce was awarded the VA Health Professions Trainee of the Year.
Dr. Ravi Rajendra is listed as an author of two publications this quarter: Early Definitive Fusion Versus Magnetic Growing Rods in "Tweeners": What Do Parents Prefer? and Charleston vs. Providence: are all scoliosis bending braces created equal?. Both were published in the Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics.
Dr. Rajendra, together with Drs. Clement and Leonardi, presented “Nine-Months Post-launch Suzetrigine Utilization Patterns in Real-World Settings” at two different meetings.
Otolaryngology
Resident Dr. Colleen Cecola gave a podium presentation at the Combined Otolaryngology Spring Meeting in April.
Resident Dr. Kately Robillard presented a poster at the Combined Otolaryngology Spring Meeting in April.
Dr. Alexandra Rose was awarded the Resident Research Grant for the research project titled “Evaluation of Gua Sha as a Self‑Directed Adjunct to Lymphedema Management in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Post‑Lymphadenectomy.”
Dr. Rose also presented a poster at the LSUHSC New Orleans QI Project Day titled "Improving Efficiency, Outcomes, and Patient Experience in Emergency Department Facial Laceration Management."
Dr. Jacob Seicshnaydre gave a lecture titled “Physics in Medicine” to LSU undergrad physics students; Dr. Philip Allen assisted with crafting the lecture.
Pathology
Dr. Ayesha Younus, Chief Resident, accepted a hematopathology fellowship at Montefiore Einstein Medical
Center, NY.
Dr. Angelle Jolly, Chief Resident, accepted a hematopathology fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. (Image, left to right - Dr. Ayesha Younus and Dr. Angelle Jolly)
Pediatrics
The new Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship has officially been approved by the Accreditation
Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). This milestone marks a significant
step forward in expanding advanced training opportunities and strengthening the department’s
commitment to excellence in pediatric care. The program will begin accepting applications
during the July 2026 recruitment cycle, with the inaugural class of fellows scheduled
to start in July 2027. This fellowship is designed to provide comprehensive, high-quality
training for physicians pursuing specialization in pediatric critical care medicine.
For additional information about the program, contact Program Director Zach Daniels at zdani1@lsuhsc.edu or Associate Program Director Susan Glass at sglas3@lsuhsc.edu.
Neonatology Fellow Michael Evers received the Southern Society for Pediatric Research (SSPR) Trainee Travel Award
for his abstract, "Standardizing and Improving Neurodevelopmental Follow Up of Infants
with Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy in the NICU" Authors include Michael L. Evers,
Michelle Knecht, Christy Mumphrey, Raegan Gupta, Julie Gallois.
Dr. Kyle Glisson (Pediatric Gastroenterology) was selected for membership into the Louisiana Beta
Chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Honor Medical Society.
Dr. Glisson was also named Fellow of the Year at Manning Family Children's.
Pediatric resident Dr. Amelia Haydel presented a poster on a resident-led QI project entitled "Penicillin Allergy De-labeling
in Pediatric Patients" at the SSPR Annual Meeting.
Pediatric Cardiology Fellow Dr. Cyndee Jocson’s article “Kingella kingae Endocarditis and Septic Pulmonary Emboli in a 12-Year-Old Male With Repaired Tetralogy of Fallot and a Bioprosthetic Pulmonary Valve” was published in Case Reports in Cardiology.
Gabrielle Sheets’ work was recognized at the Showcase of Science: "Neurocognitive and Neuroinflammation
Gene Expression Changes in Pediatric Cancer Patients Treated with Methotrexate" Authors
include Gabrielle Sheets, Gabriel Peterman, Keisha Patel, Matthew Stark, Michelle
Moore, Michael Norman, Jovanny Zabaleta, Chindo Hicks, Pinki Prasad, Fern Tsien.
A total of 19 posters and 19 platform presentations were presented by LSU Pediatrics
at the recent SSPR annual regional conference, including five platform presentations
in the Neonatal Case Report Symposium alone.
The Division of Allergy & Immunology recently attended the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA, where residents, fellows, and faculty presented research and represented the division on a national stage.
Pediatrics resident Dr. Caroline Gueniot, Med/Peds resident Dr. Andree Judd, and A/I fellow Dr. Nadjel Opamen each presented posters on challenging clinical cases with faculty mentorship from Drs. Michelle Korah-Sedgwick, Luke Wall, James Krulisky (Cardiology), Regina Zambrano (Genetics), and Dana LeBlanc (Heme/Onc).
Pediatric cardiology fellows Dr. Cyndee Jocson, Dr. Mike Charles, Dr. Saloni Trivedi, Dr. Christine Rizkalla, and Dr. Sana Shuja recently showcased three accepted posters at the American College of Cardiology Conference
in New Orleans, presenting their scholarly work on a national stage while highlighting
their dedication to advancing pediatric cardiovascular care and innovation.
- Charles M, Trivedi S, Jocson C, Rizkalla C, Shuja S, Mejia E, Cheang S. "An Unusual Case of Single Ventricle with Pulmonary Atresia, Multiple Aortopulmonary Collateral Vessels, and Pulmonary Arteries Fed by Proximal Left Main Coronary Artery Fistula."
- Trivedi S, Jocson C, Shuja S, Rizkalla C, Charles M, Schwartzenburg E, Mejia E. "Virtual Reality-Enhanced 3-Dimensional Computed Tomography Modeling for Surgical Guidance in Double Outlet Right Ventricle with Complex Anatomy."
- Shuja S, Bhalla N, Jocson C, Rizkalla C, Trivedi S, Charles M, Mejia E. "A Novel Strategy for Testing Valve Stability during Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve Replacement."
The department announced their 2026-27 pediatric interns, medicine/pediatric interns, and pediatrics/emergency medicine intern:
Pediatric Interns:
Claire Andry - VCOM-Louisiana
Sofia Cabrera - LSU New Orleans
Anne Caffery - LSU New Orleans
Molly Fontenot - University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Aysha Gibson - LSU New Orleans
Emily Gioe - VCOM-Louisiana
Sophia Kamburis - VCOM-Auburn
Rachael Larkin - VCOM-Virgina
Lindsey Lauricella - Tulane University
Samantha Martinez - Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Melissa Medina - State University of New York Upstate Medical University
Keaton Ott (Child Neuro) - Tulane University
Karina Patel - Mercer University School of Medicine
Alyssa Rondinelli Kennedy - University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Rachel Simoneaux - LSU New Orleans
Grace Tomeny - LSU New Orleans
Medicine/Pediatrics:
Megan Chu - University of North Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
Clark Fletchinger - LSU New Orleans
Elizabeth White - University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Kati Young – LSU New Orleans
Pediatric/Emergency Medicine
Afryea Dunbar - LSU New Orleans
Physiology
Stephanie Lee, Nicholas Harris, and Eden Gallegos have earned their PhDs as part of the MD/PhD Program.
Meagan Donovan was awarded the American Physiological Society’s 2026 Porter Physiology Development Fellowship, which includes a stipend for one year of the PhD program and participation in APS professional development activities.
Dr. Eden Gallegos organized the Specialty Interest Breakfast for the AAP/SCI/APSA Joint Meeting for physician scientists in Chicago. The symposium coordinated efforts of over 30 physician-scientist mentors to interact with potential future trainees and for the trainees to gain career insights.
Dr. Gallegos also presented a poster titled “Chronic binge alcohol and simian immunodeficiency
virus differentially alter hepatic lipid and mitochondrial processes in the context
of a high fat and sucrose diet.”
Dr. Gallegos also presented the dissertation seminar at the Physiology Seminar Series titled “Interactions of alcohol and dietary metabolic stressors on hepatic lipid and bioenergetic adaptations: implications for people with HIV.”
Dr. Harris also presented the dissertation seminar at the Physiology Seminar Series titled “Cardiovascular consequences of polysubstance use: dual chronic plus binge alcohol and nicotine vape.”
Dr. Lee also presented the dissertation seminar at the Physiology Seminar Series titled “Alcohol and cannabinoid system interactions in the context of pain and alcohol use disorder.”
Dr. Lee was also awarded the Paul S. Roheim Award of Excellence in Research, given annually to the department's most accomplished graduate student over the past calendar year. She received a $500 travel award to attend a scientific conference of her choice.
Kaitlin Couvillion, Meagan Donovan, and MC DeMatteo represented the department and ADACE at Fitness Friday earlier this year.
Nicholas Harris, Stephanie Lee, and Kathryn Reaux organized outreach efforts at the Peer Advocate Liaison (PAL) Resource Fair.
Surgery
Dr. Sydney Boykin (PGY-4, Vascular Surgery, Integrated) was named VA Vascular Surgery Resident of the
Year.
Dr. Ikenna Ifearulundu (PGY-2, General Surgery) was named UMC Resident of the Year in Burn Surgery.
Dr. Emma James (PGY-1, General Surgery) received the Aesculapian Excellence in Teaching Award (L3 Intern Award).
Dr. Christopher Martinez Rivera (PGY-2, General Surgery) received the J. Patrick O'Leary Resident Scholarship Award from the Cohn-Rives Surgical Society, the alumni association of the LSUHSC New Orleans Department of Surgery.
Dr. Dhanushka Vitharana (PGY-4, General Surgery) received the VA Health Professions Trainee of the Year Award in General Surgery.
Dr. Maggie Holohan (Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, PGY-2) was selected for membership into the LSUHSC New Orleans Chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS). Dr. Holohan received the GHHS Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award (HETA), which honors outstanding humanistic teaching as identified by students.