Current Med-Peds Residents
Class of 2025
Class of 2026
Class of 2027
Class of 2028
Class of 2025
Asma Bahrami
4th Year Resident
Asma (She/her/hers) was born and raised in Muncie, Indiana. Her parents were refugees from Afghanistan and raised Asma to prioritize gratitude, hard work, and service while incorporating Afghan and Islamic cultures into Asma’s life. Asma stayed in-state at Purdue University for undergrad and then Indiana University for medical school. Asma was first introduced to Med-Peds when she had two Med-Peds senior residents during her third-year Pediatrics rotation. Asma was impressed by their management of medicine across the spectrum and how they used knowledge from one side to enhance the other. Asma wanted to do the same ever since!
Med-Peds fits many of her interests - taking care of complex cases across the age spectrum, an emphasis on Med-Ed, and opportunities for global health and transitions of care. Asma loves so many things and though she is not quite sure where her career is headed yet, she feels UCLA has a very strong mentorship program and there is always someone there to help figure things out. Throughout residency, Asma has been involved in medical education and hopes to continue this.
Since moving to LA, Asma thinks LA is great for exploring a diversity of foods and has the best boba! She loves spending time outside as much as possible (tennis, hiking, etc).
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - Indiana University
Undergrad - Purdue University
Amanda De La Cerda
4th Year Resident
Amanda (She/her/hers) is a proud native of Sylmar, CA. After graduating from Mount Saint Mary’s University, she began working as a 7th-grade science teacher at Olive Vista Middle School in Sylmar. This transformative teaching experience motivated her to continue working with children and under-resourced populations. Always interested in medicine, she moved to the bay area to enroll as a post-baccalaureate student. While pursuing post-bac work, she used her skills as an educator in her role as the Co-Director of the Summer Science Institute at SFSU which worked to promote the entry of underrepresented minority students into the health professions. Amanda is a graduate of the PRIME-LA program at UCLA, a program focusing on leadership and advocacy to address healthcare disparities in medically underserved populations in California. In addition to her MD degree, Amanda also has a Master’s in Public Policy. She plans to use this skill set to advocate for equitable health and social justice policies that impact the communities she is committed to serving.
My path to Med-Peds was a bit tortuous, but I am so happy to be here! I love working with adolescents, so pediatrics was always high on my list. I realized that working with adolescents and young adults is very fulfilling, but I didn’t want the work to stop there. The capability to work with patients of all ages and the opportunity it creates for rapport and advocacy is unmatched. UCLA offers a true breadth of training experiences. Whatever your interests, you can find someone working in these areas. I was particularly drawn to UCLA for the opportunity to continue working at Olive View. Also- LA is where it’s at! The culture, the food, the weather. What’s not to love? Health policy, working with justice-involved youth and unhoused folks, advocating for LGBTQ care and being a champion for gender-affirming care, EDI in academia.
Amanda and her wife have 2 children, so in their spare time you can find them all at a local park, the zoo, or the beach. They are also big fans of the Natural History Museum and La Brea tar pits! Amanda’s favorite TV show to binge is Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of California, Los Angeles
Undergrad - Mount St. Mary's University
Amarachi Erondu
4th Year Resident
Amarachi (She/her/hers) grew up in Augusta, Georgia as the daughter of Nigerian immigrants. She attended Harvard College for undergrad where she studied Human Evolutionary Biology and African Studies. After graduating, she spent a year working at Boston Children’s Hospital doing quality improvement research. Not scared away by the cold, she ventured to Chicago to study medicine at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. There, she developed a passion for increasing diversity in medicine by working with various pipeline programs. She also took a year off to get a master’s degree in biomedical informatics. During this time, she worked on various projects that aimed to use EHR data and machine learning to improve patient care.
Amarachi chose Med-Peds because the specialty offers opportunities to care for patients of all ages in various clinical settings. She also loves that the specialty upholds the belief that the lessons learned and skills developed in one clinical setting can improve clinical practice in another. (It’s giving true QI vibes, and she digs it!) She’s so excited to join the welcoming community at UCLA! She’s looking forward to learning from a diverse patient population and exploring the many research opportunities that the program has to offer.
Amarachi hopes to continue her work in informatics, namely to use EHR data to improve healthcare delivery and address disparities. She is also interested in adolescent health and transitioning adolescent patients with chronic conditions to adult care. She also hopes to participate in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives that focus on mentorship/pipeline programs for underrepresented minority high school and college students.
Outside of the hospital, Amarachi loves bike riding, diving head-first into LA’s amazing food scene, and enjoying live music.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of Chicago
Undergrad - Harvard University
Daniel Hodson
4th Year Resident
Daniel (He/him/his) hails from Trumbull, Connecticut (a small state just northeast of California). He attended high school at Fairfield Prep in Connecticut and then undergrad at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. At Swarthmore, he promptly started down the medical path by majoring in psychology and minoring in theater, captaining the cross country and track teams, and serving as one of the inaugural Swarthmore Phoenix mascots. Daniel then joined the United States Peace Corps and spent three months in Niger before the program was evacuated. He was transferred directly to Senegal, where he spent over four years in the rural, southern region of Kolda helping to build a community garden, creating radio shows in Foulacounda for the local Peace Corps radio program. Most importantly, he worked in the support of local health districts in a broad range of malaria control activities and helped to deliver tens of thousands of malaria rapid diagnostic tests and first-line antimalarials to these under-resourced catchment areas. Returning to the states, Daniel completed the Bryn Mawr Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Med Program (Pennsylvania again) and then returned to Connecticut for a year of clinical heart failure research at the Yale School of Medicine, where he remained for medical school. In medical school, Daniel conducted field epidemiological research into malaria infection in Douala, Cameroon and fell in love with bedside ultrasound.
Daniel’s broad clinical interests entering intern year include primary care, cardiology, infectious disease, and critical care. Beyond patient care, Daniel is passionate about delivering healthcare to underserved populations, building bi-directional global health collaborations, and implementing cutting-edge technology to transform bedside diagnosis and clinical medicine. He chose Med/Peds for the opportunity to provide continuous clinical care across the lifespan and for the broad clinical training applicable to global health contexts and public health. Daniel was drawn to UCLA for the energy of the program that was evident on interview day, for the emphasis on clinical competency, for the opportunity to work across several different types of hospitals, and for the diverse patient populations.
Daniel enjoys running, cycling, and swimming, practicing French and Foulacounda, and instigating fun shenanigans with friends. He enjoys watching highlights of New York Mets baseball, cycling, and soccer and recommends Lenox Hill on Netflix. Prior to Match Day, Daniel and his significant other Abigail had never been to Los Angeles. Here in the sun and warmth, they look forward to learning to surf, rebuilding/expanding their collection of fruit trees, and climbing nearby mountains.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - Yale University
Undergrad - Swarthmore College
Esther Kang
4th Year Resident
Esther (They/them/theirs) was born in Seoul, Korea, and raised in Chicago, IL and Torrance, CA. Esther studied Neural Science at New York University and received their MD from UC Davis School of Medicine.
Medicine is Esther’s second career. Prior to medical school, Esther spent seven years as a middle school science and health teacher in Oakland Unified School District. During that time, Esther helped to co-author the middle school edition of Healthy Oakland Teens, a district-wide LGBTQ+-inclusive and trauma-informed sexual health curriculum. In their free time, they worked as an HIV test counselor at the Berkeley Free Clinic and organized with various queer Asian/Pacific Islander collectives as well as domestic violence advocacy programs. These passions ultimately led them to medicine, a path that held the possibility of blending their loves for teaching, direct care, and advocacy. Esther’s work in medicine is in honor of their family, students, and community members.
Esther chose Med-Peds so that they can be equipped to take care of all patients with medically and socially complex concerns. Esther felt that UCLA was the right place for this training because of their incredible, all-star people; the diversity of their clinical sites; and the strength of the categorical programs. Esther’s career interests include: pediatric-to-adult transition care, gender-affirming primary care, palliative care, academic medicine, and JEDI in medicine.
Esther is excited to return to Southern California, near their family, and is enjoying creating new memories of LA. Esther loves going on nature adventures with their superstar partner and their two chiweenie pups. Esther also loves game nights, intimate friend gatherings, and hunting for the best Asian shaved ice in LA. When they’re too exhausted for the above, they like binging reality cooking shows and wholesome Korean dramas.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of California, Davis
Undergrad - New York University
Akshara Malla
4th Year Resident
Akshara (She/her/hers) is from the sunny city of Phoenix, Arizona. Akshara loves to dance, watch Bollywood movies, and travel.
For college, she attended Arizona State University, where she studied biomedical engineering. She decided to venture only 30 miles from home for medical school, where she attended the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix. At UACOM-Phoenix, she continued to strengthen her passion for health policy and advocate for health equity especially for marginalized communities. During this time, she also received her Master’s in Public Health and was very involved with the American Medical Association and her state medical association.
Akshara chose Med-Peds as she wanted to be able to expand and incorporate advocacy and public health interventions in both child and adult populations, with an emphasis on improving transitions of care. Her ultimate goal is to pursue these efforts while practicing clinically and to nationally advocate for her patients and community. She chose to come to UCLA because of its diverse patient population, strong curricular emphasis on advocacy, variety of county, academic, and community-based training sites, tight-knit Med-Peds family, and location (being close to home is a huge plus!).
After moving to LA, Akshara has forgotten what real, true summers are like and now enjoys double-digit weather all year round. She has grown to love living in West LA and is on a journey to find the best food + coffee + boba.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of Arizona
Undergrad - Arizona State University
Class of 2026
Andrew Fahmy
3rd Year Resident
Andrew (He/him/his) was born and raised in Cairo, Egypt (about 15 miles away from the pyramids) and moved to Florida when he was 16 years old. He attended Florida Atlantic University for college where he majored in Biological Science and minored in Psychology. Andrew stayed close to home and stayed at FAU for medical school. At FAU, he continued to foster his passion for mentoring and teaching where he mentored undergraduate students pursuing Medicine and tutored high school and middle school students in low income families and helped run medical simulations for students interested in Medicine. He continued his journey west and is beyond excited to now be at UCLA!
He was first interested in Med-Peds when his IM attending in his third year of medical school told him that he fit the ‘Med-Peds personality type’. After more research, the opportunity to be able to care for all people and in multiple settings as well as the advocacy initiatives that are embedded in the Med-Peds culture was too good to pass on. He is interested in congenital cardiology, infectious disease, global health and medical education . Having dual training is something that Andrew thinks will help him in his future career. He is also very passionate about teaching and wants to incorporate that during his time in residency and future career. Andrew chose UCLA for the outstanding categorical programs, the global health and advocacy initiatives and the culture of innovation and excellence that is very evident. The opportunity to rotate through multiple clinical sites and to care for the incredibly diverse population of the great city of Los Angeles is what makes UCLA Med-Peds so unique. Andrew can easily write another page on how incredible his co-interns, residents and leadership have been and he is very grateful to be here.
During his free time, Andrew likes to go to the beach with friends, play pick up soccer, and enjoy the roller coaster of emotions that is being an Arsenal fan (favorite English soccer team). He is also consistently trying (and mostly failing) to beat his co-intern Kalei at ping-pong and chess. Andrew also loves watching TV shows and can have a thirty minute conversation with anyone who is willing to listen on why he thinks The Office is the best sitcom ever made and why Ted Lasso is a very close second.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - Florida Atlantic University
Undergrad - Florida Atlantic University
Jester Galiza
3rd Year Resident
Jester (He/him/his) is from ‘Ewa Beach, Hawai’i, which is on the island of ‘Oahu, and is a product of two Filipino immigrant rice farm workers. After graduating from Dartmouth College, he took a detour from pursuing a career in medicine when he discovered Teach For America (TFA) – Hawai’i, a program dedicated to social justice and educational equity. Through the program, he returned to his hometown, taught 10th grade math at his alma mater, and obtained a Master of Education. After teaching, he continued working for the program wearing multiple hats, from coaching new math teachers to facilitating sessions in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Eventually, he found his way back to medicine and attended the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawai’i (along with his co-intern Kalei), where he leveraged his passions for education and DEI to bring legislative advocacy, activism, and community engagement to the forefront of his and his classmates’ medical school education.
Jester found Med-Peds through his passion for primary care. It was important for him to be able to advocate and manage the care for his patients with a wide variety and complexity of problems encountered in all stages of life. He chose UCLA because of its strong commitment to DEI; diversity of its residents, leadership, and faculty; strong categorical medicine and pediatrics training; opportunities to serve across the spectrum of socioeconomic status; and its palpable culture of both academia and primary care. After residency, Jester aspires to be a primary care doctor in his home state of Hawai’i, serving disadvantaged populations and advocating for them through legislative advocacy and community engagement. During his time at UCLA, he hopes to get involved in Medical Education, QI, and JEDI/MEDI-PEDI.
Jester enjoys going to plant nurseries and expanding his LA oasis; getting cozy at a coffee shop and reading for pleasure; going to the beach (which doesn’t compare to Hawai’i’s beaches, but they’ll suffice); playing beach volleyball; checking out the LA food scene; hanging out with his co-residents across Pediatrics, Internal Medicine, and especially Med-Peds; and going to escape rooms with his co-interns Andrew, Kalei, and Kate. Jester struggles to commit to new TV shows, so he just binges on reruns of FRIENDS, which is the best show in existence.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of Hawaii
Undergrad - Dartmouth College
Katherine Halper
3rd Year Resident
Kate (She/her/hers) grew up in San Francisco, California. She attended college at University of Pennsylvania and majored in Biology and English. She then returned to San Francisco to spend her gap year working as a medical assistant at the San Francisco Free Clinic, which provides primary care to exclusively uninsured patients. She remained on the west coast for medical school, attending University of Southern California, where she explored her interests of advocacy and health equity.
Kate chose Med-Peds because she knew she had to care for both the pediatric and adult populations. She also realized her most important medical school role models were Med-Peds because they were able to apply skills from one specialty to the other to provide the most comprehensive, thoughtful care. She chose UCLA because of the variety of clinical sites and the outstanding people within the program, from residents to faculty to leadership. Kate’s career interests include advocacy, health equity, and transitions of care.
Kate has spent the past 4 years in LA while in medical school and is so excited to have the opportunity to stay. She is making her way through all of LA’s must-eat restaurants and loves reading a good book on the beach.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of Southern California
Undergrad - University of Pennsylvania
Kalei Hosaka
3rd Year Resident
Kalei is from Kaneohe, Hawaii. He graduated from Wheaton College (IL) with a degree in Anthropology and a certificate in Human Needs and Global Resources. Between 2015 and 2017, Kalei spent twelve months in Delhi, India, volunteering in a community HIV clinic, learning Hindi, and working on ethnographic research on stigma and mental wellbeing. Kalei returned home to the University of Hawaii for medical school, where he became involved with migrant health advocacy, scholarly work in Native Hawaiian health, and primary care in resource-limited settings. After completing the fall semester of his 4th year of medical school, Kalei spent a year in Northern Tanzania (Duke University and Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre collaboration site) conducting research as a VECD NIH Fogarty Global Health fellow and learning Swahili. Working with youth living with HIV, Kalei’s research focused on stigma, peer education, theory-informed mental health interventions, and transition to adulthood for perinatally HIV-infected youth.
Kalei also completed a Certification of Professional Achievement in Narrative Medicine (2021-2023) through Columbia University. Kalei is a National Health Corps scholar, an inducted member of medical student honor societies, and a recipient of the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award (2022), the USPHS Excellence in Public Health Award (2020), and several research awards.
Kalei chose Med-Peds for its broad and in-depth clinical training across the life spectrum that he feels is applicable to work in population health and global health. With his interests in the clinical care of children and adults in underserved US and global contexts, Kalei sees Med-Peds as an excellent foundation for a lifelong career as a physician contributing to a more just world.
While he loved many programs that he interviewed with, Kalei chose to train at UCLA because he saw it as a place where he would develop into the physician he wants to become—someone who is excellent clinically, social-justice minded, and compassionate! Kalei was drawn to UCLA’s emphasis on resident wellbeing, scholarly support and opportunities (including in global health), primary care advocacy, network of incredible Med-Peds residents and graduates, and its closer location to home (Hawaii).
Kalei’s clinical interests include HIV care, primary care in underserved settings, geriatrics, palliative care, and transitions of care. In residency, Kalei’s loves finding opportunities to play music with his patients and support what matters most to them. Outside of clinical work, Kalei’s career interests include scholarly work in the social sciences and humanities, global HIV research, community-based advocacy, and collaborative global health initiatives. Kalei is also an aspiring writer; his writing themes include global health equity, structural violence, the process of medical training, theology, and finding meaning in illness and death.
At UCLA, Kalei is involved in mentored research and scholarly work, the global health pathway, and narrative medicine programming. In Los Angeles, Kalei enjoys playing sports (volleyball, basketball, and pickleball) and music (guitar, piano, and singing)! Kalei values time with his spouse (Leah), his church community, and his friendship with his Med-Peds co-residents.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School - University of Hawaii
Undergrad - Wheaton College
Class of 2027
Andrew Chang
2nd Year Resident
Andrew (He/him/his) is proudly a byproduct of his Taiwanese heritage/his parents' daily love and sacrifice, the experiences he accrued moving all over California and Washington state as kid and growing up in church. It was at UC Berkeley that he solidified his interest in medicine through his work at The Suitcase Clinic for the unhoused population and his minor in Global Poverty and Practice. Moving forward, Andrew happily found extensions of his prior experiences through leadership roles at UCSD SOM's Student-Run Free Clinic where he went to medical school. Today, Andrew fancies himself an amateur writer and photographer and hopes to somehow work these forms of storytelling into his future career. Aside from still being curious (or indecisive, depending on how you look at it) about all the different fields out there in medicine, Andrew chose Med-Peds due to his interest in working with the most marginalized both on a domestic and global scale. Having the wider, broader spectrum of clinical skills allows the opportunity to say the words "yes" more often than not to whoever comes through his future clinic doors. In other words, a Med-Peds background lets you adapt to the needs identified by a local community, whether it be for the little ones, our respected elderly population, or teenagers/young adults with chronic illnesses.
First and foremost, Andrew chose UCLA because it is close to Anaheim, where Andrew's family calls home today. But even more than that, Andrew feels that UCLA is truly the Goldilocks program of Med-Peds, with a steady balance of Pediatrics and Internal Medicine, community and academic training, and inpatient and outpatient focuses. Finally, UCLA offers great future opportunities for underserved medicine, something that became a strong point of emphasis during the interview trail. Also, Andrew knows he's being cliche here, but the people really are the grandest and the best! And the constant sunlight is a big plus! Career interests? BRB, i.e. who knows! But Andrew feels most called to working with local ethnic minorities and immigrant populations. Andrew is currently surviving his intern year and is looking into our global and underserved medicine pathways for 2nd years and has joined the IM POCUS curriculum.
Andrew enjoys taking long walks or runs along the beach at sunset – they truly change his outlook each day for the better without fail. Bit by bit, Andrew is also exploring the lore that is LA's Asian food and coffee scene! And in the future, going into the mountains to hike! Andrew isn't always with the times and doesn't watch too much TV, but he'll happily engage in a conversation about Chef's Table!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, San Diego
Undergrad – University of California, Berkeley
Kathleen Phoebe Hung
2nd Year Resident
Phoebe (She/her/hers) grew up in Thousand Oaks, California and went to UCLA for both undergrad and medical school. Phoebe also pursued a Masters in Public Health at Harvard with a focus in global health. Phoebe fell in love with Med-Peds during medical school and found Med-Peds doctors to be equally kind, compassionate, and thoughtful as well as intelligent, nuanced, and knowledgeable. Phoebe was incredibly happy to stay at UCLA for residency as the residents and faculty form a beautiful family that is passionate about patient care but also about resident wellness. Phoebe has special interests in global health, medical Spanish, and hospitalist medicine.
Phoebe’s favorite things to do in LA are hiking at Mandeville/Will Rogers, exploring restaurants and bars (there are many), going to the beach, outdoor runs, and staying active. Favorite TV show to binge: Phoebe is currently watching reality TV like Love is Blind, and is a big F1 fan!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, Los Angeles
Undergrad – University of California, Los Angeles
Lindsay Olson
2nd Year Resident
Lindsay (She/her/hers) is originally from Atlanta, Georgia. She completed her undergraduate degree in Theater Arts (concentrations in Acting & Directing) at Pace University School of Performing Arts before she ever knew medicine was in her future. She spent nine years in New York, NY working in arts administration and Off-Broadway producing. As an actor, she worked as a standardized patient at NYU Langone where she watched medical students develop their skills. This inspired her to complete a Postbaccalaureate Pre-med program at New York University. She then moved to Durham, NC where she attended medical school at Duke University School of Medicine. At Duke she was able to hone her skills.
Lindsay decided to become a Med-Peds doctor during medical school when she consistently noticed some of the best attendings and residents she worked with were Med-Peds trained. She wanted to learn how to become as versatile and patient-centered as they were.
She remains undecided in terms of career goals but cannot imagine NOT getting to work with both the pediatric AND adult population in some capacity. She has special interests in Medical Education and QI and plans to continue her work with the Institute of Healthcare Improvement while in residency.
Lindsay chose UCLA Med-Peds because of the seemingly unlimited opportunities, the fun and warm personalities she met, and the vibrant nature of Los Angeles as a place to live and train. Her favorite things to do in LA (so far) include exploring the gorgeous state parks nearby, the museums, and trying all the incredible restaurants. Favorite TV show to binge: Not a big binger, but a classic she always enjoys is Arrested Development!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – Duke University
Undergrad – New York University
Sahana Shankar
2nd Year Resident
Sahana (She/her/hers) is from the Bay Area and pursued her college and medical school education at the University of Miami. Graduating with a major in Neuroscience and minors in Health Sector Management & Policy and Chemistry, she continued her medical journey in Miami. During her time in medical school, Sahana founded "Difficult Conversations," a student organization aimed at helping students tackle tough ethical and emotional topics in medicine. The organization facilitated peer-led discussions and featured panels with experts, providing a platform for students to grapple with these challenging topics. Sahana's lifelong commitment to the disability community began with her younger sister, who has Floating-Harbor Syndrome. She volunteered at her sister's school and after-school programs, developing a passion for working with children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In medical school, she saw the importance of disability education in medical training. She had the opportunity to help design a curriculum and also developed further educational programming, including hosting panels and creating a student navigator program. Sahana also completed Leadership Education in Neurodevelopment Disabilities (LEND) training. During medical school, Sahana helped establish a clinic for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Through this experience, she recognized the care gap this community faces, which ultimately led her to choose Med-Peds. She hopes to care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout the lifespan. UCLA jumped out to Sahana as the perfect residency program for her. It was clear that there was a strong commitment to the disability community, from the LEND clinic to strong advocacy efforts. The incredible culture and community, clear commitment to resident well-being and personal goals, and diverse training sites were a few of the many reasons Sahana loved UCLA's program. Sahana is confident that UCLA will guide her to become the physician she’s always aspired to be.
Sahana has loved her time in Los Angeles so far. She enjoys exploring new restaurants, discovering the best taco stands, watching sunsets on the beach, and going on Malibu hikes and oceanfront walks. She also loves spending time with her co-interns. Sahana has already made so many incredible memories with them and looks forward to many more. Currently, she's binging "Jury Duty" but spends most of her time calling friends and family.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of Miami
Undergrad – University of Miami
Rachel To
2nd Year Resident
Rachel (She/her/hers) grew up in the frigid plains of western Canada in Calgary, Alberta before relocating with her family to sunny San Diego. She attended the University of California, San Diego for her undergraduate and graduate studies where she majored in Human Biology and completed a research-based Masters studying HIV-associated chronic inflammation. Moving out to the Midwest, Rachel completed her medical degree at the Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University. She was involved in initiating diabetic eye screening for her school’s community clinic and volunteered weekly at the food pantry with her church. However, most of her time was dedicated towards student leadership, most notably serving as Student Dean and president of her Alpha Omega Alpha chapter. She was chosen to be a participant of the AMA Leadership Development Institute, a selective fellowship for fourth-year medical students interested in healthcare leadership.
Rachel first heard of Med-Peds from one of her mentors, a pediatric infectious disease physician. Not only did she love the spectrum of medicine from newborns to geriatrics, but she also discovered that her desire to serve in limited-resource settings and improve community health could be found in the field of Med-Peds – a specialty historically dedicated to bridging healthcare gaps through primary and transitional care medicine. During the residency interview season, Rachel immediately fell in love with UCLA Med-Peds. She was drawn to the authentic camaraderie of the residents as well as the program’s values and emphasis on conscientious and equitable quality of care through advocacy and innovation. Now at UCLA, Rachel intends to pursue the Health Systems and Management pathway and bring her passion for increasing health equity through sustainable system changes and quality improvement.
Rachel loves binge-watching reality TV shows, Netflix docuseries, and cooking/baking competitions. She enjoys being active and plays in a soccer league with her co-residents. Some of her favorite things about LA thus far include outdoor live music, summer movie nights at the Culver Steps, and exploring the amazing, culturally diverse and rich food scene.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – Rosalind Franklin University
Undergrad – University of California, San Diego
Katherine Tran
2nd Year Resident
Katherine (She/her/hers) was born and raised in Houston, Texas and is the daughter of two Vietnamese immigrants. She attended college at Rice University, where she majored in Biological Sciences and minored in Business. She moved across the street after college to attend medical school at Baylor College of Medicine. During medical school, she became very passionate about care for the underserved, social determinants of health, and DEI in medicine and was able to develop a research project addressing pediatric obesity in an under-resourced neighborhood, lead in her medical school’s pathway for care of the underserved, and develop mentorship connections for fellow first-generation medical students. She is also very passionate about graphic design and enjoyed being an editor for the yearbook and working on various projects during college and medical school. She chose Med-Peds because she wanted to care for patients of all ages and treat diseases and complex conditions across the age spectrum. She knew Med-Peds would also provide her with a strong foundation for advocacy work, allowing her to facilitate continuity of care for her patients and address social and health inequities at every level. In Med-Peds, she believes that what you do for patients and their families can make a lasting impact for the rest of their lives and also the end of their lives, and she finds that extremely meaningful.
Katherine ranked UCLA #1 because of its strength, diversity of training experiences and settings, strong and balanced categorical programs, diverse patient population, strong primary care curriculum with combined continuity clinic experience at both Med-Peds Comprehensive Care Clinic and Simms-Mann/Venice Family Clinic (FQHC), and multiple opportunities for advocacy and DEI work. LA as a city also had everything she wanted – diverse people, art, and culture; amazing food and entertainment; and beautiful nature and beaches! Katherine is interested in the longitudinal relationships of primary care and transitions of care, particularly in underserved settings. During residency, she plans to participate in advocacy and health equity projects and get involved with the diversity committee and advocacy council. She also hopes to be a part of the Primary Care/Public Health pediatric pathway.
Katherine is usually at the beach on her days off soaking in the always beautiful LA weather. She also really enjoys trying new food/drink places and spending time with her Med-Peds and categorical co-interns/residents. She is also hoping to go on more hikes and to more concerts. She loves binging any real estate reality TV show and is also starting The Office for the first time (she knows she’s super late to the game)!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – Baylor University
Undergrad – Rice University
Class of 2028
Michelle Bui
1st Year Resident
Michelle (She/Her/Hers) grew up in Huntington Beach, California, just a short run to the beach and a short drive to Little Saigon. She has fond memories of making day trips to Los Angeles to explore its art museums and hiking trails. She is excited to be living in the city for the first time and revisit these attractions while making new memories with her co-residents.
Michelle graduated from UC Irvine with a major in Biological Sciences and a minor in English. One of her most formative experiences in college was conducting research in the Emergency Department, where she realized her passion for working with patients of all ages and backgrounds.
For medical school, Michelle journeyed up the Interstate-5 to attend UC San Francisco. There, she was attracted to opportunities that fulfilled her interests and nurtured a sense of community. She advocated for Asian American populations as a Chapter Co-Chair and Regional Director of the Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association; hosted writing groups and founded Intertwine, a learner-centered narrative medicine journal; and taught MS1/MS2 point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) courses while researching this area of medical education.
Following her desire to care for patients of all ages and backgrounds, Michelle felt that Med-Peds was the best fit for the breadth and depth of practice that she envisions for her career. In the long run, she hopes to balance this work with her interests in writing and community engagement. She is thrilled to be at UCLA, which she chose for its rigorous and diverse medical training and the sense of authenticity, kindness, and community that she felt on interview day. At UCLA, she has participated in the Med-Peds Writing Group and POCUS Training Program.
In her free time, Michelle enjoys watching historical documentaries, journaling, and trying new baking recipes. Inspired by her visit to Yosemite during medical school, she hopes to spend many of her vacations during residency hiking in national parks.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, San Francisco
Undergrad – University of California, Irvine
Kate Coursey
1st Year Resident
Kate (She/Her/Hers) grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah with her parents and younger sister. She spent her childhood hiking and backpacking in Utah's wilderness, and to this day she loves spending time outdoors. After receiving her BA in English from Occidental College, she took four years off from school, including a year spent teaching English in India on a Fulbright grant. As a medical student at UCLA, Kate furthered her interest in global health by conducting a year-long research project on HPV vaccination in rural India, and she discovered a thriving community of writers who helped nurture her love of writing short stories.
Kate chose Med-Peds for many reasons – a desire to understand how disease impacts patients across the life course, the versatility of Med-Peds training for working in global health settings, the tight-knit community of individuals committed to equity in healthcare, and the impeccable vibes. She was specifically drawn to the diverse rotation sites and patient populations served by UCLA, as well as the Med-Peds faculty who go above and beyond to help residents pursue their passions. In the future, Kate hopes to continue making global health and narrative medicine a part of her career, and she is excited to
further define her clinical interests during residency (in true Med-Peds fashion, she’s not entirely sure what she wants to do with her life). She is excited to join the Global Health Pathway this upcoming year.
Kate’s favorite things to do in LA include exploring cute coffee shops, long beach walks, neighborhood runs, and drinking excessive amounts of boba. She also takes advantage of the hiking scene in LA and surrounding areas – her next big hiking goal is San Gorgonio. Her favorite TV shows to binge include Love is Blind, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Grey’s Anatomy, and of course watching The Bachelorette with her co-interns.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, Los Angeles
Undergrad – University of Utah
Urvi Gupta
1st Year Resident
Urvi (She/Her/Hers) is originally from the Bay Area where she attended Stanford University for undergrad before moving down to sunny San Diego for medical school at UCSD. At Stanford, she majored in Human Biology with a concentration in Health Innovation and Behavioral Science. She went on to work at a health innovation lab called Medicine X for 2 years and remains very interested in the overlap between medicine, design, and quality improvement.
Urvi first learned about Med-Peds during her third-year clinical rotations and found that many of her favorite attendings and residents were Med-Peds trained. Med-Peds ended up being the perfect fit for Urvi as it allowed her to take care of sick patients across the age spectrum, and it would allow her to be a more competent doctor in all health care settings even if she ended up choosing either medicine or pediatrics (although she hopes to be able to take care of both populations)!
Urvi fell in love with UCLA’s program primarily because of the incredible Med-Peds community, strong training on both the medicine and pediatrics sides, and plethora of opportunities to work on quality improvement, education, and advocacy projects. It doesn’t hurt that LA has some of the best food in the country, and it’s sunny almost all year long!
Urvi isn’t quite sure what she wants to do in terms of career yet, but she knows UCLA will be the best place for her to figure it out! Outside of work, Urvi loves to go bakery hopping, explore new restaurants, read, spend hours scrolling on Facebook Marketplace, and play volleyball and tennis! Urvi’s favorite show of the recent few years has got to be Severance, and she is super excited about Season 2 coming out soon! But she loves watching any new murder mystery show (not true crime though) and is currently rewatching Modern Family with her partner!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, San Diego
Undergrad – Stanford University
Grecia Quiroga
1st Year Resident
Grecia (She/Her/Hers) grew up in Jackson, Michigan, and attended the University of Michigan for undergrad and medical school (Go Blue!). While in medical school, she also pursued a Master's in Public Health at the University of Michigan with a focus in Health Behavior and Health Education. Grecia fell in love with Med-Peds because she loved the ability to combine her interests in care for the underserved, health disparities, and public health for people and populations across the lifespan. She was always in awe of the well-rounded training and skills that Med-Peds physicians possess, enabling them to make a significant impact in their communities and for their patients. Grecia chose UCLA because of the diversity of the patient population and the clinical sites that would prepare for virtually any setting after residency. As a Latina in medicine, she was also drawn to being able to use her Spanish language skills to make an impact in a large Spanish-speaking population. She specifically loved the focus UCLA Med-Peds has on advocacy, justice, and caring for the underserved. Grecia was also strongly attracted to the strong sense of family and uniquely Med-Peds identity she had felt since her interview day.
Grecia aspires to be a primary care physician for both adults and children as well as combine her career with health intervention program development, community advocacy, and health equity. However, with her vast interests, she is excited to continue to explore how she would like to shape her career by all the wonderful and inspiring examples of attendings at UCLA who are engage in meaningful work in these spaces. As such, she plans on getting involved with the Health Equity and Advocacy Pathway through Internal Medicine and the Primary Care and Public Health Track through Pediatrics.
In her spare time, Grecia loves exploring Los Angeles including going to the beach, running, hiking, and eating delicious food. She particularly loves street tacos and enjoying all the delicious Mexican food that LA has to offer! There is never a boring day in Los Angeles and days off are always taken advantage of by exploring what LA has to offer!
Grecia’s favorite TV shows that she has recently binged are Emily in Paris, Bridgerton, Love is Blind, Desperate Housewives, Sex and the City, Gilmore Girls, and Mexican telenovelas. She has also enjoyed watching The Bachelorette with her Med-Peds co-interns every week as a fun bonding activity.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of Michigan
Undergrad – University of Michigan
Lindsay Schlichte
1st Year Resident
Lindsay (She/Her/Hers) is originally from Long Island, NY. Before making the cross-country move to California for residency, she completed her undergraduate, masters, and medical school education at Duke University in North Carolina. During her time in medical school, Lindsay fostered her interests in serious illness care, leadership development, and teaching.
Lindsay chose Med-Peds as she couldn’t imagine a career without both! From caring for newborns after their first breath, to interacting with authentic and animated children and young adults in clinic, to navigating the course of chronic illnesses, aging, and end-of-life in older adults, serving patients in both realms demands a commitment to curiosity and humility. She was also positively impacted by numerous Med-Peds attendings and resident mentors in medical school that were incredibly kind, versatile, and happy folks! When it comes to career interest, Lindsay is undecided but is excited about hospital medicine, palliative care, intensive care, and extensivist medicine.
Lindsay is thrilled to continue her training at UCLA, where she has met so many more incredible mentors within the tight-knit Med-Peds family. Outside of the hospital, she enjoys long walks and hikes with partner and their dog, hanging out with her co-residents, and exploring the desert (2 hours east) whenever she gets the chance!
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – Duke University
Undergrad – Duke University
Hannah Tak
1st Year Resident
Hannah Tak (She/Her/Hers) was born in Suwon, South Korea and grew up in the suburbs of the East Bay Area. She stayed nearby to attend college at UC Berkeley, where she majored in Neurobiology and minored in Global Poverty and Practice. During this time, she was very active in neuroscience research, but her passions were in providing healthcare for people of all ages and backgrounds. While in medical school at UC Davis, she engaged with the Sacramento community as part of the student-run clinics. She was a co-director of the Paul Hom Asian Clinic and established a partnership with a local International Supermarket to provide flu vaccines. Hannah was also a co-founder of the RIVER clinic, the first pediatric student-run clinic at UC Davis. She remained involved with research and completed a QI project regarding “Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care in Sickle Cell Disease” and case studies involving individuals with Fragile X Syndrome.
Hannah was first introduced to Med-Peds by a mentor who provided primary care for children with complex illnesses and inpatient care as an adult hospitalist. Hannah was dazzled by her work and inspired to become a provider who is present for her patients with diverse medical needs throughout all periods of life. Hannah has a particular interest in transitions of care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) and complex illnesses. She chose to pursue Med-Peds because she wanted to be well equipped in pediatric and adult medicine to provide a bridge in their care. She loved UCLA’s program because of its commitment to underserved populations and opportunities to work with individuals with complex medical needs and IDDs whether in the inpatient or outpatient setting. She also felt there was a strong community of likeminded individuals committed to diverse, equitable, and quality care. During residency she plans to become more involved with the LEND clinic, continue clinical research, and participate in the Medical Education Pathway.
Hannah finds any opportunity to go on runs at the beach in Santa Monica and scope out new restaurants in Koreatown. She has promoted class camaraderie through weekly Bachelorette and charcuterie nights and loves to engage with her Med-Peds and categorical co-residents. She has been a Nor-Cal girlie all her life, but has fully embraced this chapter of her life in LA.
Education and Degree(s)
Medical School – University of California, Davis
Undergrad – University of California, Berkeley