People
CLASS OF 2013 | CLASS OF 2012 | CLASS OF 2011 | CLASS OF 2014 | ATTENDINGS | ALUMNI
Class of 2012
Jennifer Carey, MD
New York Medical College
Bryan Choi, MD
UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas Southwestern Medical School
You know what really, really made me want to become an Emergency Physician? That 2003 movie 'Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World' with Russel Crowe Paul Bettany. Sure, Russel Crowe's Captain Aubrey was a total badass, but when Paul Bettany's Dr. Maturin took care of his own bullet wound on a tropical island with no resources, with not only his but the entire crew's lives at stake depending on the outcome, I knew I wanted to be that skillful, and that useful. I can't think of any other field, and any other training program that could fit the bill for me. Other residencies get boring in third year. Ours gets exciting!
Siri Daulaire, MD
Brown Medical School
I started life in Vermont and remained a New England girl through and through, despite the fact that and over the next few decades I lived and worked in Nepal, Thailand, Washington DC, Botswana, and Providence. I still can't speak medical Spanish, but my Tswana and Nepali are fairly good - as much help as it is here! I was in medical school at Brown for my clinical years and quickly fell in love with the personality of the place, so decided to stick around for my residency. In my personal life, I'm a bit of an outlier, commuting to Rhode Island Hospital from my home in Massachusetts (where I live across the street from a pair of cows). I spend the bulk of my free time home with my family (my wife and too many animals to detail on a public website), running, going to the local drive-in to watch double features, and playing ultimate frisbee with a local pickup team. Free time being as valuable as it is, three or four activities are about all I can manage on a consistent basis!
Nadine Himelfarb, MD
University of Maryland School of Medicine
I grew up just outside of Cleveland and moved to Baltimore after college to teach Latin and Ancient Greek. After a few years of teaching, I decided to jump into the medical world and soon realized that emergency medicine was the field for me. When looking at residency programs, Brown very quickly rose to the top of the list after my visit -- it felt like an instant fit, and I’m thrilled to say my instincts were right! The year-to-year layout of the program, the pathology, the quality of teaching, and the diverse faculty, not to mention my fellow residents and the supportive environment, have all been wonderful! I think one of the toughest parts will be deciding which path I wish to take after residency as I’m constantly being exposed to so many different aspects of emergency medicine and potential career tracts. As far as transplanting my family to Providence from Baltimore, it turned out to be one of the best decisions we ever made!
Providence and Rhode Island make it easy for me to enjoy my days off -- you can find me with my husband, Michael, and our son, Jack, anywhere from the East Bay bike path to fruit farms to street festivals around the state, or just exploring the East Side and greater Providence with our basset hound, Walter.
Alison Killelea, MD
SUNY Downstate College of Medicine
Well, I grew up on Long Island, New York, but no, I don't have an accent. I spent enough time upstate NY (lots of snow, long stormy drives, but really good Grandma's Italian food) and away from LI to not aquire that (phew)! In fact I spent a lot of my time investigating fun new places growing up - I lived in Northwestern France for a year in high school, then migrated to the far north (almost Canada) with the geese to Colby College in Maine, studied abroad in Townsville, Australia (yeah barrier reef!), returned to the wildness of SUNY Downstate Medical School in Brooklyn (with Steph), lived in the Dominican Republic for a few months and traveled to parts of Europe, Asia and Africa in between. I guess its obvious to say that I love to travel in my time off. And that's one of the things I love most about Emergency Medicine - yes the problem solving, the variety of cases and the unexpectedness are awesome, but most of all I love the ability to pick up and go somewhere when you're not working - no pager, no call, yeah! Emergency Medicine seemed a normal choice for me after rotating multiple times in the busy, urban and very exciting Emergency Department at Kings County Hospital and after a few close brushes with surgery rotations (I did love the procedures in the OR) I realized that EM is right for me! The things I love about the Brown program are the excellent balance between academic strength and clinical training, awesome fellow residents always up for traveling to a distant place, going out after a shift, or making chili in the dead of winter while watching Jersey Shore marathons...and yes, 5+ months of elective to travel, learn about healthcare in other countries and learn a few new languages doesn't hurt either...
Michael Lee, MD
Brown Medical School
I grew up in Cleveland, then took a somewhat lengthy and circuitous route to medicine, studying economics and then working as a trader for a big bank before medical school. My wife, Meg, deserves much credit for tolerating my unorthodox career path (although she had the good sense to insist on a "no-surgery" pre-nup.) We have two spirited girls, Maddie, age 9 and Audrey, age 6 who keep us on our toes. When I'm not at the hospital, you can usually find us trolling the East Side in search of a good playground.
David MacKenzie, MD
McGill University Faculty of Medicine
I grew up in Toronto and did a liberal arts degree at McMaster. After a few years of research, writing, and travel, I went to McGill for medical school. In Montreal, I met my wife, who's from upstate New York, and she was returning to the US. I started to look at residencies here, and came to Brown on an elective, almost by chance; it was arranged at the last minute when another rotation fell through. It was a huge stroke of luck for me -- I was thoroughly impressed with the program and people, an impression that has only solidifed further with time. The training here is exceptional, with high patient volume and an emphasis on critical care. More importantly, the residents and faculty are dynamic, motivated, and supportive. The institution also has outstanding resources and opportunities beyond the clinical experience we get. Outside of work, my interests range from cycling, hiking, and hockey to food, photography, and travel. Providence has proven to be a great city, with good restaurants and cultural events, and easy access to outdoor activities.
Tracy Madsen, MD
Boston University School of Medicine
I grew up in Muncie, Indiana, and transplanted myself to Boston for college.
I loved it so much that I couldn't leave so I stayed for medical school! My
husband is a special education teacher in Boston Public Schools, and we are
very excited to be staying in New England! I am specifically interested in
women's health within the field of emergency medicine. Outside of medicine,
I enjoy spending time with friends and family, reading, running, and
watching movies. I'm looking forward to starting residency, meeting my new
colleagues, and exploring Providence.
Noah Rosenberg, MD
Oregon Health & Science University
Maine is home originally but I migrated to the Pacific Northwest for college, where I met my wife Deb, and we stayed there for medical school at Oregon Health & Science University. Now we're back in New England and thoroughly enjoying it. Providence has a lot to offer and is fabulously diverse. I enjoy biking, hiking, dogs and gardening as well as movies and books on a rainy day. I live on the west side of Providence close to the hospital and walking distance from our community garden, a farmer's market, good coffee and food. As for the emergency department itself, it is busy, diverse and well supported—a great experience.
Stephanie Sippel, MD
SUNY Downstate College of Medicine
Ronald Van Ness-Otunnu, MD
University of Vermont College of Medicine
I enjoy camping, traveling, canoeing, listening to music, and spending free time relaxing with my wife and daughter while we do all of the above together! I have lived most of my life in Connecticut, only migrating to Washington D.C. to be a “Physio”, and to Vermont for medical school. I think of myself as a New Englander, but I’m sure that means different things to different people. Among other pleasant things, for me it means that I love our landscape, cultures, literary history, tradition of Yankee ingenuity, and our stoic attitude when nor’easters blow in! For years my wife and I had favorite summer destinations in (and fond seafood memories of) Rhode Island and we are thrilled to be here for residency. My interest in Emergency Medicine includes International EM and I hope to spend some time in the region of East Africa in the later years of my residency and beyond.
Lisa Vopat, MD
University of Kansas School of Medicine-Kansas City
I grew up in Danvers, MA, home of the Salem Witch Trials, but migrated to the midwest upon graduating high school. After attending my first KU basketball game in Allen Fieldhouse, I was hooked, and ended up spending 8 years, both college and medical school out in Kansas. I am an avid New England and Jayhawk sports fan. Between the Red Sox, Patriots, KU basketball and KU football, I couldn’t have asked for a more exciting year. Besides just watching sports, playing soccer is my passion and most likely why my major interest is sports medicine. After being land locked in Kansas for so long, I am excited to return to the East Coast and show my Kansas-raised husband all that Providence has to offer. Rockchalk Jayhawk!