Faraz Alizadeh, MD, joins us from the Division of Medical Critical Care here at Boston Children’s Hospital, where he was an attending hospitalist in the Intermediate Care Program (ICU step-down/step-up unit) after completing pediatric residency in the Boston Combined Residency Program last year. Faraz earned an undergraduate degree (magna cum laude) from UCLA and an MD from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (graduating with Alpha Omega Alpha and Gold Humanism Honor Society honors). Faraz works with Partners in Health and spent six months in Rwanda developing an international heart failure training program. He is also working with Dr. Betsy Blume, assessing the efficacy of the surprise question as a prognostication tool for children with advanced heart disease, and with Dr. Katie Moynihan, investigating disparities in access to and utilization of ECMO. Faraz enjoys hiking and running. He ran the Boston Marathon in 2021.

Jonathan Awori, MD, MS, MFA, joins us from the Pediatrics Residency Program at Seattle Children’s Hospital/University of Washington, where he was a chief resident. He earned an undergraduate degree in English (drama and theatre) from McGill University, graduating with first class honors. He proceeded to pursue a master of fine arts degree in theatre, with a specialization in acting, at Illinois State University. Following his graduate studies, Jonathan worked as a professional actor while holding multiple academic appointments, including assistant professor of theatre at Murray State University. During his tenure, he also served as academic dean of the Commonwealth Honors Academy. Building on a long-held interest in medicine, he chose to pursue post-baccalaureate pre-medical studies before being accepted to the University of Michigan Medical School on a full dean’s merit scholarship, and he subsequently graduated with distinction in medical education. His matriculation included obtaining a master of clinical research degree. During residency at Seattle Children’s Hospital, Jonathan studied the application of virtual reality and 3D-printed models of congenital heart disease in trainee and patient-family education. His personal interests are singing, international travel, languages, puns, and athletics.

Shree Basu, MBBS, MBioeth, joins the Cardiac Intensive Care unit from Westmead Children’s Hospital in sunny Sydney, Australia, where she completed her pediatric intensive care fellowship with particular clinical interests in advanced heart failure, mechanical support, and transplantation. Prior to this, she completed her general pediatric fellowship through the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network. Shree’s academic interests and expertise are in clinical ethics and complex decision making in the intensive care environment, with particular interest in how these apply in both mechanical support and provision of palliative care. Her other non-clinical interests include supporting education, professional development, and reflective practice in intensive care clinicians. When not caring for other people’s small humans, she loves hanging out with her own, as well as travelling, exercising, playing the piano, and some Netflix true crime.

Nicholas Boscamp, MD, is joining us from New York Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical Center Pediatrics Residency Program. He earned an undergraduate degree in economics at the University of Pennsylvania and then attended Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, where he was awarded the Rebecca A. Schwartz Memorial Prize for community service achievement in pediatric heart disease. After medical school, Nicholas joined New York Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical Center for residency, and participated in research that retrospectively reviewed the echocardiographic changes seen in pediatric patients with sickle cell disease before and after a stem cell transplant. He also published a study of Columbia’s experience with cardiac catheterization in patients supported with ECMO. Nicholas enjoys cooking, film, contemporary art, and music.

Victoria Robson Bradford, MD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where she served as a chief resident at Boston Children’s Hospital. She earned a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience and behavior from Columbia University, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude. She completed an MD at Harvard Medical School, graduating cum laude with honors in outcomes research after completing a thesis on neurodevelopmental outcomes in patients with d-TGA under the mentorship of Dr. Jane Newburger. During residency, she conducted research on socioeconomic disparities and thrombosis risk in patients with MIS-C (with, respectively, Drs. Audrey Dionne and Christina VanderPluym), and she worked on a project evaluating predictors of postnatal circulatory outcome following fetal aortic valvuloplasty with Dr. Kevin Friedman. Outside of work, Victoria loves to dance, cook meals with friends and family, read historical fiction, listen to podcasts, and explore national parks.

Kristina Chambers, MD, was born in Jamaica and emigrated to Florida, where she grew up. She went to Dartmouth College and majored in neuroscience. Upon graduation, she spent three years at Boston Children’s working with Dr. Dominic Abrams researching cardiac event risk in LQTS patients. She then went to medical school at Emory and received the Sarnoff Cardiovascular Fellowship. This provided funding for her research year working with Dr. Vassilios Bezzerides on neurocognitive delays in catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT). She has continued this research as a resident in the Boston Combined Residency Program and will continue working on it as a fellow. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her dog (aptly named Dopamine), traveling, watching too much TV, and cooking meals that are sometimes tasty.

Richard “Clint” Collier, MD, joins us from MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, where he worked as an adult hospitalist. He graduated from the med-ped program at Georgetown in 2020 and has enjoyed learning how to be an attending physician. Clint grew up in Albuquerque, N.M., but has migrated across the country many times. He attended Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., for undergraduate studies in biology. He then completed a master’s degree in biomedical science policy and advocacy at Georgetown and worked in science policy in Washington, D.C., before attending medical school at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. He then returned to Washington, D.C., for residency. He is excited to be a part of academic medicine in Boston and has an interest in electrophysiology. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his wife and their children, Luca and Jackson. His interests include soccer, swimming, triathlons, skiing, and going on road trips — he has been to 48 states!

Lauren Crafts, MD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where she was a resident for three years. She earned an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University, where she majored in human science and minored in theology. She then spent two years as a federal human capital analyst at Deloitte Consulting LLP before attending Rutgers University Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She graduated with honors and as a member of Alpha Omega Alpha and the Gold Humanism Honor Society. During residency, she has developed a strong interest in pediatric cardiology and medical education. She completed a project investigating obesity trends in patients with Kawasaki disease under the mentorship of Dr. Sarah de Ferranti, and she hopes to continue pursuing education-focused initiatives and research as a fellow. Lauren’s interests outside of medicine include fitness, the NFL, “The West Wing,” and foosball.

Kathryn “Katie” Dern, MD, joins us from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where she was a resident for three years. She grew up in San Diego and remained in Southern California prior to taking the leap to pursue fellowship training in Boston. She earned an undergraduate degree in bioengineering from UCLA, where she was recognized with the top honor “Outstanding Bachelor of Science” by the School of Engineering and Applied Science. She then received an MD from UC San Diego School of Medicine. During her residency, she was involved in research regarding echocardiographic findings in MIS-C in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. At Boston Children’s, she is looking forward to learning about innovations in engineering technologies in pediatric cardiology. Outside of work, Katie enjoys camping, baking, baseball (go, Padres!), art, and tending to her houseplants.

Leanne Duhaney, MD, MPH, joins us from the Pediatrics Residency Program at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), where she was a resident for three years. She grew up in Kingston, Jamaica, and Charlotte, N.C. She graduated with honor from Princeton University, where she majored in biology and completed a certificate program in global health and health policy. For her undergraduate senior thesis, she investigated tuberculosis trends in Jamaica. She earned her MD from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and her MPH in health policy from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. During residency at UCSF, she worked with a large dataset to further understand the effects of gestational age and size at birth on management strategies and outcomes in neonatal tetralogy of Fallot. In fellowship, she looks forward to continuing outcomes-based research, and working in health policy and global health. Leanne’s hobbies include hiking, reading, and running. She also enjoys visiting museums and traveling.

Amr El-Bokl, MD, joins us from the Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship program at the University of Minnesota as a pediatric electrophysiology fellow. He earned his undergraduate degree in biochemistry at the University of Iowa, graduating with high honors. As part of his medical school matriculation, he pursued a master of public health. During this time, he worked in a refugee camp to implement art therapy programs for children displaced from the Syrian civil war. This is where his interest in pediatrics grew. After completing his medical degree at the University of Iowa, he joined the Pediatrics Residency Program at the University of Minnesota, during which he continued his global health work with displaced populations and fell in love with cardiology. Amr’s passion for electrophysiology grew during his time at the University of Minnesota. During his cardiology fellowship, he studied and published on the applications of vectorcardiography in pediatrics. He subsequently pursued a master’s degree in biomedical engineering, with a focus on analysis of bioelectrical signals and machine learning. Amr has interests in tennis, music, and toy design.

Miriam Fox, MD, MPH, joins us from the Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where she completed a three-year residency in the Leadership in Equity and Advocacy track. She earned her undergraduate degree in biology from Duke University, graduating summa cum laude. After college, she was a Fulbright fellow in La Plata, Argentina, conducting research on nutritional deficiencies and infant neurodevelopment. Following a year spent with an international education start-up based in Cambridge, Mass., Miriam attended medical school at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, graduating as a member of Alpha Omega Alpha. She earned her MPH during an additional year at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. During residency, Miriam expanded her interests in health equity and quality improvement through several projects related to the care of patients with limited English proficiency. She is currently working with Dr. Katie Moynihan examining disparities in readmissions among patients with cardiac disease and researching the timing of tracheostomy placement in CICU patients. Miriam loves spending time outdoors running, hiking, kayaking, and camping along with her husband, David, and their dog, Moki. Her interests also include anything food-related and adventuring around the world.

Addison Gearhart, MD, joins us from the Pediatric Residency Program at University of California Irvine Children’s Hospital of Orange County. She received a BA in molecular biology and Spanish from Colgate University. She later earned an MD from George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, where she received the Gill Fellowship Grant Award for Research. During her residency, she worked on several research projects, including looking into artificial intelligence applications in pediatric cardiology as well as the use of telemedicine to assist local pediatricians in rural communities. She also worked on a project related to patients discharged from the NICU with patent ductus arteriosus to determine clinical risk factors and echo parameters early in course that may later predict severity of PDA. Addison enjoys triathlons, half-marathons, hiking, swimming, running, and camping.

Deepak Gupta, MD, joins us from the Pediatrics Residency Program at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, where he was a resident for three years. He earned his undergraduate degree from Rutgers University, where he majored in chemistry and molecular biology, and his medical degree from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. During his undergraduate studies, he began working as a mentor to first-generation high school students. This work led him to pursue a formalized mentorship program with City Year San José Silicon Valley/AmeriCorps, where he led an afterschool enrichment class and provided tutoring for middle school students performing below grade level. While in medical school, he continued working with local high school students interested in healthcare in the Newark, N.J., area. In residency, he pursued his interest in education by working on his residency’s survival guide and developing an introductory manual for residents rotating through the cardiothoracic unit. His residency research project involved studying the effects of the pandemic on the prenatal detection rate for critical congenital heart disease with a particular focus on socioeconomic factors. Away from work, Deepak enjoys baking (chocolate chip cookies are his specialty), hiking, trying new coffees, and playing basketball.

Jeff Hong, MD, joins the Electrophysiology Division for a senior fellowship after completing a categorical pediatric cardiology fellowship at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. Jeff earned his undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied biology and anthropology. He then completed medical school and pediatrics residency at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. As a cardiology fellow, Jeff was involved in research projects examining long-term pacing and defibrillator lead longevity in pediatric and adult congenital heart disease patients, cardioneuroablation for children with functional sinus node dysfunction and paroxysmal atrioventricular block, and ambulatory rhythm monitoring in pediatric patients with postural tachycardia syndrome. He is also currently involved in a study assessing long-term outcomes of infants with cardiomyopathy followed at tertiary children’s hospitals in Beijing and Qingdao, China. Jeff’s interests outside of medicine include traveling, rock climbing, basketball, and classical music.

Karina Javalkar, MD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where she was a resident for three years. She earned a BSPH in health policy and management at University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Public Health and an MD at UNC School of Medicine, graduating with a concentration in physician leadership in quality and safety and as a member of Alpha Omega Alpha. During residency, she co-led Health Equity Rounds, a trainee-led grand rounds series. She has a strong interest in health services research, particularly in transitions from pediatric to adult care, survivorship from childhood illness, health equity, and systems improvement. During residency, alongside another rising co-fellow, she published on socioeconomic and racial-ethnic disparities in MIS-C under the mentorship of Dr. Audrey Dionne. She investigated treatment of cardiometabolic risk factors among survivors of childhood cancer with Drs. Sarah De Ferranti and Ming Hui Chen. Outside of medicine, Karina loves to sing and was part of her college and medical school a cappella groups. She also enjoys traveling and exploring local cuisines, cooking, spending time with friends and family, and watching UNC basketball.

Charmaine Lam, MD, was born in Hong Kong and moved to Canada at a young age. She completed medical school, internal medicine residency, and adult general cardiology training at the University of British Columbia. Along the way, she found an interest in adult congenital heart disease. She’s now embarking on a fellowship at Brigham’s and Woman and Boston Children’s Hospital. Outside of work, she enjoys discovering new coffee shops, hip-hop dance classes, and Muay Thai.

Joel Lim, MBBS, MRCPCH, joins the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit from KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Singapore, where he completed pediatric residency training and fellowship in pediatric critical care. Joel completed medical school at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore. During his training, he has had the privilege of serving as chief resident during pediatric residency and has written a number of publications related to acute kidney injury, pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome, congenital heart disease, extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation, and point-of-care ultrasound. Over the last two years, he has been actively leading a multi-disciplinary team that is establishing an ICU liberation program in the children’s intensive care unit at his home institution. His research interests include pediatric intensive care survivorship and point-of-care ultrasonography. Joel is married to Kai-Qian, who is a pediatric infectious disease physician (and who really, really wants a dog). In his spare time, he enjoys music, road cycling, and food.

Cristina Mamolea, MD, joins the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit after completing a Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship here at Boston Children’s. Cristina earned her undergraduate degree in math and neuroscience at Rutgers University prior to earning an MD from Jagiellonian University Medical College in Krakow, Poland. She completed her pediatrics residency at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. While a resident, Cristina completed research on outcomes associated with airway emergencies that occur outside of the ICU. During fellowship, Cristina has engaged in research studying circuit complications during the delivery of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) under the guidance of Drs. Sally Vital and Ravi Thiagarajan. She enjoys gardening, backpacking and spending time outdoors with her partner, Ben, and their puppy, Tahoe.

Anna Martens, MD, joins us from Massachusetts General for Children, where she completed a third-year residency. Originally from Maine, she earned an undergraduate degree from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa., where she majored in biology and played soccer. She then moved back to New England where she earned an MD from Tufts University School of Medicine. During residency, her research focused on the effects of COVID-19 in children, specifically MIS-C and long COVID. Through prior research experience, Anna has developed a strong interest in hospital-to-home transitions and utilizing quality improvement initiatives to reduce risk of readmission. She has also been involved in multiple medical education projects spanning from helping improve access to physicians shadowing for high school and college students interested in pre-med, to developing a cardiology curriculum for pediatric residents. Outside of the hospital, Anna enjoys running, playing soccer, skiing, surfing, and spending time with her friends, family, and dogs (Toby and Milo).

Josh Mayourian, MD, ME, PhD, joins us from the Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where he completed a three-year residency. He earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Cooper Union (graduating summa cum laude), where he majored in chemical engineering and minored in biomedical engineering. He then began his MD and PhD at Mount Sinai, where he applied tissue engineering and computational methods to investigate the electrophysiological and calcium handling effects of human mesenchymal stem cell-based cardiotherapies. During residency, he focused his research efforts on leveraging machine learning/deep learning to predict pediatric cardiomyopathy and ventricular dysfunction from ECGs; predict outcomes in repaired tetralogy of Fallot from ECGs and CMRs; and perform high-throughput automated segmentation and functional analysis of cardiomyocytes for disease modeling and therapeutic discovery. Josh has interests in basketball and spending time with his wife, Danielle, and daughter, Elliana.

Caitlin Milligan, MD, PhD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where she was a resident for three years. She received an undergraduate degree at Duke University (graduating summa cum laude) prior to earning an MD and PhD at the University of Washington in Seattle. Her PhD work was focused on transmission of HIV. At BCRP, she discovered a passion for pediatric cardiology and worked on a project with Dr. Sarah Teele identifying risk factors for the need for surgical G-tube placement in infants with HLHS after Stage I palliation. Caitlin’s interests include hiking (she has climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro), downhill skiing, running, and college basketball.

Maanasi Mistry, MD, joins us from University of Pittsburgh Medical Center/Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, where she was a pediatric hospitalist. She earned an undergraduate degree from New York University College of Arts and Sciences (graduating magna cum laude), and an MD from University of Virginia School of Medicine. She completed pediatrics residency training at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in 2018, and while a resident she was involved in a published clinical project evaluating predictors of poor outcomes in patients supported on venoarterial ECMO. She completed a study with Dr. Shawn West evaluating the cost effectiveness of hand-made PTFE grafts versus commercially available grafts for RVOT reconstruction in pediatric patients. She has been active in medical education and has developed an ECG curriculum for pediatric residents, and has an interest in quality improvement. Maanasi is interested in cooking, yoga, fitness, and travel.

Deirdre Puccetti, MD, earned an MD from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and completed a residency in pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is completing a Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital, where she served as chief fellow. Her academic interests are in health services research, end of life care, and ethics. She completed a fellowship in Bioethics at the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School and is a teaching assistant for the Masters of Bioethics program. Her research has focused on determination of brain death in children and on the epidemiology of invasive and noninvasive ventilation use for children who die in the hospital. She is a native of Boston, a first-generation American of Irish descent (maiden name Finnegan) and enjoys spending time with her family and her husband, reading, and hiking.

Taylor Saley, MD, MPH, PhD, joins us from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where she was chief resident. Taylor received a bachelor’s degree in biology and Spanish from Texas A&M University (graduating summa cum laude). As a recipient of the George Kaiser Family Foundation Scholarship, she returned home to earn an MD and MPH from the University of Oklahoma. Throughout residency, she sought out projects that integrated both her interest in pediatric cardiology and public health. In doing so, she has found a passion for studying surveillance monitoring as a means of improving quality and quantity of life in the single ventricle population. As a resident, she published a paper evaluating the utility of surveillance ambulatory rhythm monitoring in these patients. Outside of work, Taylor enjoys distance running (qualifying for the Boston Marathon), swimming, skiing, cooking but not baking, reading, and watching documentaries.

Sean Sanker, MD, joins us from the South Boston Community Health Center, where he fulfilled his primary care obligation as a recipient of the National Health Service Corps Scholarship. After completing a combined residency in internal medicine and pediatrics at Brown University, Sean accepted a position as attending faculty at SBCHC, where he managed his own patient panel and precepts residents and APPs. Administratively, he is the medical director of the ACO and chair of the South Boston Research Committee. Sean earned his undergraduate degree in philosophy from New York University (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society). He attended medical school at the University of Florida College of Medicine where he was active in global medical outreach and medical student recruitment and retention from traditionally underserved and underrepresented communities. In residency, Sean completed an academic fellowship in systemic racism (Brown Advocates for Social Change and Health Equity) and an IRB-approved study of transition readiness from pediatric to adult cardiology in patients with congenital and acquired heart disease. Sean has developed strong interests in quality improvement, preventive pediatric cardiology, ACHD, predictive analytics, and risk prognostication for children and adults with congenital heart disease. His interests outside of medicine include all things native to his Caribbean and West Indian roots, namely tropical weather and the beach, Caribbean cuisine, and reggae and soca music.

Jennifer Smerling, MD, joins us from Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, Columbia University, where she completed a pediatric cardiology fellowship. Jennifer earned an undergraduate degree from Columbia University in neuroscience and behavior with honors, and then earned her medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Following medical school, she returned to Columbia to complete her residency in pediatrics where her research focused on the utility of 3D-printed cardiac models for medical education. Her most recent work has focused on the analysis of large datasets, studying long-term outcomes of AV valve repair during staged palliation in patients with single ventricle physiology, and working nationally with PAC3 to create clinical practice guidelines. Her interests include baking and hiking.

Francesca Sperotto, MD, joins us from the University of Padova in Italy, where she earned an MD and completed pediatrics residency training as well as a full fellowship in pediatric critical care medicine in 2018. She graduated from a three-year program in clinical science as a PhD candidate, with mentors in Padova as well as here in Boston. She has received many awards, honors, and accolades along the way and has authored more than 24 peer-reviewed publications. She has worked with Dr. Ravi Thiagarajan on a few projects: a meta-analysis study of cardiac arrest in children with cardiac disease describing incidence, risk factors and outcomes; and a project utilizing the ELSO registry to describe the experience of ECMO-support for failure to wean from cardiopulmonary bypass (she presented their findings to the American Heart Association in 2021). Francesca’s interests include piano, volleyball, painting, and travel.

Kathryn Stack, MD, joins us from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she completed a third-year pediatrics residency. She earned her undergraduate degree from Princeton University in ecology and evolutionary biology. She then spent a year as a research assistant for the Program for Pediatric Cardiomyopathy, Heart Failure and Transplantation at Columbia University Medical Center. She subsequently matriculated at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and earned an MD. In residency, Kathryn researched the impact of ventricular dysfunction and atrioventricular valve regurgitation on pre-Fontan attrition and exercise capacity in school-aged children and adolescents post-OHT. Outside the hospital, Kathryn enjoys running, golfing, cooking, and traveling.

Shanique Sterling, MD, joins us from the Pediatrics Residency Program at University of Miami Holtz Children’s Hospital in Miami, where she was a resident for three years. She earned a medical degree from the University of the West Indies Faculty of Medical Sciences in Kingston, Jamaica, graduating with honors in medicine and surgery. She completed an internship and a senior house officer year in Jamaica prior to starting pediatrics residency training. It was there that her interest in pediatric cardiology was ignited while working with many children with uncorrected cardiac lesions and observing the remarkable adaptation and compensation of their cardiac physiology. During her residency, she worked on projects focused on cardiac catheterization complications and outcome predictors; the effects of hyperoxia on neonatal rats’ cardiac and pulmonary function; and quality improvement related to pain management in patients with sickle cell disease. She was also actively involved in medical student education and S.T.E.M. Saturdays. Shanique is a sports enthusiast who represented Jamaica internationally in volleyball, and in her spare time enjoys playing volleyball (beach or court), cycling, going to games, dancing, travelling, and spending time with friends and family.

Alexander Tang, MD, joins us from the Harriet Lane Pediatrics Residency Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he finished a third-year residency. He earned his undergraduate degree with honors in human developmental and regenerative biology with a secondary degree in global health and health policy from Harvard College, and his MD from the University of Illinois College Of Medicine. He has been passionate about pediatric cardiology throughout his education and training. Working as a research assistant prior to medical school, he worked on several Pediatric Heart Network studies, as well as studies focused on Kawasaki disease. While in residency in Baltimore, he worked on studies of the cardiac sequelae of Kawasaki disease, COVID-19, and MIS-C, specifically on utilizing machine learning to better understand both the cardiac complications of MIS-C/COVID-19 and patterns of IVIG resistance in Kawasaki disease. He also co-authored the cardiology chapter of the 23rd edition of the Harriet Lane Handbook. Outside of medicine, Alex enjoys movies, collecting fountain pens, live music, trying new restaurants, and arguing about where to get a decent bagel in Boston.

Christopher Teng, MD, joins us from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where he was a chief resident. Chris received an undergraduate degree in molecular biology from Princeton University, graduating summa cum laude. He then completed medical school training at the University of Pennsylvania as a recipient of the 21st Century Scholar Award. He developed a love for medical education and teaching throughout medical school and completed a certificate in medical education at Penn. He has continued to foster that passion throughout residency, and he led the development and ongoing evaluation of a new longitudinal pediatric ECG curriculum for his residency program. He also worked with Dr. Meryl Cohen on a project investigating the clinical and socioeconomic factors impacting longitudinal growth outcomes of children with congenital heart disease. Outside of work, Chris can be found exploring new restaurants, on the volleyball court, or reliving his former life as a dancer — in classes or on the dance floor at friends’ weddings.

Hannah Tredway, MD, joins us from Columbia University, where she completed residency and worked as a hospitalist in the Infant Cardiac ICU. She received her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from University of Utah, where she was introduced to medical device design and 3D modeling. She developed a strong interest in the use of 3D models in pediatric cardiology while earning an MD from New York University. This interest continued throughout residency, during which she was part of many projects using 3D virtual and printed models to aid in the understanding of complex congenital heart disease and assist in developing treatment strategies. Outside of work, Hannah enjoys long city walks, the NFL (go, Broncos!) and fantasy football, Broadway musicals, reading, and spending time with her cat, Pepper.

Nishma Valikodath, MD, joins us from the Pediatrics Residency Program at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, where she completed a third-year residency. She earned her undergraduate degree from University of Michigan, where she double majored in Spanish and biopsychology, cognition, and neuroscience, graduating with honors. She then earned a medical degree at University of Michigan. While in medical school, she completed her sub-internship in pediatric cardiology at University of Michigan and an away rotation at Boston Children’s Department of Cardiology during her fourth year of medical school. She has had a strong interest in health disparities since medical school, focusing her medical school research on the use of community health workers in programs to promote child development in Sao Paulo, Brazil. During residency, she focused her research on heart transplant, primarily focusing on optimizing the report of performance metrics of organ procurement organizations. She also spent time working in the Spanish language clinic for her general pediatrics continuity clinic as a bilingual provider, completed an ethics certificate, and completed a course to become an Epic Physician Builder. Outside of medicine, she enjoys spending time with her family, cooking South Indian food, and running, having completed four marathons.

Christopher Valle, MD, joins us from the Med-Peds Residency Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was a resident for four years. He received a BA with history and chemistry majors from Williams College, and then earned an MD from the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. His interests during his MGH residency included a QI project with Dr. Anthony Rosezweig to improve response time for inpatient STEMIs and a research project with Dr. Doreen Defaria Yeh evaluating RV reserve as measured by cardiopulmonary exercise testing with radionuclide ventriculography in adults with repaired tetralogy of Fallot. Chris enjoys running and following sports, including the Buffalo Bills.

Larissa Wenren, MD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program (BCRP) Urban Health and Advocacy Track (UHAT), where she was a pediatrics resident for three years. She earned an undergraduate degree in molecular and cellular biology from Harvard University and an MD from Boston University. Outside of clinical work, Larissa enjoys trying to coordinate schedules with her husband, David, who is a BCRP intern, spending time with her son, Aaron, and her parents (who provide amazing flexible childcare), trying different foods, drinking hard ciders, watching Netflix, and doing jigsaw puzzles.

Tatiana Abi Younes, MD, joins the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit from the Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, where she completed a three-year fellowship. Tatiana earned her medical degree from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon, where she grew up, and completed her pediatrics residency at University of Florida/Shands Children’s Hospital. During fellowship, she developed an interest in big data and worked closely with a team of data scientists at Philips and MIT to develop algorithms to predict healthcare-associated infections in the ICU. In her free time, Tatiana enjoys traveling, swimming in the ocean, music, and learning the piano.

Benjamin Zielonka, MD, joins us from our Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics, where he was a resident for three years. He earned an undergraduate degree in Latin American Studies from Washington University in St. Louis and an MD from University of Pennsylvania. While in medical school, he studied risk factors for morbidity and mortality in patients prenatally diagnosed with single ventricle defects. During residency, he worked with Dr. Rahul Rathod on using CMR to measure the impact of a ring-reinforced right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit on regional right ventricular deformation. He also worked with Dr. Sarah De Ferranti on studying the cardiovascular health characteristics of children and adolescents with congenital heart disease. Ben’s interests include basketball, playing musical instruments (especially the ukulele), and Philadelphia sports teams.