Pediatric

Residency
Program:
Brookdale Hospital Medical Center
Message from Program Director:
Fernanda Kupferman, MD

The mission of the Pediatric Residency Program at

Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (BHMC) is to train
future pediatricians from diverse backgrounds to become
highly competent physicians, scholars, advocates and
leaders in pediatric medical care. The emphasis is to treat
patients with compassion, empathy, patient centered care
and with the highest evidence-based standard of medicine
for all children and adolescents, especially the undeserved
population.
 Brookdale Hospital Medical Center
Pediatric Residency Program

• The BHMC Pediatric Residency Program aims to train the next generation of pediatricians:
• To acquire excellent clinical skills, and the capacity and aspiration to continue to learn throughout their career, in order
to maintain an advanced academic level in pediatrics.
• To actively contribute to the understanding and knowledge in their specific fields by becoming familiar with research
and other scholarly activities to be able to become scholars in the future.
• To practice the best, evidence-based, multidisciplinary, culturally competent pediatric medicine and High Value
Practice for all populations in addition to the underserved.
• To acquire the knowledge and experience required to become independent and competent primary care
pediatricians.
• To acquire the knowledge and practice needed to pursue subspecialty training for those residents willing to go on for
further training (subspecialty fellowship).
• To acquire the knowledge about Quality Improvement methods and to actively participate in Quality Improvement
projects.
PGY 1: INTERNS
 RESIDENT PGY-1:
PUJA SHAH

Hometown: Janakpur, Nepal

Medical School: Nepalgunj Medical College and Teaching Hospital, Banke, Nepal
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology/Perinatal Medicine, Pediatric Cardiology,
Pediatric Intensive Care, Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Hobbies & Special Interests: Adventure sports, exploring new places, watching
animated movies/ biographical movies, and cooking in free time
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Emphasis on a lot of
didactics, research, clinical opportunities, underserved patient population coverage,
and amazing faculties were the key deciding factors for me.
Fun Fact About You: I eat a lot and still don’t gain weight
 RESIDENT PGY-1:
TANYA TANDON

Hometown: New Delhi, India

Medical School: School of Medical Sciences and Research, Uttar Pradesh, India
Career & Clinical Interests: Hospitalist, Endocrine, Neurology, Adolescent Medicine
Hobbies & Special Interests: I am a Slytherin and I love beaches. Dancing, Glass painting
and Baking are my go-to hobbies.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? The faculty and residents feel
like family and the support is exactly what you need. The cultural exchange with residents
from all over the world is just riveting. The program offers a lot of hands-on opportunities
The teaching and learning environment is what makes my residency an ever growing
journey.
Fun Fact About You: I love wearing big earrings and I have collected them from all over the
world. I have three drawers full of just earrings.
 RESIDENT PGY-1:
NATALIE VEGA

Hometown: Cartagena, Colombia

Medical School: Universidad del Sinu, Cartagena Colombia
Career & Clinical Interests: General Pediatric
Hobbies & Special Interests: Running, dancing and sports. I can binge
watch a TV show in one day. I love comedy movies.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? It was the
only place where I felt that people were interested on me and not in my
USMLE scores or medical experience. Moreover, coming from other
country is scary but having other residents that have been through the
same thing is comforting.
Fun Fact About You: I love to dance, but I don’t know how to dance!
That doesn’t stop me from trying!
 RESIDENT PGY-1:
ARNIKKA BATIO RUBIA

Hometown: Davao City, Philippines

Medical School: Silliman University Medical School
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology, Critical/ Intensive Care
Hobbies & Special Interests: Yoga, freediving, exploring new places
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Because the
people are welcoming and they value the resident’s growth in the program.
Also, the program has a variety of subspecialty rotations.
Fun Fact About You: I love cats. I want to experience free diving with
sharks.
INTERN PGY-1:
KANAYO NWANKWO
• Hometown: Anambra, Nigeria
• Medical School: Ebonyi State University, Nigeria
• Career & Clinical Interests: Hematology/Oncology Hospice & Palliative
Medicine
Infectious Disease, Clinical/Patient research.
• Hobbies & Special Interests: Outdoor events/ games, table tennis, basketball,
chess, reading.
• Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? It is community-
based, university affiliated hospital, with great camaraderie amongst the
residents. The faculty and attendings are very supportive. You are never alone.
• Fun Fact About You: I’m a Tech enthusiast, adventurist. Aside basketball, I’m
not very good at athletics but I can beat 9 in every 10 Chess players 🙂
 INTERN PGY-1:
MARTHA PICHARDO
GONZALEZ
Hometown: Mexico City, Mexico
Medical School: Universidad Anahuac México Norte
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology & Pediatric cardiology
Hobbies & Special Interests: Agility dog training. Photography. Reading.
Travelling and exploring
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Cultural
diversity. Since my first contact with the people from this hospital I felt
an amazing vibe.
Fun Fact About You: Big fan of the Big Bang theory, Sheldon Cooper is
goals. I love animals, especially elephants. I enjoy cooking but I’m
terrible at it.
 INTERN PGY-1:
KHUSHBU PATEL

Hometown: Patan, India

Medical School: S.B.K.S Medical college, Gujarat State University, India
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology, Nephrology
Hobbies & Special Interests: Tennis, Hiking, Stock market
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Diversity of
residents from all over the world, excellent educational activities,
research, and clinical exposure During my interview, residents’
demeanor and attitudes attracted me.
Fun Fact About You: I do pranks and people get serious… then I have
to apologize!
INTERN PGY-1:
ANUSHREE MURUGAN
Hometown: Pondicherry, India
Medical School: Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, India
Career & Clinical Interests: General Pediatrics, Media and children, Gun Violence
Prevention
Hobbies & Special Interests: Chaldean numerology, Cryptocurrency, Korean dramas,
Painting. Recent interest – bubble tea
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? The faculty, staff and the
residents were very warm and welcoming during my interview. I could strongly
connect myself to this program and felt this would be the right place to expand my
medical knowledge. And if given a chance, I would choose this program again in the
blink of an eye!
Fun Fact About You: I collect fridge magnets from every state / country I visit. And
yes, I can binge watch Korean dramas for 16 hours straight.
 INTERN PGY-1:
NIMRAH IQBAL
Hometown: Multan, Punjab, Pakistan
Medical School: Nishtar Medical University, Multan, Pakistan.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Pediatric
Endocrinology, Preventive Pediatrics, Child Health Advocacy
Hobbies & Special Interests: Hiking, Biking, Jogging, Travelling, Reading,
Watching movies with my husband and Spending time with my kids.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Gosh! Where do I
even begin!! The very high board pass rate, the emphasis on resident well being,
the program’s commitment to academics, residents match into the top most
fellowship programs in the USA after graduation, and the supportive and
friendly environment created by the faculty.
Fun Fact About You: My mother-in-law and I speak completely different
languages, so in the 7 years that I’ve been married, we haven’t spoken a word
directly to each other without an interpreter! (which is usually my husband).
 INTERN PGY-1:
CLORENE CADET
Hometown: Haiti
Medical School: Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, State University, Haiti
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology, Hospitalist and general Pediatrics
Hobbies & Special Interests: Reading, listening music/bible, watching
movies/cartoons/documentary – go out with my siblings and husband, gardening
Fun Fact About You: I love cartoons, one of my favorite is All Hail King Julien.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? There are people from all
over the world among residents and staff. I will learn from other cultures and better
serve my patients. During interview season, faculties referred to the program as
Brookdale family; since I have residency experience before, I know how important it is
to be in a supportive family along this long road of medical training. In addition, there is
a lot of clinical exposure with the 1-1 activity and room to grow personally and
educationally. The first few weeks I spent as an Intern made me feel that it was the right
decision.
 INTERN PGY-1:
ASHRAF ASSOUS

Hometown: Damietta, Egypt

Medical School: Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
Career & Clinical Interests: Neurology, Cardiology, Heme Oncology,
General Pediatrics
Hobbies & Special Interests: Travel, Soccer, Table tennis, Swimming.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Pediatric
family in Brookdale is awesome, welcoming, and inviting. I can reshape
myself as the pediatrician
I always wanted to be.
Fun Fact About You: I have a twin brother, he is dermatologist in Egypt.
PGY 2:
RESIDENTS
INTERN PGY2:
UTSAV TIMALSINA

Hometown: Biratnagar, Nepal.

Medical School: Tribhuvan University, Institute of Medicine,
Nepal.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Emergency Medicine,
Pediatric Gastroenterology.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Cricket, Soccer.
Fun Fact About You: In my medical school, my friends named
me after a Nepali song after I sang the same song.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Brookdale is a warm family with friendly colleagues
and wonderful teaching faculty.
INTERN PGY2:
UDAY TIWARI

Hometown: Pokhara, Nepal.

Medical School: Nepal Medical College, Kathmandu University.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Endocrinology,
Hematology, and Public Health.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Cricket, Soccer, Hiking.
Fun Fact About You: I am too afraid of dog but my wife is a dog
lover.
INTERN PGY2:
SHATHA AHMED KAYED
Hometown: Amman, Jordan.
Medical School: The University of Jordan.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Neurology, Hematology,
Global Health, Community Pediatrics and Health Systems.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Poetry, comedy shows and horror
movies.
Fun Fact About You: I have synesthesia.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? On
my interview day, I noticed the massive efforts the faculty was
making to provide a friendly, and educationally rich training
program. The community Brookdale serves, offers unparalleled
learning opportunities.
INTERN PGY2:
SAKIRA BAI
Hometown: Karachi, Pakistan.
Medical School: Chandka Medical College.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Critical Care.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Playing board games, traveling.
Fun Fact About You: My perfect day would start with a strong cup of tea and
end with telling my husband the whole day journey.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? The program has a
well established educational set up and hands on clinical training to serve the
underserved community. Faculty and senior residents are very helpful, easily
approachable. I feel like a mother family at my work. Brookdale leadership’s
not only focus on education and training but they make sure about resident’s
wellness and provide incredible support.
.
INTERN PGY2:
PRATICHHYA KHATIWADA
Hometown: Kathmandu, Nepal.
Medical School: B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Endocrinology,
Neonatology, Hospitalist.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Hiking, Traveling.
Fun Fact About You: When I was 5 years old I broke my new
watch just to explore how the hands on the watch move.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? I
chose Brookdale because of the diversity of the residents
backgrounds and the friendly and approachable faculty.
INTERN PGY2:
NASTASIA BURAK

Hometown: Minsk, Belarus.

Medical School: Belarusian State Medical University.
Career & Clinical Interests: Hospitalist, Neonatology, Pediatric
Hematology.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Hiking, reading, traveling.
INTERN PGY2:
KAUNG MYAT
Hometown: Yangon, Burma.
Medical School: University of Medicine 2, Yangon.
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Soccer, Hiking, Watching movies &
Traveling.
Fun Fact About You: I can’t tolerate the food I prepared because
it tastes too bad. Need more practice.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? I had
an interview at Brookdale Hospital on my birthday. Since the day
of the interview, I already decided I would accept the offer if
they give me a chance because I felt they look like a big family
working together. Thankfully, they did offer me and I said Yes at
the same time.
INTERN PGY2:
MANE SARGSYAN
Hometown: Yerevan, Armenia.
Medical School: Yerevan State Medical University, Armenia.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Emergency Medicine,
Critical Care.
Hobbies & Special Interests: European Football, Investing.
Fun Fact About You: I was homeschooled, and I used to be a
radio host.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Perfect balance between teaching and practical
experience. Diverse pathology. Awesome people.
INTERN PGY2:
HARSHA KANUMALLA
Hometown: Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.
Medical School: Sri Ramachandra Medical College, Chennai,
India.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Cardiology, Neonatology.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Carnatic Music, Golf, Football,
Basketball, Investing.
Fun Fact About You: I can quote any line from “The Office.”
Why Did You Choose BHMC for Your Pediatric Residency? All of
the residents are very happy. The program is very supportive in
anything you want to accomplish. Everyone in the program is
very approachable. The opportunity to provide healthcare to an
underserved community.
INTERN PGY2:
GOLDIE IVIE OSUENI
Hometown: Edo State, Nigeria.
Medical School: University of Benin School of Medicine. Nigeria.
Career & Clinical Interests: Critical Care, Hospitalist,
Hematology.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Reading, drawing, watching Period
era dramas.
Fun Fact About You: I sing soprano in the Brooklyn Tabernacle
Choir in New York.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? BHMC
feels like family. I enjoyed the warm reception during my
interview and the emphasis on research.
INTERN PGY2:
ANA ANDRASOVICH
Hometown: Minsk, Belarus.
Medical School: Belarusian State Medical University.
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology, Pediatric Pulmonology and
Sleep Medicine.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Watching hockey games, reading books
and spending time with my children.
Fun Fact About You: I still cannot ride a bike.
Why Did You Choose BHMC for Your Pediatric Residency? Opportunity
to take care of the children in the underserved area, to see the most
complicated cases. Friendly atmosphere and respectful relationship
between residents and faculties. Great hands-on experience and a lot
of procedures that can be done by residents. Reasonable balance
between guidance and independence. And NYC!
INTERN PGY2:
SAI SARADA POLICHERLA
Hometown: Srikalahasti, India.
Medical School: Narayana Medical College, India.
Career & Clinical Interests: Pediatric Urgent Care,
Endocrinology, Primary Care, Hospitalist.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Painting, Making Crafts, Chess.
Fun Fact About You: I binge watched “Lost in Space” in one day.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Awesome faculty and residents. It feels like a close-
knit family being here. Plus a strong community program,
serving a vast diverse population and opportunity to serve the
underserved. Great learning opportunities.
PGY 3:
RESIDENTS
INTERN PGY3:
YANKI OKUDUCU
Hometown: Adana, Turkey
Medical School: Cukurova University School of Medicine, Adana,
Turkey
Career & Clinical Interests: Cardiology, Rheumatology,
Immunology
Hobbies & Special Interests: Dancing, Swimming, Baking
Fun Fact About You: I probably am the biggest pop music fan in
the program.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? The
connection that I had with the program on the day of the
interview made me feel that this was the right place for me. I
was not wrong.
INTERN PGY3:
SOMAYA ABUELAZAM
Hometown: Alexandria, Egypt
Medical School: Alexandria University School of Medicine
Career & Clinical Interests: Neonatology, Critical care, Child
health Advocacy, Adolescent mental health
Hobbies & Special Interests: Long distance running, CrossFit, History,
Architecture, women empowerment and gender equality
Fun Fact About You: I did improv comedy shows and painted Graffiti !
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Well
established comprehensive, community pediatric program. Residents
training, education and wellness are the core of the program The true
grit, passion and perseverance of the faculty members to provide the
patients with quality care and support the residents Everyone is
Friendly, approachable and sympathetic
INTERN PGY3:
AHMAD SOLIMAN

Hometown: Cairo, Egypt

Medical School: Ain Shmas University, Faculty of Medicine.
Career & Clinical Interests: Primary Care/ Hospitalist, Urgent
Care, Pediatric Emergency.
Hobbies & Special Interests: Photography, Tennis Table.
Fun Fact About You: I still adore watching cartoons and
animation movies with my kids.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Serving the under-served community. Amazing
balance between didactic activities and clinical practice.
INTERN PGY3:
SHATHA QAROONI

Hometown: Bahrain
Medical School: Jordan University of Science and Technology
Career & Clinical Interests: Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics;
Pediatric Gastroenterology
Hobbies & Special Interests: Cross stitching and recently cooking
Fun Fact About You: I am the tallest person in my family and I am five feet
tall.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? The diversity
of residents and how comfortable they were.
INTERN PGY3:
SALOME WIREDU
Hometown: Kumawu, Ghana
Medical School: Saba University School of Medicine
Career & Clinical Interests: Child Psychiatry / Primary care
Hobbies & Special Interests: Soccer, Music, Poetry
Fun Fact About You: I’m the first in my family to be in medicine. I don’t
remember the last day that went by without me listening to music
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? It’s an
underserved community. From the first time I came here, I felt at home
and there’s no place like home.
INTERN PGY3:
MOHAMED ALSABRI
Hometown: Sana’a,Yemen
Medical School: Sana’a University
Career & Clinical Interests: Emergency Medicine/Critical care/Patient
Safety/Improving quality of care /Research
Hobbies & Special Interests: Traveling, Community Outreach,
Meditating, Teaching, Nature exploration, Playing Chess and
swimming.
Fun Fact About You:
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Diverse
patient population/ Underserved community
INTERN PGY3:
NAHID CHOWDURY
Hometown: Dhaka, Bangladesh
Medical School: Jalalabad Ragib- Rabeya Medical College,
Bangladesh
Career & Clinical Interests: Primary care, preventive medicine
Hobbies & Special Interests: Traveling, cooking
Fun Fact About You:
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Brookdale sits in a neighborhood surrounded by a
very dynamic and diverse community full of wonderful kids who
are underserved. I love that here I am part of a nurturing team
that is making a great impact on the lives of these kids.
INTERN PGY3:
KOKILA JEYAMURUGAN
Hometown: Chennai, India
Medical School: PSG Institute of Medical Sciences and Research
Career & Clinical Interests: Primary care / Neonatology
Hobbies & Special Interests: Cooking, gardening, travelling,
photography
Fun Fact About You: I love crosswords and making photo
albums.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Very
friendly program!
INTERN PGY3:
ISHMAEL OPARE
Hometown: Larteh Akuapem, Ghana
Medical School: School of Medical Sciences (SMS), Kwame Nkrumah
University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Kumasi, Ghana
Career & Clinical Interests: Primary Care
Hobbies & Special Interests: Cooking, Contemporary Piano playing,
Photography (recent habit)
Fun Fact About You: Do you know I am seriously afraid of wet
mice? “Shush”, I am a pediatrician after all.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric
Residency? Community based program with very welcoming
residents. Compared to many other places, residents I met looked
calm and content.
INTERN PGY3:
HUMAIRA ACHAKZAI
Hometown: Karachi, Pakistan
Medical School: Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Career & Clinical Interests: Child Psychology, Critical Care, Hospitalist
Hobbies & Special Interests: Hiking, watching movies
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Very strong
educational program with great opportunity to see, learn and help in
different clinical cases and situations in a very diverse community.
Incredible support and guidance from faculties and all residents. Very
unique family-like residency.
INTERN PGY3:
FIORELLA CASTILLO
Hometown: Lima, Peru
Medical School: Ross University SOM
Career & Clinical Interests: Academic general pediatrics, DBP,
public health and preventive medicine
Hobbies & Special Interests: Playing and coaching volleyball,
gardening, health equity, SDoH!
Fun Fact About You: I can’t eat spicy food!! Also, my son and I
share the same birthday.
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? Did
medical school rotations at BHMC, love the population we serve
and the family-friendly feel of the program.
INTERN PGY3:
DUSHYANT MUKKAMALA
Hometown: Budapest, Hungary
Medical School: Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
Career & Clinical Interests: Endocrinology, Neurology,
Preventative Medicine
Hobbies & Special Interests: Sketching, Painting, Reading,
Running, Inline skating, Tennis, Badminton, Squash, Volleyball,
Dancing
Fun Fact About You: I have solo sky-dived once
Why did you choose BHMC for your Pediatric Residency? I was
struck by how nice and happy the residents seemed. And I was
humbled by how accomplished most all of them already were.
HOW TO APPLY:
Our program only accepts applications
submitted through ERAS. Residency Program Administrator
ELIZABETH SANCHEZ
[email protected]
Tel: +1-718-240-5435
EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
• All educational activities are supervised by the Department Chair, Program Director, and /or
Faculty.
• Didactic Lectures: Daily Monday to Friday
• Morning Report: Weekly, mentored by the Chair, Program Director and Faculty, focusing on clinical
decision making in a case presentation.
• Grand Rounds: Weekly, department-wide presentations ranging from cutting-edge research to
clinical innovations in medical education. We have several invited national and international speakers
to share their knowledge, year long.
• Subspecialty Lectures: 3 to 4 times per week, from Neurology to Allergy, Ambulatory to Intensive
Care, we have it all covered.
• Morbidity & Mortality Meeting: Monthly. We discuss sentinel events and ways to prevent them to
improve patient care and outcomes.
• Research: Monthly. All residents have at least one research project which is mentored by the faculty
and results are presented at national meetings like Pediatric Academic Society, Eastern Society of
Pediatric Research, American Academy of Pediatrics and Pediatric Hospital Medicine.
​EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
• Interesting Case of the Month (ICOM): Monthly. Typically power Point case presentations with
extensive literature search by second year resident.
• Jeopardy Quiz: The residents are in teams of 3-4 persons each. We have teams on stage and have a
Jeopardy-like quiz with qualifying rounds and a final round. This includes a “lifeline” for each team
and a fun fact quiz at the end.
• Journal Club: Monthly. A recent article of interest is presented by the resident with discussion and
critical appraisal following that.
• Board Review Class: Weekly for third year residents and monthly for PGY2s and PGY1s. The review
class helps the residents to focus on American Board of Pediatrics content specification and the
pediatric board exam.
• The board review program in the Pediatrics department is very unique. During the first and second
year of residency there are monthly meetings designed to cover the basic subjects that are tested on
the general pediatrics certification exam. During the third year of residency, the course is very
intense with classes 3 times a month that cover all the material extensively and involve reading and
question writing assignments as well as individual assessment via quizzes, mid-term, final and take-
home tests. The performance of each resident is monitored and assistance is given when needed.
The AAP guideline curriculum dovetails into the board
review program. Twelve guidelines are selected every
year and are distributed to all the residents. The first-
year residents are assigned the responsibility
of presenting each one to the rest of the program. At the
end of the year there is an exam to test the resident’s
knowledge of the contents. By the end of residency,
trainees have mastered 36 AAP guidelines, many of which
are tested in the general pediatrics certification exam.​

Mock code/ SIM lab: Multiple sessions during residency.

Proficiency in intubations, intra- osseous lines and CPR are
taught. All our residents are BLS, ACLS, PALS and NRP
certified.
Quality Improvement: Monthly. Several Quality
Improvement projects are in progress which are
mandatory for each resident to participate. A full list of
the current (2020 -2021) projects are listed under
scholarly activities.
MEDICAL STUDENTS
• Lita Aeder, MD – Preceptor and Pediatric Site Director for medical student clerkship
• Ratna Basak, MD, FRCPCH(UK) – Preceptor and Associate Site Director for medical
students
• Kristina Ericksen, DO – Preceptor
• Dorina Spinel – Medical Student Administrator
• Melanie Lafaurie – GME Medical Student Coordinator
• Student education is a significant part of the didactic program in the Pediatrics
department. There are students from several medical schools (Downstate Medical Center,
NYIT, and SABA University) that rotate through all the clinical divisions including the
pediatric floor, the nursery, the pediatric emergency room, the general pediatric and the
specialty clinics. They participate in all educational sessions of the department and
attend lecture series designed specifically for them once a week. The preceptors guides
them through all their medical schools assignments on a weekly basis throughout the
duration of their rotation. Residents work closely with students and teach them on a
regular basis including hands on techniques. All senior residents are required to deliver a
lecture to the medical students under the supervision of the medical student site director.
 RESIDENT
WELLNESS
• Welcome to the Brookdale Pediatrics Family!
• At Brookdale, resident wellness is a serious business! We
never go over the mandated number of duty hours because we
know that burn out is a serious issue, and is potentially
hazardous both for the physicians and their patients.
• We enjoy celebrating birthdays, holidays, baby showers,
retirement parties, end-of-rotation potlucks, welcome and
graduation parties.
• We also have a ‘Resident Wellness Team’ that plans fun
activities (virtual during COVID times) for all residents to
participate and enjoy. Various themes such as the logo contest,
photography contest, cooking and fashion contests are planned
on a monthly basis.
RESIDENT LIFE
We come from all over the world! We have physicians from
almost all continents, coming to our program for training,
bringing in their unique perspectives and attitudes. NYC and
Brookdale are their home for three years. They fly out like birds
to share their knowledge and wisdom after three years of
residency.
Our residents have unique hobbies and interests such as
painting graffiti, radio hosting, sky diving, opera singing, to
name a few. Many are avid sports lovers and players – soccer,
football, swimming, basketball, volleyball, tennis and cricket.
Few have climbed the tallest mountain peaks of the world.
Some enjoy traveling, gardening and one is even a professional
nap taker!
With all the fun things they do, they have rare virtues –
empathy, compassion, kindness and caring attitudes… and
that’s why they chose Pediatrics!
 Welcome to the Capital of the World! What more can one say about the most
multi-cultural, dynamic and the most vibrant city of the world? A lifetime is not

LIFE IN NYC enough to explore the uniqueness of this magnificent city…

From the historic Statute of Liberty to the Brooklyn bridge, the skylines of
Manhattan over the Hudson to the NY Mets, New York City has it all. This is the
home of the Broadway.
When our residents are not studying or working, they are exploring this City of
Opportunities. Here are some snippets…