FACULTY AFFAIRS

ZOHAIR AHMED, MD

Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine

Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Zohair Ahmed, MD, joined the faculty of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in July 2020. Shortly after his acceptance as a fellow in Gastroenterology & Hepatology in 2016, Dr. Ahmed expressed an interest in learning endoscopic techniques for obesity and weight management. He worked with the UIC Interventional Endoscopy team to craft a one-year curriculum of learning advanced endoscopy techniques and training for bariatric endoscopy. At the time, UI Health did not offer endoscopic weight loss therapy. Throughout 20192020, Dr. Ahmed honed his skills as an advanced endoscopy fellow, while also working closely with the existing Bariatric Surgery team to plan and initiate a bariatric endoscopy program here at UIC. Through his efforts in marshalling support across multiple departments and gaining the appropriate expertise, UI Health now offers endoscopic procedures for weight management without the need for surgery. We celebrate Dr. Ahmed’s initiative and vision in bringing these new services to our patient population.

MINA AL-AWQATI, MD

Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine

Rheumatology

Mina Al-Awqati, MD, is passionate about providing outstanding clinical care for patients. She is an excellent teacher and mentor to the residents and students. Dr. Al-Awqati is developing a structured program of musculoskeletal ultrasounds in the diagnosis and the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, crystal induced arthritis, and osteoarthritis. She is a perfect example of a woman in medicine who deserves recognition. She is well received by the staff, faculty, fellows, and trainees for her incredible devotion towards academic rheumatology.

SCOTT BORGETTI, MD

Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine

Infectious Diseases

Scott Borgetti, MD, embodies the role of academic physician. He has assumed the leadership role for transplant infectious diseases and is a mentor for fellows and junior faculty. He is an assistant program director for the infectious diseases fellowship and assistant director of infection control for UI Health and provides guidance for the use of newly developed COVID-19 outpatient treatments to the hospital. He is director of our Outpatient Antibiotic Treatment program. He has been actively engaged in the division’s COVID-19 research efforts from the beginning, while serving on numerous committees to advise the hospital and university at the outset of the pandemic. He currently is the Principal Investigator for the NIH CPAT Trial, testing the safety and effectiveness of decreasing immunosuppression on response to an additional dose of vaccine in solid organ transplant recipients. Dr. Borgetti has been called upon many times to take on these added responsibilities and has accepted all these roles without complaint. He managed each one with diligence and a high level of competence, which is why he is entrusted with these responsibilities. His clinical skills are superior, as is his teaching ability. Dr. Borgetti was selected by the fellows for their annual teaching award. He sets a very high bar for all of us in the Division of Infectious Diseases.

OANA DANCIU, MD Associate Professor of Medicine Hematology/Oncology

Oana Danciu, MD, is an outstanding clinical investigator who serves as principal investigator in over a dozen clinical trial in breast cancer, as well as in the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium Steering Committee. In 2021, she was the recipient of a large pharmaceutical sponsored research grant and of the UI Cancer Center Clinical Trial Development award. In addition, thanks to Dr. Danciu’s leadership the UI Cancer Center Clinical Trial office has increased its clinical trial enrollment across the entire Campus supporting many investigators in multiple departments and colleges.

ERIN HICKEY, MD Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine

Academic Internal Medicine

Erin Hickey, MD, started a Transition Consult Service that provides resources, support, and education for adolescents and young adults aging into the adult healthcare system and their families. The consult service sees patients while they are admitted to the hospital and continues to follow them longitudinally to work on improving their healthcare status, access to resources, and independence. Dr. Hickey has worked on establishing a primary care clinic for adolescents and adults to provide accessible and comprehensive care to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She is involved in research focused on improving the care of people with disabilities. She is part of the INTERACT trial (Improving Communication and Healthcare Outcomes for Patients with Communication Disabilities), a multi- institutional, PCORI-funded grant studying ways to improve communication between healthcare teams and people with communication disorders. She is working on a grant funded through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Health Data for Action (HD4A) program studying the gaps in care coordination for adolescents and young adults with complex medical conditions by analyzing national Medicaid data. Dr. Hickey also serves as a physician house advisor through the College of Medicine, advising and mentoring a small group of medical students longitudinally through their medical school journeys.

KHALIL IBRAHIM, MD Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine Cardiology

Khalil Ibrahim, MD, is the Division of Cardiology’s Rockstar due to his many contributions to the division, department, and the college. From a clinical perspective, he provides daily leadership and technical expertise in the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory as well as the UI Health Hybrid Operating Room. Dr. Ibrahim has expanded the Structural Heart Program over the past 2 years and has demonstrated continued growth while maintaining outstanding quality outcomes. He is among the most productive providers in the Department of Medicine. Dr. Ibrahim serves as a cochair of the Emergency Care Committee where he helps to improve the emergency cardiac care programs within the UI Hospital. He is a tireless teacher of students, residents, fellows, nurses, and technical staff. Finally, Dr. Ibrahim has made valuable contributions to scholarly activities providing educational seminars to providers at UI Health and in the region, authored peer-reviewed papers, and developed innovative teaching programs. It is for these reasons that we believe Dr. Khalil Ibrahim is most deserving to be highlighted as our Divisional Rockstar.

JEFFREY JACOBSON, MD Professor of Medicine

Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Allergy

As professor of medicine, director of the Medical ICU, and senior associate head of the Department of Medicine, Jeffrey Jacobson, MD, makes invaluable contributions to our institution through high-quality clinical care, impactful research, inspirational education, and dynamic administrative leadership. He has led efforts to improve sepsis care at UI Health and rapidly optimized MICU operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, he received a well-earned nomination for Physician of the Year at UI Health. He is an R01-funded physician scientist and leader in lung vascular biology whose research focuses on improving mechanistic understanding of ARDS and radiationinduced lung injury. As a specific example, his work has characterized the potential for “repurposing” medications such as statins or anti-psychotics to reverse vascular leak during these inflammatory lung conditions. He has served as chair of the Department of Medicine's Scholarly Activities Council. More recently, he serves as principle investigator for our new Stimulating Access to Research in Residency(StARR) program, an NIHfunded career development program that seeks to recruit medicine residents of varied backgrounds to be mentored in research careers in cardiovascular, pulmonary, or hematologic diseases. UIC is one of the few institutions in the country to receive funding for this prestigious R38 program, which would not have been possible without Dr. Jacobson’s leadership and because of these contributions and many others, he is an essential member of our division.

ABEER MOHAMED, MD, PHD Assistant Professor of Medicine

Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism

Abeer Mohamed, MD, PhD, is a junior faculty member recruited to the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism within the past 2 years. Prior to coming to the division, she had already secured funding through a competitive grant program at the NIH (K99/R00). Despite the pandemic, since arriving at UIC she has setup her basic and translational laboratory, published multiple high impact papers, and secured her first NIH R01. Dr. Mohamed is well on her way to being a leading expert in her field and we highlight her impressive achievements.

RUCHI NAIK, MD, PHD

Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine Nephrology

Dr. Ruchi Naik received her PhD at the Veer Narmad South Gujarat University. She subsequently completed her Internal Medicine Residency training in 2007 in Surat, Gujarat, India and went on to complete a fellowship in nephrology at Temple University, which she completed in 2019. She then completed a transplant nephrology fellowship at Vanderbilt. Dr. Naik joined our faculty in the Division of Nephrology in July 2020. Dr. Naik is an excellent clinician and is dedicated to provide the highest level of care for her kidney transplant patients. During periods of short-staffing, Dr. Naik was always willing to pitch in to help her colleagues and continued to provide excellent care. On top of her outstanding clinical work, Dr. Naik is deeply committed to developing skills in clinical research and is enrolled in the MS in Clinical and Translational Science program.

Awards And Promotions

2022 UI Health Physician of the Year Award

Dr. Jeffrey Jacobson is the quintessential doctor's doctor. He communicates with honesty and clarity, and he is respected by all for his gift of explaining complicated concepts in simple terms. Dr. Jacobson led the team of Critical Care physicians to help care for those most impacted by COVID-19; he truly embodies the values of putting the patient first and delivering world-class care to all. Dr. Jacobson has an outstanding breadth of knowledge and shares selflessly with everyone. He has a calm demeanor and displays strong yet kind leadership in the ICU. Dr. Jacobson always ensures that we are doing what is best for the patients and the staff.

2021 Recipient Min Joo, MD, Professor of Medicine

2022 Recipient Brian Boulay, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine

Department of Medicine Rising Star Award

The Departmental Rising Star Award is presented to one faculty member who has demonstrated strong potential to be a future leader in their chosen field.

2021

Stockton Mayer, DO, Assistant Professor

2022

Pingwen Xu, PhD, Assistant Professor

UIC Teaching Recognition Award

The UIC Teaching Recognition Award is awarded to instructors with a history of teaching excellence over the past three academic years and have demonstrated a long-term commitment to teaching at UIC.

Internal Medicine Residency Program Awards

2021

New Attending of the Year

Dr. Christopher Fernandes

Clifford Pilz MD Attendings of the Year

Drs. Tanjeev Kaur, Adam Mikolajczyk, Anne Polick, Fred Zar

The John E. Tulley MD Academic Internal Medicine

Attending of the Year

Dr. Christopher Fernandes

The Paul K. Schlesinger MD JBVA Attending of the Year

Dr. Min Joo

Chief Residents' Choice Award

Dr. Cheryl Conner

PGY-1 Resident of the Year

Dr. Natalie Puñal

PGY-2 Resident of the Year

Dr. Alan Jarman

PGY-3 Resident of the Year

Dr. Conner Olsen

Ergün Önal Award for Excellence in Teaching

Dr. Aaron Case

Humanistic Resident of the Year

Drs. Laura Casalegno and Conner Olsen

Jose Arruda Fellow of the Year Award

Dr. Alexander Pan

Faculty Award for Outstanding Graduate

Dr. Laura Casalegno

2022 New Attending of the Year

Dr. Ashley Binder

Clifford Pilz MD Attendings of the Year

Drs. Ashley Binder, Adam Mikolajczyk, Anne Polick, Fred Zar

The John E. Tulley MD Academic Internal Medicine

Attending of the Year Award

Dr. Adam Kosloff

The Paul K. Schlesinger MD JBVA Attending of the Year Award

Dr. Ambareen Khan

Chief Residents' Choice Award

Dr. Stefan Tchernodrinski

PGY-1 Resident of the Year

Dr. Spencer Hill

PGY-2 Resident of the Year

Dr. Natalie Puñal

PGY-3 Resident of the Year

Dr. Briana Castillo

Ergün Önal Award for Excellence in Teaching

Drs. Lily Cheng and Paul Cooper

Humanistic Resident of the Year

Dr. Tori Gartmond

Jose Arruda Fellow of the Year Award

Dr. Ryan Knodle

Faculty Award for Outstanding Graduate

Dr. Alan Jarman

2022 Faculty Promotions

Patrick Belvitch, MD – Associate Professor

Susan Bleasdale, MD – Professor

Rodrigo Burgos, PharmD – Associate Professor

Rachel Caskey, MD – Professor

Cheryl Conner, MD – Associate Professor

Dustin Fraidenburg, MD – Associate Professor

Kevin Haas, MD – Associate Professor

Award of Excellence in Compassionate Care of Oncology

Dominic Ho, MD, PhD

UIC Janice Watkins Award

Dauphine Gregory

Kent Hoskins, MD – Professor

Shikha Jain, MD – Associate Professor

Marci Laragh, MD – Associate Professor

Brian Layden, MD, PhD – Professor

Amanda Osta, MD – Professor

Mahesh Patel, MD – Professor

Anne Polick, MD – Associate Professor

Bharati Prasad, MD – Professor

John Quigley, MD– Professor

Ana Ricardo, MD – Professor

Adam Rodos, MD – Associate Professor

Sunit Singla, MD – Associate Professor

Ignatius Tang, MD, PharmD – Professor

Daniel Toft, MD, PhD – Associate Professor

Carissa Tyo, MD – Associate Professor

Yinglin Xia, MD – Professor