Testimonials from Alumni and Current Residents

Class of 2020:

Jessica Easdale - Chief

Jag Tuli - PCP in California

Laesha Blockett- PCP in Maryland

Rachel Joseph - PCP in Texas

Evelyn Konsur - Allergy/Immuno at Rush

Aditi Mittal - GI at Cleveland Clinic

Nikki Agarwal - Heme/Onc at Cleveland Clinic

Class of 2019:

Theresa White - PCP in Texas

Aravind Thavamandi - GI at University Hospitals

Kishore Umapathi - Cardiology at Rush

Sruthi Menon- Endocrinology at Baylor

Geetangali Bora - GI at University of Wisconsin

Yasir Gabra - PICU at Children's Hospital of Michigan

Soumya Judson Ben - PCP in Florida

Chaithra Sreenath - Heme/Onc at University Hospitals

Testimonials

"When I entered Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in 1963 I was intent on becoming a general surgeon. However, looking back I now know that could never have been. The very first week of medical school I attended a clinical conference for members of my class at Metropolitan General Hospital, led by Drs. Edward Mortimer, Fred Robbins and Charles Rammelkamp, all renowned in their fields and two were pediatricians. Fred Robbins was a Nobel Laureate. They dazzled us with their brilliance, dashing manner and clear interest in teaching. While at the time I did not have a conscious discernment that Pediatrics would be my ultimate choice, gradually it became clear that general surgery didn’t have a chance.

As a third-year student I met Dr. Kay Huxtable, director of the outpatient clinic. Dr. Huxtable asked us to share a little about ourselves. She nodded gently with each vignette, indicating she was interested and attentive. Then she said “To many, our population of patients, largely Appalachian from West Virginia, is seen as a homogeneous group defined only by its poverty. What I hope you will discover is that poverty does not make every poor person the same as the next. I want you to take the time needed to learn each patient and family, one by one, discovering the uniqueness and potential each has.” I found her words so confirming of what increasingly had become my quest to understand the human journey."

Doris Evans, MD

"I feel the program is a well balanced mix of academics and hands on experience. The faculty is extremely dedicated and approachable. The wide range of patient population at MetroHealth Pediatrics gives adequate learning opportunities to the residents. It has been a wonderful experience being a part of MetroHealth family."

Pooja Puri, MD

"The program works for me in the following ways: It serves my desire to work with under-privileged and underserved populations. You see plenty of bread and butter, run of the mill illnesses as well as the rare ones, especially in conjunction with our Level I trauma center. Everyone gets along great together at work, and also has fun hanging out outside of the job."

Sheila Wang, MD

"I was looking for a program that would provide me with a strong knowledge base and, as I build on it, provide me the autonomy to practice what I learned. This is the program which serves both in a friendly, stress-free environment."

Smita Bhaskaran, MD

"MHMC works for me because it is a small enough program where attendings know you by name and are available to you if you need advice or help. Everyone's door is always open. Also, the program thinks your opinion is important and tries to make it better based on input from the residents. Everyone makes sure you're getting the education you need to be confident when you leave here and go off into your career."

Sarah Lehmann, MD

"There are so many things I like about MetroHealth: comprehensive training with enough opportunities to pursue a fellowship; increasing autonomy to the residents in decision making; great and approachable faculty; medium sized program prompting greater one on one interaction with faculty; academic oriented with dedicated teaching sessions; ICU experience in PICU and NICU; few fellows so there is more hands-on training for the residents."

Deepti Bhat, MD

“One of the main reasons I like being in our program is that you feel like you can actually make a difference. The population we serve is mainly low-income, single-parent families. These kinds do not get a lot of breaks in life. Anything I can do to help out feels like you can actually make some small difference.”

Amy Edwards, MD

"There are many great and reputable hospital systems in the state of Ohio, and we have some of the best pediatric hospitals in the country. However, MetroHealth specifically resonated with me during my residency application cycle due to the populations it works so diligently to serve. As someone who wishes to provide pediatric care to underserved and marginalized communities, the mission and vision of MetroHealth align directly with my own. MetroHealth tirelessly and innovatively works to break down barriers to accessible, affordable, and available healthcare for all individuals and their families. This allows MetroHealth to stand out from other providers. Because of this, I am proud to be a resident physician at MetroHealth—an institution that values, empowers, and advocates for patients regardless of their social determinants of health."

Nick Lehan, DO. PGY-1

"My name is Mehul and I was born and raised in India. I went to medical school at Seth GS Medical College in Mumbai.

The transition from being a medical student to a resident coupled with switching continents is not easy however everyone here at Metro has made this transition seamless making it my new home away from home.

It is a privilege be a part of this amazing team at MetroHealth Pediatrics. The culture of our program where us residents and faculty work in such a clot knit environment has helped me grow professionally as well as personally.

I believe the biggest strengths of our program are:

Truly practicing graduated autonomy
Diversity of our residents and faculty

For these reasons, I would choose Metrohealth if I were ever to do this again!"

Mehul Thakkar, MD. PGY-2

"The best part of the Pediatric department at Metrohealth is the environment. We are a big multicultural family, that you easily feel a part of, even after only a few months working here. We are a very welcoming and friendly group, with diverse origins, and backgrounds. The close proximity relationship makes all the staff physicians easily approachable by residents and medical students. The fact that the specialties have no fellows, also facilitates the direct relationship with the attendings. Currently in my 3rd year of residency, I can say that I truly feel I am part of the Department, which makes it easier to perform our daily job and duties, and to give our best everyday for our patients."

Paula Mari, MD, PGY-3

"I came to MetroHealth for the first time as a medical student, and I was hooked. Sometimes you go somewhere new, and you just get a feeling that you're where you're supposed to be. However, I try to make big decisions, like where to go for residency, logically and not emotionally. Even still, Metro won out compared to the other hospitals I interviewed with in regards to one on one interactions with attendings, opportunities for procedures, a solid foundation for outpatient pediatrics, and an opportunity to have a home base at a tight knit smaller program, but be able to experience life as a resident in bigger programs at surrounding institutions in the Northeast Ohio area. The people, the environment, the culture, and the aims of the hospital - to focus on preventative care in an inclusive community, are reasons that I liked Metro to start with, and continue to be the reasons why I have stayed to be Chief Resident this year."

Jessica Easdale, DO, Chief Resident of Pediatrics