UNC Health Southeastern celebrates Class of 2022 resident graduation

Jun. 25—LUMBERTON — The graduation of 22 residents across the Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine and Internal Medicine residency programs was celebrated June 17 by UNC Health Southeastern.

These residents marked the fifth graduating class of the health system's medical education program.

Audrea Caesar, UNC Healthcare System's Inaugural chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion officer, delivered the commencement address.

"You have been uniquely prepared to combat health inequities in your practice," said Caesar, PhD. "You've trained in a rural hospital, during a global pandemic, a social justice movement, an insurrection amidst a global mental health crisis. Even with all of this going on, you all served your patients and the community with grace. You've got stamina and resilience."

The Emergency Medicine graduates were Amna Masood Farshori, DO; Gabriel Gomez, DO; Kristin Erika Hrabowy, DO; James Philip Pursglove, DO; Krista Lynn Pursglove, DO; Curtiss J. Smith, MD; and Shane Xiong, DO.

The Family Medicine graduates were Daniel Evan Boykin, DO; Uma Bhargavi Pendem, MD; Mashud Rana, MD; Kishore Sathiraju, DO; and Karun K. Singla, MD.

Internal Medicine graduates included Moyosola Olamide Abdul, MD; Jean-Paul Alishahi, DO; Michelè Alexis Brandon, DO, MS; Hau Phuc Bui, MD; Jason Thomas Hance, DO; Stephen Joseph Hribar, DO; Kalyan Kancherla, MD; Mustafa Kamal Kareem, MD; Jason Yung Lo, MD; and Farai Mutongwizo, DO.

"Each of us has the responsibility of becoming self-aware," Caesar said. "We should try hard to understand our biases and learn about groups that are different than our own. Humanizing people from all walks of life is essential to providing culturally sensitive and respectful care. Patients want to be seen, heard and they want to be well. It is the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities that could save the American health care system billions of dollars annually. Be proud that you trained at UNC Health Southeastern. The vast majority of residency programs in our state and country are not as diverse as this one."

Residency Awards

Some of the program's residents, attending physicians, and nurses with which they worked, were also recognized with special awards during the graduation ceremony. The awards given were:

— Emergency Medicine Resident of the Year: Shane Xiong, DO;

— Family Medicine Resident of the Year: Uma Bhargavi Pendem, MD;

— Internal Medicine Resident of the Year: Moyosola Olamide Abdul, MD and Jason Yung Lo, MD;

— Emergency Medicine Attending of the Year: Brianna Crosby, MD;

— Family Medicine Attending of the Year: Kevin Martin, DO;

— Internal Medicine and Transitional Year Attending of the Year: Juliet Ekatan, MD;

— Emergency Medicine Nurse of the Year: Selina Locklear, RN;

— Family Medicine Nurse of the Year: Regina Scott, RN;

— Internal Medicine Nurse of the Year: DJ Strickland, RN;

Medical Education Program Background

UNC Health Southeastern and its affiliates have been a major clinical campus for Campbell University's Jerry M. Wallace School of Osteopathic Medicine since 2015.

In February 2013, then Southeastern Health, formalized a commitment with Campbell University Jerry M. Wallace School of Osteopathic Medicine to train medical students at then Southeastern Regional Medical Center and other affiliates of the health system. The first 40 Campbell medical students arrived on the health system campus the week of July 27, 2015, to begin their third-year rotations and continued their medical training through the completion of medical school.

Funded by $1.6 million in grants, Southeastern Health unveiled a newly renovated, 10,000-square-foot space for the Medical Education department during an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony held July 28, 2015, in the cafeteria at SRMC. The space, located on the fourth floor of the administrative wing of the medical center, is now the education hub for UNC Health Southeastern, offering student lockers, a 100-seat classroom, a small classroom, an electronic medical library, a resident/student lounge and meeting room, and administrative offices for the Medical Education department.

The education wing was made possible through funding by The Duke Endowment, The Golden LEAF Foundation, North Carolina Department of Commerce and The Cannon Foundation.

In July 2018, 25 newly minted physicians from various universities throughout the country who selected Southeastern Health as their residency training ground, entered three residency programs, training programs where physicians train before they enter practice, in the areas of family medicine, internal medicine and emergency medicine.