Twenty-three Split Honors at 2023 DOM Awards Ceremony

In a return to a first post-pandemic in-person presentation, University of Arizona Department of Medicine faculty, fellows, residents and students gathered for the department’s 2023 Annual Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, May 2, in the HSIB Forum at the Health Sciences Innovation Building.

At right, a cover image of the program for the 2023 Awards Ceremony of the University of Arizona Department of Medicine. Click image for the full program.

Eleven students, 11 residents and one fellow were recognized at the event. Rosemarie Turk (on left in photo) won honors as Outstanding Medical Student from three divisions. Connor Vuong (on right in photo) won similar honors from two other divisions. Both are Class of 2023 upcoming graduates, with Vuong matching to the University of Washington for his internal medicine residency and Turk matching to the College of Medicine – Tucson for hers. In 2021, Turk also was recognized for her work in the Arizona Research Investigating Disability & Disorders (ARID) Lab with the UArizona Steel Children’s Research Center.

James Liao, MD, who became department chair in January, congratulated all the winners and noted that faculty recognition awards for “Excellence in Teaching” will return to the awards ceremony program next year. He said he was impressed by the number of graduating students and residents electing to stay on for internal medicine residency or fellowship training in the Department of Medicine, adding that was a good sign of the quality of the programs.

You can view the ceremony at this link: https://streaming.biocom.arizona.edu/streaming/30283/event. A slide show of honorees begins at 11:23 minutes and the program begins about 30 minutes into the recording.

Look below for this year’s presenters, award recipients and a mini-photo gallery from the event:

Cardiology

Presenter: Elizabeth Juneman, MD, associate professor and interim chief, Division of Cardiology, member, Sarver Heart Center

Zenas B. Noon, MD, Award for Excellence in Cardiology

Recipients:

Jonathan Blohm
Benjamin Rounseville
Amanda Ruiz

Charles W. Hall, Jr., & Virginia C. Hall Memorial Award for Outstanding House Officer in the Coronary Care Unit

Recipients:

Pallabi Shrestha, MBBS
Mahima Zandu, MBBS

Dermatology

Presenter: Jeff Krase, MD, PharmD, clinical assistant professor, Division of Dermatology [Clara Curiel-Lewandrowski, MD, professor and Dermatology division chief, stepped in as presenter for Dr. Krase. ]

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Alyssa Thompson

Endocrinology

Presenter: Sarah Tariq, MD, clinical assistant professor and assistant fellowship program director, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Rita Bedrossian

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Andrew Barr, MD

Gastroenterology

Presenter: Juanita Merchant, MD, PhD, Regents Professor and chief, Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, and member, Cancer Biology Research Program, UArizona Cancer Center

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Connor Vuong

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Elise Le Cam, MD

General Internal Medicine, Geriatrics & Palliative Medicine

Presenter: Julie Jernberg, MD, MBA, clinical associate professor, Division of General Internal Medicine, Geriatrics & Palliative Medicine, and director, Ambulatory Medicine Clerkship, Department of Medicine

Lois Estok Award: Outstanding Medical Student in Geriatrics

Recipient: Rosemarie Turk

John T. Boyer Award: Outstanding Resident in General Internal Medicine

Recipient: Brian Schiffman, DO

Hematology & Oncology

Presenter: Rachna Shroff, MD, MS, associate professor and interim chief, Division of Hematology & Oncology; associate dean, Clinical and Translational Research, College of Medicine – Tucson; and chief, Section of GI Medical Oncology, UArizona Cancer Center

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Kendra Marr

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Alexander Schlitt, DO

Infectious Diseases

Presenter: Elizabeth Connick, MD, professor, fellowship director and chief, Division of Infectious Diseases [Tirdad Zangeneh, DO, filled in as presenter for Dr. Connick.]

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Connor Vuong

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Lucia Luna Wong, MD, MS, PhD

Nephrology

Presenter: Bekir Tanriover, MD, MPH, MBA, professor and chief, Division of Nephrology [Amy Sussman, MD, filled in for Dr. Tanriover as presenter.]

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Rosemarie Turk

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Chelsea Takamatsu, MD

Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine

Presenter: Saif Mashaqi, MD, associate professor and program director, Sleep Medicine Fellowship, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Rosemarie Turk

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Rachel Tan, MD

Rheumatology

Presenter: C. Kent Kwoh, MD, professor and chief, Division of Rheumatology; director, UArizona Arthritis Center; and the Charles A.L. and Suzanne M. Stephens Endowed Chair in Rheumatology at UArizona

Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Julia Liatti

Outstanding Resident

Recipient: Karen Beltran, MD

Internal Medicine Residency

Presenter: Laura Meinke, MD, associate professor, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, and director, Internal Medicine Residency Program – Tucson Campus, Department of Medicine

Director’s Award for Outstanding Humanism & Professionalism

Recipient: Brendan Andres, MD

Outstanding Medicine Fellow

Recipient: Pooja Jagadish, MD

Undergraduate Medical Education

Presenter: Amy Sussman, MD, associate professor and fellowship director, Division of Nephrology, and director, Internal Medicine Clerkship, and vice chair for Education, Department of Medicine

J.W. Smith Award - Outstanding Medical Student

Recipient: Amrutha Doniparthi

MINI-PHOTO GALLERY *

Winners of University of Arizona Department of Medicine 2023 Awards at May 2 ceremony held in the Health Sciences Innovation Building's HSIB Forum. * Click on images to enlarge. Rollover image with mouse for captions.