— College of Medicine — Department of Neurological Sciences — Education — Neurology Residency Program — Residency Graduate Farewells (2024)

Residency Graduate Farewells (2024)

Navigating the Journey: My Residency Experience at UNMC
Mohammad Aladawi, MD

As I reflect on my time at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), I am filled with immense pride and gratitude for the experiences and opportunities that have shaped my journey. My residency in neurology has been a transformative period marked by significant achievements, professional growth, and the forging of lifelong relationships.

One of the most rewarding aspects of my residency has been the opportunity to lead and coordinate multiple clinical research studies. Collaborating with esteemed institutions such as Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Yale University, University of Iowa, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University, and New York Medical College has been an enriching experience that broadened my horizons and deepened my understanding of neurological disorders.

During my internship year, I was honored to receive the Graduate Medical Education (GME) Research Day Best Oral Presentation Award, a recognition that validated my hard work and dedication. That same year, I presented my first grand round on "GBS in the Era of COVID-19" a topic that highlighted the intersection of neurology and the global pandemic, underscoring the importance of adaptability and resilience in our field. Additionally, I received the Program Director's Award for Outstanding Scholarly Activity, further acknowledging my commitment to academic excellence.

My passion for research led to the publication of several articles in prestigious journals, including the Green Journal and JAMA. Additionally, I contributed two medical illustrations to reputable academic journals, combining my love for art and science. As chairman of the Jordanian American Physician Association (JAPA) Resident Committee during my second and third years, I had the privilege of advocating for my peers and fostering a supportive community for Jordanian American physicians.

A notable highlight of my residency was developing the Comprehensive Stroke Charting Tab in UNMC's EPIC system. This project aimed to streamline stroke patient management and improve clinical outcomes, reflecting my commitment to enhancing patient care through innovative solutions. Throughout my residency, I consistently scored above the 90th percentile in the RITE examinations, a testament to my dedication to academic excellence. My efforts culminated in matching into a vascular neurology fellowship at the University of Alabama Medical Center, a milestone that marks the next chapter of my career.

In total, I published 23 peer-reviewed journal articles along with several abstracts and oral presentations at national conferences, achievements that have significantly contributed to the field of neurology. I also became a review editor for several journals and joined the editorial board of BMC Neurology. Some of my key publications include "Clinical Reasoning: A 40-Year-Old Woman With Scapular Winging and Dysphonia" (Neurology, 2021), "Intensive vs Conventional Blood Pressure Control After Thrombectomy in Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis" (JAMA Netw Open, 2024), "Guillain Barre Syndrome as a Complication of COVID-19: A Systematic Review" (Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, 2022), "Aneurysmal Subdural Hematoma: A Systematic Review" (Neurocritical Care, 2024), and "Nitrofurantoin and Minocycline-Associated Vasculitic Neuropathy: Case Reports and Literature Review" (Journal of Clinical Neuromuscular Disease, 2022).

My journey would not have been possible without the unwavering support and mentorship of several faculty members: Dr. Ezequiel Piccione, who helped me early on in my journey and mentored several of my publications; Dr. Maximiliano Hawkes, who sharpened my scholarly activity and encouraged me to pursue medical illustration, giving me the confidence to follow this path; Dr. Rana Zabad, for her constant mentorship in patient-centered care and her guidance in mitigating cultural differences; Dr. Pierre Fayad, for his advice to pursue fellowship training in vascular neurology; and Dr. Marco Gonzalez, for serving as a great role model for anyone aspiring to become a vascular neurologist.

Looking ahead, I am excited to embark on my vascular neurology fellowship and aspire to become a neurohospitalist in a privademic setting, where I can serve as a stroke center administrative leader. While it is challenging to predict long-term goals with certainty, I believe that what truly matters is adhering to one’s principles and moral values, no matter where life takes you.

My residency at UNMC has been a remarkable journey, filled with challenges and triumphs that have shaped me into the physician I am today. I am grateful for the mentorship, camaraderie, and opportunities that have defined my time here and look forward to the future with optimism and determination.

Navigating the Journey: My Residency Experience at UNMC
Mohamed Elfil, MD

As my time at DONS comes to an end, I reflect on the incredible journey and the numerous opportunities that shaped my residency experience. It has been an honor to contribute to and grow within this vibrant academic community.

During my residency, I had the privilege of leading and participating in multiple research projects at both institutional and national levels. I collaborated with researchers and physicians from esteemed institutions around the world, including UNMC, Yale University, University of Texas Health Science Center, UCLA, Rutgers University, Westchester Medical Center, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Emory, and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. These collaborations enriched my perspective and honed my skills as a researcher and clinician.

I am proud to have published 41 peer-reviewed articles in top-tier journals, including Stroke, JAMA, Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery, American Journal of Neuroradiology, Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disease, Interventional Neuroradiology, Journal of Neurology, Movement Disorders, and Journal of Neuroimmunology. I have also presented 21 abstracts at national conferences. Additionally, I won the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology (SVIN)’s Travel Grant for the 2023 meeting and the LINNC 2024 travel grant. In the same regard, I have served as an editor and guest reviewer for multiple reputable journals, including Frontiers in Neurology, Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery, BMC Neurology, BMJ Case Reports, and Circulation, which has been an enriching experience that allowed me to contribute to the scientific community.

On a different note, collaborating with Dr. Aladawi on creating the Comprehensive Stroke Charting Tab in UNMC's EPIC was a significant achievement that improved our clinical workflows.

In my second year, I presented a grand round entitled "Intravenous thrombolysis plus mechanical thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusion: Should we cross that bridge?". This presentation was a pivotal moment, highlighting the critical discussions in the field of stroke management.

Career Next Steps: I am excited to share that I have matched into the Vascular Neurology fellowship at the University of Miami 2024-2025, followed by CNS Endovascular Surgery fellowship at Westchester Medical Center 2025-2027. These next steps are pivotal in my journey towards specializing in vascular and interventional neurology.

Key Publications: Here are some of the key publications from my residency:

Long-Term Goals: My long-term goals include leading work in a comprehensive stroke center and contributing to clinical trials in the field of vascular and interventional neurology. I aspire to push the boundaries of our understanding and treatment of neurological conditions, improving outcomes for patients worldwide.

Reflecting on my residency, I am filled with gratitude for the mentorship, camaraderie, and rich learning environment provided by DONS. I look forward to the future with enthusiasm and a commitment to excellence in the field of neurology.

Navigating the Journey: My Residency Experience at UNMC
Isha Snehal, MBBS

All I have is gratitude for the time spent with my DONS family and for the things I learned as a budding neurologist. My time here was full of personal and professional highlights, incredible academic and leadership opportunities, and supportive friendships.

Some of the experiences that stood out for me in this journey was serving as the Assistant Chief Resident in PGY III for the VA, QI and Wellness and later as Chief Resident of Academics, Outreach and Recruitment in my final year. I also thoroughly enjoyed working with the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). It started with being selected for the Enhanced Resident Leadership cohort with the AAN 2024 and undergoing training with a dynamic group and meeting inspirational mentors at the annual meeting. That led to a platform talk at the AAN and facilitated further collaboration with the Chief Residents of Academics Work Group of the academy to create a blueprint for education materials for residency which is soon to be published on the academy website.

While all faculty members have been wonderful mentors to me at different junctures, I am especially grateful to Dr. Hellman, our residency program director, who has been a compassionate and a passionate mentor and leader. She is instrumental in leading our administration team to successfully run our resident affairs smoothly and efficiently. It is an extremely stressful job, and she manages all so well!

Academically, while I had the chance to present different projects at several conferences, some memorable ones were those where I collaborated and learned new skills from other teams.

"The impact of speed of seizure spread on IQ and post-operative seizure freedom in refractory epilepsy", was one of those where we worked with our neuropsychology colleagues to identify a relationship between speed of seizure spread and IQ and then neurosurgery department’s team to develop a model to identify seizure spread using signal processing. This project was acknowledged with the DONS research day 2024 platform presentation award.

I'm grateful to Dr. Taraschenko, my primary research mentor for being a fierce leader and the most hardworking teacher I know. She is a role model for me and I'm sure for many other physicians.

Another memorable project I enjoyed was in education where we looked at the pulse of our recently incorporated ICU simulation training and found that it was an extremely effective curriculum to train residents. I'm grateful to Dr. Mathew for his enthusiasm and encouragement and for being a wonderful and approachable mentor. Thanks to all our ICU attendings who have generously contributed to make this training exercise a successful venture.

One of the joyful and memorable things that I got to work on was to develop a virtual field trip on Neurology topics for high school students with Nebraska-4 H, University of Lincoln and my friends and colleagues Dr. Kumari and Dr. Najdawi. Another was serving as one of the narrators for Continuum, the popular neurology quarterly journal.

When you are surrounded by excellent, enthusiastic, and hardworking mentors and professionals, you feel empowered to be your best self. It helps you bloom and facilitates you to nurture people around you as well.

Residency is an arduous journey but what makes it extraordinary are the experiences, the friendships you build during this time, the strength you cultivate by dealing with tough situations and the love you receive from your patients, which is the yardstick of growth as a medical professional.

I am looking forward to pursuing my passion for epilepsy further at Mayo Clinic Rochester MN from 2024-2025 and then a clinical neurophysiology fellowship right after(2025-2026) at Mayo Clinic Rochester.

My best wishes and gratitude are with all my co-residents and the DONS family for making Omaha and Nebraska special. This journey has been a life changing experience in so many ways!