The University of Nebraska Medical Center's internal medicine residency program had 100 percent of its residents pass the 2017 American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) examination and, even better, all the residents scored above the national mean.
“We’ve had a spectacular record through the years but for the first time we have the data to see where our residents were against the national average and they all scored above it,” said James O'Dell, MD, professor of medicine, chief of the division of rheumatology and immunology, residency program director, and vice chairman of the department of internal medicine.
This accomplishment puts UNMC in the top five percent of residency programs across the country, according to Dr. O’Dell. He cited a group effort – the residents, the education staff, the associate program directors, and support from the College of Medicine and Nebraska Medicine – for the program’s success.
“You hire the right people and surround residents with people who are happy and upbeat, who like coming to work, and enjoy learning and teaching,” said Dr. O’Dell. “That creates an environment where residents can excel.”
Residents take the ABIM exam in August and receive their results in November. Members of UNMC's 2017 class are:
Daniel Almquist, M.D.
Rajeev Anchan, M.D.
John Anderson, D.O.
Tyler Brinkman, M.D.
Saurabh Chandan, M.D.
Katrina Chavez, M.D.
Jon DeMuth, M.D.
Jason Dinsmoor, M.D.
Kilie Donovan, M.D.
Richard Hankins, M.D.
Heidi Hausmann, M.D.
Jessie Jenkins, M.D.
Laura LaBonte, M.D.
Chetaj Arun Mahabir, MBBS
Aron Merchen, M.D.
Alicia Mizner, M.D.
Benjamin Monson, M.D.
Prasanth Ravipati, M.D.
Jason Shuda, M.D.
Javen Wunschel, D.O.
In addition to their categorical peers, both of the recent Internal Medicine-Pediatric resident graduates also passed their IM boards this past year, one of two sets of boards that they take at the completion of their training. 2017 Medicine-Pediatric graduates are:
Sarah Kesterson, MD
Kate McKillip, MD