Bouquets were waved over heads, and parents, family members, and friends clapped and shouted with joy for more than 100 UCSF Fresno residents and fellows as they filed on stage at the Fresno City College auditorium for a commencement photo.
The commencement on June 11, 2026, celebrated the completion of years of training for UCSF Fresno residents and fellows, and for Community Medical Centers General Dentistry residents. Every seat on the floor of the auditorium in the college’s Old Administration Building was filled for the ceremony, with more well-wishers watching from the balcony.
“Completing residency and fellowship training is rigorous, challenging, and rewarding, and cannot be accomplished alone. We are grateful to your family, friends, and support networks who have encouraged and supported you throughout your medical training. We thank them tonight,” said UCSF Fresno Vice Dean Jose M. Barral Sanchez, MD, PhD, who asked the audience to give a round of applause.
Barral Sanchez also thanked faculty, department chiefs, program directors, program staff, and the Graduate Medical Education office for their dedication to residents and fellows.
Stacy Sawtelle Vohra, MD, UCSF Fresno assistant dean for Graduate Medical Education and the Designated Institutional Official, expressed her happiness in sharing the celebration. “We are excited to celebrate this day with you, our residents and fellows, and with your families, loved ones, supporters, and with our faculty and staff.”
“Throughout training, you have inspired us and each other by sharing your skills, knowledge, insights, and friendship,” Sawtelle Vohra said. “Your energy, motivation, talents, and innovative spirit enrich our training programs and advance our mission to improve the health of the San Joaquin Valley. We at UCSF Fresno are proud of you.”
Staying to carry it forward
The San Joaquin Valley has one of the lowest doctor-to-population ratios in California. Barral Sanchez noted the mission of UCSF Fresno, a regional campus of the UCSF School of Medicine, is “to train physicians to deliver the highest-quality and compassionate patient care, expand access to care, improve health through discovery, and contribute to our communities.”
Overall, 40% of UCSF Fresno graduates remain in the Central Valley to care for patients, train future physicians, or continue their education. Approximately 70% stay in California to provide care.
2026 commencement highlights:
50% of Emergency Medicine graduates are staying in the Central Valley
50% of Internal Medicine graduates are staying in the Central Valley
42% of Family and Community Medicine graduates are staying in the Central Valley
40% of Psychiatry graduates are staying in Fresno
UCSF Fresno offers pathway programs to support local students in becoming physicians, with the goal that they will return to the Valley to practice. Anuvir Singh, MD, one of the 2026 graduates, began his journey in medicine as a student at the UCSF Fresno Doctors Academy, a four-year school within a high school for students interested in medicine. Singh attended the Doctors Academy in Caruthers, a small city south of Fresno. He is joining the UCSF Fresno Department of Emergency Medicine as a faculty member.
The Doctors Academy was integral to his success, Singh said. He faced barriers to becoming a physician, including limited guidance on navigating higher education for a career in medicine, and he found the support he needed at Caruthers High while attending the UCSF Fresno Doctors Academy. “These mentors helped guide me through unfamiliar processes and encouraged me to persist,” he said.
Brandon Croft, MD, a Visalia native, is joining the UCSF Fresno Pulmonary and Critical Care Division as a faculty member after completing a three-year Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship at UCSF Fresno.
Growing up in the Valley, he witnessed limited access to medical care. Training at UCSF Fresno taught him “how to work in resource-limited regions and how to navigate the hindrances placed on patients with poor access to care,” he said.
He also participated in a pathway program during medical school. In 2020, he graduated from the San Joaquin Valley Program in Medical Education (SJV PRIME) at UC Davis. UCSF is now the medical degree-granting institution for SJV PRIME, a program that aims to increase the number of practicing physicians in the Valley.
Croft’s journey in medicine began 13 years ago as a research coordinator at the UCSF Fresno Clinical Research Center and as a scribe with the Department of Emergency Medicine. He completed a three-year residency in Internal Medicine at UCSF Fresno in 2023.
Caring and supporting each other
After an away rotation at UCSF Fresno during her fourth year of medical school, Abbigayle Laszacs, MD, a native of Tennessee with ties to Fresno, decided to pursue OB-GYN residency at the UCSF regional campus. She is staying in Fresno to work as an OB-GYN generalist at Community Regional Medical Center with Valley Children’s Women’s Group.
“It was then that I truly knew this was the place for me,” she said. “I loved the diversity in the community and faculty. I knew the high volume and acuity would give me the well-rounded training I needed.”
She will most remember her time at UCSF Fresno for the camaraderie she experienced during her training, she said. “Residency is a gauntlet, but it is so much better to go through with people I now consider my lifelong friends. The people in the UCSF OB-GYN program are what make it special.”
It is also serendipitous that her mother grew up in Fresno, and she still has family in the area, Laszacs said.
Among other graduates remaining in the Valley is Michael Salzano, MD, a native of Folsom, California, who completed a three-year psychiatry residency. He is staying in the Central Valley to join UCSF Fresno with a volunteer appointment in the Department of Psychiatry and will work at Community Behavioral Health Center in Fresno.
Reflecting on his years in residency, Salzano said he treasures bonds formed with co-residents and faculty in the Department of Psychiatry. “I feel exceptionally fortunate to have had the opportunity to work alongside numerous brilliant, passionate, and genuinely kind individuals. The sense of support, collaboration, and camaraderie within the program is something I will carry with me long after residency.”
Continuing Their Journeys
Lucky Malhi, chief operating officer at Community Regional, the primary clinical partner for UCSF Fresno, spoke at the commencement before presentation of the Resident and Fellow Awards, sponsored by Community Medical Centers.
The partnership between Community Regional and UCSF Fresno is valued, he said, as he recognized the graduates for “the extraordinary dedication, perseverance, and compassion you have demonstrated throughout this journey.”
Keynote speaker Liana Milanés, MD, FAAFP, a UCSF Associate Professor in the UCSF Fresno Department of Family and Community Medicine, and the 2025 Kaiser Award for Excellence in Teaching Winner, shared her hope for graduates to maintain connections.
“Do not isolate. That is what I ask for all of you graduating today. Don’t isolate in your lives, or your practice. Stay connected to each other. Keep the group chat alive. Stay connected to the communities that you serve, but more importantly, stay connected to yourselves.”
Barral Sanchez concluded the commencement by acknowledging the dedication, compassion, and commitment the graduates have shown to their patients and the community, and encouraged them to hold onto those values.
“As practicing physicians, you now will play a crucial role in your communities. I would encourage you to maintain your passion for your patients, even when circumstances become challenging. And, please make time to take care of yourselves, and stay connected to each other and to us as UCSF Fresno Alumni.”
In addition to the presentation of the graduates, several honors were awarded:
Outstanding First Year Resident: Hollie St. Claire, MD, Surgery
Outstanding Resident or Fellow Teacher: Amanda Nemecz, MD, Surgery
Community Health System Teaching Excellence Award: Elliott Williams, MD, Surgery
Outstanding Non-Physician Teacher: Melissa Reger, PharmD, BCPS, Community Health System Pharmacy
Leon S. Peters Foundation Resident of the Year: Ikjot Thind, MD, Family and Community Medicine
Leon S. Peters Foundation Fellow of the Year: Jennifer Lee, DO, Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship
VA ICARE Award: Katherine Jones, DO, Medicine
Steven N. Parks, MD, Leadership Award: Amanda Nemecz, MD, Surgery
Borba Resident Research Award: Carolina Aparicio, MD, Surgery
Borba Fellow Research Award: Kazi Haque, MD, Medicine, Hepatology
Borba Faculty Research Award: Haifaa Abdulhaq, MD, Medicine, Hematology/Oncology
Outstanding Program Director Award: Craig Campbell, MD, Psychiatry
Dr. Lori Weichenthal Faculty Mentorship Award: Muhammad Shoaib Khan, MD, Family and Community Medicine
Kaiser Award for Excellence in Teaching: Claire Gibson, MD, Pediatrics
As cesarean delivery rates have climbed in recent decades, obstetricians are seeing a rise in placenta accreta, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition in which the placenta attaches too deeply into the uterine wall.
The complication can lead to severe hemorrhage during childbirth and often requires complex, multidisciplinary care. In many cases, treatment includes a hysterectomy to prevent catastrophic blood loss.
At Community Regional Medical Center (Community Regional) in Fresno, patients across the Central Valley have access to that level of coordinated care. The hospital, a primary teaching site for UCSF Fresno, brings together specialists from obstetrics and gynecology, emergency medicine, family and community medicine, and surgical disciplines to manage these high-risk cases.
“We have everybody that’s needed here,” said Pamela Emeney, MD, UCSF professor of obstetrics and gynecology. “We have interventional radiology, a blood bank, and colon, bladder and trauma surgeons.”
Community Regional serves as the only high-risk pregnancy and delivery center for a five-county region with the expertise and technology required for a dedicated placenta accreta surgical team. As a result, physicians there treat a high volume of these cases, providing critical experience for medical trainees.
Emeney, who joined UCSF Fresno in 2008, leads surgical training for OB-GYN residents and has overseen numerous complex cases. Without timely, specialized care, she said, placenta accreta can quickly become fatal.
“Placenta accreta is something we all learn about in medical school and have a healthy amount of fear for,” said Raksha Dutt, MD, a fourth-year OB-GYN resident. “It’s something you don’t expect to see very often, but we see a significant number of cases here—which has been invaluable for learning.”
Residents at UCSF Fresno are involved in patient care at every stage. They assist in high-risk clinics, participate in hospital care, and gradually take on more responsibility as they advance. Junior residents support patient management, while senior residents lead care under the supervision of attending physicians.
“They see each case to ensure such expertise continues to grow,” Emeney said. “During their fourth year of training, chief residents are prepared to perform surgeries on patients, putting into play everything they learned through lectures and observation.”
By the time they reach their final year, residents have performed multiple hysterectomies and emergency cesarean sections—skills that are both essential in treating placenta accreta.
For Dutt, the experience has been both demanding and rewarding. Over the course of her training, she has cared for patients through multiple pregnancies and gynecologic procedures.
She said the high volume of complex pathologies provides a great learning environment, which prepares trainees to handle critical situations.
“These are situations you want to be prepared for, and so much obstetrics involves emergent situations that you may never have seen and that you'll have to deal with at a random time,” said Dutt. “The number of cases that we get to see here and the amount of hands-on exposure that we get, allows us to be prepared as we move out of residency.”
Dutt says one of her biggest takeaways from the residency program with UCSF Fresno is learning to manage multiple high-pressure responsibilities at once.
“Learning how to triage and handle a very busy labor and delivery floor while also concurrently managing a busy gynecologic and oncology service is a huge takeaway from this residency program,” she said.
For Emeney, the impact of that training becomes clear long after residents graduate. She still receives calls from former trainees who encounter placenta accreta cases in their own practices.
“They’ll call and say, ‘Dr. Emeney, I had a case last night, and it went really well—I knew what to do,’” she said. “It’s incredibly gratifying to know that what we teach here makes a difference. That’s what makes this work so meaningful.”
Do all patients with hip dysplasia need two surgeries, or can just one surgery relieve hip pain and preserve the hip? It’s a highly debated question among orthopaedic surgeons.
Robert Kollmorgen, DO, associate clinical professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at UCSF Fresno, research director for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, and Inspire Health Medical Group provider, was asked recently to write an editorial about the topic for The Journal of Arthroscopic & Related Surgery.
The journal is the global leader in sports medicine and orthopaedics, and Dr. Kollmorgen, the journal's associate editor, is a fellowship-trained hip preservation specialist. For the editorial, he reviewed the literature on the role of hip arthroscopy combined with periacetabular osteotomy in patients aged 13 to 30 with dysplasia.
Patients with hip dysplasia have shallow or abnormally formed hip sockets, which can cause hip pain. Most patients with hip dysplasia are born with the condition and may not even know they have it until they experience pain.
Hip preservation surgery began in 1986, when total hip replacements wore out relatively quickly, Kollmorgen said. Today, hip replacements last much longer, but hip preservation is a viable option for a young adult instead of a lifetime with an artificial hip.
Hip preservation surgery for hip dysplasia, periacetabular Osteotomy or PAO, involves an open surgery to cut into the pelvic bone around the hip socket (acetabulum), turn the socket to cover the femoral head, and secure it with screws. A second surgery, hip arthroscopy (HA), is performed by some surgeons, in which a camera is inserted into the hip joint and special instruments are used to repair soft tissue (labral tears) and shave bone to correct hip impingement.
“Some surgeons do the camera surgery first and then do the PAO at the same time,” Kollmorgen said. “And then others will just do the PAO – and there is your controversy. Do they need to have this other surgery or not?”
The question is controversial among orthopaedic surgeons. “I sit on these international panels, and it’s a very hot topic of discussion,” Kollmorgen said. “It’s very pertinent to my world where I operate and take care of patients with young hips.”
Many open-hip surgeons argue that hip arthroscopy is unnecessary, adds no clinical benefit, introduces unnecessary scarring, and could add undue cost and risk to patients, Kollmorgen noted in his editorial. However, the literature review also showed the addition of HA to PAO to be safe, returns patients to sports, and provides revision rates similar to those of PAO alone at two to five years, he wrote.
He added that reviews of the available literature comparing an isolated PAO to HA+PAO showed the safety and efficacy of adding hip arthroscopy. “Diving into the included studies, there was no difference between the groups in outcomes, complications, and revision rates,” he wrote. “The HA+PAO group, in a pooled analysis, showed some improved clinical outcomes versus PAO alone, and there was no inferiority among the groups.”
Not all orthopaedic surgeons can perform hip arthroscopy. For example, Kollmorgen is the only adult HA fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeon in Fresno, and that must be considered. “You have to be really skillful and thoughtful in your decision-making,” he said. “Look at the patients individually and do whatever surgeries they need. You don’t have to do a camera surgery if they don’t need it, but if they need it, offer it to your patients; and if you can’t do it, then you have to figure out how to help them some way.”
His conclusion, the literature does not clearly define whether the addition of HA to PAO is necessary in all, some, or any patients, and more research is needed.
This leaves the subject open to further debate, which Kollmorgen welcomes. “If it leads to more research and more discussion, I think we’ve won.”
For more than a decade, faculty and residents from UCSF Fresno have partnered with the Fresno Chaffee Zoo’s Reptile House staff to help ensure the safety of employees who work with venomous reptiles from around the world.
The collaboration reflects UCSF Fresno’s commitment to the San Joaquin Valley and supporting partnerships throughout the region, including the zoo’s herpetology team.
“These are medically important snakes and as a toxicologist and an emergency doctor, they invited me to help plan their first aid protocols and teach their team about the medical aspect in case someone should accidentally get bitten,” said Rais Vohra, MD, UCSF Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine.
As Medical Director of the California Poison Control System's Fresno/Madera Division, Dr. Vohra and his team field thousands of calls annually about venomous exposures, giving him a uniquely regional perspective on snakebite epidemiology and management in the state of California. He also serves on the faculty of the UCSF School of Pharmacy, where he helps to train the next generation of pharmacists and clinical toxicologists.
Zoo staff who care for the venomous reptiles, including feeding them and cleaning their habitats are inherently at risk by virtue of their occupation. As a result, comprehensive training and evidence-based emergency response protocols are essential.
“It’s a very important project to ensure that everyone that works with these beautiful, but potentially dangerous animals, stays safe and that they feel confident in their daily activities whenever they're working around these creatures,” said Vohra.
Mark Halverson, animal curator at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo, oversees the reptiles and their caregivers. He says the longstanding partnership with UCSF Fresno provides valuable expertise and peace of mind.
“Not only do we have a world-class health care facility (Community Regional Medical Center) and UCSF Fresno here, the peace of mind that we get from having a toxicologist like Dr. Vohra working with us gives us the assurance that we're on the up and up and we're doing the right thing,” said Halverson.
To ensure staff safety, the zoo maintains a supply of anti-venom from all over the world stocked in a refrigerator. Proper storage, handling, and use of lifesaving medication requires specialized knowledge in emergency medicine, pharmacy, and toxicology. All of which Dr. Vohra is trained to provide.
“Dr. Vohra also helps if we decide to bring in a species that we don't have any antivenom for,” Halverson said. “He consults with us about the appropriate steps to take, and which antivenoms are appropriate for those species.”
The collaboration extends beyond zoo staff training. Emergency Medicine residents, medical students and even local high school students participating in the Summer Biomedical Internship Program have opportunities to learn through the program.
During training sessions held at the zoo, Vohra teaches participants evidence-based approaches to managing venomous snake bites before emergency medical services arrive. Topics include avoiding harmful practices like applying tourniquets or attempting to suck venom from the wound. Instead, focusing on proven first-aid measures that improve patient outcomes is important.
His expertise in medical toxicology also helps prepare them to recognize and respond to envenomation from a variety of exotic species housed at the zoo, including the cobra, gaboon viper, and several species of Asian vipers.
“We provide education about all of those different species. They require a little bit different approach for each different type of snake, but we're ready to handle any of them and we just want people to stay safe,” Vohra said.
Every six to 12 months, Vohra and UCSF Fresno Emergency Medicine residents conduct refresher training sessions that equip zoo staff with the skills needed to respond immediately after a snake bite.
Rather than waiting for emergency responders to arrive, staff are trained to initiate critical first aid measures. This includes marking the bite location, wrapping the limb, and helping the injured person remain calm and still while awaiting further medical care.
Halverson emphasized that having that training in place from the very beginning helps set the victim up for the best possible outcome. According to him, the partnership has helped establish one of the nation’s most comprehensive venomous animal management programs.
“We have no doubt that what we do is probably the highest caliber here in the U.S. as far as managing the venomous programs here at the zoo, and it's all thanks to Dr. Vohra and his team working with us closely to develop those practices,” said Halverson.
UCSF Fresno’s success and growth are a direct result of the dedication and inspiration of our faculty, staff, residents, fellows, students, alumni, partners, donors, and friends. In each issue of Focus, we introduce you to the people who contribute to the greatness of UCSF Fresno through informal interviews.
In this issue, we feature Shannon L. Kremer, fellowship programs supervisor for the Department of Medicine. Shannon will celebrate her 10-year anniversary with UCSF Fresno in January 2027.
Shannon joined UCSF Fresno in January 2017 as the Gastroenterology Fellowship Program coordinator. In November 2020, she assumed the role of interim Residency and Fellowship supervisor for the Department of Medicine, and in January 2022, she accepted the position of Fellowship Programs supervisor for the department.
Where is your hometown?
My hometown is Fresno, California.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Fresno and have lived in Clovis, California, for the past 19 years.
Where did you go to school?
I attended Central High School.
What is your title, and what does a typical day look like for you?
I am the Fellowship Program Supervisor for the Department of Medicine. There is no such thing as a typical day in my role; each day brings new challenges and opportunities. Every day is different, which keeps the work engaging and rewarding.
What is your favorite part of your job, or what gets you most excited about our mission?
My favorite part of my job is watching our trainees grow throughout their careers. I have had the privilege of knowing some of them since they rotated with us as medical students, then matched into our residency program, and then for fellowship. Seeing that progression is incredibly rewarding.
What excites me most about our mission is the opportunity to contribute to their development into outstanding physicians. It is especially meaningful when they choose to remain with us as faculty, helping to train and inspire the next generation of exceptional physicians serving the Central Valley.
What is a project or accomplishment here that you are most proud of?
One of the accomplishments I am most proud of is helping support and guide our fellowship programs over the years. Watching the programs grow and seeing our trainees develop into outstanding physicians has been incredibly rewarding. Knowing that I have played a role in supporting the success of our fellows is something I take great pride in.
One of the most meaningful aspects of my role has also been the relationships I have built with the fellows over the years. It is an amazing feeling to stay connected with many of them long after they have completed their training and seeing them succeed in their careers and in life.
Who or what inspires you professionally?
My family is my greatest source of professional inspiration. They have always supported me throughout my journey, through both the successes and the challenges. They instilled in me a strong work ethic that has guided me throughout my career, and I am proud to say it is a value I have passed on to my son.
If you could instantly learn a new skill, what would it be?
It would be to learn how to play the piano. I have always admired musicians and the way they can become completely immersed in music. It seems like such a rewarding way to express that kind of creativity while also providing an opportunity to relax and unwind.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Spare time...what's that? My husband and I both serve on the board of the Lemoore Jet Bowl Racetrack, so much of our free time from March through October is spent supporting the racing season. Fortunately, racing is a family affair, which means we get to spend a lot of time together. In addition to our weekly Sunday dinners, we're grateful for the many opportunities we have to be with family throughout the racing season.
What is a fun fact about you that your colleagues might not know?
A fun fact about me is that I enjoy doing paint-by-number puzzles on my phone. I find them incredibly relaxing, and whenever I have a little downtime, you'll usually find me working on one.
What would you like to add that hasn't been asked?
I feel fortunate to be part of the UCSF Fresno team and to work alongside such dedicated faculty, staff, and trainees. It is rewarding to contribute to an environment that supports learning, collaboration, and exceptional patient care. I am grateful for the relationships I have built over the years and look forward to continuing to support our programs and the physicians who will serve our community for years to come.
For more than two decades, the Leon S. Peters Foundation has been a steadfast partner in strengthening health care across the San Joaquin Valley through its support of UCSF Fresno's Graduate Medical Education programs. The Foundation's philanthropy has helped prepare generations of physicians who now care for Valley residents, lead health care organizations, advance research, and train the next generation of doctors.
While earning a medical degree is a significant achievement, graduation from medical school is only the beginning of a physician's journey. Before they can independently practice medicine, physicians must complete an additional three to five years — or more —of residency and optional fellowship training in a chosen specialty. These years of graduate medical education are where physicians develop clinical expertise, judgment, and skills needed to provide exceptional patient care.
Today, UCSF Fresno is home to one of California's largest physician training programs, with nine residency programs and numerous fellowship programs. Together, these programs educate more than 300 residents and fellows annually, as well as 300 rotating medical students, including students in the UCSF San Joaquin Valley Program in Medical Education (SJV PRIME).
Philanthropy plays a vital role in graduate medical education by supporting the experiences and opportunities that transform medical school graduates into skilled, compassionate physicians. While traditional funding supports the core structure of residency and fellowship programs, philanthropic investment enables institutions to enhance training through leadership development, research opportunities, educational innovation, wellness initiatives, and community-building programs. These investments strengthen the learning environment for trainees while helping address physician workforce shortages and improve access to care in the communities they serve.
The Leon S. Peters Foundation's support continues this legacy by funding a wide range of educational and professional development opportunities for UCSF Fresno residents and fellows, including new resident orientation, scholarships for visiting medical students, travel grants, wellness initiatives, and the annual Leon S. Peters Resident and Fellow of the Year Awards.
This past year, Foundation support provided travel grants to residents and fellows across six residency and fellowship programs, including Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Surgery, Surgical Critical Care, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, and Hematology/Oncology. These grants enabled trainees to attend regional and national conferences, scholarly programs, and specialty meetings aligned with their academic and clinical interests. By helping offset travel and conference expenses, the Foundation expanded opportunities for trainees to present research, learn from leaders in their fields, and bring new knowledge and best practices back to the San Joaquin Valley.
One recipient, Chase Atiga, MD, a Hematology/Oncology Fellow, used his travel grant to attend and present at the Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Fellows Scholars Program in Orlando, Florida. Reflecting on the experience, he shared, "As a future malignant hematologist and transplant specialist, the opportunity to learn directly from leading leukemia experts while networking with fellows and future colleagues from across the country was incredibly valuable. It was an experience I could not have gained elsewhere and one that will have a lasting impact on my development as a physician."
The impact of this partnership extends far beyond the campus and clinic. Approximately 40 percent of UCSF Fresno graduates choose to remain in the Central Valley, helping address physician shortages and improve access to care for local communities. Seventy percent of graduates stay in California to practice. Investments in graduate medical education not only enhance physician training but also support recruitment and retention efforts, helping ensure that talented physicians choose to practice in the Valley long after completing their training.
As UCSF Fresno continues its mission to train the physicians our region needs, we are deeply grateful for the Leon S. Peters Foundation's continued support and longstanding partnership. For more than two decades, the Foundation's philanthropy has helped strengthen physician training and expand opportunities for residents, fellows, and medical students. Together, we are investing in the next generation of physicians and a healthier future for the San Joaquin Valley.
For more information about supporting UCSF Fresno visit fresno.ucsf.edu/give.
Congratulations to Claire Gibson, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Pediatrics, on receiving the Kaiser Award for Excellence in Teaching. Each year, the UCSF School of Medicine awards this prestigious honor to four members of the clinical faculty. These awards recognize outstanding teaching, motivational skills and communications abilities. One of these awards is reserved for a member of the clinical faculty at UCSF Fresno.
Kudos to all those who received awards at the 2026 Resident and Fellow Commencement.
The UCSF Fresno Center for Clinical Research recently announced the recipients of the 2026 Spring Inspire Health Medical Group/ UCSF Fresno Grants. Kudos to:
- Geetha Sivasubramanian, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Medicine, “Valley Fever Community Health Worker Training Program for California Agricultural Workers”
- Lily Hitchner, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Emergency Medicine, and Yolanda Tinajero, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of OB-GYN, “Impact of Culturally Tailored Valley Fever Education for Farmworker Communities in the San Joaquin Valley”
- Michele Maison-Fomotar, MD, Department of Medicine, “Implementation of an Evidence-Based Cryptococcal Meningitis OrderSet for patients living with HIV- Integrating AMBITION Trial Therapy and Quantitative CSF Culture Monitoring”
- Appajosula Sarada Rao, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Surgery, “Teaching Across Different Training Stages in Surgery Clerkship: A Mixed‑Methods Study”
These competitive awards provide seed funding to support innovative projects that advance education, research, clinical care, and community engagement throughout the Central Valley.
Congratulations to Stephanie Huerta Alvarez, MPH, UCSF Fresno Office of Health Career Pathways, and Trina Hughes, UCSF Fresno Office of Undergraduate Medical Education, on completing the 2025-2026 UCSF School of Medicine Leadership Development Program.
Kudos to Robert Kollmorgen, DO, UCSF Fresno Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Inspire Health Medical Group provider, on his recently published article exploring the combination of two hip preservation surgeries: hip arthroscopy and periacetabular osteotomy.
Kudos to Kenny Banh, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Emergency Medicine, and UCSF Fresno Mobile HeaL for being recognized by Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula for improving the health and wellbeing of the community by participating in Feria de Salud, an annual health and resource fair sponsored by Univision 21.
Congratulations and welcome to Kaomine Vang, who was named Administrative Manager for the UCSF Fresno Department of Medicine.
Kudos to Kelly Noorani, UCSF Fresno Facilities, on her recent retirement from UCSF Fresno after nearly 18 years of dedicated services.
Kudos to Kathleen Smith, University Development and Alumni Relations at UCSF Fresno, on her recent retirement after nine years of dedicated service.
Congratulations to Sam Schmitz, DO, 2026 UCSF Fresno Family and Community Medicine Residency Program graduate, and Julie Nicole, MD, volunteer appointment, UCSF Fresno Department of OB-GYN, for being among those honored with 2026 City of Fresno Harvey Milk Community Leader Awards presented by Councilmember Analisa Perea.
Kudos to Geetha Sivasubramanian, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, on being elected to the Board of Directors of the Coccidioidomycosis Study Group, a national organization focused on research, clinical care, education, and public health efforts related to Valley fever.
In addition, congratulations to Dr. Sivasubramanian on her recent publication, “Patient and caregiver experiences of barriers to longitudinal care in coccidioidal meningitis in California’s Central Valley: A Qualitative Study.”
Congratulations to Lourdes DelRosso, MD, UCSF Fresno Family and Community Medicine, for her publication, “Sympathetic Activation and Sleep-Related Movements: Integrating Autonomic, Dopaminergic, and Iron Deficiency.”
Kudos to Brian Chinnock, MD, UCSF Fresno Department of Emergency Medicine, on his recent publication, “Up to Date Status and Acceptance of the Influenza Vaccine among a National Sample of Emergency Department Patients.”
Kudos to Sharon McClain, MFA, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500,UCSF Fresno’s medical librarian, on graduating from Fresno State’s Master’s in Fine Arts Creative Writing Program.
Congratulations to the May Wellness Day Grass Games winners, Tony Santos, UCSF Fresno Office of Health Career Pathways; Daniel Akia, UCSF Public Safety; and Maiah Madrigal, Office of Health Career Pathways. These individuals posted the fastest times in the competition.