WHO:
ore than 100 physicians, including medical residents in eight specialties and fellows in 12 subspecialties along with two oral and maxillofacial surgery dental residents, will graduate on June 9 during a UCSF Fresno Medical Education Program ceremony.
About 42 percent of the graduating physicians will remain in the area to care for patients in the San Joaquin Valley, join the UCSF faculty at UCSF Fresno to train the next generation of physicians or continue their sub-specialty training at UCSF Fresno.
Four physicians who completed training as part of the Sierra Vista Family Medicine Residency Program and eight dentists also will be recognized during the ceremony.
WHEN:
Thursday, June 9 5 p.m. Social Hour
6 p.m. Graduation Ceremony
WHERE:
William Saroyan Theatre 700 M Street, Fresno
WHAT:
UCSF Fresno Associate Dean Michael W. Peterson, MD, and some of the graduates will be available for interviews during the social hour before the graduation ceremony and by phone prior to graduation.
A number of awards will be presented during the graduation ceremony, including honors for outstanding residents and teachers, Borba research awards, the UCSF Fresno Community Service Award, Kaiser Award for Excellence in Teaching, the ICare Award, the Leon S. Peters Resident of the Year Award and the Steven N. Parks Leadership Award.
Media: Please call (559) 313-6539 to confirm attendance. Interviews will be available during the social hour prior to the start of the graduation ceremony or by phone in advance of graduation.
BACKGROUND:
Each year, UCSF Fresno graduates approximately 100 physicians from its residency and fellowship programs. Residency training prepares recently graduated MDs and Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine to become specialists, including pediatricians and family practitioners among others, in approximately three to five years. Fellowships offer specific training beyond residency in an area of expertise such as cardiology.
Fellowships generally last one to two years. Over the past four decades, UCSF Fresno has trained more than 3,000 physicians.
“UCSF Fresno has been training physicians for more than 40 years,” said Dr. Peterson. ” We were established in 1975 by the California Legislature with support from the Veterans Administration to address the needs of the San Joaquin Valley by training physicians for the medically underserved region. Graduation time is a special reminder that we are fulfilling that mission in collaboration with our clinical partners. We are incredibly proud of our graduates and particularly pleased that more than 40 percent are staying in the San Joaquin Valley.”
This year’s UCSF Fresno graduates include:
- Greg Gilmore, DO, originally from the San Fernando Valley, is completing residency training in internal medicine. Dr. Gilmore will continue training at UCSF Fresno as the first fellow in the new Hematology/Oncology Fellowship, which starts in July.
- Pearl Ma, MD, who is originally from Iowa, is completing fellowship training in minimally invasive surgery and bariatric surgery. Dr. Ma will stay in Fresno to perform bariatrics and metabolic surgery at Advanced Laparoscopic Surgery Associates.
- Mitul Patel, MD, who was born in Modesto and raised in Lodi, also is among the graduates. Dr. Patel is completing residency training in pediatrics. He will stay in Fresno to provide care at Children’s Medical Centers.
- Sarah Sifuentez, MD, is finishing residency training in emergency medicine. She will stay in Fresno to provide care at Kaiser Medical Center in Fresno.
Returning graduate:
- Richard Kiel, MD, son of the late actor Richard Kiel and Diane Kiel and two-time UCSF Fresno graduate, is returning after completing an additional fellowship in advanced heart failure, cardiac transplantation and pulmonary hypertension at UCSF Medical Center Parnassus campus. Dr. Kiel will return to UCSF Fresno as a faculty member to help expand access for Valley patients to cutting edge heart failure treatments.
