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SUS/AAA Jumpstart Program

Junior Underrepresented Mentorship and Promotion Start Program

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  • Leadership
  • Our 2024-2026 Cohort
  • Curriculum/Timeline
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2024-2026 JUMPSTART Cohort

Yewande Alimi, MD

Assistant Professor of Surgery
Department of Surgery
Medstar Georgetown University Hospital
Medstar Washington Hospital Center

Dr. Yewande Alimi completed her internship and residency in General Surgery at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington DC in June 2020. She has been recognized for excellence in clinical care, teaching, and research by Georgetown University School of Medicine. Dr. Alimi returned to Medstar Georgetown University Hospital and Medstar Washington Hospital Center after completing her minimally invasive and bariatric surgery fellowship at Stanford University School of Medicine where she held the appointment of clinical scholar and a Leadership Education in Advancing Diversity (LEAD) Scholar. Dr. Alimi has presented at numerous conferences and has authored numerous peer-reviewed abstracts and publications, including the Annals of Surgery, Obesity Surgery, and the American Journal of Surgery. Her research interests include disparities in access and outcomes in bariatric surgery and clinical outcomes research in the realms of hernia and bariatrics.

    Joanelle A. Bailey, MD, MPH

    Assistant Professor, Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care
    Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

    Joanelle A. Bailey, MD, MPH is an Assistant Professor of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and the Pediatric Trauma Medical Director of the Eric Muñoz Trauma Center at University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey. She received a Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering from Northeastern University, and a Medical Doctorate at Thomas Jefferson University. Dr. Bailey completed General Surgery training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School during which she received a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Biostatistics, followed by Surgical Critical Care and Acute Care Surgery Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. Her current research interests include urban gun violence prevention and patient civil rights.

      Christian D. Cain, MD, FACS

      Assistant Professor, Surgery
      Department of Surgery
      R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center/University of Maryland School of Medicine

      Dr. Cain is an acute care surgeon at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center and the University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center in Maryland. His practice encompasses a broad variety of diseases related to trauma and emergency general surgery, as well as complex surgical critical care. His clinical and research interests lie in the delivery and outcomes of acute care surgical procedures and diversity/inclusion efforts in surgery.

        Lynn Y. Choi MD, FACS

        Assistant Professor of Surgery
        Albany Medical Center

        Dr. Choi is the Breast Center Director at Albany Medical Center. Under her guidance, Albany Medical Center obtained NAPBC accreditation in 2021. Dr. Choi mainly provides breast surgery care, but also takes trauma and general surgery call. She is most proud of her family which is composed of her loving husband and three energetic, young children.

          Adrienne N. Cobb, MD, MS

          Assistant Professor
          Department of Surgery
          Medical College of Wisconsin

          Dr. Adrienne Cobb is a native of Indianapolis, IN who completed her undergraduate studies at DePauw University majoring in Biochemistry and Spanish. She had long set her sights on a career in medicine and matriculated to Indiana University School of Medicine. She completed a residency in General Surgery at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago, IL with two years of dedicated research. Her research focus includes breast cancer disparities and surgical outcomes with an emphasis on big data and predictive analytics. During residency she developed a passion for breast cancer care and completed her Breast Surgical Oncology Fellowship at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX.

            Carla F. Justiniano, MD, MPH

            Colorectal Surgeon
            Assistant Professor of Surgery
            Assistant Surgery Clerkship Director
            Department of Surgery
            University of Cincinnati

            Dr. Justiniano is a board-certified colorectal surgeon at the University of Cincinnati where she is an Assistant Professor and Assistant Clerkship Director. She is from Arecibo, Puerto Rico and moved to Cincinnati at the age of nine. She attended The Ohio State University for undergrad where she majored in Molecular Genetics and mastered in Economics and Slavic/Eastern European Literature. She also completed medical school at Ohio State. She then spent seven years in Rochester, NY for General Surgery Residency at the University of Rochester Medical Center/Strong Memorial Hospital where she also earned a Master of Public Health from the School of Medicine & Dentistry during her academic development time. She completed a fellowship in colon & rectal surgery at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, OH prior to returning to Cincinnati to be close to family.

              Sarah Lombardo, MD, MSc

              Dr. Lombardo is an Assistant Professor of Acute Care Surgery at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT. She received her medical degree from Jefferson Medical College, concurrently obtaining a Master’s Degree in Global Health from Duke University. Dr. Lombardo attended the University of Utah for General Surgery training, before completing a 2-year fellowship in Acute Care Surgery at Vanderbilt University. She is the Associate Medical Director for the Emergency General Surgery service line at the University of Utah. Her research interests include patient outcomes after emergency general surgery, traumatic brain injury, and blunt cerebrovascular injury.

                Winta T. Mehtsun, MD, MPH

                Assistant Professor of Surgery and Health Policy
                University of California San Diego
                Department of Surgery | Division of Surgical Oncology
                Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science | Division of Health Policy

                Winta Mehtsun, MD MPH, is a surgical oncologist and health services researcher at the University of California San Diego. Her clinical practice spans gastric gastric cancer, sarcoma, and complex general surgical oncology. Her current research is focused on understanding the drivers of healthcare spending and poor clinical outcomes among cancer patients, especially among vulnerable populations. Dr. Mehtsun earned her medical degree at University of Virginia, School of Medicine and then completed her master’s degree at the Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health. She completed her general surgery residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, and her complex general surgical oncology fellowship at the Mass General Brigham/Dana-Farber Complex General Surgical Oncology Fellowship at Harvard Medical School.

                  Ekene Onwuka, MD, MS

                  Assistant Professor, Division of Pediatric Surgery
                  Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine
                  Texas Children’s Hospital

                  Dr. Onwuka received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Tufts University, followed by his medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine. He then completed a general surgery residency at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, OH. During his residency, he obtained a Master of Science degree in Medical Science from The Ohio State University while also completing a post-doctoral research fellowship in tissue-engineering at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. After residency, Dr. Onwuka completed a fellowship in pediatric surgery at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital. His current practice includes general pediatric and neonatal surgery with an additional focus on pediatric surgical oncology. His research interests include studying racial disparities in care amongst children with solid tumors.obtained her MD from Wright State University and completed residency at LSU New Orleans, research fellowship at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and a clinical fellowship in pediatric surgery at University of Texas Southwestern. She is an assistant professor of surgery and the associate program director for the general surgery residency.

                    Nicole Villafane Ferriol, MD

                    Assistant Professor
                    Surgical Oncology
                    UT Health Houston

                    Dr. Nicole Villafañe Ferriol was born in Puerto Rico. She earned her undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras and her medical degree at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine. She completed her general surgery residency and two additional years in research at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and a fellowship in complex general surgical oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center-Temple University in Philadelphia. She is board certified in complex general surgical oncology and general surgery. She performs both open and minimally invasive surgery, with primary clinical interests in colorectal liver metastases, gastric cancer, HIPEC, and HPB surgery. Her research interests include cancer-related health care disparities and surgical education. Her practice philosophy centers on providing empathetic, patient-centered, and evidence-based multidisciplinary cancer care.

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