Get to know our residents

Hometown: Rochester, MI

Medical school: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I have loved West Michigan since I first came here for undergrad at GVSU nearly 10 years ago. Since then I've developed an incredible community of friends and have had an amazing time exploring the breweries, trails, beaches and everything else this side of the state has to offer. Having also been with this health system as a volunteer, employee and student, staying to continue my training was an easy choice. The case volume and variety, the opportunities for research and the culture among residents here are all second to none.

What are your clinical interests? I'm interested in exploring all of the opportunities available in general surgery.

Hobbies: I love having a creative outlet in my free time, from painting and embroidery, to test driving new recipes on my friends, to returning to Grand Valley and playing trumpet in the Laker Alumni Marching Band. I also enjoy hanging out at the lake or hammocking at a park along the river whenever the weather is good.

Hometown: Ternopil, Ukraine

Medical school: Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I chose this program because of my co-residents and attendings! Everyone is kind and has a team comes first mindset which makes coming to work so much more enjoyable. I also chose this program because it offers all of the benefits of academic training while teaching you excellent operative skills that ensure you are capable of operating at the end of your training.

What are your clinical interests? I am currently interested in a wide variety of subspecialties including Surgical Critical Care, Surgical Oncology, Plastics and Colorectal.

Hobbies: My hobbies include spending as much time outside as possible and exploring Michigan whether it's hiking, running or skiing. I also enjoy playing volleyball, watching Great British Baking Show, spending time with my family and dog and Christmas decorating.

Hometown: Round Lake, IL

Medical school: Medical College of Wisconsin

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I choose Spectrum Health for a number of reasons. One of the biggest influences was the people. When interviewing I felt that I got along best with the residents here than at any other program and that was very important to me because residency is a big time commitment. Doing it with people you don't get along well with will only make that time more difficult than it needs to be. Further, I felt that the program itself offered the experience I was looking for in a residency when it come to clinical exposure, autonomy throughout residency and research opportunities, if that was something I was interested in.

What are your clinical interests? I am still exploring a lot of my interest within the general surgery field. I really like pediatric surgery currently, but also find plastic surgery to be very interesting. A bit up in the air still for what I think I will pursue at this time once I complete residency.

Hobbies: I am a competitive volleyball player and spend most of my free time trying to find places to play. I love playing any chance I get. I also like staying active in any way I can.

Hometown: Louisville, KY

Medical school: University of Louisville

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I chose Spectrum Health because of great camaraderie of the residents and the early operative experience for interns.

What are your clinical interests? My clinical interests include bread and butter general surgery in addition to surgical critical care.

Hobbies: My hobbies include cycling, brewing beer and board games.

Hometown: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Medical school: University of Limerick

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? My interactions with the residents and faculty during interview season were very positive and welcoming. It was evident the program had a supportive culture amongst the residents and everyone spoke highly of their training and opportunities. I also loved the idea of a hybrid program, giving the best of both community and academic general surgery in one place.

What are your clinical interests? At this time I am most interested in acute care surgery and surgical critical care, but I am open and excited to explore the various fields within general surgery.

Hobbies: I enjoy spending time reading, hiking, exercising, watching sports, playing board games/cards and relaxing with friends and family.

Hometown: Williamsport, PA

Medical school: Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? The Spectrum Health faculty is top-notch, the subspecialty exposure is all-encompassing and I am confident I will receive diverse and plentiful operative experience; the supportive nature of my colleagues and co-residents is an added bonus! It sounds incredibly cliché, but my interactions with the faculty and residents on interview day ultimately sealed the deal for me!

Hometown: Toledo, OH

Medical school: Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? Spectrum Health provides a wide variety of both clinical and research opportunities while still allowing for a lot of operating time and hands-on experience. I enjoyed getting to know residents and faculty during my interviews and felt like they would be great people to work with. I was also really excited about moving to West Michigan.

What are your clinical interests? I am interested in general surgery as well as colorectal surgery and surgical oncology. I am looking forward to exploring my interests more throughout my residency.

Hobbies: I enjoy running, reading, swimming, being outdoors and tasting wines. I love spending time with my husband and our dog, Sadie, and being with family and friends.

Hometown: Alpena, MI

Medical school: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? During my sub-Internship, I was able to work with the faculty and residents. I always felt a great sense of family and hard work. They all showed a strong passion for their patients and learning.

What are your clinical interests? Coming from a small town I have become very passionate about rural surgery. Especially the role of rural access and rural recruitment.

Hobbies: Some of my hobbies are hockey, family, board games, craft beer and the great outdoors.

Hometown: Sanford, MI

Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I chose Spectrum Health because of the people here. The attendings are invested in not just our education but also our professional development. The residents here are truly a family, they are always willing to help out.

What do you like most about your program? I'm most excited to work with my co-residents as a team. Senior residents really help foster a team environment while supporting the junior residents' education. Clinical Interests: I am interested in rural or small-town general surgery.

Living in West Michigan: I love the abundance of outdoor activities. Some favorite places include Yankee Springs State Park and Saugatuck Dunes State Park.

Hobbies: I enjoy sewing, running, hiking, and cross-country skiing.

Hometown: New Port Richey, FL

Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? As a CHM student, I did my SICU rotation at Spectrum and I absolutely loved it! I learned so much and it was clear that the residents and attendings enjoyed teaching. It was clear that the environment was caring and supportive.

What do you like most about your program? I am most excited to start doing procedures and expand my skill set. I am also looking forward to getting to know the amazing people in my program.

Clinical Interests: I am interested in specializing in trauma and critical care. I also hope to be involved in academics and teaching the next generation of physicians.

Living in West Michigan: I enjoy the diversity and liveliness of Grand Rapids, along with all the entertainment and restaurant options it offers.

Hobbies: I enjoy reading, traveling, painting, and spending time with family. One day I hope to be able to write "going to the gym" as one of my hobbies, but today is not that day.

Hometown: St. Louis, MO

Medical School: Rush Medical College

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? During my interview, I connected with all of the residents and faculty I interacted with and felt that I would be a good fit at this program.

What do you like most about your program? I am most looking forward to meeting my colleagues and training in a setting that will expose me to all aspects of general surgery.

Clinical Interests: I am unsure what my specific clinical interests are at the moment.

Living in West Michigan: There are lots of outdoor activities to do and interesting places to visit within a few hours drive.

Hobbies: My hobbies include exercising, cooking and playing/watching sports.

Hometown: Marquette, MI

Medical School: Central Michigan University

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? The general surgery program at Spectrum Health offers not only an excellent training environment, but also a strong culture that promotes teamwork and inclusiveness. Residents from this program regularly match to desired fellowships / obtain desired jobs post-residency. In addition, the city of Grand Rapids is an excellent place to live for young professionals who are looking to start a family.

What do you like most about your program? My favorite thing about this program is the group of incredible people that it is composed of. From residents to attendings, everyone is very easy to talk to and get along with, in addition to being excellent within their profession. Having such a strong positive culture makes coming to work more enjoyable.

Clinical Interests: My clinical interests are broad at this point, but I do have some level of interest in cardiothoracic surgery.

Living in West Michigan: I enjoy that West Michigan offers ample opportunity to be outside and active - trails, lakes, beaches, dog parks, sporting arenas / fields. Another enjoyable feature of Grand Rapids specifically is the vast array of culturally diverse food and drink options.

Hobbies: My hobbies are mostly related to staying active and include running, road biking, pickup sports, playing with my dog, cooking, spending time with my wife, board / card games.

Hometown: Commerce Township, MI

Medical School: Wayne State University School of Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I choose Spectrum for my residency because it was the ideal mixture of community and academic General Surgery. I also love West Michigan and the city of Grand Rapids

What do you like most about your program? I really enjoy broad mixture of experiences in our program, It's rare to have a program where you can have a highly academic level 1 trauma center, an advanced MIS community hospital, and a low-income urban hospital all within a 15 minute drive. It exposes you to a variety of styles of practice and patient populations, which I find really valuable.

Clinical Interests: I am interested in Trauma and Critical Care and minimally invasive surgeries.

Living in West Michigan: I love the weather. Four beautiful seasons and Lake Michigan only a half hour drive away.

Hobbies: I enjoy reading, riding my bike, and spending time with my growing family.

Hometown: Rockford, IL

Medical School: Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I chose Spectrum Health for residency because of the support available to residents and excellent operative experience.

What do you like most about your program? The kindness and support my co-residents show one another is second to none.

Clinical Interests: My clinical interests include Acute Care Surgery and Surgical Critical Care.

Living in West Michigan: Grand Rapids is an easy to navigate, affordable city with a great food scene and access to nature.

Hobbies: Outside of work I enjoy running, vacuuming my apartment, and I am strongly considering taking up golf.

Hometown: Indianapolis, IN

Medical School: Wright State University

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I had positive interactions with every resident that I met at the interview dinner. Everyone was extremely warm and welcoming, and had nothing but positive things to say about the program. I felt confident I would receive excellent training after speaking with chief residents, who leave the program as confident, and competent surgeons.

What do you like most about your program? Everyone was extremely welcoming, and willing to help whenever needed. Our residents look out for one another, and I felt like I could reach out to any of my senior residents if I was struggling in any way.

Clinical Interests: I plan to pursue a fellowship in minimally invasive surgery.

Living in West Michigan: There is always something to do / always an event to attend. I like to stay active when I have time, and there are plenty of outdoor trails to explore as well as bike trails to ride. There are also tons of breweries here in "Beer City", as well as tons of local restaurants to check out, which I have found as a great way to connect with my co-residents. 

Hobbies: My wife and I love exploring new restaurants / nearby areas during our free time. We are less than an hour's drive away from the beach which is wonderful on post-call days. I enjoy hiking and exploring with my two dogs. I enjoy gaming, and attend cars and coffee events around town when I'm free.

Hometown: Flushing, MI

Medical School: Wayne State University School of Medicine

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? Exceptional people, surgical training, and community.

What do you like most about your program? The residents and attendings I'm around everyday - they're great people to work with.

Clinical Interests: My clinical interests community general surgery.

Living in West Michigan: There are countless things to do in and around Grand Rapids, and we're within arms reach of the lakeshore, Traverse City, Chicago and Detroit.

Hobbies: My hobbies include woodworking, going kayaking and fishing.

Hometown: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Medical School: University of Medicine and Health Sciences

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? Spectrum Health provided the opportunity to engage in a healthy mix of bread and butter surgical cases as well as high complexity cases due to the large catchment area which was exactly what I was looking for in a program. After arriving for my interview and meeting the residents, I immediately felt a sense of belonging and knew I could fit in with the family-like atmosphere created by program.

What do you like most about your program? The residents and faculty that you work with are phenomenal. Countless times I have heard from off-service residents and medical students about how pleasant it is working with our program.

Clinical Interests: I plan to end up in a city or town no bigger than Grand Rapids allowing myself the opportunity to practice a large breath of surgical procedures.

Living in West Michigan: Grand Rapids is a city with all the amenities of a metropolitan area but with the small town feel of community. The outdoor activities available including a number of beaches, hiking trails, ski hills (even if they can't compare to the Rockies) and multiple lakes within a short drive make the lifestyle in Grand Rapids a hidden gem.

Hobbies: I snowboard and skate in the winter time. I have recently picked up paddle boarding to go along with photography hikes. When I am at home I find myself playing video games or watching sports.

Hometown: Iron Mountain, MI

Medical School: Central Michigan University

Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I chose Spectrum because I saw the wonderful exposure to cases and confidence that the graduating residents had on my interviews. The attendings and peers are so welcoming and engaged in the teaching of the team as whole.