Residents in the Rush Med-Peds program are members of both the Departments of Pediatrics and Internal Medicine along with 36 pediatric residents and 119 internal medicine residents. Rush fosters the development of the knowledge and skills of each resident as well his or her personal growth as an individual. Because Rush values the well-rounded physician, applicants are selected for their demonstration of excellence in other fields as well as in medicine.

Christopher Bruti, MD
University of Illinois at Chicago
Loyola University, New Orleans (BS), Biology

Chris is an inductee into the AOA Honor Society this year and completed his MND/MPH in the division of Health Policy and Administration. His capstone research project is on the universal health plan being implemented in Massachusetts. Before beginning medical school Chris worked as a Mental Health Counselor on the Pediatric unit of a psychiatric hospital in Chicago. Also, two years prior to medical school and throughout his medical school career, he volunteered at the UIC student run free clinic, which provides free health care to an uninsured population on the west side of Chicago. In recent years he has formulated management plans, presented to attendings, and mentored first and second year students. During his first year of medical school, Chris served as Class President and during his M3 year he was chair of marketing for the first annual UIC college of Medicine Health Fair for the UIC community. In this final year of medical school, Chris has served as the sole medical student representative to the Illinois State Medical Society’s Legal Council. In his free time Chris enjoys a variety of activities including softball, racquetball, beach volleyball, reading and history

Blachy Davila-Saldana, MD
University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine
University of Puerto Rico at Rio Pedras (BS), General Sciences

Blachy has received multiple honors and recognitions for his academic achievements and numerous volunteer activities. He has a special interest in adolescent HIV prevention, and was a member of Connect to Protect, a coalition of non-profit organizations intended to change social and political practices to minimize HIV infection in adolescents. He enjoys research, and this past year completed an elective working on a project for new TB diagnostic testing at the CDC in Atlanta. Related to his interest in public health and epidemiology, Blachy is also a very conscious environmentalist. He was part of an undergrad coalition formed to develop guidelines against urban sprawl, and volunteers periodically for beach cleaning. His outdoors interests include hiking, biking, and camping. Blachy also enjoys travel, modern art, literature, and sports, including swimming, tennis and baseball.

Preeti Gurnani, MD
Rush Medical College
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, Illinois, BS, Biology

Preeti has a very impressive record of volunteer activities. While in undergrad, she volunteered at the Provena Covenant Medical Center in the Community Fitness Clinic, which provides rehabilitation and preventative care for patients recovering from chronic diseases or recent surgery. During medical school, Preeti spent a lot of her time volunteering at the Indian American Medical Association clinic on the north side of Chicago where she provided basic healthcare and translation services for uninsured patients. She also volunteered at the Community healthcare center and Franciscan Homeless Shelter. As an undergraduate, Preeti worked as a Biology tutor at The University of Illinois to freshmen and sophomore students. Preeti's interests are reading, traveling the world, and exercising.

Jacklyn Hagedorn, MD
Rush Medical College
University of Wisconsin (BS), Biology

After graduating from college, Jackie worked as a substitute teacher and as an office assistant in an internal medicine practice in Chicago. While at Rush she participated in two branches of the Rush Community Service Initiatives Program (RSCIP). She served at the community health clinic, providing medical care to an underserved population on Chicago’s west side. She was also a participant in the Maternal Advocate Program where she was paired with a pregnant adolescent, helping her navigate the health care system during her pregnancy and providing emotional support. Jackie was also an effective and sought-after peer tutor in the first year gross anatomy course and taught ward survival skills to the new third year students during the transition course Clinical Resources and Skills to the hospital. Jackie has worked on research projects in the Department of Biochemistry, where she studied proteins relating to arthritic cartilage and she is currently involved in research with Rush on the treatment of fistulas. When Jackie has spare time her favorite activities include reading, listening to music, playing piano, traveling, and dancing, and when she the time, watching her two brothers play soccer

Sandra Jackson
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science/Chicago Medical School
Xavier University, BA Biology/Minor Chemistry
Chicago Public School, Practical Nursing Program, LPN

Prior to attending medical school, Sandra received her Nursing License and worked as a private duty nurse for a major Chicago nursing agency. A native Chicagoan, she has been involved in a myriad of school and community related volunteer activities; including work at the Boys and Girls Club of America, as President of the Student National Medical Association and as a supplemental instructor for post-baccalaureate physiology students. Sandra also received her medical schools “Women in Leadership” award three consecutive years. In her free time Sandra’s hobbies include motivational speaking and singing.

Abigail Karth, MD
Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC
Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, BS, Biomedical Sciences

Abby graduated Summa Cum Laude from Marquette University. She was a member of the Student Faculty Council and facilitated communication between students and faculty. During a summer internship, she participated in an extensive research project on renal physiology and presented the findings to the Medical College of Wisconsin. She also worked as a Reading Clinician for children with learning disabilities. In her free time, Abby enjoys, bicycling and baking.

Joel Krier, MD
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Oberlin College (BA), Neuroscience and Bachelor of Music in Saxaphone Performance

Joel was born and raised in St. Louis. As an undergrad at Oberlin he was involved in community projects and founder of the Oberlin Music Coalition, a student-led organization which provides free music lessons fro economically disadvantaged children, and concerts and educational workshops for the communities surrounding the college. He was also selected as student representative on four different faculty policy and planning committees, and after graduation from Oberlin worked for two years as a management consultant. After making the decision to go to medical school, Joel worked for a year as a research assistant in the department of neurology at Massachusett’s General Hospital. During his medical school career Joel distinguished himself with impressive community service leadership activities and was recognized by his peers with an award for “Excellence in Collaborative Learning.” He pursued his interest in health policy through a healthcare foundation fellowship that brought graduate students in the health sciences together with leaders in the healthcare community to focus on innovative solutions to problems in health care delivery. He also assumed a leadership role as coordinator of the Homeless Outreach Education Program and, through Operation Safety Net, helped bring supplies and medical care to some of Pittsburgh’s homeless. In his spare time Joel continues to play saxophone informally with friends. He has participated in triathlons, enjoys playing basketball, and likes to cook.

Katherine Maietta, MD
Penn State University College of Medicine
Illinois Wesleyan University (BS, Biology)

Katie grew up in LaGrange Park, IL and has family very close to the med center. In undergrad she was given a small scholarship to continue playing piano, minored in English, and took part in various volunteer activities. During her medical school career, she was elected to the Class Officer Board for four years as a Curriculum Representative, serving as a liaison between medical students and faculty to improve both the basic and clinical curricula. She also volunteered time as a tutor for children in the psychiatric ward, helped fundraise for the Four Diamonds Fund and THON for families of children suffering from childhood cancers, and was a co-editor of the Class of 2008 Yearbook. As a fourth year medical student she extensively volunteered to teach first year students clinical skills with the help of patients in the Hershey Medical Center. She has won several academic scholarships including the Hammond Scholarship and the Dr. Irwin L. Baird Memorial Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement. She was inducted into AOA in April 2008. Katie enjoys traveling, seeing live music, art and science museums, dancing, and spending time with friends and family.

Erin Malone
Loyola University of Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
Colgate University, Hamilton, New York, BA, Psychology
Lesley College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, MEd, Early Child Education

Prior to entering medical school, Erin completed a Master’s in Early Childhood and served as a coach to a 7th grade girl’s soccer team. She then taught second grade at Copernicus Elementary in Englewood, a low income neighborhood in Chicago. During medical school, Erin volunteered at a community health clinic where she worked with uninsured patients. She also continued her volunteer work as founder and chair of an organization dedicated to raising money and awareness for epilepsy research. Erin was involved in a research project to determine the fetal and maternal risk factors for lenticulostriate vasculopathy, a lesion found on neonatal head ultrasound. Erin enjoys exercise, especially swimming, biking and running. She completed two triathlons in Chicago. She also enjoys photography and travel. She has traveled throughout Europe and Southeast Asia and most recently completed a rotation in South Africa, where she worked at a provincial hospital caring for patients with advanced HIV and TB.

Nicholas “Nick” Moy, MD
Rush Medical College
University of Illinois at Urbana (BS), Biology

During his last year as an undergrad in Champaign-Urbana, Nick worked as a nurse’s aide, helping to care for inpatient oncology patients. The year after he graduated college, he worked as a research technician in the medical genetics lab at Rush. While in medical school he participated in several Rush Community Services Initiatives Program activities including service at a homeless shelter and community health clinic. He was a member of the Rush Buddies Program, providing a mentoring relationship with a chronically-ill child. Nick was also a sought after tutor of the anatomy course for first year students and a tour guide for prospective applicants to Rush. Nick’s interest outside of medicine include volleyball, triathlon training, mountain biking in Moab, Utah, and canoeing in the Boundary Waters. Shortly before beginning his residency, Nick and his wife moved into a home they recently purchased in northwest Chicago’s Portage Park neighborhood.

Suwon “Vickie” Nopachai
Loyola University of Chicago, Stritch School of Medicine
Tulane University School of Public Health, MPH
Emory University, BS, Biology and Religion

Before entering medical school, Vickie worked as a high school physics teacher and athletic coach in Tennessee. Afterwards, she obtained a Masters Degree in Public Health from Tulane University where she specialized in reproductive health and communication and behavioral science. She then worked for four years in community-based programs in Portland, Oregon and Thailand. While in Thailand she concentrated on reproductive health as well as HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Her record of volunteer service includes raising funds for and participating in a 2 week immersion trip to Guatemala, organizing activities for hurricane Katrina victims, and working at a student-run free health clinic. In her free time, Vickie enjoys playing basketball, running, and dancing.

Sarah Oddsen
Mercer University School of Medicine
The University of Georgia, BS, Business Management

Sarah has a wide variety of interests and volunteer activities. She served on a student curriculum committee, and was vice president of her undergraduate sorority. She completed a Cardiac Surgery internship in New York, NY and helped to build a college ministry in Moscow, Russia. Sarah has been active in many community outreach programs and medical mission trips to places such as Honduras and Mexico. She served as the Vice-President of the Christian Medical Association in Macon, GA. Sarah’s hobbies include playing basketball, snowboarding, yoga, and learning about other cultures.

Temitope “Tope” Oyedele, MD
Albany Medical College
University of Iowa (BS), Exercise science

Tope is Nigerian, but he was born in Cuba where his father was serving as a foreign diplomat. Because of his father’s assignments, he lived in a variety of world capitals before coming to the U.S., at the age of fourteen, to join his brother in Iowa. After high school, he earned an associates degree from Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, transferred to the University of Iowa, and earned his undergraduate degree in 2002. As a medical student at Albany, Tope participated in a number of school and community activities. He volunteered at a local rescue mission and taught nutrition to Albany high school students. He was also a member and chair of the Medicine-Pediatrics Club. Tope’s hobbies include soccer, football, basketball, and chess.

Rebecca Rodriguez, MD
University of Illinois College of Medicine, Chicago
University of Illinois, Urbana (BS) Psychology

Rebecca has a very impressive record of volunteer activities. She worked in Chicago’s Norwegian American Hospital’s Women’s Health Center which provides educational services and basic preventative care for low-income Latino women. Rebecca led Lamaze classes with the Community Health Educator and acted as a substitute partner for single mothers. During college she volunteered at a remote clinic in Guatemala, collaborating with their volunteers to renovate the clinic and coordinate activities for the patients and their families. During her M1 year she was Banquet chair of the LaRaza Medical Association and coordinated fundraising efforts for the annual scholarship banquet attended by over 200 guests. In her M3 year, she was Fundraising chairperson for the organization which awarded scholarships to four high school students entering medical school. In collaboration with the Midwest Latino Health Research, Training and Policy Center Rebecca coordinated and participated in a 3-day Intensive Diabetes Education Program in Spanish. For the past three years, Rebecca received the Illinois General Assembly Scholarship for community service. She is currently a Lincoln’s Challenge Youth mentor and serves as a role model and friend to a teen in need. When she is not volunteering, Rebecca likes boxing, running, traveling, salsa dancing and hanging out with her husband and friends.

Michael Vinikoor, MD
Loyola University, Stritch School of Medicine
University of Illinois at Urbana (BS), Honors Biology with Distinction for Research

While his roots are in the Chicagoland area and he graduated from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, Mike has looked all around the world for inspiration. As an undergraduate at University of Illinois, Mike studied abroad at the Universidad de Granada, Spain, combining his education in biology and Spanish language. During medical school he spent a summer in Honduras, bolstering the health of local women and children. There he discovered a passion for tropical medicine and public health. Later while still in medical school, he rotated at an AIDS ward, made house calls in Harlem, New York, and spent a month at King’s College of London. Also at Loyola, he was a student leader in bioethics and completed a research project on the medical education of end-of-life issues. He also co-founded a medical hypnosis workshop to promote evidence-based alternative medicine. As a resident at Rush, he has distinguished himself as a natural teacher and educator while making time to volunteer with the Chicago Department of Public Health and at local homeless shelters. His other interests are cycling, world music, camping, and Mexican cuisine.

Khin Win
Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
The University of California, Davis, BS, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

While in undergrad, Khin worked as a clinical instructor teaching anatomy, physiology and medical terminology to students applying for careers in the medical field. She also volunteered as the coordinator for a student managed clinic, organized various activities for diabetes education and worked in the Tar Wars smoking preventative program for children. Khin has also worked as a principle investigator collecting and analyzing data, and writing manuscripts for asthma control in adolescents. Khin's interests outside of medicine include traveling and cooking.