Residents

Third Year Residents

Gurvinder Basi, MD
Gurvinder Basi, MD is originally from Surrey, BC, Canada. He earned a degree in Health Science from the University of British Columbia.  After attending the University of British Columbia for Pharmaceutical Sciences for one year, Dr. Basi made the decision to attend medical school at Ross University School of Medicine, where he earned his medical degree.  Within Family Medicine, Dr. Basi has special interests in both outpatient medicine and preventative medicine. In his spare time, he enjoys playing basketball and tennis. Dr. Basi is also a huge Lakers fan and tries to watch all of their games.

Sumera Gilani, MD
Sumera Gilani, MD was born in Kuwait and raised in New York. She attended Lehman College and completed her BS in Anthropology, Biology and Chemistry.  Dr. Gilani then went on to complete an MA in Biology at Lehman College and a Masters Certificate in Biomedical Sciences from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Afterward, she continued her education at St. George’s University School of Medicine where she earned her medical degree. Within Family Medicine, Dr. Gilani has special interests in Underserved Populations, Preventative Medicine and Ambulatory Medicine. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family, running and drawing.

Banoub Michael, MD
Banoub Michael, MD is originally from Toronto, Canada. Dr. Michael completed his Bachelor of Medical Sciences at Western University where he majored in Physiology. He then went on to earn his medical degree from St. George’s University School of Medicine. Within Family Medicine, Dr. Michael has special interests in Ambulatory Care and Public Health.  In his spare time, he enjoys working on his personal fitness, playing basketball and ultimate frisbee, and watching movies.

Silvia Puma, MD
Silvia Puma, MD was born in a small town in Ecuador, but grew up in Harlem, NY.  Dr. Puma graduated from Columbia University and received a BA in Hispanic Studies with a Pre-med track.  Before earning her medical degree from American University of the Carribean, Dr. Puma spent 5 years as a Care Coordinator at Bronx Lebanon Hospital managing the care and compliance of HIV/AIDs patients. Within Family Medicine, she is most interested in geriatrics, preventive medicine, and community medicine. In her spare time, Dr. Puma enjoys spending time with her family, playing soccer, hiking and binge-watching shows.

Gagandeep Rai, MD
Gagandeep Rai, MD was born and raised in Abbotsford, BC, Canada. He attended the University of the Fraser Valley where he received his BS in Biology and went on to complete his medical degree at Ross University School of Medicine. Within Family Medicine, Dr. Rai has special interests in both Sports Medicine and Emergency Medicine. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, sports (Tennis, Soccer, Basketball, Football), and spending time with family and friends.

Nicholas Russo, MD
Nicholas Russo, MD was born and raised in Moorestown, NJ and attended college at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore where he earned a BS in Biology. After college, he returned home to complete his medical degree at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. Within Family Medicine, Dr. Russo is most interested in Sports Medicine. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with friends and family, as well as sports, fitness and live music. 

Dareen Sardar, MD
Dareen Sardar, MD is originally from Richboro, PA, a small town in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Dr. Sardar graduated from Temple University with a BS in Biology and went on to earn her medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine. Within Family Medicine, she has special interests in Community Medicine, Preventative Care, and Palliative Care. In her spare time, Dr. Sardar enjoys spending time with family, playing with her cats, hiking, kayaking, and trying new restaurants.

Brittany Telford, MB BCh
Brittany Telford, MB BCh is originally from Toronto, Canada. She attended the University of South Carolina Aiken on a sports scholarship for tennis and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Dr. Telford then went on to complete a Master’s of Physical Therapy from the University of Western Ontario and then her medical degree from Trinity College, University of Dublin. Within Family Medicine, she has special interests in both Sports Medicine and Pediatrics. In her spare time, Dr. Telford enjoys playing tennis, doing yoga, travelling and spending time with family.

Second Year Residents

Ashea West, MD
Ashea West is originally from Mandeville, Jamaica. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology from The City College of New York (CUNY), NY, NY. Dr. West obtained her medical degree from St. George’s University, Grenada. “JFK seems like the perfect place for me to become the well-rounded Family Practice physician I hope to be”. She has a special interest in academic medicine and preventative health. Ashea enjoys creative writing and writes for a Christian Magazine that is based in Australia

Lauren Trachtenberg, MD
Lauren Trachtenberg is from Mount Laurel, New Jersey. She obtained her BS in Biology from Ursinus College in Pennsylvania. Dr. Trachtenberg then attended St. George’s University, in Grenada where she received her medical degree. Lauren has a special interest in preventive and community medicine. She enjoys hiking, spending time with her dogs and photography.

Karthikeyan Swaminath, MD
Karthikeyan Swaminath, MD is originally from Phoenix, Arizona. He moved to Houston, TX for high school and spent most of his life there. Dr. Swaminath obtained his BS in Neurobiology from University of Texas at Austin and went on to earn his medical degree at Ross University School of Medicine. Dr. Swaminath’s special interests include obstetrics, hospital medicine and pediatrics. He enjoys hiking, working out, running, binging Netflix shows and traveling.

Julia Pearse, MD
Julia Pearse is from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dr. Pearse received her BSc in Medical Physics from Ryerson University (Toronto Metropolitan University) in Canada, and her medical degree from St. George’s University in Grenada. She is interested in behavioral health and primary care. Julia’s hobbies are swimming, cooking and baking.

Stephanie Liu, MD
Stephanie Liu was born in Miami, Florida and was raised in both Florida and China. She received her undergraduate degree in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience from University of Florida and a Masters of Science from Georgetown University, Washington, DC. Dr. Liu obtained her medical degree from St. George’s University in Grenada. She has a special interest in primary care and outpatient procedures. In her spare time, she enjoys reading novels and museum browsing.

Joseph R. Keefe, MD
Joseph Keefe was born in Seattle, Washington. He obtained a Bachelor in Music from the University of Northern Iowa. After working as a public school teacher, he went on to the post-baccalaureate premedical program at Rutgers University-Newark. He received his medical degree from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. Dr. Keefe did an internship in General Surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center before joining Family Medicine. He is most interested in primary care, pain medicine, outpatient procedures and global health. Joseph likes performing and listening to music, hiking, reading non-fiction and spending time with family.

Christina Idowu, MD
Christina Idowu is from London, United Kingdom. She attended the University of Sussex where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience. Dr. Idowu went on to complete her Master’s in Public Health and Medical Degree from St. George’s University in Grenada. Christina has a special interest in behavioral health and community and preventive medicine. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family, traveling, cooking and pilates.

Madeline Chaverra, MD
Madeline Chaverra, MD is from Hopatcong, New Jersey. She obtained her BS in Biology with a minor in Public Health from Montclair State University in New Jersey. Dr. Chaverra then attended St. George’s University, in Grenada where she received her medical degree. Madeline has an interest in community medicine and women’s health. She enjoys reading, spending time with friends and family, and binging on a good TV show.

First Year Residents

Pooja Eagala, MD
Pooja Eagala, MD was born and raised in Northern Virginia but also spent a few years living abroad. She attended Virginia Commonwealth University where she received her degree in Biology. She went on to get her medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine. Her interests within family medicine are outpatient, preventative and aesthetic medicine. During her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing board games, visiting NYC and traveling to tropical locations.

Parbinder Gill, MD
Parbinder Gill, MD is originally from Winnipeg, Canada. She attended the University of Winnipeg and earned her BSc in Biology. She completed her medical degree at American University of Antigua College of Medicine. Within Family Medicine, she has particular interests in dermatology, women’s health, and preventative medicine. In her spare time, Dr. Gill enjoys spending time with friends and family, going out in NYC, trying new restaurants, yoga, pilates, and traveling.

Christopher Monzo, MD
Christopher Monzo, MD is originally from Wayne, NJ. He completed his undergraduate degree at Caldwell University and a post baccalaureate degree in biology at William Paterson University. He then went on to complete his medical degree at St. George’s University School of Medicine. Within Family Medicine, Dr. Monzo has an interest in preventative medicine. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his family, including his two young children and wife. He also enjoys hiking, astronomy, and all things tech.

Maryam Seliman, MB Bch
Maryam Seliman, MB Bch is originally from Toronto, Canada. She completed her medical degree at the National University of Ireland, Galway. Within Family Medicine, she has particular interests in women’s health and preventative medicine. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with friends and family.

Charbel El Samra, MD
Charbel El Samra, MD was born in Montreal, QC, Canada and grew up in Kuwait. He later moved to Ottawa, ON, Canada, which is now his home. Dr. El Samra completed his undergraduate degree in Biopharmaceutical Science with a specialization in Genomics at the University of Ottawa. He then went on to complete his medical degree at University College Cork School of Medicine in Cork, Ireland. Within Family Medicine, Dr. El Samra has special interests in outpatient medicine and preventative medicine. In his spare time, he enjoys watching and playing soccer, spending time with family and friends, cooking and traveling.

Chanpreet Mangat, MD
Chanpreet Mangat, MD was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada. She earned her BSc in Biology from the University of British Columbia. She went on to get her medical degree from St. George’s University School of Medicine. She has special interests in lifestyle medicine, women’s health, preventative care, and wellness. In her spare time, she enjoys spending quality time outdoors, visiting NYC, practicing yoga, playing board games, and hanging out with her friends and family.

Ribal Salam, MD
Ribal Salam, MD is originally from Beirut, Lebanon. He attended Portland State University where he received a BS in Psychology and then went on to earn his medical degree at St. George’s University School of Medicine. His interests within family medicine are outpatient and preventative medicine; during his residency, he is working towards learning how to integrate aesthetics and adolescent medicine into his practice. During his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family and friends, working out, and traveling.

Shamik Shah, MD
Shamik Shah, MD is originally from Orlando, Florida. He attended Florida State University and earned his BS in Biology. After his undergraduate degree, Dr. Shah went on to complete his Medical Degree at Ross University School of Medicine. He has a particular Interest in Sports Medicine. In his spare time he likes to play basketball, go out in NYC, and spend time with friends and family.