2025 Highlights
November
The Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) Program at Banner Lung Institute continues to grow its clinical and research presence. This fall, the program hosted Arizona’s first-ever Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Walk, raising $41,277 with support from patients, caregivers, the healthcare community, and the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation.
“We want to thank everyone who participated in raising funds and awareness, and we hope this will become a celebrated annual event,” said Dr. Sally Suliman.
October
The Division of Infectious Diseases outpatient clinic is expanding its services. On October 3, 2025, the clinic administered its first dose of intramuscular ceftriaxone, an antibiotic commonly used to treat bacterial infections. Adding immunizations and injectable treatments allows the clinic to serve as a one-stop shop for patients and provide more comprehensive care.
September
The Division of Geriatric Medicine launched the Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Admit Service at Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix in July 2025. This new service streamlines direct admissions of older adults from the Emergency Department to the ACE unit, supporting the hospital’s goal of advancing from Level 3 to Level 1 Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation by March 2026. Led by Dr. Serene Musallam, 2025 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship graduate, the ACE Admit Service strengthens geriatric care delivery and improves transitions from emergency to inpatient settings.
August
The Division of Hospital Medicine is excited to launch Back to the Future, a care transformation project focused on enhancing safety and quality across the Progressive Care Units (PCUs). The initiative’s goal is to return to top-quartile performance in quality of care—a benchmark the division successfully achieved in 2020, inspiring the project’s name.
July
The Division of Medical Toxicology continues to expand its educational reach, training students, residents, and fellows from the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix and beyond.
This July, emergency medicine residents from Dignity Health East Valley joined the division's existing emergency medicine trainees from Creighton and Midwestern. They also host fellows from Phoenix Children’s Hospital and international observers from Canada and Japan.
June
The Department of Internal Medicine's annual End of the Year Updates and Awards was held on June 13, 2025. Congratulations to the following winners for their many contributions to the department at the University of Arizona College of Medicine—Phoenix.
- Faculty Mentor of the Year - Mouhanned Eliliwi, MD
- Faculty Clinical Investigator of the Year - Matt Ulrickson, MD
- Faculty Translational Investigator of the Year - Roderick Tung, MD
- Outstanding Clinical Service - Kartik Boddupalli, MD
- Outstanding Efforts in Healthcare Advancement - Jennifer Meyfeldt, MD
- Outstanding Communication and Teamwork - Leigh Anne Goodman, DO
- Outstanding Community Educator – Rebecca Moran, MD, FAAFP
- Outstanding Inter-Departmental Collaboration - Natasha Keric, MD
- Outstanding Service by an Advanced Practice Provider - Scott Tomlinson, NP
- Outstanding Service by Clinical or Administrative Support - Veronica Nundahl
May
Drs. Naomi Newman, Denege Ward-Wright, and Michelle Huddleston attended the American Society of Hematology (ASH) conference in June as part of their participation in a two-year ASH initiative to establish a Center of Excellence for Sickle Cell Disease at Banner – University Medical Center.
In collaboration with national experts, the team is advancing evidence-based care and developing a high-performing ambulatory model tailored to the complex needs of adults living with sickle cell disease. Their efforts already include emergency department and inpatient order sets, individualized pain management plans, and a structured transition program for young adults moving from pediatric to adult care.
The initiative aims to improve the quality of life and reduce hospitalizations through proactive, high-quality outpatient care.
April
The Division of Nephrology was recently recognized as one of the top kidney transplant programs by the Optum Transplant Center of Excellence. This national designation honors programs with outstanding outcomes in managing complex, high-cost conditions like kidney transplantation.
Optum evaluates transplant centers based on case volume, survival rates, clinical expertise, and patient education. Patients treated at COE-designated programs often benefit from better outcomes, fewer complications, and lower costs.
March
Congratulations to Steven Erickson, MD, for receiving the PBATS 25-Year Service Award in recognition of his long-standing dedication to the care of Major League Baseball (MLB) umpires and the Arizona Diamondbacks.
February
Congratulations to Dr. Roderick Tung, who is leading three NIH-funded studies:
- Fact CRT: Factors Associated with Response to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy in Heart Failure Patients with non-LBBB ECG Pattern
- His CRT: His-Bundle Corrective Pacing in Heart Failure Patients with Right Bundle Branch Block
- Pivatal: Prophylactic Intra-Operative Ventricular Arrhythmia Ablation in High-Risk LVAD Candidates Undergoing LVAD
January
University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix, and Banner MD Anderson were proudly represented by medical student Doctor Papuc and Amanda Edmond, PA, at the American Thyroid Association meeting in Chicago.
- Doctor Papuc presented Successful Resensitization of Recurrent BRAF-Mutated Iodine-Refractory Thyroid Cancer Involving the Trachea/Thyroid Cartilage with Dabrafenib and Trametinib.
- Dr. Edmond presented Superior Redifferentiation of BRAF-Mutated Radioactive Iodine Refractory Differentiated Thyroid Cancer with Long-Duration Dabrafenib and Trametinib.
These contributions have significantly enhanced the visibility of our thyroid cancer program in Phoenix.
The Department of Internal Medicine's annual End of the Year Updates and Awards was held on June 10, 2024. Congratulations to the following winners for their many contributions to the department at the University of Arizona College of Medicine—Phoenix.
- Faculty Mentor of the Year - Esa Rayyan, DO
- Faculty Clinical Investigator of the Year - Karn Wijarnpreecha, MD, MPH
- Faculty Translational Investigator of the Year - Guy Reed, MD, MS
- Faculty Advanced Practice Provider of the Year - Danielle Soza, AGACNP, MSN, MHI
- Faculty Support Staff of the Year - U of A College of Medicine - Phoenix Clinical Research Regulatory Support Team
- Outstanding Clinical Service - Suresh Uppalapu, MD
- Outstanding Efforts in Healthcare Advancement - Jayne Peterson, MD
- Outstanding Communication and Teamwork - Brandon Gardner, DO
- Outstanding Community Educator - Lindsay Ackerman, MD
- Outstanding Inter-Departmental Collaboration - Christine Lovato, MD
- Leadership Service Award - Nilda Franco, MD
Congratulations to Kristina Balangue, MD, for receiving the Excellence in Teaching Award in Graduate Medical Education for 2024. This honor recognizes her outstanding dedication to teaching and mentoring.
Congrats to all of the Internal Medicine faculty who were featured as Top Docs for 2023 in Phoenix Magazine!
- Nimit Agwarwal, MD, and Kristina Balangue, MD – Geriatrics.
- Harvey Hsu, MD – Internal Health.
- Wilbur Su, MD – Cardiac Electrophysiology (Celebrating 10 years in the issue).
- Gregory Chu, MD – Critical Care Medicine.
- Ruth Franks Snedecor, MD – Hospital Medicine.
- Joyce Lee-Iannotti, MD – Sleep Medicine.
- Trent Smith, MD – Rheumatology.
- Lindsay Ackerman, MD – Dermatology (Celebrating 10 years in the issue).
Awards
We would like to congratulate the following faculty (pictured above in the order listed) on the awards they received for their exceptional teaching and work within our Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs.
- Christina Bergin, MD, director of the Internal Medicine Clerkship, was honored with the Excellence in Teaching by a Clerkship for 2021–2022.
- Donna Holland, MD, program director for the Internal Medicine Residency, was awarded the Excellence in Teaching in GME for 2021–2022.
- The second-year medical students at the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix selected Elise Barney, DO, as their Educator of the Year.
- Chirag Kapadia, MD, was selected as the Resident of the Year by American College of Physicians Arizona Chapter in October 2022.
- Congratulations to all the Department of Internal Medicine faculty, housestaff and students for their winning abstracts at the 2022 ROME Forum.
- Interpreting Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA) Assessments Before, During, and After COVID-19 Pandemic – Jordan Coulston, MD, Chengcheng Hu, PhD, Adam Health, MD, Sheetal Shah, DO, Maria Castro, MD, Marícela Moffitt MD, MPH
- Quality Improvement Projects in Undergraduate Medical Education: A Summary of Projects – Alvin Gibson Wong, MD, Janet Mauer, MD, Kimberly Bader, MD, Chelsea Carlson, MD, Jordan Coulston, MD.
- Evaluating the Impact of Tactile Learning through 3D Models of Congenital Abnormalities on Understanding Complex Cardiac Pathology – Vrishti Shah, MS3, Elise Barney, MD, Kevin Vo, MS2.
Alvin Gibson Wong, MD, and Jordan Coulston, MD