RIYA BHATTACHARYA, MD

A third-year Internal Medicine resident at Saint Vincent Hospital, Riya Bhattacharya, MD, brings a deep appreciation for patient narratives to her work with the Worcester District Medical Society editorial board. She earned her medical degree from Kasturba Medical College in India, where her early clinical experiences shaped her belief that medicine is inseparable from the stories of the people it serves. Throughout residency, she has been drawn to the humanistic dimensions of patient care, finding meaning in the vulnerable and often unspoken moments that define the clinical experience. Outside of medicine, Riya enjoys traveling, experimenting with new culinary creations, and baking. Passionate about writing as a way to illuminate the lived experiences within healthcare, she looks forward to contributing to the board’s efforts to promote thoughtful and impactful discourse within the medical community.

PARUL CHHATPAR, MD

Dr. Parul Chhatpar is a PGY-2 preventive medicine resident at UMass Chan Medical School with a strong interest in addiction medicine. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Vanderbilt University and her medical degree from William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine. Her professional interests include addiction medicine, health disparities, mental health, and public policy; with a particular interest in evidence-based strategies to improve access to care for underserved and marginalized populations.

Dr. Chhatpar is an active member of the American College of Preventive Medicine, contributing to the conference planning and education committees. She is also a peer reviewer for the Journal of Addiction Medicine and serves on the American Public Health Association Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs Harm Reduction Committee and the Integrative Behavioral Health Committee. Additionally, she is a member of the American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Emerging Leaders Collaborative Cohort and contributes to the AOA Data Subgroup.

In her free time, she enjoys knitting and reading. Joining the Worcester Medicine editorial board brings Dr. Chhatpar full circle to her undergraduate love of English literature. Her favorite authors are Isabel Allende and Jane Austen; a recent favorite novel is Trust by Hernan Diaz.

SONIA N. CHIMIENTI, MD FIDSA

Dr. Chimienti graduated from Stanford University with degrees in Biological Sciences and Psychology, continuing on to the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine for her medical studies. She completed Internal Medicine residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, followed by fellowship training in Infectious Diseases and HIV/Immune Compromise at Massachusetts General Hospital/Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

As the dean for educational affairs at Geisel, Dr. Chimienti provides strategic leadership for all aspects of Geisel’s medicine (MD) degree and the school’s portfolio of health sciences educational programs, including MPH, and MS professional degree programs. She coordinates activities with other medical education leadership at Geisel and Dartmouth Health and oversees the school’s accreditation activities with the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME), for which she serves as Faculty Accreditation Lead. With a view towards holistic student supports, her area of oversight also includes the Offices of Financial Aid, Student Life, and all Student Services in the medical and health sciences programs.

Dr. Chimienti’s educational leadership experience spans the spectrum of undergraduate and graduate medical education, including directing preclinical undergraduate medical education courses, serving in leadership roles for curriculum and institutional educational policy, serving as associate dean for student affairs, vice provost for student life, and serving as program director for two infectious diseases fellowship training programs. Throughout her professional career, Dr. Chimienti has maintained her commitment to clinical service, providing care for patients with immune compromise or general infectious diseases. Dr. Chimienti has a deep commitment to creating opportunities for students to reach their goals and become the best versions of themselves as they develop their careers. She seeks to break down barriers and obstacles, guiding students through challenges and toward their successful professional development.

Dr. Chimienti is a member of the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Fellows Class of 2019 and completed the Tuck School of Business Advanced Management Program.

ABIGAIL DENIKE

A medical student studying at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Abigail DeNike serves as the Board’s student representative. She completed her undergraduate degree in neuroscience and creative writing at Trinity University and has continued pursuing her passion for the medical humanities at UMass as Creative Editor for the student-run literary magazine, The Interstitium. In part, she was drawn to medicine due to her love for stories, especially those that center on the patient experience and empower people in moments of uncertainty. She feels privileged to join the WDMS board and hopes to foster creative outlets for medical professionals and strengthen community partnerships.

LLOYD FISHER, MD

Lloyd Fisher, MD is a general pediatrician at Reliant Medical Group where he has been in practice since 2006 and Chief Medical Information Officer at Optum Massachusetts. During his time at Reliant he has worked to improve efficiency through innovative uses of the Electronic Health Record (EHR). He also serves as the Chief of Community Pediatrics for the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Medical Center where he acts as the liaison between the academic medical center and the 150+ community-based pediatricians in the region. He is a past President of the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, an organization representing over 1700 pediatricians across the state and a Delegate to the House of Delegates of the Massachusetts Medical Society.

Dr. Fisher earned his bachelor’s degree in Biology from The University of Vermont and his medical degree from The University of Massachusetts Medical School where he also completed a residency in pediatrics. Dr. Fisher is board certified in both pediatrics and clinical informatics.

He and his wife reside in Central Massachusetts with their three school-aged children. When he is not working, he can usually be found watching his children acting, singing, or dancing on stage or competing in a Taekwondo tournament.

LARRY GARBER, MD

Dr. Garber is an Internist, Clinical Informaticist, and Medical Director for Informatics and Research at Reliant Medical Group.  He has worked extensively with ONC, HL7, National POLST, DirectTrust, and Carequality on national and international interoperability standards that interconnect our healthcare system. Dr. Garber has combined his clinical and technological experience to develop and study novel solutions for Health Information Technology (HIT) interoperability. He has been Principal Investigator on $6 Million AHRQ, HHS/ONC, MeHI, and UHG grants to develop innovative Health Information Exchanges and remote patient monitoring solutions.

REBECCA KOWALOFF, DO

Dr. Kowaloff received her BA in the History of Science and Medicine from the University of Rochester and her Doctor of Osteopathy degree from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Harlem in New York City. She is a native of the Worcester area and spent a summer in college chronicling the Annual Orations of the WDMS going back to the 19th century which culminated in her senior thesis project “Changes in American Medicine: Worcester’s Perspective”. She completed a residency in Internal Medicine followed by a fellowship in Hospice and Palliative Medicine, both at Maine Medical Center. She has worked in primary care since finishing fellowship. She currently works as a geriatrician with Fallon Healthcare’s Summit Eldercare PACE program in Leominster where she is also working on integrating palliative care principles and practice into the PACE structure. She enjoys teaching laypeople and medical professionals about palliative care and communication skills and advocating for a more mainstream conversation about advance care planning, palliative care, and end of life. She is happy to be part of the editorial board where she can again exercise her writing skills from her undergraduate days.

ANNA MORIN, PharmD

Dr. Morin is the Associate Provost for the Worcester and Manchester campuses at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) and a Professor of Pharmacy Practice. She has contributed significantly to advancing the mission and strategic priorities of the University, while also contributing to teaching, service, and research as a faculty member. Dr. Morin has been a strong advocate of interprofessional and interdisciplinary initiatives within the University. Her teaching, scholarship, and clinical activities have focused on psychiatric illnesses, women’s health, drug interactions, and herbal and complementary alternative medicine.

THORU PEDERSON, PhD

Dr. Pederson is the Vitold Arnett Professor of Cell Biology and Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, and the Associate Vice-Provost for Research. He also is the President Emeritus of the Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research which merged with the medical school in 1997. His research concerns the functional design of the cell nucleus with particular emphasis on gene expression and RNA dynamics.

SARAH PETRIDES, DNP, CNP, FNP-BC

Prior to becoming a nurse practitioner, she was an academic, earning a PhD in what is now the department of American Studies at Brown University. Her areas of specialization included environmental history, American literature, and philosophies of race and ethnicity. Later, she became a nurse, working in medical surgical nursing and then became a nurse practitioner, eventually earning a DNP from the University of North Florida. Among other topics dealt with in her doctoral research was the ethical duty, and often the profound failure, of health systems to privilege the well being of human beings working in these systems. In her free time, she is an advocate for animal welfare and the parent of children now beginning to launch from the nest.

JOEL POPKIN, MD

Following training at St. Vincent Hospital, Dr. Popkin served on the Internal Medicine staffs of the Reliant Medical Group and St. Vincent Hospital from 1977 to retirement from Reliant Medical Group in 2014. He also completed 17 years as Associate, then Program Director at St. Vincent Hospital.

Dr. Popkin is currently Director of Special Services in the St. Vincent Hospital residency program, where he works with medical residents and students to enrich their clinical, research, and writing skills. He also coaches their competitions at state and national competitions. He has had a long time interest in humanism in medicine and hopes to help integrate art and music into residency training.

ALYWN RAPOSE, MD

Dr. Rapose is a Consultant in Infectious Diseases for the Reliant Medical Group in Worcester, Massachusetts. He is Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. Dr. Rapose originally trained in Mumbai, India where he is board-certified in Dermatology, Venereology and Leprology and he is a life member of the Indian Association of Dermatologists. After emigrating to the US, he completed his Internal Medicine residency training at St. Vincent Hospital followed by Fellowship in Infectious Diseases at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston Texas. In 2008 he returned to Worcester Massachusetts and has been an integral faculty of the Internal Medicine residency program at St. Vincent Hospital. He is board certified in both Infectious Disease as well as internal Medicine. He has been awarded Fellowship of the American College of Physicians as well as the Infectious Diseases Society of America. His special interests include Travel Medicine, Clostridiodes difficile infection, and Infectious Diseases in Critical Care units. He has numerous peer-reviewed publications as well as text book chapters to his credit.

ARUNAVA SAHA, FELLOW

Dr. Saha hails from India, and after completing his internal medicine residency training here at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, has now moved to Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana to pursue his passion of working with the critically ill through a fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. After graduating from Christian Medical College, Vellore, India where he served as the editor of the Students’ Association and published the annual college magazine, he moved to the USA to fulfill his career goals as well as his desire to explore the world. He was and continues to be a voracious reader and an avid writer, sharing anecdotes about the daily life of a medical personnel on his blog and on instagram under #rantingsofaterrifiedmind. He has been a part of the editorial committee of Worcester District Medicine Society over the last two years, and is excited to continue to collaborate and provide his unique perspective even from afar. In his leisure time, he loves reading both fiction and nonfiction, strumming up soulful songs on the guitar, and preparing delectable cuisines and culinary dishes from around the world.

PARUL SARWAL, MD, EDITOR IN CHIEF

Parul Sarwal, MD, is a hospitalist at St. Vincent Hospital, where she serves as Associate Medical Director of Hospital Medicine with TeamHealth. She is also an Assistant Professor of Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School. She received her medical degree in 2015 from Kasturba Medical College, India. She then went on to pursue a research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital before moving to Worcester for her internal medicine residency at St. Vincent Hospital, where she has stayed on as faculty. Outside of work, she enjoys birding and is an ardent member of Mass Audubon.

CHRYSTINA SOLOPERTO, PhD, RN, CPNP

Chrystina Soloperto is a pediatric nurse practitioner. She is an Assistant Professor of Nursing and Pediatric at UMass Chan Medical School. She practices as a Pediatric NP in Pediatric Endocrinology at UMass Memorial Medical Center in the Children’s Medical Center. Her teaching, scholarship, and clinical activities focus on pediatric patients and type 1 diabetes.

ROBERT SORRENTI, MD

Dr. Sorrenti graduated from Harvard College in 1969 and received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1973. He trained in pediatrics at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. He served as the Chief of Pediatrics at the former Worcester City Hospital and was in private practice in Worcester. He transitioned to health care administration and was an executive for UniCare, a health care company, for many years before retiring in 2020. He served as President of the Worcester District Medical Society from 1993-1995.

PETER ZACHARIA, MD

Dr. Zacharia is a board certified ophthalmologist in private practice with Worcester Eye Consultants. He has a subspecialty interest in glaucoma, having completed a glaucoma fellowship at the New England Eye Center, an affiliate of Tufts University School of Medicine where he holds an appointment as Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology. He completed a residency in ophthalmology and medical school both at New York Medical College, and received his B.A from Harvard College in 1983.