The Department of Internal Medicine would like to introduce the newest members of the Division of General Internal Medicine, joining in the months of June and July. We are pleased to welcome them to the department.
Bashar Abuqayas, MD – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Bashar Abuqayas joins the Division of General Internal Medicine having just completed his residency at Trinitas Regional Medical Center/Rutgers University in New Jersey. He received his MD from the University of Jordan School of Medicine and completed an internship at Al-Essra Hospital, both in Amman, Jordan. His clinical interests include Hematology and Oncology. Dr. Abuqayas also enjoys basketball, soccer, and gardening.
Neeru Agarwal, MD, MBA – Associate (7-23-18)
Dr. Neeru Agarwal comes to the Division of General Internal Medicine from the University of Buffalo/Buffalo General Medical Center in New York, where she served as the Director of the UBMD Hospitalist medicine group (Attending only service) and as Chair of the Utilization Management Committee, Buffalo General Medical Center. Her nine years’ experience as a hospitalist include positions in Corpus Christi, Texas, and at Northshore University Hospital in Skokie, Illinois. She received her MBBS from Jawahar Lal Nehru Medical College in Rajasthan, India, followed by a residency at the Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, where she also served as Chief Resident. In addition, she earned an MBA from the University at Buffalo in 2017.
Dr. Agarwal’s clinical and research interests focus on achieving better patient outcomes by reducing inefficiency and waste in healthcare and reducing physician burnout. Outside work, Dr. Agarwal enjoys spending time with her family, cooking and traveling.
Abbas Ali, MBBS – Associate (6-15-18)
Dr. Abbas Ali joins the Division of General Internal Medicine from his residency at Saint Agnes Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. He received his MBBS from Dow Medical College in Karachi, Pakistan. Dr. Ali has clinical and research interests in dyslipidemia and its relation to coronary disease. In his spare time, Dr. Ali enjoys hiking.
Saed Alnaimat, MBBCh – Associate (7-12-18)
Dr. Saed Alnaimat joins the Division of General Internal Medicine from his residency in Internal Medicine at Stroger Hospital of Cook County in Chicago. Dr. Alnaimat received his MBBCh from Ain Shams University Faculty of Medicine in Egypt, and completed a Masters in Clinical Research at Rush University in June. His clinical interests focus on general internal medicine, rare/interesting cases, academic medicine, and cardiovascular research. His hobbies include soccer, biking, and aerial videography.
Sheena CarlLee, MD – Clinical Assistant Professor (7-1-18)
Dr. Sheena CarlLee joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as a Clinical Assistant Professor, after serving as a Chief Resident here during the 2017-18 academic year. Dr. CarlLee received her MD from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock, followed by a medicine residency in the Department of Internal Medicine here at Iowa. Her clinical and research interests include graduate medical education. When she isn’t working, Dr. CarlLee enjoys spending time with family and friends, cooking, and reading.
Russell Hamilton, DO, MS – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Russell Hamilton comes to the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate, after completing his residency at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. He received an MS in Biomedical Sciences, followed by his DO degree from the Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Hamilton’s clinical and research interests include atrial fibrillation, congenital heart disease, and QI focused on inpatient care. In his spare time, he enjoys working out, spending time with family and friends, jet boating, and spending time outdoors.
Eric Heller, MD – Clinical Assistant Professor (7-1-18)
Dr. Eric Heller joins the Division of General Internal Medicine after completing his Internal Medicine residency here at Iowa. He also received his MD from the Carver College of Medicine. Dr. Heller’s clinical and research interests involve cardiovascular medicine and health economics. His hobbies include running, weightlifting, golf, and Iowa Hawkeye sports.
Hisham Ibrahim, MBBS – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Hisham Ibrahim has joined the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate. Dr. Ibrahim recently completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. Before that, Dr. Ibrahim completed an Internal Medicine Residency/Basic Specialist Training in Ireland, followed by a Cardiology Fellowship under the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland at Cork University Hospital and Limerick University Hospital. During his training period in Ireland, he was awarded Full Membership of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and UK after he satisfied their exam requirements. His internship was completed at the Federal Ministry of Health in Khartoum, Sudan, where he also received his MBBS. Dr. Ibrahim’s clinical and research interests include structural heart disease and heart failure. He enjoys soccer and cycling and is an avid outdoor runner.
Aditi Reddy, MD – Associate (6-15-18)
Dr. Aditi Reddy joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate from her residency at Saint Agnes Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. She received her MBBS from Kasturba Medical College in Mangalore, India. Dr. Reddy’s clinical and research interests focus on inflammatory bowel disease and the microbiome. Her hobbies include reading, classical Bharatanatyam dancing, karate, and traveling.
Danish Safi, MBBS – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Danish Safi joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate after completing an Internal Medicine residency at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai/James J. Peters VAMC (VA Bronx) in New York. Dr. Safi received the best resident award at his residency graduation. He earned his MBBS degree at Khyber Medical University, in Peshawar, Pakistan. His clinical and research interests focus on Hematology/Oncology. Dr. Safi was actively involved in the research project ‘Integration of novel telehealth-based program in high-risk VA patients: Transitional care intervention to prevent unnecessary hospital readmissions (the INNOVATION study)’ in 2017 at James J. Peters Medical Center, Icahn School of Medicine, NY. In his spare time, Dr. Safi likes traveling, hiking, gardening, reading novels, and playing cricket and soccer.
Aaron Seaman, PhD – Associate (7-31-18)
Dr. Aaron Seaman joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate, after his position as a Postdoctoral Research Scholar in the Division. A medical anthropologist and health services researcher, Dr. Seaman received his PhD in Comparative Human Development from the University of Chicago. His research interests include chronic conditions among older adults, uncertainty and decision making, family caregiving and social support, and care coordination and delivery. When not doing research, he enjoys cooking dishes he’s never made for dinner parties, overly ambitious home improvement endeavors, elaborate art projects with his five-year-old daughter, and elusive lazy mornings.
Tuncay Taskesen, MD – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Tuncay Taskesen comes to the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate from his Internal Medicine Residency at Presence Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston, Illinois. He received his MD at Ege University Medical School in Izmir, Turkey, followed by an internship there. He also completed a Cardiology Residency at Dicle University Hospital in Diyarbakir, Turkey. He did research on cardiovascular imaging at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, WA. Dr. Tuncay’s current clinical and research interests focus on cardiac imaging and coronary artery diseases. In his free time, Dr. Tuncay enjoys playing soccer, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.
Ying Chi Yang, MBBS – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Ying Chi Yang joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate after graduating from his Internal Medicine Residency at Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. He earned his MBBS from the University of Medicine 2 in Yangon, Myanmar, followed by an internship at SanPya General Hospital there. He also completed an externship and internship in Internal Medicine at the Taiwan Adventist Hospital in Taipei City, Taiwan. Dr. Yang’s clinical and research interests focus primarily on cardiology. In his spare time, he enjoys ice skating, skiing, and fishing.
Hesham Yasin, MBBS – Associate (7-1-18)
Dr. Hesham Yasin joins the Division of General Internal Medicine as an Associate from his residency in Internal Medicine at St Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, New Jersey. Dr. Yasin received his MBBS from the Jordan University of Science and Technology in Irbid, Jordan. Before coming to the US, Dr. Yasin gained clinical experience with an Internship at the Specialty Hospital in Amman, Jordan, followed by an Internal Medicine Residency at the King Hussein Cancer Center there. Dr. Yasin’s clinical work and research is focused on cancer and its treatment. In his free time, Dr. Yasin likes to bike, go for a run, and read novels.