Thank you to our 2021-2022 20forTwenty Donors.
Donate Now
2022 AAST/AWS Annual Meeting Scholarship
For the eighth year, AAST has partnered with the Association of Women Surgeons to award a scholarship to one of the association's members. The recipients of this joint-sponsored scholarship are listed below:
Elisa Abou Khalil,
My name is Elissa Abou Khalil. Born and raised in Lebanon, I graduated from Saint Joseph University – Beirut, Lebanon, in 2020. After completing a surgical internship there, I moved to the US to pursue my goal of becoming an academic trauma surgeon. I joined the Department of Trauma and General Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center as a postdoctoral Research Fellow in July 2021. My research focuses on Pediatric Trauma-Induced Coagulopathy (TIC) and Transfusion, with a specific interest in the use of Thromboelastography (TEG) in the diagnosis of TIC in children; Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and the utility of plasma in the pediatric population. My next step will be to work on the understanding of response to injury in the pediatric population using multi-omics. Along with my development as a researcher, I plan on pursuing training in General Surgery. The Association of Women Surgeons has always been a supportive space for personal and career development and offered a platform to channel my interest in mentorship and Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, into effective projects. If I am not working, you will find me running or biking around Pittsburgh’s beautiful bridges or in a yoga class, always with a book!
AAST Military Liaison Committee Annual Meeting Scholarship
The AAST Military Liaison Committee offered a scholarship for the fifth time this year to medical students, residents, or in-training fellows within the military. This scholarship is sponsored by the Always Remember Fund.
Joshua Dilday, MD
MAJ Joshua Dilday is a second-year AAST Acute Care Surgery fellow at LAC+USC Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. He earned his undergraduate degree from Truman State University where he was a member of the baseball team and Army ROTC. He graduated as a distinguished cadet and earned a military scholarship to attend medical school at Des Moines University. He completed his surgical residency at William Beaumont Army Center in Ft. Bliss, Texas. He is currently pursuing additional training as a quality improvement fellow at LAC+USC Medical Center. His current research interests include quality metrics, trauma triage efficiency, and trauma outcomes. Upon graduation, MAJ Dilday will continue his career as an active duty Army trauma surgeon.
Brent Forrest, MD
Brent D. Forrest, MD, is a chief general surgery resident at the University of Missouri – Kansas City.
Dr. Forrest graduated from the Loma Linda University School of Medicine in 2013. Following graduation, he completed an internship in general surgery at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, CA, with his clinical rotations performed at the University of California – Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, CA. He then served as Flight Surgeon to the 74th Fighter Squadron at Moody Air Force Base where he coordinated the medical care of A-10 pilots and their families, including planning and execution of medical oversight during a seven-month deployment to Eastern Europe covering five countries. Following that assignment, he served with the 13th Bomb Squadron at Whiteman Air Force base, providing for the pilots and their families in a similar capacity, with multiple deployments to the South Pacific. In 2018 he matriculated into the UMKC general surgery residency where he continues to train today. He has a passion for serving those having “the worst day of their lives” whether it be due to trauma or a surgical emergency and is pursuing further training in surgical critical care following residency.
Ashley Ruf, MD
Captain Ashly Ruf grew up in a small rural farming community, Orchard Farm, Missouri. During high school and undergraduate career, she professionally raced drag boats. In her academic career she completed her B.A. in Biology with minor in history from Saint Louis University. Through the Health Professions Scholarship Program Ashly completed her medical degree at University of Missouri–Columbia. She then moved to Sacramento, CA for General Surgery training in the integrated active-duty General Residency at University of California-Davis and David Grant Medical Center. During her dedicated research time she focused on trauma induced coagulopathy and trauma outcomes. She also has a passion for serving the underserved community. Ashly is currently in her last year of training with plans to pursue fellowship in Trauma Critical Care at San Antonio Military Medical Center.
2022 20forTwenty In-Training Fellow, Resident, and Medical Student Scholarship Recipients
Sahaja Atluri
Sahaja is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Medicine. She is applying to General Surgery this year. She grew up in Boston, MA, but now lives in Kansas City with her family who support her through the ups and downs of medical school. Sahaja has been very fortunate to have an incredible mentor, Dr. Michael Moncure, who guides her in research and school. For the future, Sahaja aspires to follow the footsteps of her mentor, Dr. Moncure, and pursue a career as an academic surgeon with an emphasis on Trauma and Critical Care. In her free time, Sahaja enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, lifting, and gardening. Sahaja is very excited to attend 81st Annual Meeting of AAST and Clinical Congress for Acute Care Surgery and is looking forward to the experience.
James Bradford, MD
Jacob Broome, MD
Jacob Broome is a fourth-year medical student at Tulane University School of Medicine applying for a general surgery residency position in the upcoming cycle. He received an undergraduate degree in chemistry from Virginia Tech and a graduate degree in cell & molecular biology from Tulane University. Jacob’s interest in surgery began before medical school, after observing a Whipple procedure during a summer internship. Throughout medical school, his interest developed further, leading suture clinics and organizing talks for Tulane’s surgery interest group, and eventually being selected as a student-leader for the trauma department’s research group. Jacob has published extensively with Tulane’s trauma department, focusing efforts on pre-hospital resuscitation and management of non-compressible torso hemorrhage. In addition, he is a DeBakey Research Scholar at Tulane. Outside of medical school, Jacob spends his time teaching fitness classes, rooting for the Hokies, and perfecting his gumbo and jambalaya recipes.
Amanda Chipman, MD
Amanda M. Chipman is a chief resident in general surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center. She was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and earned Bachelor’s degrees in Neuroscience and Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh. She first became interested in trauma surgery during her time as a medical student at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This interest was further developed during her general surgery training as well as the two years she spent as a T32 sponsored post-doctoral research fellow at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland. She has authored numerous publications and her academic interests include trauma, hemorrhagic shock, endothelial injury, and sepsis. She is currently in the process of applying for fellowship in surgical critical care and acute care surgery. Outside of work, Amanda enjoys skiing, traveling, and spending time with friends and family as well as her two rescue dogs.
Fatima Elgammal, MD
Allison Ferenczy, MD
I was raised in the Atlanta suburbs, and graduated with Honors in Biochemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology. After graduating, I matriculated to Mercer University School of Medicine where I graduated with recognition in Distinction in Service to the Community. I am in my fifth year of general surgery residency at Atrium Navicent Health in Macon, Georgia where I am the administrative chief. Currently, I am pursuing a fellowship in critical care and trauma surgery and aspire to work as an Acute Care, Trauma and Critical Care Surgeon at a Level I Trauma Center. Additionally, I am a member of the American College of Surgeons, Bibb County Medical Society, and Association of Women Surgeons. I act as the medical student resident coordinator and am an appointed member of the Graduate Medical Education Committee. I am honored to receive the 2022 Annual Meeting Research and Education Scholarship and learn from the brightest, most distinguished surgeons in the field.
Justin Gerard, MD
Winston Jiang, MD
Winston is a fourth-year medical student at The Warren Alpert Medical School. Winston was born and raised in Rhode Island. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, hiking, and following New England sports. Winston is classically trained in piano and has been playing for almost 20 years. It was through piano that he first developed an appreciation for the hand-eye coordination required in surgical technique. Winston is applying into general surgery and is specifically interested in trauma surgery and critical care. He finds fulfillment in taking care of patients from presentation to the emergency department, through their medical and surgical interventions, and up until their final follow-up appointments. Winston is looking forward to meeting others in the field and learning from their collective experiences at the AAST conference.
Lauren Kelly, MD
Husayn Ladhani, MD
Dr. Husayn Ladhani is a trauma and acute care surgery fellow at University of Colorado and Denver Health Medical Center in Denver, CO. He grew up in Texas, earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin, and completed medical school at the University of Texas Medical Branch. His pursuit of a rigorous, well-rounded general surgical training program led him to University Hospitals/Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH, where he developed a strong interest in the field of trauma, burn, and emergency general surgery. During his residency, he spent two years as the Richard B. Fratianne Research Fellow in the Division of Trauma, Critical Care, Burn, and Acute Care Surgery at MetroHealth Medical Center. As a research fellow, he was very productive and published his works on burn sepsis, nosocomial infections in trauma patients, and outcomes in emergency general surgery in many reputable journals. As an in-training fellow, he has focused his research endeavors in the areas of pelvic hemorrhage, surgical stabilization of rib fractures, and blood transfusions in trauma patients. After the completion of training, he intends to works at a busy trauma and burn center, and grow his current research interests.
Meghan Mali, MD
Christopher McLaughlin, MD, MBA
Chris McLaughlin is a fourth-year general surgery resident at Penn State Health in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Originally from Delaware County, PA, just outside of Philadelphia, he got his start as an EMT then Paramedic where he gravitated towards the care of the injured patient. Chris graduated from Boston College with a BS in Biochemistry and received his MD from Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine in Roanoke, VA. He joined Penn State Health in 2017 and completed two years of academic development time between the second and third clinical years, publishing with the Division of Trauma, Acute Care, and Critical Care Surgery at Penn State Health while obtaining an MBA from Penn State Smeal College of Business. His professional interests include the role of the trauma center in the healthcare system, surgical decision-making, coagulopathy, and pre-hospital care. Personal interests include data analytics, coaching ice hockey, and the Philadelphia Eagles (Go Birds). He will be applying for trauma and acute care surgery fellowships in 2023.
Eden Nohra, MD
Hi, thank you for having me. I have chased becoming a trauma surgeon across the globe. I am originally from Lebanon, Lebanon in the Middle East. Went to work with the heads of Trauma and Acute care Surgery at Wash U in St Louis at 24 years of age. Loved every minute of it. Stayed there three years – the experiences are plenty and wonderful, happy to talk to whomever wants to know. Then came residency. Started down South. Wanted more trauma and acute care, went after my dreams again. Finished residency in Detroit. We did plenty of trauma there and hard-core acute care. I am a proud graduate of Henry Ford Wayne State this past June. About me: I like nature, puzzles, Skiing, both cats and dogs. My fiancée is my better half. About my future: I pick students and residents. I pick research and expansion of knowledge. I am currently in a one-year Trauma and Critical Care fellowship at the University of Buffalo, Erie Country medical center and my staff and colleagues are here too.
Zachary Tran, MD
Zachary Tran is currently a fourth-year general surgery resident at Loma Linda University Health and former clinical research fellow at the Cardiovascular Outcomes Research Laboratories (CORELAB) at the University of California, Los Angeles. After completing his undergraduate at the University of Texas at Dallas, he completed medical school at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. His research interests involve machine learning approaches and use of large databases. He will pursue a career in academics following completion of acute care surgery fellowship. Outside of his clinical and research duties, he enjoys ultralight backpacking, weightlifting, and cooking.
Michael Weykamp, MD
Dr. Mike Weykamp is a general surgery resident at the University of Washington – Seattle, and the current T32 NIH, NIGMS Research in Trauma, Injury, and Inflammation fellow at Harborview Medical Center. He completed his undergraduate training at the University of Michigan and attended medical school at the Duke University School of Medicine. His research interests are centered around resuscitation, pre-hospital/combat casualty care, and the use of large animal models to develop treatment strategies for injured patients. In addition to his research endeavors, Dr. Weykamp is also interested in surgical education and was selected for the University of Washington’s Excellence in Teaching award for residents in addition to being a regular contributor to the Behind the Knife surgery podcast. Following graduation from residency, Dr. Weykamp plans to pursue fellowship training in surgical critical care.
Nolan Winicki, MD
Nolan Winicki is a third-year medical student at the University of California Riverside, School of Medicine. He received an undergraduate degree with honors in Bioengineering at the University of California Riverside. His interest in surgery and engineering began during the first year of medical school while working with a craniofacial plastic surgeon and engineer to design and implant in vivo a bioresorbable, magnesium-based implant. He expanded upon this initial inspiration to further explore translational research by completing a master’s degree in Applied Biomedical Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University while also conducting a pre-doctoral research fellowship at the National Institute of Health this past year. Nolan has gained extensive clinical and research experience in trauma surgery with several surgeons at Loma Linda University that he has continues to work with throughout medical school. His career goal is to become an academic surgeon and operate an engineering-based surgical research laboratory.