Meet Our Residents

	Jessica Aslam PGY-2 Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Jessica joined our residency program in 2008 and is considering a career in child and adolescent psychiatry. She attended medical school at Saba University, Saba, Netherlands Antilles. She performed research on a vascular disease, Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia. Before starting medical school, she was employed in the Washington, D.C. area as both a DNA Forensic Analyst and a Senior Microbiologist for classified government projects. In her spare time, she enjoys family time with her 4 year old daughter, traveling, and can be found cheering on the Syracuse Orangemen or Syracuse Chiefs.
	Sunny P. Aslam PGY-3 General Adult Psychiatry Sunny joined our residency program in 2007 and is fascinated by the confluence of psychosocial factors and mental illness. He attended medical school at Saba University, Saba, Netherlands Antilles. Sunny was thrilled to be awarded the Gold Humanism in Medicine Award by the SUNY Upstate medical students. He currently volunteers at a free clinic in Syracuse, treating indigent patients and teaching medical students about psychiatry. Sunny plans on pursuing child and adolescent psychiatry in an inpatient, academic setting. In his free time, Sunny loves to play with his four-year-old daughter, Ayesha, or can be found at Syracuse University basketball games.</</td>
	Kristina Bedynerman PGY-2 General Adult Psychiatry Kristina joined our residency program in 2008 and plans to pursue a career in Addiction Psychiatry. She received her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Political Science from University at Albany and her Medical degree from American University of the Caribbean. While at the University at Albany she co-authored two articles in the field of control deficit: "The influence of Negative Emotions, Perceived Control and Impulsivity on Gambling Behavior" and "Binge Eating, Alcohol Abuse and Impulsivity in College Woman. Both posters were presented at the 36th Annual Convention of the Association for the Advancement of Behavioral Therapy in Reno, NV. In her spare time Kristina loves to dance, try exotic foods, watch CNN, travel around the world, and live life to its fullest.
	Dana Cohen PGY-4/Chief Resident General Adult Psychiatry Dana joined our residency program in 2006. Her numerous interests initially led to her towards a career in Ob/Gyn, but her love and appreciation of the human condition and interplay of psychosocial factors upon health drew her back towards Psychiatry.While in college, Dana majored in Human Biology, Health, and Society and minored in Human Development and Nutrition. She received a B.S. with Distinction from Cornell University. She attended medical school at Upstate Medical University, and has subsequently returned here as a psychiatry resident. Dana is currently considering a fellowship in Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and would like to mix consultation work with outpatient adult psychiatry in the future. In her spare time, Dana enjoys philosophizing with her fiancé and co-resident Vadim Izgur (yes, they did meet in residency!). She also enjoys practically every water sport that exists and is happiest when on a boat or in the ocean. (Feel free to ask her about her accidental kayaking trip across the Long Island Sound.) Other hobbies include cross-country skiing, reading, playing the piano, and challenging herself to the fullest.
	Marcus DeCarvalho PGY-2 Adult Program/Child Track Marcus joined our residency program in 2008. He plans to pursue fellowships in Child and Adolescent and Forensic Psychiatry. He received a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Cell Science from the University of Florida (GO GATORS!) and his Medical Degree at St. George's University. Marcus' passion for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry stems from his missionary experience while working in South America and his youth leadership experience in Miami, Florida. Having just moved from New York City, Marcus and his fiancé have embraced the "country life", settling into a nice little farmhouse in Cazenovia with their German Sheppard, Jake and their two cats, Charley and Jim. In his spare time, Marcus enjoys golfing, swimming, golfing, wine tasting, golfing, watching Red Sox games, (The "curse" is broken!) and, of course, golfing.
	Joseph Deitz PGY-2 Adult Program/Child Track Joe joined our residency program in 2008. He completed his medical school training at Ross University School of Medicine. He also graduated from the University of Maine at Orono with a B.S. in Biology. Joe's hobbies and interests include: Cars - Joe has a 1985 Volvo with 350,000 miles on it. Carpentry projects - Joe is happy when he's working on projects to improve his home (i.e. shelves, hearths, drywall etc.) Joe now lives in the country with his wife, daughter, and his dog.
	Kim Duque PGY-4/Chief Resident General Adult Psychiatry
	Elisha Greggo PGY-2 Adult Program/Child Track Elisha Greggo joined our residency in 2008. She would like to pursue Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and work in an inpatient academic setting. She attended Upstate Medical School here in Syracuse and is looking forward to continuing her medical training here in Central NY. She received a B.S. in Animal Sciences with a minor in Chemistry from the University of Illinois. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her two dogs, reading classic and popular fiction, playing soccer and in the summer likes to spend quality time on her family's boat in Cooperstown. She also loves to travel, especially in Europe, and spent a semester studying literature in England during college.
	Vadim Izgur PGY-4 General Adult Program Vadim Izgur joined our residency program in 2006. He would like to keep his options open, but is interested in the consultation liaison fellowship. He was originally born in Belarus, but has lived an equal time in Philadelphia and Kansas, where he graduated from the University of Kansas School of Medicine and received his B.S. in Biochemistry prior to that from Wichita State University. He avidly adores animals of all sorts, and enjoys playing with his corn snake, Leonard. At the current time, he is excited about the upcoming marriage to Dana Cohen, another 3rd year psychiatry resident. Although she is still adjusting to life with a slithery animal, she is making strides. In his spare time, he really enjoys movies, tennis, board games, and, yes, linguistics.

	Prashant Kaul PGY-4
	Bushra Naz PGY-4 Child and Research Track Bushra graduated from Sind Medical College, Karachi, Pakistan. She completed Postdoctoral training at SUNY at Stony Brook, NY and later worked as a research scientist. She has published several research articles in peer-reviewed journals of psychiatry and wrote chapters on "schizophreniform disorder" and "postpartum psychosis" in the 2005 edition of Kaplan & Saddock's Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry. She has also co-authored chapters in the 2005 editions of two books, "Juvenile onset schizophrenia" and in "Early course of schizophrenia". Bushra is interested in pursuing career in child and adolescent psychiatry and clinical research. Bushra and her husband Kamran enjoy their daughter. Bushra likes to spend time with her family, travel and watch movies.
	Marina Nesterenko PGY-3 General Adult Psychiatry Marina joined our residency program here at SUNY Upstate in 2007. She graduated from Kiev (Ukraine) Medical University 1997. She moved to America in 2002. Marina enjoys studying and learning medicine. She particularly likes to read I. Yalom, F. Perls and V. Satir. Most of Marina's free time is spent with her family; playing soccer, reading with kids, fishing during the summer, and skiing and making snowmen during winter.
	Vijay Phalgoo PGY-2
	Seethalakshmi Ramanathan PGY-1 Seetha completed her residency in psychiatry in Mumbai, India. She followed it up with fellowships in addiction and neurosciences, as well as publishing about schizophrenia and psychiatric aspects of epilepsy. Subsequently, she moved to the US and chose SUNY Upstate as it offered a good blend of neurobiology and psychotherapy along with a good research track. She is currently spending her time planting tulip bulbs, hoping that they will spring to life sometime. She and her husband, Natarajan are looking forward to their first winter in Syracuse.
	Ayesha Rashid PGY-3
	Syed Kamran Razi PGY-3 General/ Adult Psychiatry (Research Track) Kamran joined our residency program in 2007. He plans to pursue a career in Adult Psychiatry and Clinical Research. Kamran graduated from Dow Medical College Karachi, Pakistan. Kamran has done research in the field of genetics of Schizophrenia and Bipolar disorder. He did his research fellowship in the Pharmacogenetics of antipsychotic medications and genetics of psychiatric disorders at Hillside Hospital, a division of LIJ North Shore Health system. Before starting residency at Upstate he did his Post Doc in genetics at SUNY Upstate Medical University. Kamran is in the process of developing his research project titled "Molecular basis of antipsychotic induced metabolic syndrome". Kamran has published several research papers in peer-reviewed journals. Kamran and his wife Bushra have a daughter. In his free time he enjoys spending time with his daughter, reading, traveling, playing cricket and badminton and watching Seinfeld as much and as many times possible.

	Shilpa Sachdeva PGY-3 Child and Research Track Shilpa joined our residency program in 2007. She completed her medical school in New Delhi,India where she was also born and brought up. She came to Syracuse for her residency in 2007 and is currently in her second year. She is passionate about many aspects of psychiatry but it is Child and Adolescent psychiatry that she wants to invest her future in. Some of the many activities she engages in include music, reading, writing, working out and traveling . She loves Syracuse…….the four seasons and the snow ,and is happy to be a part of this program.
	Lindsey Schrimpf PGY-3 General Adult Psychiatry Lindsey Schrimpf joined our residency program in 2007. She enjoys camping, singing, softball, spending time with family, and working with children. She plans to pursue Child and Adolescent Psychiatry with an emphasis in family therapy and would like to work with children and their families as a whole. She would love to work toward a career that integrates psychiatry with school-based programs. Lindsey received her MD at the University of Missouri. She also graduated from the University of Missouri with a B.S. in Biology and a minor in Psychology. In her free time Lindsey loves to travel (favorite places: Colorado in general, Cape Hatteras, NC, London, England, anywhere in Italy, and Cape Town, South Africa) and spend time with her family.
	Sacheen Shrestha PGY-3 General Adult Psychiatry Sacheen is from Nepal and joined our residency program in 2007. His medical school training was at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences in Nepal. He particularly enjoys working in the area of Consultation Liaison and Addiction Psychiatry. His other interests include traveling, being with family/friends, watching movies and various indoor, outdoor and extreme sports.
	Mandeep Singh PGY-2 Adult Psychiatry/MPA Track Mandeep joined our residency program in 2008 and is also a part-time MPA student at Syracuse University. He is originally from Toronto, Canada (GO LEAFS) and did his undergrad in psychology at the University of Western Ontario (GO MUSTANGS). He received his medical degree from University of the West Indies and plans to pursue a career in addiction/forensic psychiatry along with active involvement in health policy at the administrative level. As busy as this may seem Mandeep will still make time for the important things in life such as golf (even though he has no game), experiencing life, and watching his favorite NFL team from Dallas win the super bowl (GO COWBOYS).
	Eva-Maria Theodosiadis PGY-3 Adult Program/Child Track Eva-Maria Theodosiadis joined our residency program in 2007 and intends to pursue Child and Adolescent Psychiatry as a career and is interested in attachment theory. She is originally from Thessaloniki, Greece and was raised abroad as well as in New York City. In addition to her MD degree, she also holds a Bachelors of Science Degree in Psychobiology & Classics: Ancient Greek/Latin.
	David Uderitz PGY-1 ChildPsychiatry Dan joined our Residency in 2009 and is considering a career in child and adolescent psychiatry. He attended medical school here at Upstate over the last four years. Prior to that he had recieved his BA in biology at SUNY Binghamton. Dan enjoys finding fun and exciting things to do in his spare time, whether it be white-water kyaking or having friends over for a card game. He is currently living here in Syracuse with his wife Amanda, who is finishing her education degree, and their dog Gizmo. If you ever need a friend to talk to or go downtown for happy hour with, just give him a call.

	Yajaira Valdez PGY-1 Adult Psychiatry Yajaira Rodriguez joined our residency in 2009. She completed medical school at The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. She was born and raised in Edinburg, TX where all of her family still resides; has never experienced a "real" winter and is looking forward to a white Christmas (we'll see if this changes)! In her spare time, Yajaira loves reading, relaxing, working out, and spending time with friends and family.
	Allison Werner PGY-1 Adult Psychiatry Allison joined the residency program in 2009 after graduating from medical school training here at Upstate Medical University. Prior to medical school she graduated from the University of Rochester with a bachelors degree in psychology as well as biology. Allison was born in Rochester, NY. She spent most of her childhood in a suburb outside of Boston, Massachusetts. For some reason, she couldn't stay away from Upstate New York because she came back for college, medical school and beyond! Other than psychiatry, Allison enjoys spending her time relaxing which includes (but is not limited to!) reading (mainly non-fiction), being outside, and spending time with friends and family including her cat Lizzie. She also enjoys painting which she hopes to get more time for sometime soon!

Our Graduates - Where Are They Now


	Carolina Arevalo General Adult Psychiatry Carolina gradudated June, 2009 and has moved on to a Child Fellowship in New York City. She is from Columbia, South America, and completed her medical school training there. She came to Syracuse for her residency in 2005 after spending two years in New York City volunteering through World Psychiatric Association. She is interested in sharpening her psychotherapy skills for a future career in general adult psychiatry. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband in New York City, visiting friends, going to the movies, and fishing. Carolina is currently in the third trimester of her first pregnancy, and is looking forward to the birth of her daughter later this fall!
	Raman Arora General Adult Psychiatry Raman graduated in June, 2009 and joined a private practice in Seattle. His undergraduate and medical school training were at the University of Sydney in Australia. In his spare time he enjoys a good bottle of wine, spending time with his dogs (and his wife), and coming to work with wonderful colleagues! Words of wisdom that help put our profession and life in perspective—"madness is real".
	Evan DeLucia-Deranja General Adult Psychiatry Evan graduated from our program in June, 2009 and has become part of the Department Faculty.
	Terri (Menke) Hargrave Graduate General Adult Terri Hargrave graduated from our program in June, 2009 and has also become a part of our Department Faculty. She enjoys parenting, doctoring, playing and philosophizing. She is pursuing her fifth career: child psychiatry. She held the honor of being the oldest psychiatry resident (perhaps ever), having graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical School in 1973. Before that she had a brief research career in mammalian reproductive physiology in Edinburgh, Scotland after graduating with a degree in biology from St. Mary's College, Notre Dame Indiana, in 1968. She pursued her first residency (in pediatrics) for two years at Boston Children's Hospital and two years at Harvard School of Public Health (MPH in Maternal and Child Health and Health Services Administration). During this time she began what was to be a long second career in primary care pediatrics in the neighborhood health center setting. She rounded off her pediatric training at the University of Wisconsin Madison with a Fellowship in Ambulatory Pediatrics, then returned to Boston to set up a pediatric and adolescent program in a neighborhood health center there. During the Boston years, she launched career number three (life work #1): "family of procreation": marriage to Kip Hargrave and birth of son Michael (now 24). Shortly thereafter came career #4: the family practice/medical missionary years with Maryknoll in Bolivia, where Maggie (now 22) came to be. Twenty years ago the Catholic "Peace Community" in Syracuse beckoned the Hargraves to live in Central New York and supported them through Terri's complicated twin pregnancy with Gus and Annie (now 19). Terri continued her pediatric education - parenting her four cherubs - while practicing pediatrics at Syracuse Community Health Center. Her husband found his niche in directing Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement. Terri tired of her often-futile efforts to find psychiatric care for her pediatric patients and decided to dedicate the rest of her career toward making Central New York a mecca for Child Mental Health Professionals. Toward this end, she dove into psychiatry residency when the twins went off to college, and has been swimming ever since. She also enjoys biking, hiking, cross country skiing, making music and, above all, being with family, friends and her outstanding fellow residents and faculty.