Pediatric Residency Program at
The Children's Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center

About the Faculty

Margaret Fisher, MD
Chair

Dr. Margaret Fisher is a world renowned pediatric infectious disease consultant. She finished her residency and fellowship at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, in Philadelphia, and is a Professor of Pediatrics at Drexel University College of Medicine. Dr. Fisher’s curriculum vitae includes chapters in Nelson’s Textbook of Pediatrics (18th edition), Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea; Other Anaerobic Infections; and she served as editor-in-chief for Immunizations & Infectious Diseases; An Informed Parent’s Guide (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2006). She also served on the Committee on Infectious Disease and wrote the chapter on Infection Control and Prophylaxis in the Red Book (27th edition, 2006).

Renuka Verma, MD
Residency Program Director

Dr. Renuka Verma finished her residency at Monmouth Medical Center. She completed her fellowship training in infectious disease at State University of New York Stony Brook and has served as director of Pediatric Infectious Disease at Monmouth Medical Center.

Subspecialties

Adolescent Medicine

Keren Phillips, MD
Medical School  SUNY Health Science Center of Syracuse School of Medicine
Residency   Children’s Hospital of New York Presbyterian – Columbia Presbyterian Medical School
Fellowship North Shore University Hospital, Manhasset, NY

Allergy

Gary Gross, MD
Medical School: New York University
Residency: National Medical Center, Washington, DC
Fellowship: University of South Carolina, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles

Frank Piccone, MD
Medical School: University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, NJ
Residency: Jackson Memorial Hospital
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Boston, MA

Ellen Sher, MD
Medical School: Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Fellowship: National Jewish Center, Denver

Cardiology

Lloyda Rivera, MD (chief)
Medical School: University Central del Caribe
Residency: San Juan City Hospital
Fellowship: Long Island Jewish - Hillside Medical Center

Nakul Chandra, MD
Medical School: Royal College of Physicians, UK
Residency: Tufts New England Medical School, Boston, MA
Fellowship: Down State Medical Center New York

Mitchell Alpert, MD
Medical School: University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, NJ
Residency: UMDNJ – University Hospital/Children’s Hospital of New Jersey
Fellowship: New York University Medical Center

Elsa Castro, MD
Medical School: Universidad de Monterrey, Mexico
Residency: Driscoll Children’s Hospital, Corpus Christi, Texas
Fellowship: Temple University/St. Christopher’s Hospital (1st and 2nd year Fellow)
Mount Sinai Medical Center (3rd year Fellow)

Maria Umali-Pamintuan, MD
Medical School: University of Santo Tomas, Philippines
Residency: Jersey Shore University Medical Center
Fellowship: Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center

Vincent Zales, MD
Medical School:  CETEC University School of Medicine, Santo Domingo, RD
Residency:  University of Minnesota Hospital, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Fellowship:  University of Minnesota Hospital, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Critical Care

Siva Jonna, MD (chief)
Medical School: S.V. Medical College, India
Residency: Howard University Hospital Washington DC
Fellowship: Georgetown University Hospital Washington DC

Edmund  Goroza, MD
Medical School: De La Salle University College of Medicine, Philippines
Residency: General Pediatrics, St. Barnabas Hospital-New York Presbyterian Health System, Bronx, NY
Fellowship: Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Schneider Children’s Hospital-North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, New Hyde Park, NY

Joseph Dallessio, MD
Medical School: St. George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada, West Indies
Residency:  Pediatrics Residency Program, University of south Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, FL
Fellowship:  Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Fellowship, University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami, FL.

Bhavani Chalikondra, MD
Medical School: Rangaraya Medical College, India
Residency: Lutheran General Children’s Hospital, Illinois
Fellowship: Lutheran General Children’s Hospital and L.S.U. School of Medicine, Louisiana.

Shonnola DaSilva, MD
Medical School: Jos University School of Medicine
Residency: Overlook Hospital
Fellowship: Montefiore Medical Center

Christoph Onghemach, MD
Medical School: Medical School of Ludwig-Maximiliane University Residency: Main Medical Center, Main
Fellowship: University of North Carolina School of medicine, Chapel Hill, NC

Chiong The, MD
Medical School: University of West Indies
Residency: Howard University hospital/District of Columbia General Hospital, Washington, DC
Fellowship: Jackson Memorial Hospital/University of Miami Medical Center, Miami, FL

Dentistry

Michelle, Ziegler, DDS, Residency Program Director
University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine
Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery
New York University College of Dentistry, Doctorate of Dental Surgery

Developmental and Behavior Pediatrics

Yvette Janvier, MD
Medical School: Warsaw Medical School, Poland
Residency: Monmouth  Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick, NJ
Fellowship: New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center

Richard Reutter, MD (chief)
Medical School: Hahnemann University
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center

Emergency

Cecilia Jacome, MD (chief)
Medical School: University of Ecuador
Residency: Mount Sinai Hospital, NY
Fellowship: Mount Sinai Hospital, NY

Laura Snyder, MD
Medical School: University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, NJ
Residency: Emergency Medicine, Brown University, Rhode Island Fellowship: Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Hasbro Children’s Hospital, Brown University, Rhode Island

Endocrinology

Michael Barrows, DO
Medical School: University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Osteopathic Medicine, NJ
Residency: Jersey Shore Medical Center, NJ
Fellowship: University of North Carolina

Kirk Kerensky, MD
Medical School: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Residency: Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh

ENT

Michael Tavil, MD
Medical School: Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Residency: Hospital of University of Pennsylvania

Darsit Shah, MD
Medical School: Medical College of Pennsylvania
Residency: Mount Sinai Hospital

Eric Winarsky, MD
Medical School: University of Liege, Belgium
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ

Vin Prabhat, MD
Medical School: Cornell University Medical College
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ

Gastroenterology

Jonathan Teitelbaum, MD
Medical School: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Residency: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

Hematology/Oncology

Peri Kamalakar, MD (chief)
Medical School: Guntur Medical College
Residency: Newark beth Israel Medical Center, Newark, NJ
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY

Natalie Apollonsky, MD
Medical School: Pavlov State Medical University, St. Petersburg
Residency: Mount Sinai School of Medicine (Elmhurst Program)
Fellowship: Schneider Children’s Hospital

Anna Sechser Perl, MD
Medical School:  University of Zurich, Faculty of Medicine
Residency: Miami Children’s Hospital, Miami, FL
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA

Infectious Disease

Margaret C. Fisher, MD
Medical School: UCLA School of Medicine
Residency: St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children
Fellowship: St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children

Renuka Verma, MD (chief)
Medical School: SP Medical College, India
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center
Fellowship: SUNY Stony Brook

In Patient Care

Richard DeGroote, MD
Director Inpatient Services
Medical School:  Fordham University, Roosevelt Campus, Bronx, NJ
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ

Janice Lichtenberger, MD
Medical School: SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Residency:  Mount Sinai School of Medicine

Genetics

Franklin Desposito, MD    
Medical School: Chicago Medical School
Residency: Long Island Jewish
Fellowship: Hematology/ University Wisconsin

Neonatology

Susan Hudome, MD. (chief)
Medical School: Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, PA
Residency: Duke University (chief resident), Arkansas Children’s Hospital
Fellowship: Penn State University, Hershey, PA

Carlos Alemany, MD
Medical School: Ponce School of Medicine
Residency: University of Texas, San Antonio, TX
Fellowship: Brown University

Dianne Attardi, MD
Medical School: Hahnemann University
Residency: St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children
Fellowship: Thomas Jefferson University

Kirby Rekedal, MD
Medical School: University of Maryland
Residency: Johns Hopkins University
Fellowship: Yale University

Thomas Habib, MD
Medical School: University of Toledo School of Medicine
Residency: Hope Children’s Hospital, Chicago, ILL.

Nephrology

Anup Singh, MD
Medical School: De La Salle University/University of the Philippines
Residency and Fellowship: Children’s Medical Center of Brooklyn State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn

Neurology

Shirley Fisch, MD
Medical School: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University
Residency: Babies Hospital –Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center
Fellowship: New York Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia Campus

Child Psychology

Charles Katz, PhD
Medical School: Teachers College Columbia University
PhD: University of Connecticut

Pulmonology

Robert Zanni, MD (chief)
Medical School: Autonomous University of Guadalajara
Residency: Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ
Fellowship: Hahnemann University

Eduardo Sembrano, MD
Medical School:  University of the Philippines, Manila, Philippines
Residency: Mt. Sinai Services, Elmhurst Hospital Center
Fellowship: Mt. Sinai School of Medicine

Surgery

I. Thomas Cohen, MD (chairman)
Medical School: University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Residency in General Surgery: Johannesburg General Hospital and University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Specialty Rotation: Hammersmith Hospital and Royal Postgraduate Medical School, London, and St. Peter’s Hospital, Chertsey, Surrey, United Kingdom
Fellowship in Pediatric Surgery: Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital and University of Cape Town and Transvaal Memorial Hospital for Children and University of the Witwatersrand
Fellowship in Pediatric Surgical Oncology: The Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and University of Southern California

Urology

Michael Fleischer, MD
Medical School: SUNY Downstate Med Center
Residency: SUNY
Fellowship: Montefiore Medical Center

Thomas Vates III, MD
Medical School: Georgetown University
Residency: Cleveland Clinic and University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, NJ
Fellowship: Children’s Hospital of Michigan

Ophthalmology

Lawrence Turtel, MD
Medical School:  Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, NY
Internship:  Beth Israel Medical Center, NY
Residency:  St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center, NY
Fellowship:  Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, NY

Ilene Pardon, MD Medical School: Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, NY
Internship:  Jersey Shore Medical Center
Residency: Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, NY
Fellowship:  Wills Eye Hospital, Philadelphia, PA

Pediatric Orthopedics

Lawrence Stankovits, MD
Medical School:  University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH
Residency:  Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, NJ
Fellowship:  AI Dupont Institute Hospital for Children, Wilmington, DE

Child Psychiatry

Sajjad Zaidi, MD
Medical School:  Kakatiya Medical College, Warangal, India
Internship:  Osmania General Hospital, India
Residency in Psychiatry: Columbia University, New York City
Middletown Psychiatric Center, Middletown, NY
Fellowship Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: New York Medical College
Westchester County Medical Center Valhalla, NY

General Pediatrics

• Paul Abreu, MD
• Shelby Appulingam, MD
• Kristin Atienza, DO
• Geeta Badami, MD
• Thomas Baumlin, MD
• Jocelyn Bautista, MD
• Jean Berghaus, MD
• Vanda Bruner, MD
• Jaqueline Brunetto, MD
• Andrew Burstiner, MD
• Vaman Chaubal, MD
• Ken Chazen, MD
• Shaw Condiotte, MD
• Melanie Cotenoff, MD
• Charita Csiky, MD
• Lea David, MD
• Maria Dawas, MD
• Nancy Deacon, DO
• Luisa del Castillo, MD
• Nancy DeNicola, DO
• Mrunalini Donde, MD
• Joel Edman, MD
• Barabara Engel, MD
• Jennifer Engel, MD
• Paul Farrell, MD
• Mary  Fury, DO
• Maria Gulli, MD
• Peter Halas, MD
• Debra Harmady, MD
• Harvey Hirsch, MD
• Hector Iglesias, MD
• Julie Isaason, MD
• JoAnn Jordan, MD
• Alex Liwag, MD
• Kirk Kerensky, MD
• Sudhaka Kharody, MD
• Sowmini Kommireddi, MD
• Sheryl Leidecker, MD
• Moshe Levy, MD
• Alfred Lipp DO
• Prakash Lothe,MD
• Mary Lutz, MD
• Elenito Maddatu, MD
• Mae Maddatu, MD
• Michael Markoff, MD
• Deepti Mehra, MD
• Maria Micale, DO
• Bernadette Miguelino, MD
• Steve Mlller, DO
• Kusum Mohan, MD
• Robert Morgan, MD
• Robert Murphy, MD
• Golam Noaz, MD
• Debra O’Brien, MD
• Thomas O’Brien, MD
• Olukemi Omotoso, MD
• Theresa Paladino, MD
• Rocco Pascucci, MD
• Arvind Patel, MD
• Liza Protasis, MD
• Karunambal Rajaraman MD
• Ravi Rajaraman, MD
• Darrell Rigatti. MD
• Kelly Rodgers, MD
• Neal Ruda, MD
• Bindoo Rughani-Shah, MD
• Glenn Salcedo, MD
• Emilia Santa-Maria-Lucero, MD
• Elias Sasson, MD
• Ellen Setton, MD
• Christine Sheehan, DO
• Tatyana Shkolnaya, MD
• Stephen Shroyer, MD
• Judith Topilow, MD
• Mary Jane Torres, MD
• Brian Truxal, MD
• William Wassel, MD
• Jeffrey Wolfe, MD
• Joshua Wolpert, MD
• Jessica Wood, DO
• Grace Yia, MD
• Hatidza Zunic, MD

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