Current Fellows

Undergraduate School: University of Michigan

Medical School: University of Cincinnati

Residency: Cincinnati Children’s

Hobbies/Interests: Home improvement, running, spending quality time with my husband and baby, traveling, and scrapbooking.

Research/QI Interests: I am interested in Neuro NICU and may be starting a project related to neurodevelopmental outcomes. Additionally, I have interest in becoming more involved with efforts to improve neonatal resuscitation in lower resource settings around the world.

Why NICU? Neonatology is a very fulfilling field! The neonatal period is the most vulnerable time for a chlid's survival, and it is an honor to be trusted by families to care for their most precious possessions throughout their NICU stay and beyond. It is so satisfying to see babies get bigger and healthier and finally get to go home with their families. There is also plenty of opportunity to think critically about all the different organ systems.

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children? As the referral NICU for the entire state, I knew that there would be ample exposure to both common and uncommon conditions. Neonatologists who trained at Riley Hospital would be prepared to take care of any baby! Everyone at Riley Hospital was very inviting and excited about the program. No matter your interest, chances are that there is someone at IU School of Medicine who can help you fulfill your scholarly goals.

Undergraduate School: University of Notre Dame

Medical School: Tufts University School of Medicine

Residency: Categorical Pediatrics Residency at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh

Hobbies/Interests: Outside of medicine, I love being active — my fiancé and I love to bike the trails to local restaurants and breweries. I also love group workout classes and skiing. I’m a huge sports fan — my favorite teams are the University of Notre Dame, all Pittsburgh sports teams, and professional women’s soccer (both USWNT and NWSL — Go Bats).

Research/QI Interests: Currently, I am interested in palliative care and bioethics, especially in the setting of perinatal counseling and parental decision making. I also have an interest in work with extremely premature infants.

Why NICU? I have known I wanted to go into NICU since I was in medical school. I have always been interested in the unique and complex physiology of fetal/newborn medicine. I love that the NICU has a combination of complex medical needs, procedural opportunities, and longitudinal relationships with families.

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children? During my interview, I really connected with Dr. Niehaus’ perspective of fellowship as time of clinical growth and focusing on your passions with scholarly activity. I appreciated the program’s willingness to help us determine our passion for our future career and how we can develop that interest in fellowship. I also wanted a high volume and high acuity program with a level 3 NICU, level 4 NICU, and delivery center where I can hone my skills in various aspects of Neonatology.

Undergraduate School: Case Western Reserve University

Medical School: University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine

Residency: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Hobbies/Interests: I love gardening both indoor and outdoor. I particularly love caring for orchids and currently have about 13 orchids and hoping to add more fragrant ones soon! My husband and I also enjoy cooking together and will try out recipes from different countries. Recently, have been exploring the board game world.

Research/QI Interests: I am interested in fetal and neonatal nutrition (breastfeeding, TPN, microbiome) as well as advocacy focused on improving access to healthy food. Currently, figuring out my specific research project/direction.

Why NICU? I chose medicine because I loved anatomy and physiology. In neonatology, we get to apply our understanding of physiology when caring for patients through the rapidly evolving fetal to neonatal to newborn stages and when caring for unique congenital anomalies. In addition, I love the detail-oriented, collaborative team-based approach in NICU where we can continue caring for patients through their entire hospitalization.

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children? My interview experience! The program leadership reached out beforehand to discuss my career interests and worked to have me interview with faculty who could be potential mentors. On interview day, the faculty and fellows were kind, enthusiastic, approachable, and straightforward. In addition, the program provides a wide range of educational opportunities and has built-in flexibility that allowed fellows to develop their own interests/career. Ultimately, it was the “feeling” and building excitement that I had for the program.

Undergraduate School: The College of Wooster

Medical School: Indiana University School of Medicine

Residency: Indiana University School of Medicine

Hobbies: Reading, running, hiking, skiing, and going for long walks with my husband, daughter, and dogs

Research/QI Interests: I am interested in the NeuroNICU, neurodevelopmental outcomes in NICU patients and NICU follow-up. 

Why NICU? 
I first realized that I wanted to pursue a career in neonatology during my residency intern year rotation in the NICU. During that time, I truly enjoyed working with the babies and learning from such a wide variety of pathophysiology. Babies are resilient, and getting to see some fantastic outcomes after some initially scary situations was so rewarding to me. I also enjoyed getting to know the families and develop relationships with them throughout their time in the NICU. 

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children? 
I got to experience the Riley Hospital NICUs during medical school and residency, and loved all the people who work there. I also appreciated the wide variety of pathologies that are seen at Riley Hospital and knew that continuing my training here would lead me to be a very well-rounded neonatologist. As for the fellowship program, I really appreciated how tailored it is to each individual fellow’s interests and career goals. 

Undergraduate School: Adrian College

Medical School: Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine

Residency: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Hobbies: I think my absolute favorite thing to do is read, preferably non-work-related books, and I tend to be reading multiple books at any one time. I love doing New York Times crosswords, taking care of my plants, and spending time with my dog, Milo. I also have two nephews and a niece that I enjoy visiting whenever I get the chance.

Research/QI Interests: I am interested in breastfeeding in the premature neonates. During residency, I obtained my International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) license and want to continue this avenue within fellowship. I am interested in exploring ways to get more premature infants breastfeeding and ways to support breastfeeding for these infants after discharge.

Why NICU?
Coming into medical school, I knew I wanted to do something with pediatrics. I ended up falling in love with surgery and anatomy so going into my clinical rotations, I was leading towards pediatric surgery. I spent a month on the pediatric surgery service and quickly got bored with the endless appendectomies and hernia repairs. My favorite patients during that month were the NICU surgical patients. I decided to do a NICU elective at the last minute before applying and new within the first week that this was it for me. I felt that NICU gave me a good mix of procedures and interesting congenital anomalies while also having a more long term relationship with my patients/families. 

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children?
Throughout my fellowship interviews, I knew I needed to go somewhere where my breastfeeding research could be supported, since it is not one of the more common focus areas in neonatology. My interview at IU School of Medicine made me feel supported in what I wanted to do and Jason Niehaus, MD, MBA, emphasized that the program would support me and my interests throughout fellowship. He talked about multiple directions I could take within breastfeeding and different ideas that he already had. This support and the ability to focus on my interests was what drove me to choose IU School of Medicine.

Undergraduate School: King University

Medical School: VCOM-Carolinas

Residency: Medical College of Georgia

Hobbies: All things dogs, knitting, travel, and board games

Research/QI Interests: Educational research, NRP, SIM

Why NICU?
I love caring for sick patients. I love the problem-solving that comes with critically sick patients and the rewarding feeling you get when you can heal them. I was drawn to how neonatologists get to see procedures and deliveries mixed with patient care that creates something new every single day.

Why IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children?
It became exceedingly obvious even before my interview day that this program cared for their fellows, and everyone was so kind on my actual interview day. Moving far from home, I knew I wanted to be somewhere I would feel taken care of and felt that from this program. It also has the added benefit of being at a large academic hospital with multiple NICUs to train in.

Undergraduate School: Indiana University

Medical School: Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine

Residency: IU School of Medicine

Hobbies: Water skiing, hanging out with my husband, daughter and golden retriever

Research/QI Interests: Currently undecided but have interest in deliveries, golden hour/small baby unit care as well as breast milk nutrition. 

Why NICU?: I chose NICU because through medical school and into residency I enjoyed learning about congenital diseases and neonatal pathophysiology. I wanted to work in a field where I felt challenged to think critically. Newborns and infants have always been my favorite patient population to care for. I also enjoy the continuity of care that is unique in the NICU, as you can follow a baby from early preterm through discharge and see how they gave grown and progressed and are able to go home.

Why did you select the IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children Fellowship?: After doing my residency at IU School of Medicine, I knew I wanted to stay. I enjoyed working with the APPs and physicians that covered the NICU. Riley Hospital is also a tertiary care center which will allow me to experience and learn from all areas of neonatology. Riley Hospital is also unique in having mother baby/newborn and a high-risk delivery center attached to a level 4 NICU, allowing me to attend high risk deliveries while also covering the level 4 unit. 

Undergraduate School: University of Kentucky

Medical School:  Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine Bradenton

Residency: Indiana University School of Medicine

Hobbies: Traveling, hiking, skiing 

Research/QI Interests: Global health, neonatal resuscitation simulation and outreach 

Why NICU?: I chose neonatology because I’m passionate about caring for newborns during a time when care can have a life-long lasting impact. The combination of complex physiology, high-acuity care, and the privilege of supporting families through critical moments makes the NICU the most meaningful and fulfilling place for me to practice.

Why did you select the IU School of Medicine/Riley Hospital for Children Fellowship?: After completing my residency at IU School of Medicine, I couldn’t imagine a better place to continue my training. The fellowship offers exposure to a wide variety of neonatal pathology across multiple level NICUs, exceptional delivery room experience, global health exposure, and a comprehensive NRP simulation program. Most importantly, the faculty and staff are not only kind and supportive, but also deeply committed to helping us grow into the best physicians we can be. This collaborative and high-acuity environment makes IU School of Medicine the ideal place for me to advance my training in neonatology!