Emergency Medicine Residency Program

Welcome

Our Emergency Medicine Residency Program is a combined program sponsored by Case Western Reserve University, the MetroHealth System, and the Cleveland Clinic. Our unique dual site (Cleveland Clinic & MetroHealth) program boasts over 300 successful graduates who currently practice in academic and community settings. Twenty to thirty percent of our graduates pursue fellowship training after graduation. Cleveland Clinic became an ACGME approved second site for our program in 1998. We are a categorical three year program.

Cleveland Clinic main campus Emergency Department cares for approximately 60,000 patients annually. Our residents spend one third of their overall ED time in the Main Campus ED. They gain exposure to a wide variety of patients with diverse, complex medical conditions:

• Medically and surgically complex patients come to our world-renowned tertiary referral center, including those seeking care at the Sydell and Arnold Miller Family Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute. Cleveland Clinic is recognized in the U.S. and throughout the world for its expertise and care. Its heart center is also nationally ranked and recognized as the global leader in cardiovascular care. Our residents also benefit from daily exposure to patients presenting with complicated oncologic, neurologic and transplant-related emergencies.
• A local, urban neighborhood population offers unique challenges and opportunities for personal growth as compassionate providers.
• International patients with complex medical conditions.
• A large community/suburban patient base that reflects the Cleveland Clinic’s evolution and growth in Northeast Ohio.
• Opportunities for involvement with Event Medicine, ED Observation, and exposure to free-standing emergency department practice at our regional sites.

Our residents are afforded graded levels of responsibility, and advance as second and third year residents to manage resuscitation of our most ill patients. They are supported by over 40 board certified Emergency Medicine faculty with publication/research/teaching interests, including Geriatric Emergency Medicine, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Quality and Patient Safety, Critical Care, EMS, and ED Ultrasound. We maintain a minimum ratio of 1:1 attending physician to Emergency Medicine resident on a 24/7 basis. Our residents with academic focus also take an integral role in the teaching and mentoring of medical students in the ED.

The Emergency Medicine residency training experience we offer in the Cleveland Clinic is both complementary and supplementary to the unparalleled experience at the MetroHealth System, a Level One Trauma and Burn Center, and home to one of the busiest aeromedical transport programs in the country. We have a strong, collegial working relationship with our friends on the MetroHealth faculty, and together form a complement of over 75 experienced Emergency Medicine specialists.

Please feel free to contact us for more information.

Warm regards,

John Queen, Jr., MD
Associate Residency Program Director
Case Western Reserve University/MetroHealth System/Cleveland Clinic
Emergency Medicine Residency Program

Contacts

John Queen, Jr., MD – Associate Residency Program Director, QUEENJ@ccf.org
Sandy Najarian, MD – Program Director, snajarian@metrohealth.org
Courtney Smalley, MD – Assistant Residency Program Director, SMALLEC@ccf.org
Matthew Kostura, MD – Assistant Residency Program Director, KOSTURM@ccf.org
Arteshia Hill – Administrative Program Coordinator, HILLA4@ccf.org, 216.445.4590
Katie Shergalis – Residency Coordinator, kshergalis@metrohealth.org, 216.778.5088

About the Program

We are excited to have a large number of quality applicants every year and are happy that you are considering our residency program. Our residency is shared with the MetroHealth System, the busiest Level 1 Trauma Center in northeast Ohio, and Cleveland Clinic main campus is home to the 3^rd busiest ED in the county. Our Emergency Department is currently undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation which is on schedule to be completed in September, 2023. This will help keep us at the forefront of state of the art emergency medical care.

Our faculty are dedicated to teaching and mentoring. Numerous faculty members have won awards for teaching and advocacy. We have doctors that are current and past Presidents of the Ohio Chapter of American College of Emergency Physicians, including the current President, Dr. Bryan Graham. Others are active in AAEM, SAEM, and on the editorial staff for publications such as Emergency Medicine News and the Journal of Emergency Medicine.

Our didactics are second to none, providing resident education via multiple educational models including small group sessions, grand rounds lectures, flipped classrooms, simulation, and hands on skills sessions. Guest lectures include both locally and nationally recognized Emergency Medicine Clinicians. Our Emergency Department has been running the Cleveland Clinic Cadaver Lab since it was created in 2015, offering residents opportunities to practice both common and rare ED procedures. We regularly incorporate simulation cases into resident education.

Cleveland Clinic has a state of the art Simulation and Advanced Skills Center (SASC) offering high fidelity simulations to focus on teamwork and procedural skills as an integral part of resident and student training. The simulation center is located in the beautiful Stanley Shalom Zielony Plaza.

Our Program Highlights

• Training at both residency sites offers a diverse patient population with complex high acuity patients preparing residents to take care of “whoever comes through the door.”
• Newly renovated state-of-the-art 72 bed emergency department at Cleveland Clinic and 90 beds at MetroHealth’s Level 1 Trauma Center ED.
• Cleveland Clinic medically complex high acuity patients:
  • Overall admission rate of 32% (Approximately ¼ of which are ICU admissions).
• Longitudinal Pediatric care at both Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth EDs.
• Comprehensive longitudinal ultrasound program at both sites.
• Residency education tracks for EMS, Sports Medicine, Critical Care, Medical Education, and Ultrasound.
• Outstanding Emergency Medicine Board Certified faculty.
  • Many faculty are fellowship trained in Critical Care, Sports Medicine, EMS, Ultrasound, and Education.
  • Our faculty also hold leadership positions at both hospitals and with state and national emergency medicine organizations.
• Generous stipend for attendance of national and state emergency medicine conferences for all third year residents and other opportunities for attendance at CORD EM and other conferences.
• More than 60 peer reviewed publications in the past three years with ample opportunities for resident participation.
• Superb weekly resident didactic conferences.
• Opportunities to teach students from CCLCM, CWRU, as well as visiting Acting Internship Students.
• 180,000 patients treated per year at both EDs combined, plus additional volume at multiple freestanding and affiliated hospital emergency departments.
• Over 1,000 inpatient beds at Cleveland Clinic Main Campus and over 700 beds at MetroHealth System.
• Residency support facilities at both Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth.
• Excellent employee benefits.

More Information

Follow us on Twitter:  MH/CCF/CWRU EM Residency @MetroHealth_EM.

Follow us on Instagram: MH/CCF/CWRU EM Residency @metrohealth_em.

Visit our affiliate MetroHealth website.

Application Process

Applications are accepted only through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS^®). Our interview process is easy and at the moment conducted virtually to all applicants that receive an invitation. 

Please note that we participate in the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP).

• Visit the ERAS website to apply.

Requirements for Application

• Completed ERAS Application, Including:
• USMLE Step 1 and USMLE Step 2 scores
• Curriculum Vitae
• Personal Statement
• Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
• Three letters of recommendation
  • At least one letter must be written for clinical experiences in an emergency medicine rotation using the SLOE format.
  • Two letters from two different emergency medicine rotations using the SLOE is preferred.
  • Each letter of recommendation must be dated, signed, and on letterhead or in the SLOE format. Date of the letter of recommendation must be within one year of starting residency. For example, a resident starting July 1, 2024 must have letters dated no earlier than July 1, 2023.

If you need help with an application or if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our residency coordinator, Katie Shergalis, at 216.778.5088 or email kshergalis@metrohealth.org, or Artesia Hill, the Cleveland Clinic Administrative Program Coordinator at 216.445.4590 or email hilla4@ccf.org.

Clinical Rotations

Our residency program offers hands-on training in a research-supported, immersive environment. Residents gain exposure to a diverse patient population during their ED blocks with shifts at both Cleveland Clinic Main Campus and MetroHealth Emergency Departments. Additionally, residents are well-supported during off-service rotations to gain in-depth knowledge of Emergency Medicine subspecialities and procedural skills.

Emergency Medicine Year 1

Objectives:

• Orientation to get our residents off on to a great start, including the cornerstone series, Police Academy and Fire School training.
• Focus on acquiring skills and sound knowledge base.
• Gain broad exposure to principles and practice of emergency medicine.
• Receive instruction by working directly with attending physicians in the Emergency Department.

Emergency Medicine Year 2

Objectives:

• Focus on critically ill and injured patients in the Emergency Department.
• Focus on development of critical care and lifesaving skills on off-service rotations.

Emergency Medicine Year 3

Objectives:

• Focus on issues unique to emergency medicine.
• Directly manage critically ill and/or injured patients.
• Learn direction and management of patient flow in the Emergency Department.
• Job Placement assistance and Fellowship Application for those going on with additional training.

Teaching Faculty

Residency Leadership

Bradford Borden, MD
Department Chair

Steve Meldon, MD
Academic Chair

Sandy Najarian, MD
Program Director - MetroHealth

John Queen, MD
Associate Program Director - Cleveland Clinic

Matthew Kostura, MD
Assistant Program Director - Cleveland Clinic

Courtney Smalley, MD
Assistant Program Director - Cleveland Clinic

Arteshia Hill
Administrator Program Coordinator

Katie Shergalis
Residency Coordinator

Core Faculty

• Steven Dorsey, MD
  Assistant Medical Director Main Campus ED
• Matthew Kostura, MD
  Assistant Program Director
• Stephen Meldon, MD
  Co-director Geriatric ED
• John Queen, MD
  Associate Program Director
• Courtney Smalley, MD
  Assistant Program Director, Ultrasound Director

Teaching Faculty

• Eric Anderson, MD
  International Operations
• George Asaad, DO
  Associate Patient Experience Officer, Emergency Services
• Christopher Bazzoli, MD
  FAWM, DiMM - Wilderness EMS
• Achilles Bebos, MD
  Co-Director of Simulation Cadaver Lab
• Saurin Bhatt, MD
  Director of Off-Service Residents
• Steven Blaha, MD
  Director Billing/Coding
• Eric Brader, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Lucy Franjic, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Marina Freiberg, MD
  Faculty Critical Care
• Bruce (Bryan) Graham, MD
  Medical Director of Virtual Emergency Medicine
• Travis Gullett, MD
  Associated Medical Director Critical Care Transport
• Dennis Guy, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Bachar Hamade, MD
  Faculty Critical Care
• Gregory Haun, DO
  International Operations
• Danielle Hoover, DO
  Clinical Staff
• Rafi Israeli, MD
  Director of Mobile Emergency Response Team
• Heather Jimenez, MD
  Director of Pediatric Education
• Venkatesh Kamphampati, MD
  Director of Medical Student Rotations, AI Director
• Damon Kralovic, DO
  International Operations
• Joshua Kubit, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Valerie Lopez, MD
  ESI Scheduling Officer
• Donald Moffa, MD
  International Operations
• James Morrison, MD
  Faculty Critical Care, Co-Chair Enterprise Steering Committee
• Samuel Perry, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Michael Phelan, MD
  Research Director
• Brittany Rooney, MD
  Assistant Director of Ultrasound
• Sean Roth, DO, DPM, MBA
  Director of Education, Associate Director of Research
• James Sauto, MD
  Director of EMS Education, Co-Director of Simulation Cadaver Lab
• Susan Schardt, MD
  Clinical Staff
• Somy Thottathil, MD
  Medical Director of the Forensic Nursing Program
• Kelsey Vargas, MD
  Chair of Residency Clinical Competency Committee
• Thomas Waters, MD
  Medical Director Main Campus

Current Residents

Class of 2025

Aaron Cain, DO
Ohio University

Neal Carr, MD
Case Western Reserve University

Matthew Carvey, MD
St. George's University

Paul Dreher, MD
Case Western Reserve University

Austin Hillman, MD
Rush Medical College

Jennifer Taylor, MD
University of Cincinnati

James O'Hora, MD
University of New Mexico

Tia Rahman, MD
University of Toledo

Catherine Rowbottom, DO
Ohio University

Hannah Seyller, MD
University of Illinois

Palguna Thalla, MD
University of Toledo

Elda Tutic, DO
Lake Erie College

John Zucal, MD
Wright State University

Class of 2026

Elissa Bailey, MD
St. George's University

John Bennison, DO
Ohio University

Josh Coovert, MD
NEOMED

Hayley Drlik, MD
NEOMED

Nikhil Grandhi, DO
University of Pikeville - Kentucky

Halle Kotchman, MD
Case Western Reserve University

Joey Lenkey, MD
Indiana University

Eric Lewis, DO
Lake Erie College 

Jacob Mehalik, DO
Alabama College

Marissa Murthy, DO
Ohio University

Scott Spalding, DO
Touro University of Nevada

Kinda Sweidan, MD
American University of Beirut

Matt Youngman, DO
Kansas City University

Class of 2027

Tiffany Aliberti
NEOMED, MD

Nick Bourque, DO
Ohio University

Sarah Condio, DO
Idaho College

Christopher Davis, DO
Philadelphia College

Bryce Fetterman, MD
NEOMED

Laine Goff, MD
NEOMED

Dayton Hardway, DO
Ohio University

Darpan Kaur, MD
University of Toledo

Cory Ohradzansky, DO
Ohio University

Sierra Ohrn, DO
Liberty University

Emily Hessler, DO
Ohio University

Nicole Weis, MD
University of Toledo

Jacob Welch, DO
Idaho College

Chief Residents

Thank you for your interest in the MetroHealth/Cleveland Clinic/Case Western Reserve University Emergency Medicine Residency! Our 3-year residency program is unique in many ways, and we believe that it trains some of the best, most well-rounded, and most experienced EM physicians that are fit to work in any setting after graduation.

Our program is rare in that we train at both MetroHealth, a county hospital and busy trauma center, and at Cleveland Clinic Main Campus, an academic quaternary referral center. We spend roughly 60% of our ED time at MetroHealth and 40% of our time at Cleveland Clinic Main Campus Emergency Department. Our dual-site training offers us very distinctive experiences in providing care “from county to quaternary and everything in between”.

The MetroHealth System is a nationally recognized “safety net”, county hospital, Northeast Ohio’s preeminent Level 1 Adult and Level 2 Pediatric Trauma Center, and the region's only burn center. MetroHealth is one of the busiest emergency departments in the country, and we care for some of the highest acuity trauma and burn patients and gain an intimate understanding of social determinants of health while caring for the underserved populations of Northeast Ohio. We also rotate through MetroHealth’s Medical ICU, Medical Stepdown Unit, and Cardiac ICU at Main Campus, and we work ED shifts at our community sites as well.

The Cleveland Clinic serves as our other main clinical site and is a world-renowned hospital system that is ranked 2nd in the nation overall. The Cleveland Clinic cares for the most medically complex patients in the world, and we are lucky enough to participate in their care. The ED is often the first interaction for some of these patients who travel from all over the world to seek Cleveland Clinic’s expertise. It is another high-volume ED where we care for a very wide range of pathology. A typical shift could include the “bread-and-butter” of emergency medicine, complex cancer, transplant and LVAD patients, pediatric patients, and the “zebras” or rare cases that you read and learn about in medical school. We also rotate at Cleveland Clinic Main Campus’ Neuro ICU and Pediatric ICU and two of Cleveland Clinic’s regional Pediatric Emergency Departments at Hillcrest Hospital and Fairview Hospital.

Another unique aspect of our program is that we provide an aeromedical experience with Metro Life Flight. As PGY-3s, we serve as the sole provider on the helicopter responding directly to the scene of accidents or other emergencies and managing complex patients during inter-hospital transfers throughout the surrounding area.

We truly believe our program provides unmatched training, and it is our goal to continue this legacy. Our goal is to graduate competent, caring, hardworking and tenacious EM physicians who are fit to work in any setting and care for anything that is brought through the door.

While we are proud of our training, what we all love most about our program is the people. You will make lifelong friends with your co-residents, attendings, nurses, medics, social workers, etc. Residency is tough, but it’s made better when you work with a great team that you love and trust.

Looking forward to meeting you!

All the best,
The 2024-2025 Chief Residents
Austin, Catie, Paul, and Aaron

Follow on social media:

• Instagram (@metrohealth_EM and @mhlifeflight).
• Twitter (@MetroHealth_EM).

Resident Life

Cleveland is a wonderful place to live, train, and raise a family in addition to being a very affordable city. Cleveland hosts professional sports teams in football, baseball, and basketball, a world renowned orchestra, excellent museums, and a bustling theater district.

Our residents work hard, caring for some of the most critical and complex emergency patients in Cuyahoga County, and as a reward, they can relax, enjoy the outdoors, catch a game, or a show.

If food is important to you, Clevelanders will tell you we are a great city for restaurants. Time Magazine ranked Cleveland #7 for great places to eat, citing the historic West Side Market.

Driving and commuting in Cleveland is easy, thanks to a robust and well planned highway system. In addition, our two hospitals are only five miles apart from each other. As a resident with us, you will not spend too much time driving.

The four seasons are wonderful to experience. Not only will you learn to care for patients with seasonal problems, but our residents get to enjoy the outdoors with the full variety of what nature has to offer. Whether skiing or sledding in the winter, or swimming or boating in the summer, there is always something to do in the CLE.

Resident Life

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Living in Cleveland

Cleveland, an ethnically diverse, mid-sized city located on Lake Erie, features a host of cultural attractions, recreational activities, major sporting events and an exploding culinary scene. Cleveland is home to the second largest theater district in the U.S., a park system featuring 23,700 acres in 18 reservations, and is the birthplace of rock ’n’ roll, home to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Cleveland Clinic is located near the University Circle area, which is the cultural epicenter of Cleveland. This area features Severance Hall and the world-renowned Cleveland Orchestra, the Cleveland Museum of Art, several other museums, and Case Western Reserve University. Downtown Cleveland, home to all major sports venues and an exploding culinary scene, is approximately two miles from Cleveland Clinic’s main campus.

• Learn more about the city we call home.

Medical Students

Cleveland Clinic offers an ED rotation site for third year medical students at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and students at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM).

Learn more about medical student opportunities.