If you have questions or comments regarding the society, please feel free to email at any time we'd love to hear from you.
Ari Brooks, MD - Faculty Advisor
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Linda Saikali - President
Linda is a 5th year MD/MSHP student pursuing a career in plastic and reconstructive surgery. Originally from West Virginia, she graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BS in Neuroscience and a BA in Religious Studies. At Penn, she also serves as the co-president of the Plastic Surgery Interest Group and has worked closely with the Center for Surgical Health as the Committee Chair for Clinical Operations and Lead PPN of the Plastics/Hand division. She is currently completing a Master of Science in Health Policy Research and focusing on improving access to reconstructive surgery. In her free time, Linda enjoys rock climbing, tennis, baking, and biking along the Schuylkill. Linda can be reached at linda.saikali@Pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Prateek Sharma - President-Elect
Prateek is a 6th year MD/PhD student pursuing a career as a surgeon-scientist. Originally from Michigan, he graduated from the University of Michigan with a BS in Cellular and Molecular Biology and a minor in Applied Statistics. At Penn, he has served on the Penn Global Surgery Group and Oncology Interest Group leadership boards, as an inaugural student fellow for the Penn Health-Tech program, and worked as a Lead Personal Patient Navigator for the Center for Surgical Health. He is pursuing a PhD in Cancer Biology, studying the intersection between metabolism, cancer, and the microbiome. In his free time, Prateek enjoys rock climbing, cooking, and urban photography. Prateek can be reached at prateek.sharma@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Anh Dang - Vice President
Anh Dang is an 4th year medical student applying into vascular surgery. She is originally from Dallas, Texas and graduated from Southern Methodist University with degrees in Biochemistry and Business Management. During her time in medical school, she has served as the President of the Vascular Surgery Interest Group and volunteered with the Center for Surgical Health. Her research interests include medical imaging, vasculitis, and pediatric vascular diseases. She is also active in the medical education technology space and leads digital marketing and community building for the BackTable Podcast Network. In her free time, she enjoys playing volleyball, cheering on Philadelphia sports teams, and spending time outdoors. She can be contacted at quynh-anh.dang@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Henry Del Carmen - Education Co-Chair
Henry del Carmen is a 4th year medical student pursuing a career in cardiac surgery. Born and raised in Managua, Nicaragua, he graduated from Emory University with a Bachelor of Business Administration focusing on marketing and entrepreneurship. During his time in medical school, he co-founded the Penn Latino Surgical Alliance and served as co-president of the Latino Medical Student Association. He also worked as a clinical volunteer at Puentes de Salud. His clinical and academic interests include adult cardiac surgery, mechanical circulatory support, heart transplantation, and surgical education. In his free time, he enjoys playing guitar and drums, running, and solving Rubik's cubes. He can be contacted at henry.delcarmen@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Iulia Tapescu - Education Co-Chair
Iulia is an MD-PhD student pursuing a career in ENT, originally from Romania. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in Biochemistry and Neuroscience, as well as an MS in Chemistry. She earned her PhD in Sara Cherry's lab, where she focused on discovering novel antiviral factors and exploring host-pathogen interactions in the context of infections with pathogenic viruses. In addition to her research, Iulia has been actively involved in clinical research projects, serves as a Personal Patient Navigator at the Center for Surgical Health, and is co-President of the ENT Interest Group. In her free time, she enjoys playing tennis, baking, watching Korean dramas, and playing fetch with her cat. She can be reached at iulia.tapescu@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Ali Thaler - Education Co-Chair
Ali is a returning MD/MBA student pursuing a career in Ophthalmology. Originally from the Philly suburbs, she graduated from Harvard with a degree in Government and Health Policy. At Penn, Ali has been involved with Agnew since participating in the Agnew First Year Summer Fellowship, when she conducted research in surgical oncology. She is also a Surgery Clerkship tutor and anatomy TA. She is interested in innovation in surgery and is currently working on a novel device for oculoplastic surgery. In her spare time, Ali enjoys running, photography, and watercolor painting. She can be reached at alexandra.thaler@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Cindy Song - Mentorship Co-Chair
Cindy is a 4th year medical student applying into cardiac surgery. She grew up in West Windsor, New Jersey and went to undergrad at Rutgers, where she studied molecular biology and biochemistry. During med school, she has been a lead PPN for the Center for Surgical Health, led the CT Surgery and OB/GYN interest groups and Medical Education Club, served as the graphic designer for apenndx and content creator for the Cutting Edge Surgical Review, and performed clinical research in cardiac surgery. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, cooking, and going to farmers’ markets. She can be reached at cindy.song@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Reena Sulkar - Mentorship Co-Chair
Reena is a 4th year medical student interested in pursuing a career in plastic and reconstructive surgery. She is originally from Chicago, Illinois and graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a BS in Biological Sciences. She went on to pursue an MBA with a specialization in Healthcare Management from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At Penn, she also serves as the Mentorship Chair of the Plastic Surgery Interest Group and is on the board of the Association of Women Surgeons. In her free time, she enjoys golfing and spending time outdoors. Reena can be contacted at reena.sulkar@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.
Rohin Maganti - Research Co-Chair
Rohin Maganti is a fourth year MD/PhD student at Penn hoping to pursue a career as a pediatric surgeon-scientist and is serving as one of the Agnew research committee co-chairs this year. He is originally from Dallas, Texas and received his B.S.E in Biomedical Engineering from Duke University. For his thesis work, Rohin is working on the rational design of targeted lipid nanoparticles for the development of novel adult and fetal gene therapies. At Perelman, he has enjoyed serving on the class board and wellness committee, diversity and inclusion committee, pediatric society board, and as one of the head anatomy TAs this year. In his free time, he enjoys climbing, traveling, cooking, and playing and watching basketball.
Keshav Shah - Research Co-Chair
Keshav is a CDYO student from Tampa, Florida who is interested in ENT and is one of this year’s Research Committee Co-Chairs. He has also been on the board of the Penn Global Surgery Group, Cornfeld Pediatric Society, and ENT Interest Group and will be a Lead Block TA for Anatomy (Head and Neck) this year. His research interests primarily lie in the intersection of global surgery and clinical outcomes research. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, watching football, playing chess, and staying active without tearing a third ACL.
Mattia Mah'moud - Outreach Chair
Mattia Mahmoud is fourth year MD/PhD applying into plastic surgery. She is originally from Raleigh, NC and graduated from Harvard College with degrees in Integrative Biology and Psychology. During her time in medical school, she has served as the President of the Penn Global Surgery Group and Association of Women Surgeons. Her research interests include health disparities, risk prediction, and breast cancer prevention. In her free time, she enjoys boxing, traveling and long walks along the Schuykill River. She can be contacted at mattia.mahmoud@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.