Leadership

Meet the leadership team for the Internal Medicine Residency program.

Michael Parmacek, MD, Chair Department of Medicine

Michael Parmacek, MD performed residency training in Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan. He performed clinical and research fellowship training in Cardiology at Northwestern. Following fellowship training he performed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the HHMI at the University of Michigan. Dr. Parmacek was appointed to the faculty of the Department of Medicine (Cardiology) at Michigan (1987-92). He then joined the faculty of the University of Chicago serving as Co-Chair of the Cardiology Fellowship training program (1992-1998). Dr. Parmacek was recruited to Penn, where he served as Chief of the Cardiovascular Medicine Division from 1998 until 2014. During his tenure, the Cardiovascular Division ascended to the top tier of academic cardiology divisions in the United States. Dr. Parmacek was appointed founding Director of the Penn Cardiovascular Institute in 2005. The Parmacek laboratory is recognized for discoveries influencing understanding of the molecular and genetic basis of congenital heart disease, diseases of the aorta, heart failure and regenerative biology. Dr. Parmacek has been elected to the ASCI, AAP, and he has served on the Advisory Council of the NHLBI. 

Laura Dingfield, MD, MSEd, Vice Chair for Education

Laura Dingfield, MD, MSEd is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine specializing in Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She grew up in Michigan and attended the University of Michigan Medical School (Go Blue!) before completing residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at Penn-CHOP, where she also served as chief resident. She completed fellowship training in Hospice and Palliative Medicine at Penn and obtained her Master’s in Medical Education at the Penn Graduate School of Education. Her academic interests are in curriculum development, implementation, and evaluation. Outside of work you can find her on the tennis court, biking, or at a playground or sports field with her husband and three sons.

Amber Bird, MD, Program Director

Amber Bird, MD is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the division of General Internal Medicine and serves as the Program Director for the Internal Medicine residency program. Her clinical interests are in primary care, as well as educational design and innovation. She directs the ambulatory education and the quality and safety education for the categorical residents and is passionate about finding new ways to engage learners in both traditional and non-traditional methods of learning. Her clinical practice is located at the Edward S. Cooper Internal Medicine practice and she attends on the General Internal Medicine teaching service at PPMC. Her research interests are focused on the use of quality improvement research methods to address inequities in the quality of care delivered in the primary care practices. When she’s not working, you can find Amber running races around Philadelphia or cheering on any of Philly’s home teams.

Peter Klein, MD, PhD, Program Director - Physician-Scientist Pathway

Peter Klein, MD, PhD is the Director of the Physician-Scientist Pathway in Internal Medicine, Professor of Medicine (Hematology-Oncology), and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology. He completed his MD and PhD at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, residency in Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and postdoctoral research at Harvard University. He joined the Hematology-Oncology division at Penn in 1995, was a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator from 1995 to 2005, and has been continuously funded by the NIH since 1997. He has mentored 29 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in his lab, teaches medical, graduate, and undergraduate students, and mentors medical residents and clinical fellows as a member of numerous mentorship committees. Dr. Klein attends on the Benign Hematology Service. His research focuses on Wnt signaling in hematopoietic stem cells and early vertebrate development and on mechanisms of the neuropsychiatric medications lithium and valproic acid.

D. Rani Nandiwada, MD, Director - Medical Education and Leadership Track, Program Director - Primary Care Program

D. Rani Nandiwada, MD, MS is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine from the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine. She went to medical school at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science, primary care residency at New York University where she did a chief year, and an Academic Clinician Educator Scholar General Internal Medicine Fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh where she received her Masters in Medical Education. She is the Director of the Medical Education and Leadership track for the Internal Medicine Residency Program and course directs medical student curricula focusing on health system science and outpatient primary care. She is married to Jay, an intensivist ,who is an avid star wars fan and has a 5 has a five year old, Seetha, who has glitter in her blood, an 18 month old who thinks he is a puppy, a new actual poodle puppy named Potato, who also thinks her son is a puppy. She is a self proclaimed carbaterian (a person who eats carbs), loves watching horrible romantic comedies with guaranteed happy endings, and cracking corny jokes that no one else thinks are funny.

Dava Szalda, MD, Program Director Combined Med-Peds Residency

Dava Szalda, MD is the Program Director of the Med-Peds Program. She grew up in New York and went to SUNY Stony Brook for medical school. She came to Penn-CHOP for her Med-Peds residency and served as the inaugural chief resident for the program. Following her chief year she completed a Pediatric Hematology-Oncology fellowship at CHOP, with focused time in cancer survivorship. She completed the Masters in Health Policy Research Program at Penn, allowing her explore health services for adult survivors of childhood cancer and adolescent and young adult (AYA) oncology patients. She remained active in medical education becoming an Associate Program Director of the Med-Peds Program prior to becoming Program Director. Dr. Szalda currently works in pediatric oncology and serves as an Internist with an expertise in adult survivors of childhood cancer. Her academic interests are in cancer survivorship and transition from pediatric to adult medical care for all patients with pediatric-onset chronic illness. She is involved in several institutional initiatives to improve care for such patients. She is an educator at heart and enjoys teaching, learning from and advocating for students, residents and Med-Peds as a discipline at all available opportunities. Out of the hospital she enjoys spending time with her husband, three sons, two dogs, and taking advantage of the great restaurants, parks, and community in Philadelphia.

David Aizenberg, MD, FACP, Associate Program Director

Dave Aizenberg, MD is a Professor of Clinical Medicine in General Internal Medicine. He is an associate program director with an interest in curricular development, educational innovation, clinical reasoning, and resident advocacy. Born in Brooklyn, he grew up in north Jersey. After attending the University of Michigan for undergrad (GO BLUE!), he went on to NYU School of Medicine. In 2007, he came to Philly for his internship at Penn and has stayed ever since. He sees patients and supervises residents in the Penn Internal Medicine University City Practice and attends inpatient at Penn Presbyterian Medicine Center. In his spare time, Dave loves to immerse himself in the sci-fi/fantasy genre. His wife is a bioanthropologist who studies the impact of olfactory communication in primates, something that helps keep dinner conversations lively, especially with 2 young sons.

Janae Heath, MD, Associate Program Director

Janae Heath, MD is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care. She also serves as an Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program and is a core faculty member for the Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship Program. In the Internal Medicine residency, she oversees the Clinical Competency Committee as well as assessments and evaluation for the program. Dr. Heath’s clinical interests include advanced consultative pulmonology, and her clinical practice is based at the Harron Lung Center. She also attends on the inpatient Pulmonary teaching service and the Pulmonary Consultation service at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where she is lucky to work directly with medical students, residents, and fellows. Her academic interests in medical education include competency assessments of residents, with a particular interest in the overlap of biases within current assessments. When not working, she loves hiking, playing with her dog, listening to podcasts, and checking out the amazing restaurants of Philadelphia.

Farah Hussain, MD, Associate Program Director

Farah Hussain is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine. She completed her undergraduate education at Swarthmore College and her graduate education at SUNY Downstate Medical Center. She completed her internal medicine residency at Columbia University and has been at Penn ever since. She currently attends on the inpatient general medicine services at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and enjoys working with learners at all levels. She also serves as the Director of Planetary Health for the Perelman School of Medicine and has been dedicated to creating an environment-and-human health curriculum for medical students, residents, and faculty. Her academic interests include curriculum development, narrative medicine, planetary health, and resident mentorship. Outside of the hospital, she loves to travel, is an avid reader, and enjoys cooking for her family and friends.

Nadim Mahmud, MD MS MPH MSCE, Associate Program Director

Nadim Mahmud, MD, MS, MPH, MSCE is an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology in the Division of Gastroenterology and the Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics. Dr. Mahmud completed his undergraduate studies at Yale University before pursuing medical school at Stanford University. He then returned to the East Coast for his Internal Medicine residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, followed by Gastroenterology and Transplant Hepatology fellowships at the University of Pennsylvania. An avid data enthusiast, Dr. Mahmud’s research focuses on risk prediction modeling for patients with cirrhosis undergoing surgery, as well as the impact of weight loss pharmacotherapy and bariatric surgery in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Outside of medicine, he enjoys exploring Philadelphia’s vibrant food scene and traveling internationally.

Lauren Mechanic, MD, Associate Program Director

Lauren Mechanic is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine.  She went to medical school at Thomas Jefferson University and  completed her internal medicine residency at Penn in 2017.  She worked as a chief resident at Lankenau Medical Center, part of Main Line Health, from 2017- 2018.  She returned to Penn in 2018 to join Penn Internal Medicine University City (PIMUC) where she sees her own primary care patients in addition to precepting residents and medical students. She also attends on the teaching service at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center.   Her academic interests focus around improving the resident experience in the ambulatory setting.  In her free time, she loves to exercise, sample the many amazing restaurants in the city, and cheer on any of Philly's sports teams.  She's is honored to work with such wonderful colleagues, learners, and patients.

La'Nyia Odoms, MD, MSPH, EdM, Associate Program Director

La'Nyia Odoms is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine. A proud New Jersey native, Dr. Odoms began her career as a math teacher after earning her undergraduate and Master of Education degrees at Rutgers University/Graduate School of Education. She went on to Nashville, attending Meharry Medical College, where she earned her MD, MSPH, and a Health Sciences Certificate. In true primary care fashion, she completed Med-Peds residency—and served as Chief Resident—at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. Prior to returning to the East Coast, Dr. Odoms spent several years in New Orleans as a Pediatrician and Internist and National Health Service Corps Scholar at a Federally Qualified Health Center. Now, in her role as Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program, she focuses on community and cultural engagement, in addition to mentorship and medical education. Her clinical time is spent at the Penn Center for Primary Care; she also precepts residents there and at the Edward S. Cooper Internal Medicine practice. Apart from medicine, Dr. Odoms enjoys soca music and all things Caribbean Carnival, capoeira, collecting sneakers, exploring global food scenes and Louisiana/southern inspired line dancing.

 

 

 

 

 

Stacey Prenner, MD, Associate Program Director

Stacey Prenner, MD is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and also serves as an Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program. Her primary role in the residency is focusing on the inpatient experience and optimizing inpatient education for trainees. She completed her undergraduate education at Emory University and her graduate education at Drexel University College of Medicine. She finished her post graduate training at Penn for Internal Medicine and Northwestern for Gastroenterology and Transplant Hepatology before ultimately settling back in her hometown of Philadelphia. Her clinical interests include autoimmune liver disease and liver transplantation and her clinical practice is based at the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine Gastroenterology and Hepatology practice. She also serves as an attending on the dedicated house staff hepatology inpatient service. She is passionate about optimizing resident education for gastroenterology in both the inpatient and outpatient settings and has also served as a pathway mentor for residents interested in a career in gastroenterology. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her husband, 2 children, and dog child, international travel, and exploring the Philadelphia restaurant scene.

Patrick Sayre, MD, MPH, Associate Program Director

Patrick Sayre is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine. Patrick grew up in Columbia, Maryland, which resulted in an early and lifelong obsession with Old Bay seasoning and the Maryland flag. He completed his undergraduate studies in biology and chemistry at the University of Maryland, where he played trumpet in the marching band and walked backward across campus giving tours to prospective students. He then obtained his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. While in medical school, he completed a Master of Public Health and directed the medical student a capella choir, the Note-a-Chords. Patrick completed his residency training in the Penn Internal Medicine Primary Care Residency Program, after which he stayed on for a chief residency and then joined the faculty. He is a primary care physician at the Edward S. Cooper practice and attends on the general medicine teaching service at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. His academic interests are in curriculum design, telehealth and intervisit care. In his free time, Patrick likes to play board games and explore Philadelphia’s restaurants and beer gardens.

Michelle Walker, MD, Associate Program Director

Michelle Walker is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the department of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism. She attends on the inpatient Diabetes Management service, where she enjoys working with learners of all levels. She is also the Director of Wellness for the Endocrinology Fellowship Program. In the Internal Medicine (IM) Residency Program, she is an Associate Program Director overseeing intern year mentorship, advancement, and recruitment. She also precepts the IM resident diabetes clinic at Cooper Primary Care Clinic. Dr. Walker completed her medical school and IM residency training at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson (RWJ) Medical School in New Jersey. She began her career at Penn in the Endocrinology Fellowship and joined the faculty as a diabetologist. Her academic interests include medical education, mentorship, and curriculum development. Beyond medicine, Dr. Walker enjoys exploring Philadelphia, spending time with friends and family, hiking, and doing jigsaw puzzles (the more pieces the better!).