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The Department of Medicine is celebrating the addition of four faculty members and four chief residents to the Indiana Chapter of Alpha Omega Alpha.

Department faculty, residents among 2024 AOA class

A collection of headshots showing the four Department of Medicine faculty members joining the AOA in 2024. They are (clockwise from left) Francesca Duncan, Lauren Nephew, Sacha Sharp and Glenda Westmoreland.

The Department of Medicine faculty members joining the AOA in 2024 are (clockwise from left) Francesca Duncan, Lauren Nephew, Sacha Sharp and Glenda Westmoreland.

The Department of Medicine is celebrating the addition of several faculty members and residents to the Indiana Chapter of Alpha Omega Alpha. This medical honor society recognizes, advocates for, and inspires physicians in the care of patients and promotion of health, according to its website. Members can be elected at any point in their career, and an appointment reflects their professionalism, leadership and academic or clinical excellence.

Membership is lifelong. Elections are typically announced in August, with formal inductions taking place the following year.

The Department of Medicine faculty members included in the AOA’s 2024 class of inductees are:

Francesca Duncan, MD, MS
Duncan is an assistant professor of Clinical Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Occupational Medicine. She is a graduate of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee where she also earned her medical degree. She completed a combined Internal Medicine – Pediatric Medicine residency at The Ohio State University before completing a fellowship in pulmonary and critical care at IU School of Medicine. Her research interests include health disparities in lung cancer and COPD, as well as medical education surrounding racism, discrimination, and racism in medical education and academic medicine.

Lauren Nephew, MD, MAE, MSC, BA
Nephew is an assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, and she serves as Assistant Vice Chair of Health Equity at IU School of Medicine. She attended medical school at Case Western Reserve University, where she also earned a master’s degree in bioethics. She completed residency at Massachusetts General Hospital; and fellowships in gastroenterology and liver transplantation at the University of Pennsylvania. While at the University of Pennsylvania, she earned a second master’s degree in clinical epidemiology. Her research interests include understanding how the social and structural determinants of health contribute to disparities in chronic liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma outcomes and developing interventions that move patients closer to health equity.

Rafael D. Rosario, MD
Rosario is an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine, specializing in palliative care. He attended medical school Wright State University School of Medicine; completed an internal medicine residency at St. Vincent Hospital; and did a fellowship in palliative care at IU School of Medicine. He now works at Eskenazi Hospital, where he has helped train hundreds of internal medicine residents.

Jack G. Schneider, MD
Schneider is currently an assistant professor of both clinical pediatrics and clinical medicine within the Division of Infectious Diseases at IU School of Medicine. He also serves as the medical director for antimicrobial stewardship at Riley Hospital for Children. His research interests include clinical microbiology, next-generation diagnostic technologies and clinical education. Schneider joined the faculty in 2020 after completing an Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Residency, followed by a combined Adult and Pediatric Infectious Diseases Fellowship, both at IU School of Medicine.

Sacha Sharp, PhD
Sharp is an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine, co-chair of the IU School of Medicine Diversity Council, and an adjunct assistant professor in the program of Africana Studies at IU Indianapolis. She earned her PhD at IU Bloomington with a higher education focus in the Department of Education, Leadership and Policy Studies. She also earned a master's in education and human development from George Washington University. As a medical education specialist, she serves medical students, residents and fellows through educational success initiatives. She also has expertise in curriculum development, program management and evaluation, and provides observations of teaching.


Faculty members inducted as IU Alumni:


Gregory P. Gramelspacher, MD

Gramelspacher is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine specializing in general internal medicine. He earned his medical degree from IU School of Medicine after attending Notre Dame for his undergraduate studies. He completed residency at the University of Michigan and two fellowships at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. Since joining the IU School of Medicine faculty in 1989, he has served as director of the palliative medicine fellowship and director of the Palliative Care Program at Wishard Health Services (now Eskenazi Health). His areas of research include medical ethics; hospice and palliative care, advance directives and end of life care; and doctor-patient relationships.

Glenda Westmoreland, MD, MPH
Westmoreland is an associate professor of clinical medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics. She serves as Director of Geriatrics Education and is the Statewide Communications Competency Director for Interpersonal and Communication Skills. Westmoreland completed the whole of her medical education at IU School of Medicine, including her medical degree, residency and a fellowship in geriatric medicine and health services research. Her research interests include geriatric education, outcomes of curriculum implementation, standardized patient care, and effective medical communication.

 

The Department of Medicine residents included in the AOA’s 2024 class of inductees are:

Martha A. Cancilla, MD
Peter Conrad, MD
Meera F. Iyengar, MD
Sean C. Johnson, MD
Molly Lee, MD
Katherine Makaroff, MD
Eleazar Montalvan-Sanchez, MD
Katie M. Mutke, MD, MS
Parth Savsani, MD