Faculty

I was born and raised in Illinois, where my family still resides. I attended Southern Illinois University at Carbondale where I studied chemistry, biology and German. I graduated in 2003 from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford, where I was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha. I then ranked Ball Memorial Family Medicine as my first choice of residency because of the wonderful, balanced teaching staff and the broad scope of training available.

After residency I returned to Robinson, Illinois to practice full-spectrum family medicine including obstetrics and colonoscopy. I then returned to IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital in May 2009 as an Associate Director of the Family Medicine Residency. In April of 2013 I was called to serve as the Program Director. My clinical interests include full-spectrum patient-centered care and procedures. I love teaching and enjoy spending time with residents and students.

I met my wonderful wife, Amy, while in Carbondale, and we now have three children, Lauren, Isaac and Samuel. I enjoy spending time outdoors camping with my kids, backpacking, biking, kayaking and playing sports. I also have a background in construction and enjoy woodworking and home improvement.

Being from Muncie, I am very blessed to be part of a top-notch residency program here in my hometown. My education started in the Yorktown school system followed by my undergraduate degree from Wabash College. I returned to Muncie briefly to complete a master's degree at Ball State University. From there, I pursued my Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine.

I was given the opportunity to train at IU Health Ball Hospital and completed my family medicine residency in 2018. During my training, I developed a passion for underserved medicine and decided to work at Open Door Health Services which is a federally qualified health center. After more than four years at Open Door, I was again blessed with the opportunity to come back to the residency as an Associate Director starting in October of 2022. My interests within family medicine are broad. I continue to provide full spectrum care including obstetrical care and procedures. I hope I can instill my passion of medicine into our future family medicine physicians. I not only want to teach but I want to be a mentor for those in training.

My parents have always taught me the value of helping those in need. As a family, we continue to be involved as much as we can helping not only in our local community but also abroad specifically within Afghanistan. The massive immigration that ensued after the Taliban takeover created a huge need to help the Afghan refugees that landed in Indiana. My mother, Bibi Bahrami, was able to create Muncie Afghan Refugee Resettlement Committee (MARRC) with the community’s help financially and through volunteerism. I helped support these refugees under MARRC through the wellness committee as a leader for their medical care.

Outside of work, I spend time with my beautiful family who has always been extremely supportive of my career. My wife, Sohela, and I are blessed to have five children. In order from oldest to youngest they are Bilal, Nyla, Amina, Waleed and Imraan. My other interests include soccer, basketball, table tennis, traveling and grilling.

As a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, I am a lifelong Hoosier. I love the state of Indiana and its people! I studied biology and chemistry at Manchester University, where I graduated with a BA before matriculating to Indiana University School of Medicine. After completing medical school, I was blessed to have matched at IU Health Ball Family Medicine Residency. From the moment I first interviewed here until now (many years later!), this place holds a special piece of my heart. I believe it would be hard to find another family medicine residency that better combines such a strong dedication to learning and academic excellence with a friendly, supportive and collaborative environment that cultivates personal growth. It is my great honor to be a part of this teaching faculty and to be surrounded by top-notch residents from all over the country. My clinical interests include acute and emergency care, inpatient medicine, women’s health, and pediatrics. I love to teach and I am also very passionate about helping residents develop their own unique leadership skills in medicine.

When I’m not at the residency, I enjoy spending time with my husband and two daughters. We are very involved in our church and we love to hike, ride bikes, travel and watch movies or catch a show at our local theatre. We can also be found enjoying our kids’ activities from our camp chairs on the sideline of a soccer game or swim meet or from the comfy seats in the theatre for the latest ballet or musical performance. I can get you tickets!

My journey in medicine has led me right back to my birthplace, here at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital. I was born and raised in Muncie and had a wonderful childhood experiencing the many assets of this great Midwestern town. I took to the hills of beautiful, south central Indiana and graduated from IU-Bloomington before attending IU School of Medicine in Indianapolis. Following medical school, I returned to Muncie to complete my residency training in Family Medicine at IU Health Ball Memorial.

What separates the IU Health Ball Memorial Family Medicine Program is its overwhelmingly friendly and collegial atmosphere. I thoroughly enjoy coming to work and collaborating with all team members of the FMRC to practice full spectrum, patient-centered family medicine. I learn something new every single day. My professional interests include traditional full spectrum care, including endoscopy and obstetrics, and I also have a growing interest in international medicine after a memorable mission trip to Kenya in 2013.

My wife Ashley and I have six children who keep us busy! As a family, we enjoy exploring the woods and creek on our property, building forts for a movie night, summer vacations to Kiawah Island in South Carolina, cooking and baking together, and riding bikes and playing basketball in the driveway. I also enjoy running, triathlons, golf and any…actually, most home improvement and building projects.

Originally from Sarasota, Florida, I came to Indiana because of family ties and to attend Hanover College and then Indiana University School of Medicine. I decided early in my fourth year of medical school that I was staying in Indiana and fell in love with IU Health Ball Memorial FM Residency during a fourth-year rotation. I was impressed by the dedication and enthusiasm of the directors and the high quality of residents as well as the camaraderie that was shared. During my residency, I was active in community education and women’s health issues and served as chief resident during my third year. After graduation, I spent two years in private practice before being asked to return to the residency as an associate director. I have the best job in the world! I have been blessed to be part of such a committed, fun and inspiring group of colleagues & residents – I love coming to work every day!

Professionally, I have interests in women’s healthcare including obstetrics and gynecology procedures (colposcopy, endometrial biopsy, IUD/Nexplanon). I serve as the Medical Director of our Centering Pregnancy program and love being involved with both the residents & patients that take part in Centering. I am dedicated to increasing access to care for the patients of Delaware County and I participate in many community outreach events. I am also involved in the EMR optimization and improvement at the hospital and for the IU Health system, as I feel that we have to continue to strive for excellence in our documentation and quality management. This year I will be serving as the Chair of the IUH Ball Medical Executive Committee and I hope to continue to make our hospital a desirable place to work for physicians. I also stay involved with OB Peer Review and the Women & Children Collaborative in our hospital – I really love being a part of such great committees in the hospital.

Personally, I enjoy spending time with my husband, Kelly, and my daughter, Nora. As a family, we enjoy camping, spending time on the boat, going on family bike rides and just being silly! In addition, I am an amateur potter, so I like to delve into my creative side to get away from daily stressors. I love gardening and any chance I can be outside. I strive to keep a balance of work and family life, as I feel I am a better doctor when I make time to be a better friend, better mom and better neighbor.

I am originally from St. Joseph, Missouri and received my undergraduate degree in medical technology from the University of Central Missouri. I received my degree in osteopathic medicine from Kansas City University in Kansas City, Missouri. I graduated from the IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program and afterwards spent time working at the Health Center at Ball State University and as a hospitalist at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital. Additionally, I have over 30 years of military service and am currently serving as a flight surgeon in the Indiana Air National Guard. I chose to return to the residency center as a director to have the opportunity to teach, learn and work with a great group of faculty, residents and staff. My areas of interest include inpatient medicine and point of care ultrasound. Outside of work I enjoy travelling, sports, fishing, reading and time with my wife, Carrie, and my children, Christopher, Brad, Addison and Katie.

I was born in Indianapolis and raised in Rushville, a small town south of Muncie. After completing my undergraduate degree in biology and Spanish at the University of Indianapolis, I attended Indiana University for medical school. It was during my third-year family medicine clerkship at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital that I began to strongly consider a career in family medicine. After completing a fourth-year elective at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital, I not only made the decision to pursue family medicine but also decided that I wanted to complete my training at IU Health Ball Memorial.

My three years of residency went by quickly. During my intern year, I had the opportunity to participate in my first medical mission trip. After that first trip to Mexico, I developed a passion for medical missions. During my three years of residency, I had the opportunity to make multiple trips to Mexico in addition to trips to Haiti and Rwanda. I also had the unique opportunity to provide disaster relief in Biloxi, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina.

After residency, I initially worked in the emergency department of a small hospital in Greensburg, Indiana. Despite the distance, my heart remained in Muncie. After two years I returned to Muncie to work in the emergency department at IU Health Ball Memorial. During that time I also became involved in medical education by staffing inpatient wards and the outpatient clinic with the residents. I was very excited to make the transition to the faculty as an associate director. I enjoy working with and training the best family medicine residents in the country! My areas of special interest include international medicine, tropical medicine, underserved medicine and urgent and emergency medicine. In addition, I have recently developed an interest in medication assisted therapy (MAT) and look forward to developing that offering at the FMRC.

In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my niece Ella and attending her multiple activities. I also enjoy traveling (especially to Disney), Colts football and IU basketball.

Raised in Ozark, Missouri, I went just up the road to Drury University, where I received my undergraduate degree in psychology, sociology, and criminology. My master’s and doctoral training were completed at the University of Texas at Austin, where I specialized in Health Psychology.

My move to Indiana and my relationship with IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital began with my doctoral internship, where I began to develop my role in primary behavioral healthcare. Throughout time my passion, clinical interests, and advocacy have developed toward gender affirming care, sexual health, and bariatric psychology. Unique opportunities for HIV/AIDS counseling during a medical trip to Kenya provided a capstone to my postdoctoral fellowship as well as a desire to become a clinician on the global level. I am overjoyed that my training path has allowed me to join the faculty as a Director of Behavioral Health where I can teach and learn from the best and brightest in the country. My faculty position has allowed me to welcome a wonderful team of Behavioral Health Residents to join our outpatient clinic that work side by side with the Family Medicine Residents. Outside of the clinic you will find me playing with my rambunctious son, Freydan, and incredible wife, Scottie, or in the workshop creating a woodworking art project.