A moving visit to Ho'opono Services for the Blind
Another successful Healthy Keiki Camp!
Mahalo to our sponsors: Hawaii Academy of Family Physicians, Humana, Dr. Ryan Sato, and Sodexho.
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Sean Awakuni Sean Awakuni was born and raised in Waipahu, HI. He graduated from Hawaii Baptist Academy in 2010 and went on to study Biology at Creighton University in Omaha, NE. He was inspired to pursue a medical career after a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, serving patients in a rural area under the supervision of compassionate, skillful physicians. In his year between college and medical school, Sean worked as a certified nursing assistant in home health which strengthened his desire to create long-lasting, meaningful relationships as a physician. Sean will be doing a residency in Psychiatry at the VA Greater LA Health System, Los Angeles, CA. He plans to return to work in Hawaii in the future. Outside of school, Sean enjoys playing with his nieces and nephews, hiking, cooking, and eating poke almost daily. | Eric GreshamEric Gresham was born in Kailua, HI and grew up in Alexandria, VA. He attended Yale University where he earned a B.A. in Economics. After college, Eric spent a year as an outdoor journalist in Puerto Varas, Chile and a consultant in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Eric first discovered his passion for helping others after moving to California to work as a personal trainer. He completed a pre-medical post-baccalaureate program at Loyola Marymount University while nurturing a love for primary care at the Venice Family Clinic. He will be completing his Family Medicine Residency training at the Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii and will be serving in the Army following graduation. His dream is to practice on Big Island. | Florence Kan Florence Kan was raised in Honolulu and graduated from President Theodore Roosevelt High School in 2008. She attended the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and received a B.S. in Biology with a certificate in Spanish. She was inspired to do medicine after working for a local physician and subsequently completed the ʻImi Hoʻōla Post-Baccalaureate Program in 2014. Flo is excited to be staying home for her Internal Medicine residency at the University of Hawaii. Her goal is to be a physician in Hawaiʻi in the future. During her free time, she enjoys cooking, baking, yoga sculpt, hiking, and spending time with her family and friends. |
Sean Awakuni
Eric Gresham
Eric Gresham was born in Kailua, HI and grew up in Alexandria, VA. He attended Yale University where he earned a B.A. in Economics. After college, Eric spent a year as an outdoor journalist in Puerto Varas, Chile and a consultant in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Eric first discovered his passion for helping others after moving to California to work as a personal trainer. He completed a pre-medical post-baccalaureate program at Loyola Marymount University while nurturing a love for primary care at the Venice Family Clinic. He will be completing his Family Medicine Residency training at the Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii and will be serving in the Army following graduation. His dream is to practice on Big Island.
Florence Kan
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Kelli Kaneta Kelli Kaneta was born and raised in Honolulu, HI and graduated from Iolani School in 2010. She went on to receive her B.S. In Biology with a minor in Bioethics and Humanities at the University of Washington in Seattle. During college, she shadowed physicians in the Kapiolani Emergency Department which sparked her desire to work with children. Always open to new experiences and working with others, today she leads the Hawaii Medical Innovation and Design (MIND) Project, which builds a collaborative relationship between University of Hawaii students, challenging them to develop creative solutions to real-world medical problems. She will be completing a residency in the enjoyable and rewarding field of Pediatrics at Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, CA and hopes to return to practice in Hawaii in the future. In her free time, Kelli enjoys hiking, traveling, eating, and spending time with friends and family. | Laura Kurata Laura Kurata was born and raised in Aiea, HI. She graduated from Hawaii Baptist Academy in 2010 and went on to complete her B.S. in Exercise Science from Creighton University in Omaha, NE. She was inspired to do medicine after going on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, where she got to work with a family medicine physician from Wahiawa. Now, five years later, she is following in his footsteps and will be pursuing a career in Family Medicine, with special interests in geriatrics and medical education. She will be completing her residency training at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Laura hopes to own her own private or group practice in Hawaii in the future. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her parents, potlucks with friends, going on walks with her fiancé, Pop Pilates and Fitness Marshall on YouTube, reading and journaling, and eating Cookie Corner, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, and bubble tea. | William LeeWilliam Lee was born in Seattle, WA and raised in Honolulu, HI from the age of three. He is a 2009 graduate of Punahou School. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of San Diego, where he received his B.A. in Environmental Studies with a minor in Chemistry, Magna Cum Laude. His interest in medicine was founded during his time working in his father’s outpatient Internal Medicine/Pediatrics clinic at Kuakini Medical Center. However, he began to fully appreciate the intersection of humanism and the biological sciences during his time at the University of San Diego through his undergraduate research and volunteer/study abroad experiences. He will be completing his residency training in the highly rewarding field of General Surgery at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, surfing, cooking, and spending time with family and friends. |
Kelli Kaneta
Laura Kurata
William Lee
William Lee was born in Seattle, WA and raised in Honolulu, HI from the age of three. He is a 2009 graduate of Punahou School. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of San Diego, where he received his B.A. in Environmental Studies with a minor in Chemistry, Magna Cum Laude. His interest in medicine was founded during his time working in his father’s outpatient Internal Medicine/Pediatrics clinic at Kuakini Medical Center. However, he began to fully appreciate the intersection of humanism and the biological sciences during his time at the University of San Diego through his undergraduate research and volunteer/study abroad experiences. He will be completing his residency training in the highly rewarding field of General Surgery at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, surfing, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.
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Michele Saruwatari Michele Saruwatari is an aspiring surgeon and former professional ballet dancer from Honolulu, Hawaii. She grew up in Manoa Valley and attended Punahou School before moving to the mainland where she graduated from the North Carolina School of the Arts with a concentration in Ballet. She completed her B.A. in Economics at Harvard University's School of Extension Studies while dancing full-time. The daughter of two JABSOM alumni, she credits her parents for demonstrating a love of medicine and dedication to the care of others, while allowing her to carve her own path. Michele will be completing her residency in general surgery at the MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington D.C. In her free time she enjoys dancing, hiking, beach days, and spending time with her family. | Justin ShortellJustin Shortell was born and raised in Haiku on the island of Maui, HI. He is a graduate of King Kekaulike High School (2011), and earned a B.A. in Biology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa (2015). He was inspired to pursue a career in medicine after volunteering with Project Vision, a non-profit, free vision screening service for underserved communities throughout all of Hawaii. These experiences fostered his desire to become an ophthalmologist, with a desire to return to the island of Maui and help preserve and restore the precious gift of vision amongst those in the community he grew up in. He will be completing his residency in Ophthalmology at the Georgetown University Hospital in Washington D.C. In his free time, Justin loves big wave surfing, hiking, playing guitar, escape rooms, and listening to music from the 40's-90's. | Aaron SuzukaAaron Suzuka was born and raised in Mililani, Hawaii and graduated from Iolani School in 2008. He earned his BA in Neuroscience and Behavior at Vassar College in 2012 and worked at Epic as a software tester and project manager. His interest in medicine stems from health issues within his family and was solidified seeing disparities in access to healthcare while volunteering in the community. He will be completing his Family Medicine residency training at Stanford University Programs in San Jose, CA. In his free time, Aaron enjoys running (half marathons, marathons), singing in harmony, eating ice cream, and binge watching Netflix. |
Michele Saruwatari
Justin Shortell
Justin Shortell was born and raised in Haiku on the island of Maui, HI. He is a graduate of King Kekaulike High School (2011), and earned a B.A. in Biology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa (2015). He was inspired to pursue a career in medicine after volunteering with Project Vision, a non-profit, free vision screening service for underserved communities throughout all of Hawaii. These experiences fostered his desire to become an ophthalmologist, with a desire to return to the island of Maui and help preserve and restore the precious gift of vision amongst those in the community he grew up in. He will be completing his residency in Ophthalmology at the Georgetown University Hospital in Washington D.C. In his free time, Justin loves big wave surfing, hiking, playing guitar, escape rooms, and listening to music from the 40's-90's.
Aaron Suzuka
Aaron Suzuka was born and raised in Mililani, Hawaii and graduated from Iolani School in 2008. He earned his BA in Neuroscience and Behavior at Vassar College in 2012 and worked at Epic as a software tester and project manager. His interest in medicine stems from health issues within his family and was solidified seeing disparities in access to healthcare while volunteering in the community. He will be completing his Family Medicine residency training at Stanford University Programs in San Jose, CA. In his free time, Aaron enjoys running (half marathons, marathons), singing in harmony, eating ice cream, and binge watching Netflix.
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Jamie Takayesu Jamie Takayesu was born and raised in Waipahu, HI. She received her B.S. in Biological Sciences with a minor in French from the University of Southern California in 2015, Magna Cum Laude. Her undergraduate research on mesothelioma at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center summer internship program sparked her interest in cancer research. More recently she has begun several projects on outcomes of stereotactic body radiation therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma and lung cancers, as well as treatment outcomes for radiation-induced breast angiosarcoma. She will be completing her Radiation Oncology training at the University of Michigan Hospitals in Ann Arbor, MI and plans to focus on population disparities and women’s health. In her free time, she enjoys travel, reading, and spending time with family and friends. | Jonathan Woo Jonathan Woo was born and raised in Honolulu, HI and graduated from Punahou School in 2011. He attended Chapman University on a scholarship, graduating with a B.S. in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Summa Cum Laude in 2015. He was drawn to the field of medicine after the untimely death of his father and will be the first physician in his family. He is a member of Mensa and enjoys pursuing intellectual challenges in medicine and beyond. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, hiking, and working out at the UH gym. He will be completing his residency training in Emergency Medicine at the Stanford University Hospitals in Stanford, CA to fulfill his calling of serving the critically ill. |
Jamie Takayesu
Jonathan Woo
AOA Visiting Professor: Dr. Mark Tyndall
Dr. Tyndall’s research focus is public health and disadvantaged populations. His current research interests include addiction, poverty, homelessness, drug overdose and drug policy. He also studies harm reduction, including supervised injection sites, regulated drug distribution and nicotine harm reduction (e-cigarettes and vaping) and has an interest in community-based research conducted with the involvement of people with lived experience. In addition to having a nice lunch with the AOA students, Dr. Tyndall gave three lectures at JABSOM that day centered around his experience with the opioid crisis in British Columbia and how physicians can better advocate for their patients. You can see his 2017 TEDMed talk below.
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Takeo Fujii, MD Resident Inductee UH Internal Medicine Residency Program | Kamal Masaki, MD Faculty Inductee Chair, UH Department of Geriatrics | Lynne Saito-Tom, MD Alumni Inductee JABSOM Class of 2010 Obstetrics/Gynecology |
Takeo Fujii, MD
UH Internal Medicine Residency Program
Kamal Masaki, MD
Chair, UH Department of Geriatrics
Lynne Saito-Tom, MD
JABSOM Class of 2010
Obstetrics/Gynecology
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Ryon Nakasone, MD Volunteer Clinical Faculty Award Hematology/Oncology |
Ryon Nakasone, MD
Hematology/Oncology
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About us
Chapter Councilor: Jill Omori (jill.omori@hawaii.edu)
