New Leaders Appointed to The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education Internal Medicine Residency Program

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A pair of longstanding physicians have been promoted to leadership roles in The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education’s Internal Medicine Residency Program. Timothy K. Burke, D.O., has been named Program Director and Rajiv Bansal, M.D., has been named Associate Program Director for The Wright Center’s original residency program, founded in 1976 with just six residents. Today, The Wright Center trains more than 226 physician learners.

“Dr. Burke brings years of experience to this position as well as the admiration and respect of his faculty, staff and residents. He always motivates and delivers. I very much look forward to working with him in this expanded role,” explained Dr. Jumee Barooah, Designated Institutional Official for The Wright Center.

Dr. Burke, who will continue seeing patients at The Wright Center for Community Health’s Mid Valley Practice in Jermyn, began his Wright Center journey as a resident and ultimately chose to remain here after graduation. In past leadership roles, he has served as Program Director and Associate Program Director of the former Osteopathic Internal Medicine Residency Program, which has since become the single-accreditation Internal Medicine Program through Dr. Burke’s guidance and leadership.

Timothy Burke

A graduate of Valley View High School and Marywood University, Dr. Burke is Medication-Assisted Treatment-waivered to care for patients with Substance Use Disorder. In addition, he is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine and a fellow of the American College of Osteopathic Internists. Dr. Burke resides in his hometown of Archbald and is deeply invested in the local patient population.

“I couldn’t think of a better place to practice and teach,” Dr. Burke explained. “I plan to continue to recruit the best and brightest physician learners and to be a role model for them as we train and guide them to be the future generation of medicine. I have enormous shoes to fill in taking over this position from Wright Center President and CEO Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, but I look forward to following her example and being a beacon of organizational pride.”

Dr. Burke will be supported in this role by Rajiv Bansal, M.D., who assumes the title of Associate Program Director. Dr. Bansal previously served as Acting Program Director of Internal Medicine, overseeing The Wright Center’s three-year residencies in Northeast Pennsylvania. He will continue to serve as Director of Hospital Services and as physician-faculty for The Wright Center.

A graduate of Sawai Man Singh Medical College in India where he earned a master’s degree in surgery (ophthalmology), Dr. Bansal worked as a medical officer at Sanjivani Hospital in New Delhi. He then enrolled in the Scranton Temple Residency Program (now The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education) and joined The Wright Center as full-time faculty in 2011.

Dr. Bansal’s career at The Wright Center has been highlighted by his active involvement in our community through volunteerism with the Scranton Red Cross and Moses Taylor Hospital’s HELP Program. He also is the recipient of a physician recognition award with commendation in continuing medical education from the American Medical Association.

“For more than a decade, Dr. Bansal has demonstrated dedication to the patients of Northeast Pennsylvania and loyalty to The Wright Center’s mission of training the next generation of doctors. I look forward to seeing his meaningful contributions continue in this new role,” said Dr. Jignesh Sheth, Chief Medical Officer of The Wright Center.

Joseph Sileo Named Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for The Wright Center

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Attorney Joseph Sileo has been named Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for The Wright Center for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education.

Prior to joining The Wright Center, he served as Of Counsel in charge of the McNees Wallace & Nurick Scranton law office and a partner in Ufberg Sileo Law Firm. Sileo brings 27 years of experience representing both private and public employers across a broad range of business industries, primarily in  management-side labor and employment law, as well as pro bono legal representation and working with local municipalities. He also serves as a frequent presenter on human resources and employment law topics to employers, human resource professionals and industry associations. 

Sileo’s new responsibilities include overseeing, planning, organizing and directing The Wright Center’s legal staff and the legal work of the organization’s Boards of Directors and internal stakeholders. He also will develop and implement the Integrity and Compliance Program for all non-clinical matters.

Sileo earned his bachelor’s degree in pre-law from The Pennsylvania State University and is a summa cum laude graduate of Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

He resides in Clarks Summit with his wife, Susan, and has two sons, Joseph and Jonathan.

The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education Confers Awards During First-Ever Virtual Graduation Ceremony

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The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education celebrated the accomplishments of the 2020 graduating class of residents and fellows on Friday, June 19. During its first-ever virtual commencement, select graduates, faculty members and community partners were recognized for their outstanding commitment to and success within the program. The ceremony, including award presentations, can be viewed at TheWrightGraduation.org. A full list of awardees appears below.

Wright Center for Community Health Board Member Jody Cordaro, CEO of SCE Environmental Group Inc., was honored with the prestigious Bost Award. Named in honor of the late Dr. Charles Bost, an original founder of The Wright Center’s residency programs, the award is given to a community leader who most demonstrates inspiration, guidance and support for The Wright Center’s mission.

“We can never thank Jody enough for lending us his incredible expertise during the COVID-19 pandemic. Jody went above and beyond his board and personal responsibilities to ensure our staff, executives, residents, all employees, patients and families remained safe,” explained presenter Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, Wright Center President/CEO.

Other awards included:
Teacher of the Year (Cardiology Fellowship) – Samir B. Pancholy, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Internal Medicine Residency) – Bojana Milekic, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Family Medicine Residency/Lackawanna County) – William Dempsey, M.D.; Teacher of the Year (Family Medicine Residency/Luzerne County) – Maureen M. Litchman, M.D.; Faculty of the Year (National Family Medicine Residency) – Lori Landes, M.D.; Bost Award – Jody Cordaro.

The Robert E. Wright Award (for Internal Medicine) –  Zaid Tahir Iqbal, M.D.; the Moses Taylor Hospital Golden Stethoscope (for Internal Medicine) – Tapan Buch, M.D.; Outstanding Fellow (Cardiology) – Saurabh Patel, M.D.; Intern of the Year (Internal Medicine Residency) – Jacob Miller, M.D.; Intern of the Year (National Family Medicine Residency) – Larry Wong, D.O.; Intern of the Year (Regional Lackawanna Family Medicine) – Solomon Saul, D.O.; Intern of Year (Regional Luzerne Family Medicine) – Jasleen Waraich, M.D.

Chief Fellow (Cardiology) – Saurabh Patel, M.D.; Chief Resident (Regional Luzerne Family Medicine) – Mandeep Singh, M.D.; Chief Residents (Regional Lackawanna Family Medicine) – Allyson Matthys, D.O., and Vikaash Persad, D.O.; Chief Residents (Internal Medicine) – Kelly O’Leary, M.D., Tapan Buch, M.D., Muhammad Pir, M.D., and Najam Saqib, M.D.; Chief Residents (National Family Medicine) – Jacob Sup, D.O., Katherine Chen, D.O., Aline Sengchannavong, D.O., Vincent Carbone, D.O., and Natasha Khawaja, D.O.

The Society of Teachers of Family Medicine Award – Mandeep Singh, M.D. (Regional Lackawanna Family Medicine); Outstanding Resident Award (National Family Medicine) – Lokesh Goyal, D.O.; COPC Project Award (National Family Medicine Residency) – Vincent Carbone, D.O., and Chukwuka Ojiako, D.O.

The virtual commencement recognized the accomplishments of 60 graduating student learners. Eight of those will stay in Northeast Pennsylvania to continue practicing medicine. The doctors hail from 14 countries and studied in The Wright Center’s internal medicine, regional family medicine and national family medicine residencies as well as its cardiology fellowship program.

The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education Celebrates Class of 2020 with Virtual Commencement

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The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education (TWCGME) streamed a celebration for graduating residents and fellows Friday, June 19, online at TheWrightGraduation.org. The virtual event was designed to accommodate social distancing restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Class of 2020 included 60 graduates from TWCGME’s internal medicine, regional family medicine and national family medicine residencies as well as its cardiovascular disease fellowship program.

Commencement featured remarks and congratulations from Wright Center board members Gerard Geoffroy and Harold Baillie, Ph.D.; graduates and program directors as well as executive leadership, including Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, CEO of The Wright Center for Community Health (TWCCH) and President of TWCGME; Dr. Jignesh Y. Sheth, Chief Medical Officer of TWCCH and Senior Vice President of Operations for TWCGME; Dr. Jumee Barooah, Designated Institutional Official for TWCGME; and attorney Jennifer J. Walsh, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for TWCGME.

Local graduates include: Dr. Graham Yeager, Waverly Twp.; and Dr. Matthew McDonnell, Pittston, both of the internal medicine residency program. Other internal medicine residency graduates who plan to stay in Northeast Pennsylvania to practice medicine or continue their studies include Dr. Tapan Buch, who will begin a cardiology fellowship with TWCGME in July; Dr. Prasanthi Limgala, who will join Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton; Dr. Kelly O’Leary, who will practice with Adfinitas Health at Regional Hospital of Scranton; Dr. Fouzia Oza, who is joining Regional Hospital of Scranton as a hospitalist; Dr. Nirali Patel, who will serve as internal medicine physician faculty at TWCGME while also embarking on a geriatrics fellowship tract; and Dr. Muhammad Pir and Dr. Najam Saqib, both of whom will stay in Scranton at TWCGME for cardiology fellowships.

Licensed Psychologist Joins The Wright Center’s Scranton & Mid Valley Practices

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Originally from Dickson City, Colleen Brown, Psy.D., recently returned to the area to join The Wright Center for Community Health as its first licensed psychologist. Dr. Brown specializes in working with children, adolescents and adults with a variety of mental health issues, but has specialized training with children with severe mental illness as well as those who have experienced abuse or violence. At the Wright Center, Dr. Brown will complete both therapy services and psychological assessments for patients of all ages.

Dr. Brown graduated from Mid Valley Secondary Center in Throop, and earned bachelor’s degrees in psychology and sociology from The Pennsylvania State University. She earned a master’s degree in general psychology from New York University, and graduated from La Salle University, Philadelphia, with master’s and doctorate degrees, both in clinical psychology.

For the past two years, Dr. Brown worked as an outpatient clinician at a private practice in the Cayman Islands. She has worked in a variety of settings in the United States, including community mental health clinics, day/partial hospitalization programming, crisis programming, residential settings, school settings and juvenile detention facilities in Pennsylvania, New York and Delaware. Dr. Brown will see patients at the Wright Center’s Scranton Practice, 501 S. Washington Ave., on Mondays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and its Mid Valley Practice, 5 S. Washington Ave., Jermyn, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. To schedule an appointment, call 570-230-0019.

The Wright Center Receives Over $1M in Federal Funding For Graduate Medical Education Training in Geriatric Medicine & Psychiatry

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The U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has announced $1.05 million in Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program funding for The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education. This award supports threepioneering geriatric fellowship positions for the 2020-2021 academic year, as well as four additional positions in The Wright Center’s flourishing psychiatry residency program, in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

“I congratulate The Wright Center on being awarded funding through the Health Resources and Services Administration to create additional training opportunities in the fields of geriatrics and psychiatry. Since its inception, The Wright Center has been committed to the community it serves. The Wright Center’s physicians in training will gain experiences that they will carry with them throughout their careers,” said U.S. Senator Bob Casey, a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the ranking member on the Special Committee on Aging. “As our healthcare heroes work to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, seniors are our most vulnerable population and mental health services are imperative. This additional funding provides a valuable asset to the community that will help The Wright Center serve our most vulnerable population and respond to well documented mental health needs.”

The unprecedented growth rate of Pennsylvania’s aging population, compounded by an undeniable, primary care physician shortage — including the number of doctors who specialize in the physical, mental and behavioral health challenges specific to seniors — presents a significant challenge to countless families in NEPA.

“We appreciate and applaud Senator Casey’s career long support and advocacy for the health and welfare of our nation and our communities, and also his steadfast support of HRSA’s Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program. We have so much collective work to do when it comes to improving health care delivery for older Americans. We are ready and so grateful for these federal resources to support our related educational workforce development efforts. Our organizational commitment to The Institute of Healthcare Improvement’s “Creating Age-Friendly Health Systems” initiative provides a very powerful curriculum framework to launch our newly-funded Geriatrics Fellowship program this summer,” explained Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, President of The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education and CEO of The Wright Center for Community Health.  

“Given our regional and national shortage of mental and behavioral health providers, the federal support for four additional psychiatry residents is similarly impactful. The Wright Center’s psychiatry residents provide much-needed mental, behavioral and addiction health services in community-based environments, including several regional acute hospital settings and the Wilkes Barre Veterans’ Affairs Medical Center. Increasing our Psychiatry residency training positions from 18 to 22 will expand access to comprehensive mental and behavioral health services for patients and families, inclusive of those in rural and underserved communities,” Dr. Thomas-Hemak added.

Appointments are now being scheduled for The Wright Center’s emerging geriatric service line ahead of its July 1st launch by calling 570-230-0019. The new program has already been recognized by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement as an Age-Friendly Health System Partner for providing a full spectrum of comprehensive, safety-net primary health and support services for seniors. Through individualized care plans developed by a team of providers, now enhanced by the addition of geriatric specialists, The Wright Center serves as a trusted primary health advisor for seniors and their families to support independent living.