About Our Faculty
The outstanding faculty at UNC School of Medicine provide leadership, knowledge, and support to prepare our students for a lifetime of achievement. They exemplify our vision and values, and drive home our mission to improve the health of and wellbeing of North Carolinians and all those we serve. Here are a few of our esteemed faculty members.
Dr. Alice Chuang-Ivester is the Ob/Gyn Clerkship Director and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She is passionate about innovative methods and technologies for medical education, so much so that she recently received her Masters of Education. Much of her research efforts focus on developing, testing, and promoting effective methods for teaching in various clinical settings, in order to best prepare students and residents for true-to-life practice. Specifically, she is interested in the teaching of more practical aspects of medicine, such as practice management, medico-legal considerations, life balance, and team-building, particularly in light of duty hour restrictions. Dr. Schuang was born in Taipei, Taiwan and grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. In addition to her Masters of Education, she holds a BS in Applied Mathematics, and completed her MD and residency at the University of Tennessee, Memphis.
Dr. Rick Hobbs is an Internal Medicine and Pediatrics hospitalist and the Director of Medical Student Education in Pediatrics. One of his research interests is the implementation of mobile technology in medical student education. In 2015, Dr. Hobbs spearheaded the UNC Pediatric Clerkship iPad Project and was awarded a grant to give each student rotating on the Pediatric Clerkship a designated iPad containing textbooks, exam review materials, bedside communication aids, drug references, and more. Dr. Hobbs also has a strong interest in care for the under-served, Latino health, and global and tropical health. He has practiced medicine in many Central American countries and annually leads local practitioners, students and others on a week-long medical mission trip to La Ceiba, Honduras. He has also recently worked to establish a program connecting UNC Pediatrics with the University of Nicaragua in León that will facilitate the exchange of residents and faculty, with the purpose of increasing collaboration with service, advocacy and research projects. Additionally, he is a volunteer physician and founding member of the Board of Directors for the Samaritan Health Center, a free clinic in Durham focusing on the care of refugees and immigrants.
Dr. Anthony Charles is passionate about global health and education, and spearheaded the efforts to establish the Malawi Surgical Initiative, the Malawi Surgical Residency Program, and a state-of-the-art burn center in Malawi. He came to the University of North Carolina after completing his MD at the University of Lagos, College of Medicine in Nigeria, surgery residencies in London and Los Angeles, and fellowship at the University of Michigan. Dr. Charles also holds a MPH from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Dr. Charles is the recipient of numerous awards, including Medical Alumni Loyalty Fund Distinguished Teaching Professor (2015), Best Doctors in America (2015), and the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award (2009).
Dr. Jonathan Oberlander is the Chair of Social Medicine and teaches health care policy to medical students. His research and teaching interests include health care politics and policy, health care reform, Medicare, and American politics and public policy. He recently served on a healthcare task force for the Obama Administration. Dr. Oberlander is passionate about translating the complexity and technical detail of health policy into something more accessible, and he speaks regularly to community groups, medical professionals, and non-academic audiences on health care reform, the Affordable Care Act, and Medicare. He also is the author of The Political Life of Medicare (University of Chicago Press); co-editor of The Social Medicine Reader, 2nd ed., (Duke University Press); and contributor to numerous media outlets, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Politico, and National Public Radio. His recent work explores ongoing political fights over and implementation of the Affordable Care Act, health care cost control, Medicare reform, and the fate of the Children’s Health Insurance Program and Independent Payment Advisory Board. Dr. Oberlander holds a PhD and MA in political science from Yale University, and a BA in political science from UNC.
Dr. Ana Felix is the Co-Director of the integrated Neurology and Psychology block in the Application Phase, and co-leads the development of the Individualization Phase. She is an expert in stroke, TIA in adults and children, neurovascular ultrasound, stroke in young people and women, and hypercoadgulable disorders associated with stroke. Dr. Felix is passionate about moving the field of stroke prevention forward through enhanced educational opportunities and smarter patient care strategies. Her goal as an educator is to demystify the notion that neurology is a “black box”. She is highly active in stroke research, and her current research interests include stroke telemedicine, stroke in HIV patients, Transcranial Doppler in lvlGG, and continuous medical education for stroke care. Dr. Felix serves on the American Heart Association Stroke Council and Mid-Atlantic Research Council, and previously served on a State of North Carolina Task Force on Stroke Prevention. She speaks seven languages and grew up in South Africa. Dr. Felix completed an MB BCh at University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, a Combined Neurology Residency at Boston City Hospital/TUFTS, and a Cerebrovascular Diseases Fellowship at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA.
Dr. T. Deepa Kirk is Director for the MS2 and MS4 endocrinology courses and Preceptor for the UNC Endocrine Fellows’ Clinic. Her primary focus is thyroid disorders, including thyroid dysfunction, thyroid cancer, general endocrine disease, and diabetes. She is active in diabetes research, and serves on the Cystic Fibrosis-Related Diabetes (CFRD) Task Force for Improved Glycemic Control at UNC. She has twice been named one of the Best Doctors in America, and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Penn Pearls Teaching Award (2003) and the Endocrine Society/Genentech Clinical Fellows Travel Grant (2006). Dr. Kirk completed her BA and MD at UNC, and returned as a professor in the Department of Endocrinology after a residency and fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania.
