First Year Fellows

Joshua Clark, MD

Undergraduate:University of Michigan
Medical School:University of Toledo
Residency Program: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest:
joshua.clark@unchealth.unc.edu

Emily Gosche, MD

Undergraduate:Washington University in St. Louis
Medical School: Virginia Commonwealth University
Residency Program: University of Colorado
Research Interest:
emily.gosche@unchealth.unc.edu

Kristian Figueras, MD

Undergraduate:Tulane University
Medical School: Ponce Health Sciences School of Medicine
Residency Program:University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest:
kristian.figueras@unchealth.unc.edu

Arhant Rao, MD

Undergraduate: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Medical School: Albany Medical College
Residency Program:Tufts Medical Center
Research Interest:
arhant.rao@unchealth.unc.edu

Maura Thornton, MD

Undergraduate:University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Medical School: Georgetown University
Residency Program: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest:
maura.thornton@unchealth.unc.edu

Second Year Fellows

Padraig Hawkins, MD, PhD

Medical School: National University of Ireland, Galway
Residency Program: Royal College of Physicians, Ireland
Pulmonary fellowship: Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
Research interests: cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, rare lung diseases, mucus biology
padraig.hawkins2@unchealth.unc.edu

Aaron Lerner, MD

Undergraduate: University of California, Berkeley
Medical School: Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Residency Program: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest: Palliative care in the ICU
aaron.lerner@unchealth.unc.edu

Divyesh Mehta, MD

Undergraduate: Brigham Young University
Medical School: The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Residency Program: The Ohio State University, Combined Emergency Medicine/Internal Medicine Program
Research Interests: COPD, Medical Education, Vasculitis, Pulmonary Hypertension
divyesh.mehta@unchealth.unc.edu

Ryan Threadgill, MD

Undergraduate: Abilene Christian University
Medical school: University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio School of Medicine
Residency program: Oregon Health & Science University, Internal Medicine
Research Interest: Non-tuberculous mycobacteria
ryan.threadgill@unchealth.unc.edu

Tai “Mary” Wang, MD

Undergraduate: University of Washington
Medical school: Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Residency program: Baylor College of Medicine
Research Interest: Lung transplantation, Medical Education
tai.wang@unchealth.unc.edu

Danielle Witt, MD

Undergraduate: Truman State University
Medical School: University of Missouri-Kansas City
Residency: University of Alabama
Research Interest: COPD, medical education
danielle.witt@unchealth.unc.edu

Third Year Fellows

Benjamin DeMarco, MD

Undergraduate: Duke University
Medical School: University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville
Residency: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest: Critical Care Outcomes, Lung Cancer, Ethics
Benjamin.demarco@unchealth.unc.edu

Katherine (Alex) Despotes, MD

Undergraduate: University of Notre Dame
Medical school: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Residency program: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Internal Medicine and Pediatrics
Research Interest: Cystic Fibrosis, Bronchiectasis, Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care
katherine.despotes@unchealth.unc.edu

Maxwell Diddams, MD

Undergraduate: Carleton College
Medical School: Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University at Buffalo
Residency: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest: Point -of-care ultrasound and medical education
maxwell.diddams@unchealth.unc.edu 

Scott Vasher, MD

Undergraduate: Boston University
Medical School: New York University
Residency Program: Brown University
Research Interest: Improving communication in the ICU setting
scott.vasher@unchealth.unc.edu

Fourth Year Fellows

Kunal Jakharia, MD

Medical School: Topiwala National Medical College, B.Y.L. Nair CH Hospital, Mumbai, India
Internal Medicine Residency: Medstar Washington Hospital Center/Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Research Interest: Quality Improvements in ICU outcomes, Infections in the ICU
kunal.jakharia@unchealth.unc.edu

Benjamin Sines, MD

Medical School: University of Iowa
Internal Medicine Residency: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research Interest: Prognostic modeling and outcomes in ARDS, Health equity in ICU outcomes, management of acute respiratory distress syndrome
benjamin.sines@unchealth.unc.edu