Medical Justice in Advocacy fellows

Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship

Contents

Introducing the AMA-SHLI 2026-2027 Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship cohort
View the 2026-2027 Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellows
View past cohorts of fellows
Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship program

Introducing the AMA-SHLI 2026-2027 Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship cohort

The American Medical Association (AMA) and the Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI) at Morehouse School of Medicine are pleased to announce the selection of 20 outstanding physician-leaders as the fourth, and largest, cohort of fellows for the AMA-SHLI Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship.

The fellows were selected from a highly selective and competitive pool of applicants from across the United States and represent a diverse field of medical professionals in multiple specialties. Following in the footsteps of the first, second and third cohorts, the fellows will receive specialized training and mentorship from health advocacy experts and trailblazers.

View the 2026-2027 Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellows

Angela Bess, MD, MBA

Angela Bess, MD, MBA, is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist with 25+ years of experience. She practices with Virtua Medical Group in New Jersey, serves as a volunteer clinical assistant professor at Rowan University, and leads the South Jersey Medical Society, advocating for Black maternal health and equitable midlife women's care issues.

Bahati S. Harden, MD, MSPH, MS

Bahati S. Harden, MD, MSPH, MS, currently serves as a locum tenens physician throughout the southern U.S. and previously served patients and communities in the Mississippi Delta. She is deeply committed to health equity and has spent over 15 years building expertise in community medicine and public health.

Crystal Y. Pourciau, MD, MPH

Crystal Y. Pourciau, MD, MPH, is a pediatric dermatologist and associate professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She co-founded the Bluff City Medical Society Mentorship Program, supporting underrepresented trainees in Memphis. Her work focuses on expanding subspecialty care and building a more representative, respectful physician workforce.

Gabrielle Pina, DO

Gabrielle Pina, DO, is a pediatric hospitalist, educator, and advocate serving California’s Inland Empire. At Loma Linda University, she leads advocacy and quality improvement education for the Primary Care Residency Track. Her work centers on physician pipeline development, advocacy training, and advancing equitable care for underserved communities.

Geetha Govindarajan, MD, PhD, MPH

Geetha Govindarajan, MD, PhD, MPH, is an internal medicine physician-scientist, public health practitioner, and integrative medicine physician focused on health equity and whole-person care. For more than 15 years, she has partnered with communities on Chicago’s south side to advance chronic disease prevention, health promotion and patient-centered care models.

Hsaiowei Banks, MD

Hsaiowei Banks, MD, is an internal medicine physician in South Los Angeles, where they care for patients at a safety-net hospital. Their professional interests include health equity, community-based medicine, and advocacy to improve access to compassionate, patient-centered care.

Jonathan P. Williams, MD

Jonathan P. Williams, MD, is a neurologist and epilepsy specialist at Washington University in St. Louis. His clinical, research, and advocacy work promotes equitable, high-quality epilepsy care. He leads community initiatives in St. Louis’ Black communities focused on seizure education, first-aid training, and research on health disparities.

Joshua Carrasco, MD, MPH

Joshua Carrasco, MD, MPH, is a graduating pediatric resident physician at UCSF committed to advancing health equity through care, advocacy, education, and policy. His interests include adolescent medicine, gender-affirming care, sexual and reproductive health, HIV care, substance use risk reduction, mental health, and care for immigrant and historically marginalized communities.

Julio M. Cuevas Cruz, MD, MPH

Julio M. Cuevas Cruz, MD, MPH, is a neurology resident at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University in St. Louis. His interests include neurocritical care, brain health, disease prevention, health equity and physician advocacy. Originally from Puerto Rico, he is committed to medical justice shaped by lived experience.

Keisha Reneé Callins, MD, MPH

Keisha Reneé Callins, MD, MPH, is an obstetrician/gynecologist and public health advocate with more than 20 years of service in women’s health, especially in rural and underserved communities. She practices with Central Georgia’s Community Health Care Systems, serves as chief wellness officer, and teaches at Mercer University School of Medicine.

LeRon Jackson, MD, MPH

LeRon Jackson, MD, MPH, is an assistant professor of family medicine at UNC Chapel Hill, medical director for urgent care at the UNC Family Medicine Center, and a primary care physician. Her work focuses on equitable access to acute care, workforce development, and supportive care for people living with dementia.

Lorraine Marasco Schratz, MD

Lorraine Marasco Schratz, MD, is a pediatric cardiologist and director of the Raising Healthy Hearts Program at Mass General Brigham for Children. Board-certified in lifestyle and obesity medicine, she works to improve cardiovascular health for children and families through better access to nutritious food, recreation, healthcare and advocacy.

Mario Montelongo, MD

Mario Montelongo, MD, is a child and adolescent psychiatry fellow at UW and Seattle Children's Hospital. Inspired by work with migrant children separated at the border, he promotes relational care. He co-authored a recognized psychotherapy curriculum, serves in the APA/APAF Leadership Fellowship, and is resident chair of his curriculum committee.

Nichole Smith, MD

Nichole Smith, MD, is an assistant professor of general internal medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. She directs an Urban Health Equity Track for residents. Her work focuses on community-based care, high-risk transitions, chronic disease outcomes, and health equity curriculum development.

Nicole Damari, MD, MS

Nicole Damari, MD, MS, is an assistant professor of internal medicine and pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the University of Cincinnati. A med-peds hospitalist, she serves as associate program director for both residency programs. Her interests include medical education, game-based learning, narrative medicine, and physician advocacy.

Sarah Klinger, MD

Sarah Klinger, MD, is a family medicine obstetrics fellow at Altru Health System. She’s passionate about physician wellness and patient advocacy, shaped by firsthand understanding of healthcare demands. She believes supporting physicians improves care and is dedicated to helping patients have a strong, informed voice.

Seth M. Vignes, MD

Seth M. Vignes, MD, is an assistant professor of clinical medicine at LSU Health Sciences Center–New Orleans, where he practices as a hospitalist, addiction medicine researcher, and clerkship course director. His funded research supports state and national collaborations to improve care models and health system responses for substance use disorders.

Shruti Gujaran, MD

Shruti Gujaran, MD, is an emergency and addiction medicine physician serving vulnerable populations in Philadelphia, Camden, and rural Navajo Nation communities. Her work expands access to basic and addiction care. She also teaches future physicians that medicine depends as much on listening, compassion and humanity as it does on science.

Tristan Mackey, MD

Tristan Mackey, MD, is a neurosurgery resident at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria and OSF Healthcare St. Francis Medical Center. Raised in rural South Carolina and the first physician in his family, he is committed to reducing neurosurgical disparities and advancing equitable pediatric and trauma care.

Victor Ekuta, MD

Victor Ekuta, MD, is a PGY-2 neurology resident at Morehouse School of Medicine and the institution’s first Black male neurology resident. An aspiring physician-scientist, he studies brain health equity, cognitive decline, and how structural, social, and technological factors affect neurological outcomes in historically marginalized populations.

View past cohorts of fellows

Cohort 3

Makunda Abdul-Mbacke, MD
Sonia Eden, MD
Stephanie Eng, MD
Christina Gomez-Mira, MD
Felisha Gonzalez, MD
Salmaan Kamal, MD
Allana Krolikowski, MD
Surya Pierce, MD
Whitney Sambhariya, MD, PhD
William Weber, MD, MPH

Cohort 2

Jerry P. Abraham, MD, MPH
Amanda Calhoun, MD, MPH
Amin Dhara, MD
Amna Khan, MD
Greta Manning, MS, MD
Anjali Niyogi, MD, MPH
Nadia Norton Anspach, MD
Hannibal Person, MD
Richard Silvera, MD, MPH
Carl Streed Jr., MD, MPH
Tiffany Wiggins, MD, MPH

Cohort 1

Eileen Barrett, MD, MPH
Amber Clark, MD
Charles Calvin Coleman, MD
Lorenzo Antonio Gonzalez, MD, MPL
Omar Guzman, MD
Kamaal A. Jones, MD
Kameryn J. Lee, MD, MSPH
Melissa Palma, MD, MPH
Avani K. Patel, MD, MHA
Shilpen Patel, MD
Maya Ragavan, MD, MPH, MS
Ramona Rhodes, MD, MPH, MSCS