This past week, 12 doctors graduated from the Mercyhealth Family Medicine Residency Program and 13 doctors graduated from the Mercyhealth Internal Medicine Residency Program.

After graduating from medical school, resident physicians take part in a three-year residency program in their chosen specialty. As licensed physicians, they train under the supervision of experienced physicians to improve their skills in providing excellent care to patients. At the completion of their residency, they are qualified to practice medicine independently without further supervision.

The Mercyhealth Family Medicine Residency Program fosters innovation while incorporating traditional family medicine, minor surgeries, obstetrical/gynecological care, and pediatrics into an educational process. The primary goal of the program is to equip future family medicine practitioners with the knowledge, experience, and skills necessary to provide high-level patient care while improving the health of individuals and communities.

This year’s Family Medicine Residency graduates include:

• Mahita Bellamkonda, MD
• Nandini Chattopadhyay, MD
• Gilda Djabarzade, MD
• Anurag Gill, MD
• Amit Johal, MD
• Huma Khan, MD
• Monica Manhas, MD
• Shahid Mohammad, DO
• Sona Najafi, MD
• Vinita Patel, MD
• Sarah Robertson, MD
• Dipti Sabharwal, DO

Mercyhealth’s Family Medicine Residency Program is located at Mercyhealth Alpine, 7702 N. Alpine Road, Loves Park.

Mercyhealth’s Internal Medicine Residency Program is a three-year categorical residency program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The aim of the program is to develop internal medicine physicians that are confident in their skills and competent to practice in any setting, and in any location of the world they wish to practice. The pillars of the program are service to the community, academics and research.

This year’s Internal Medicine Residency graduates include:

• Shawn Banash, MD
• Janine Borja, MD
• Joyce Cheng, MD, MPH, MHA
• Rebekah Collins‐Cronkright, MD
• Kamalpreet Dhaliwal, MD
• Sirisha Ganji, MD
• Taha Mohamed Djirdeh, MD
• Dilem Polat, MD, MPH
• Nagesan Rajendran, MD
• Lintu Ramachandran, MD
• Yadwinder Sidhu, MD
• Harsimran Singh, MD
• Skirmante Sirvaitis, MD

Mercyhealth’s Internal Medicine Residency Program is located at Javon Bea Hospital–Riverside, 8201 E. Riverside Blvd., Rockford.

About Mercyhealth: Mercyhealth is a multi-regional health system with more than 700 employed physician partners, seven hospitals and 85 primary and specialty care locations serving 55 northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin communities. Mercyhealth’s over 7,000 employee/partners care for over 2.4 million patient visits each year. As the top vertically integrated health care provider, they continuously work with a passion for making lives better for the people, families and communities they serve.