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Alumni Scholars

Since its founding in 2011, the Bucksbaum Institute has appointed, trained, and supported the research of, more than 514 physicians, medical students, and undergraduate student scholars. This map reflects the locations of more than 65 faculty and graduated medical student scholars who have moved from the University of Chicago to other academic programs. Their training at the Bucksbaum Institute will enable them to develop strong doctor-patient relationships and provide excellent patient care.

Jennifer McNeer, MD, MS

Jennifer McNeer, MD, MS

2022 ALUMNI SCHOLAR
2014–2015 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Dr. McNeer is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Section of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology/Stem Cell Transplant. She attended medical school at New York University School of Medicine, and completed her residency and fellowship training at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. She joined the faculty of the University of Chicago in 2009.

Her clinical and research interests are in the treatment of children, adolescents and young adults with hematologic malignancies, especially those with high-risk or relapsed disease. She is an active member of the Children’s Oncology Group, and co-directs the Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Clinic at the University of Chicago.

Dr. McNeer has been involved in the leadership of the Fellowship in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at the University of Chicago since 2011, and assumed the role of Fellowship Director in 2013. She is dedicated to the education of future hematologists/oncologists, not only in terms of medical knowledge and procedural skills, but also as it relates to excellent communication between providers, patients, and families.

Pamela McShane, MD

Pamela McShane, MD

2013–2014 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Medicine
Bio

Pamela McShane, MD, is a skilled lung specialist with particular expertise in the treatment and study of bronchiectasis.Dr. McShane’s research interests include the origin, microbiology, and treatment of bronchiectasis. She developed a large registry of patients who have bronchiectasis in order to learn more about the natural history of this disease, and to provide opportunities for patients to participate in research trials. Dr. McShane is also investigating the roles of individual factors — such as immune deficiency, autoimmunity, and ethnicity — in the cause and natural history of bronchiectasis.

In 2019, Dr. McShane joined the faculty at the University of Texas Health East Texas in Tyler, TX.

Diana L. Mitchell, MD

Diana L. Mitchell, MD

2011–2012 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Diana Mitchell, M.D. is an Instructor of Pediatric Critical Care. She cares for critically ill patients in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

Dr. Mitchell received a Bachelor of Arts in History from Indiana University. She worked for several years as a youth education director for AmeriCorps in Denver, Colorado before entering medical school at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. Dedicated to working with children from the Southside of Chicago, Dr. Mitchell completed her Pediatric residency, Chief Residency, and subspecialty training in Pediatric Critical Care at The University of Chicago.

Dr. Mitchell’s research interest focuses on multidisciplinary medical education using medical simulation. Simulation based training uses high fidelity computerized mannequins to train members of the pediatric critical care team. Dr. Mitchell implemented and currently runs a curriculum for pediatric residents and nurses that focuses on caring for a critically ill pediatric patient. The goal of this curriculum is to train all members of the medical team to provide competent and compassionate care to the most critically ill children.

2012 Pilot Grant Project (joint project with Dr. Alisa McQueen): Communications During Pediatric Resuscitation

Dr. Mitchell practices at Advocate Children’s Medical Group in Illinois.

Michele Nassin, MD

Michele Nassin, MD

2020–2021 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Michele Nassin, MD, MS, is an Assistant Professor in Pediatrics in the Section of Pediatric Hematology Oncology and the Clinical Director of the Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Program. Her academic and clinical work focuses on curative strategies in treatment of sickle cell disease and understanding immune reconstitution post stem cell transplant. She has worked closely with mentors to develop a novel haploidentical stem cell transplant approach for patients with sickle cell disease and that investigator initiated study is currently underway. A dedicated educator, Dr. Nassin also serves as the associate program director for the pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship. Today, Dr. Nassin is an attending physician at The University of Utah Health.

Nzuekoh Nchinda, MD

Nzuekoh Nchinda, MD

2017-2018 STUDENT SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Bio

Nzuekoh Nchinda graduated from Harvard University in 2014 with an AB in Chemistry and a secondary field in Global Health and Health Policy. During college, Nzuekoh served as the National Region II Vice-President of HOSA-Future Health Professionals. Prior to medical school, Nzuekoh performed translational HIV immunology research at the Ragon Institute and served as a medical scribe at Cambridge Health Alliance. She was also a Crisis Services volunteer for Samaritans, Inc.

As a medical student, Nzuekoh is a co-director of Maria Shelter Free Clinic. She is a co-founder and co-leader of Docs and Debates, which hosts documentary viewings and peer-to-peer dialogue on important social issues. She taught third-grade students through South Side Science Scholars and participated in the JOURNEES service-learning trips to rural Mississippi and South Dakota. Under the mentorship of Dr. Jennifer Moriatis Wolf, Nzuekoh is conducting research on tendinopathy risk factors and treatment decision-making in orthopedic care.

Dr. Nchinda is a Surgery Resident at the University of Washington.

Robert Nolan, MD

Robert Nolan, MD

2017–2018 STUDENT SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Bio

Robert Nolan graduated from the United States Naval Academy with a BS in Chemistry. As a medical student, Bobby has served as a curriculum coordinator for the South Side Science Scholars program, where he helped foster interest in the basic sciences within the Chicago Public School system.

Bobby also served as a co-coordinator of the Washington Park Free clinic, where he was able to incorporate developmental screenings and a program with Reach Out and Read into clinic flow. A Bucksbaum grant helped to support his research this summer, which assessed communication and empathy techniques with patients during conscious procedures.

With the honor and opportunity that this scholarship entails, he hopes to continue to pursue this research while also delving into topics of pre-operative transparency. He also hopes to continue to strengthen Washington Park’s outreach and education programs, as well as to extend support to programs treating PTS within the south side of Chicago.

Laurie Nosbusch, MD

Laurie Nosbusch, MD

2010-2011 STUDENT SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Bio

Laurie Nosbusch graduated with highest distinction in 2013 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with majors in Biology and Spanish and a certificate in Global Health. She was captain of the Division 1 women’s soccer team for two years and earned numerous awards, including the Big Ten Medal of Honor. In medical school, Laurie served as a board member for the Washington Park Children’s Free Clinic and a co-president of the Diabetes Prevention and Management Group. Under the mentorship of Kristen Knutson, Ph.D, Laurie investigated the impact of sleep extension on diabetes risk and earned Honorable Mention of Excellence in the Pritzker Summer Research Forum.

Dr. Nosbusch is an Emergency Medicine Resident at Northwestern University in Chicago, IL.

Jamila Picart, MD

Jamila Picart, MD

2018–2019 STUDENT SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Bio

Jamila Picart graduated with honors in Psychology and a minor in Biology from the University of Chicago in 2017, where she was selected as a student marshal. Jamila participated in the 3-year Clinical Excellence Scholar Tract (CEST), which is a collaboration between the College and the Bucksbaum Institute. As an undergraduate, Jamila researched the impact of emotion on memory recollection accuracy.

At Pritzker, Jamila is the Physician/Student Volunteer Coordinator for the Maria Shelter Clinic, a student-run clinic that serves homeless women and children on the South Side. She also was the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) Pritzker chapter Vice-President. As Vice-President, she began a dinner series that created spaces for students of color to seek mentorship from faculty of color and helped to plan the 2018 Midwest Regional Medical Education Conference.

Under the mentorship of Dr. Matthew Churpek, Jamila has also conducted epidemiological research to identify differences in characteristics and outcomes of high-risk ward patients evaluated by rapid response teams.

Dr. Picart is currently a surgical resident at University of Michigan Medicine.

Neethi Pinto, MD, MS

Neethi Pinto, MD, MS

2016–2017 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Dr. Neethi Pinto received her Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy from Stanford University. She completed the Jane Addams fellowship in Philanthropy and directed an enrichment program for at risk youth before returning to Stanford for medical school. In 2001, she came to The University of Chicago where she completed a pediatric residency, chief residency, critical care fellowship and a Masters of Science in Health Studies and then joined the faculty. Dr. Pinto cares for patients in the pediatric ICU and on the Pediatric Sedation Service. She serves as a resident faculty advisor and directs a monthly journal club. She has established an evidence based medicine curriculum for pediatrics. She leads a cohort of undergraduate students in the Bucksbaum Institute Clinical Excellence Scholars track. Dr. Pinto’s research interests focus on the long-term outcomes of children who survive critical illness.

Dr. Pinto was appointed as a Senior Faculty Scholar in 2018.

In 2019, Dr. Pinto joined the faculty at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania.

Navin Pinto, MD

Navin Pinto, MD

2014–2015 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Dr. Pinto is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Director of the Comprehensive Solid Tumor Clinic at the University of Chicago and a member of the Committee on Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacogenomics. Dr. Pinto’s research focuses on the role of genetic variation in ethnic disparities and responsiveness to chemotherapy. Dr. Pinto directs the GREAT KIDS research program, an effort to comprehensively sequence the genomes of patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed pediatric cancer in order to gain a broader understanding of gene-environment interactions as well as actionable genetic alterations. Future research goals include improving communication of complex genetic traits and inheritance to patients and families affected by cancer.

Dr. Pinto is a physician at the Seattle Children’s Hospital in Seattle, WA.