Associate Junior Faculty Scholars

Dr. Pathik Amin is an optometrist and was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science at the University of Chicago, where he serves as the Director of Optometry.  He earned his optometric degree from the University of Houston and completed a residency in ocular disease at the Albuquerque VA Medical Center. Dr. Amin’s clinical practice focuses on the medical management of glaucoma patients. He is interested in exploring ways to improve glaucoma adherence and outcomes, and was the recipient of the 2022 Bucksbaum Institute National Research Grant. Dr. Amin has a strong interest in education and founded the first optometric residency at the University of Chicago in 2021, for which he serves as the program director. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, serves on the executive committee for the Academy’s Glaucoma Section, and is a member of the Optometric Glaucoma Society.

Dr. Amin is currently a visiting associate professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Zainab Obaidi is a clinical academic nephrologist and assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago. She earned her medical degree from the University of Sharjah in 2011 then completed her internal medicine residency at Southern Illinois University in 2018. She then pursued an academic hospitalist fellowship at Johns Hopkins followed by a 2-year fellowship in nephrology yat the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Her academic work has been focused on clinical excellence and bedside teaching and clinical interest in thrombotic microangiopathies and glomerular diseases.

She enjoys teaching and has been recognized for her teaching skills among residents and fellows by winning several teaching awards. Her other interests include advocating for awareness of kidney disease and is the leader of the UChicago Kidney Club.

Dr. Elisheva Coleman is a board-certified Vascular Neurologist with a robust background in stroke research and clinical trials. She completed her medical education at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, followed by a neurology residency at Northwestern University and a stroke fellowship at the University of Cincinnati.

At the University of Cincinnati, Dr. Coleman was actively involved in the NIH StrokeNET stroke trials consortium, contributing to clinical trials across all phases of stroke, including prevention, acute treatment, and recovery. In April 2020, she joined the faculty at the University of Chicago, where she serves as the site Principal Investigator for the DISCOVERY study, a multi-center observational study focused on stroke recovery.

Dr. Coleman’s primary research interests lie in stroke recovery and rehabilitation, with a particular focus on aphasia. A native of Chicago and a Hyde Park local, she is delighted to return to her hometown to advance stroke care and research at the University of Chicago Medicine.

Dr. Elizabeth Kertowidjojo is a distinguished faculty member in the Department of Pathology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, recognized for her expertise in gynecologic pathology. She completed an oncologic surgical pathology fellowship followed by a gynecologic pathology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Since joining the University of Chicago, Dr. Kertowidjojo has become integral to the management of complex gynecologic diseases, earning high regard from the obstetrics, gynecology, and gynecologic oncology teams.

Dr. Kertowidjojo is celebrated for her educational contributions, particularly her highly rated lectures for the Clinical Pathophysiology and Therapeutics Course and her exemplary teaching of pathology residents. She was honored with the Wendy Recant, MD Faculty Award for Teaching by the residents. Additionally, she mentors residents and fellows, guiding them to present at significant conferences like the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology annual meeting.

Her research involvement is notable, as she collaborates extensively with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology on clinician-driven initiatives, contributing significantly to their feasibility and success. Dr. Kertowidjojo received the Dr. Jacob Churg Award for Academic Development of Junior Pathologists, recognizing her potential to advance research initiatives related to disease mechanisms and patient care.

Dr. Michelle Lemelman is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and a renowned expert in pediatric endocrinology. She serves as the Medical Director of the TransCARE (Clinic for Affirmation and Reproductive Equity) program at the University of Chicago. Dr. Lemelman played a pivotal role in the development of TransCARE at its inception in 2021 and continues to lead the program with a focus on pediatric and adolescent transgender endocrinology.

TransCARE’s mission is to provide inclusive, high-quality, affirmative hormonal and reproductive healthcare for transgender and gender non-conforming patients. In her role, Dr. Lemelman offers gender-affirming hormone treatments to pediatric and adolescent patients, continually working to expand the clinic and establish partnerships within the University of Chicago and the greater Chicagoland area. Her goal is to bring comprehensive and state-of-the-art transgender care to the South Side of Chicago.

As an outstanding pediatric endocrinologist, Dr. Lemelman emphasizes the importance of the doctor-patient relationship in providing optimal care for transgender patients. Her nomination as a Bucksbaum Institute Junior Faculty Scholar reflects her dedication to advancing the TransCARE program and studying the impact of effective physician-patient communication on transgender care. Dr. Lemelman’s leadership and expertise make her a deserving candidate for this prestigious recognition.

Ali Mansour, MD, is a highly skilled neurologist specializing in neurocritical care, excelling at quickly diagnosing and treating life-threatening brain conditions. Dr. Mansour delivers comprehensive care to patients with traumatic brain injury (blunt and penetrating), ischemic (low blood flow) and hemorrhagic (blood vessel rupture) stroke, brain aneurysms and vascular malformations, cerebral edema, status epilepticus and neuroprognostication following cardiac arrest.

As a physician-scientist, Dr. Mansour uses research to improve care for patients with neurological disorders. His work has been published in several widely respected, peer-reviewed journals, including Neurocritical Care, Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases, Nature Scientific Reports, PLoS One and Brain.

Currently, Dr. Mansour’s research emphasizes the management and prognosis following penetrating brain injury (gunshot wounds to the head). He is also evaluating the role of neuroimaging in prognosis following neurocritical illness and cardiac arrest. Dr. Mansour is also interested in neuroinformatics; he and a multidisciplinary team of experts aim to optimize data capture and analysis in neurological and neurocritical illness to improve patient outcomes.

Dr. Edens is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago where she is an adult and pediatric rheumatologist and the pediatric rheumatology fellowship program director. She is originally from New Mexico where she graduated from medical school. She completed her combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics residency at the University of Michigan and adult and pediatric rheumatology fellowship at University Hospitals/Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital. Her clinical and research concentration lies in the interplay between the pregnancy, sexual health, contraception, and rheumatic diseases across ages but particularly in teens and young adults. She is active in the American College of Rheumatology Reproductive Health Initiative and the co-leader/founder of the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance Reproductive Health Work Group. She is also interested in health care transition for those with pediatric-onset rheumatic diseases.

Dr. David A. Hampton earned Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and a Minor in Writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He graduated from Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis and completed General Surgery Residency at Oregon Health & Science University, and Trauma-Critical Care and Acute Care Surgery Fellowships at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center. He performed additional trauma training at Groote Schuur Hospital at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Dr. Hampton is currently an Assistant Professor of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery and a Commander in the US Naval Reserves assigned to the 4th Marine Logistic Group, Surgical Company Bravo.

Dr. Hampton’s research interests include improving surgical outcomes in austere environments, trauma-critical care resuscitation, compassion fatigue and medical education. He has extensively published and presented at numerous national and international conferences on these topics. Dr. Hampton also serves as the Associate Program Director for the Adult Surgical Critical Care Fellowship and as the Third-year Medical Students’ Associate Surgical Clerkship Director.

Dr. C. Maxwell Medert is an ophthalmologist, who will serve as a Glaucoma specialist in the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science at the University of Chicago as an Assistant Professor. He completed his medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine before completing his residency in Ophthalmology at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami, Florida. He has dedicated himself to a fellowship in Glaucoma and Advanced Anterior Segment Surgery at Washington University in St. Louis. He is interested in creating educational tools for patients with Glaucoma to help them understand their disease, their care, and the surgical options available to them. He also has an interest in education and hopes to develop the first Glaucoma fellowship at the University of Chicago.

Brandon Jackson Baird, MD, is a laryngeal surgeon specializing in a wide range of laryngeal diseases with an emphasis on medical and surgical management of voice and swallowing disorders.  He completed residency in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Stanford University and fellowship at Harvard University – Massachusetts General Hospital.  He has spear-headed the office-based laryngology practice at the University of Chicago. His research interests include adjuvant therapy for early glottic cancer and laryngeal dysplasia.