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Junior Faculty Scholars

The Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence supports two-year appointments for three Bucksbaum Junior Faculty Scholars. Scholars are selected for their dedication to patient care, collaborative decision-making and clinical excellence. They are encouraged to explore approaches to improving the doctor-patient relationship and how this knowledge may benefit patients and the community. The faculty also serve as mentors for the medical student scholars.

Lisa Marie Cannon, MD

Lisa Marie Cannon, MD

2017–2018 Junior Faculty Scholar – Alumni

Department of Surgery
Bio

Dr. Lisa Cannon earned her medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. While there, she took a year to focus on narrative medicine and received a distinction in medical humanities. She also received the John J. Morton and John H. Morton Memorial Scholarship for her focus on patient care.

Dr. Cannon went on to complete her general surgery residency at New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. She completed her colon and rectal fellowship at the University of Chicago, and stayed on as faculty. She serves on several committees for the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons. Her clinical interests include inflammatory bowel disease and benign colorectal disorders, implementing enhanced recovery pathways for the section, and prudent use of minimally invasive techniques.

Dr. Cannon has a strong interest in the patient-physician interaction and surgical quality with emphasis on safe patient handoffs and interdisciplinary team communication. She is the recipient of the Department of Surgery Excellence in Teaching Award ’16.

In 2012, Dr. Cannon joined the faculty at the University of Rochester in New York.

Noa Krugliak Cleveland, MD

Noa Krugliak Cleveland, MD

2022-2023 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Gastroenterology
Bio

Noa Krugliak Cleveland, MD, is a board-certified physician who specializes in gastroenterology. Dr. Krugliak Cleveland has advanced training in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and sees patient with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. She is interested in the use of novel therapies to treat IBD and use of new technologies for the detection and management of cancer and inflammation in IBD including bedside intestinal ultrasound. 

Along with her clinical expertise, Dr. Krugliak Cleveland is also a physician-scientist, whose research focuses on disease outcomes and prevention of IBD complications. She investigates the application of new technology for the detection and prevention of progression of IBD. Her work has been published in several peer-reviewed journals, including Gastroenterology, The American Journal of Gastroenterology, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Diseases and Sciences and more.

Courtney Cripps, MD

Courtney Cripps, MD

2024-2025 JUNIOR FACULTY
2023-2024 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY

Department of Surgery
Bio

Dr. Courtney Cripps is a plastic surgeon and Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago in the Section of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. She earned her medical degree at the Medical College of Georgia before completing a residency in General Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. She then completed her Plastic Surgery training at New York University where she obtained comprehensive training in gender affirming surgery. Her clinical expertise lies in gender affirming facial, chest, body, and genitourinary reconstruction. Serving as the Director of the Resident Cosmetic Clinic at the University of Chicago has allowed her to exercise her interests in both aesthetic surgery and resident education. Her research centers on the intersection of surgical innovation and patient experience, particularly in the realm of gender affirming care.

Jonas de Souza, MD, MBA

Jonas de Souza, MD, MBA

2014–2015 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Medicine
Bio

Dr. De Souza participates in both clinical and outcomes research studies on malignancies of the upper aerodigestive tract, especially head and neck cancers. His research focuses on the use of novel therapeutic agents along with measurements of financial burden, patients’ preferences, and the trade-offs between the risks and benefits of cancer therapies. His research has sought to integrate outcomes research, patient preferences, health policy, and economics into clinical practice. His ultimate goal is to increase access to essential cancer therapies by providing policy makers and scientific communities with the required information on patient preferences and on barriers that lie between cancer patients and access to care.

De Souza has authored and presented papers and given lectures on head and neck malignancies, reimbursement methods in oncology, and evidence-based care. He is the principal investigator for a trial examining the role of SPECT-CT in the follow-up of patients with locally advanced head and neck cancers.

De Souza earned his MD from the University of Rio de Janeiro State. He completed his residency specializing in internal medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center in 2008 and a fellowship focusing on hematology/oncology at the University of Chicago in 2011. Dr. de Souza is currently pursuing his MBA at Booth to aid in his research about Cost Communication in Hematologic Malignancies. His ultimate goal is to increase access to essential cancer therapies by providing policy makers and scientific communities with the required information on patient preferences and on barriers that lie between cancer patients and access to care.

Dr. Jonas de Souza is now the Medical Director for Humana in Louisville, KY.

2013 Pilot Grant Project: A Pilot Program of Cost Communication in Hematologic Malignancies

Andrew Fisher, MD

Andrew Fisher, MD

2021–2022 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Bio

Andrew Fisher, MD, specializes in obstetric and gynecologic medicine and delivers comprehensive care to women, transgender, and gender diverse patients. Dr. Fisher treats a wide range of conditions affecting these individuals, including abnormal uterine bleeding, opioid use disorder in pregnancy, hormone therapy for gender affirming transgender patients and more. He currently serves as the medical director for the Trans CARE Program (Clinic for Affirmation and Reproductive Equity). Dr. Fisher is also an expert in transabdominal cerclage (TAC) for patients who suffer from cervical insufficiency in pregnancy. To elevate his clinical practice, Dr. Fisher evaluates new and improved treatments and techniques to enhance the lives of his patients. His current Bucksbaum-sponsored research examines the intersection of transgender and gender diverse patients with pregnancy, including doula models of care and group prenatal care. Dr. Fisher’s work has been published in several highly respected peer-reviewed journals, including Fertility and Sterility, Neurourology and Urodynamics, and Biophysical Journal.

Ahmeneh Ghavam, MD, MA

Ahmeneh Ghavam, MD, MA

2021–2022 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR
2020-2021 ASSOCIATE JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Ahmeneh Ghavam, MD, MA, attended medical school at the American University of the Caribbean, followed by pediatric residency at the University of Arizona. Following residency, she completed fellowship in pediatric critical care at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin/Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Ghavam subsequently joined the faculty at the University of Chicago where she is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the section of Critical Care Medicine. While in fellowship she developed an academic interest in pediatric bioethics and has completed a Master’s Degree in Bioethics from the Medical College of Wisconsin. Within bioethics, her area of academic focus lies at the intersection of organ donation and death determination, with a special interest in pediatric donation after circulatory death. In addition to her academic work, clinical time spent in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and Pediatric Sedation suite, Dr. Ghavam was also actively involved in medical education serving as the associate program director for the Pediatric Critical Care fellowship program. Dr. Ghavam is now a faculty member at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Catherine Groden, MD, MA

Catherine Groden, MD, MA

2024-2025 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Pediatrics
Bio

Catherine Groden is a neonatologist with interests in ethics, trauma-informed care, and bereavement. Her work has been presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting and has been published in Journal of Perinatology and Pediatrics.

Dr. Groden graduated summa cum laude with a BS in biological sciences and a second major in English from the University of Notre Dame. She earned an MD from the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University and simultaneously completed an MA in medical humanities and bioethics at Northwestern University. She completed a pediatrics residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals, Milwaukee, and a neonatal-perinatal medicine fellowship at Indiana University Indianapolis.

Raymon Grogan, MD, MS

Raymon Grogan, MD, MS

2013–2014 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR – ALUMNI

Department of Surgery
Bio

Raymon Grogan, MD, is a specialist in the surgical management of thyroid, parathyroid, and adrenal gland diseases. He has expertise in the surgical management of endocrine cancers as well as benign endocrine gland disorders.

As a clinician and a scientist, Dr. Grogan is actively involved in clinical, translational, and basic science research. He is currently working on identifying genetic and proteomic biomarkers in thyroid and adrenal tumors. Understanding the genetic and molecular changes in these tumors could lead to better diagnosis and treatment strategies for patients with cancer. The ultimate goal is to improve patients’ lives by translating state-of-the-art research findings into everyday clinical practice.

Dr. Raymon Grogan is the section chief of endocrine surgery at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX.

2013 Pilot Grant Project: “A Formal Curriculum in Surgical Professionalism and Ethics”: To enhance and encourage the professionalism of surgical residents and their understanding of the central concepts of surgical ethics

2012 Pilot Grant Project: Understanding of the Psychology of Thyroid Cancer Patients in an Era of Increasing Incidences

Amber E. Johnson, MD, MS, MBA

Amber E. Johnson, MD, MS, MBA

2023-2024 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Medicine
Bio

Amber E. Johnson, MD, MS, MBA, FACC is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Department of Medicine and Section of Cardiology at the University of Chicago. She joins us here at U of C from the University of Pittsburgh where she was also a Staff Cardiologist at the Veterans Administration Pittsburgh Health System and Faculty Affiliate at the Center for Race and Social Problems, University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work. She completed her undergraduate degree with honors at the University of Pittsburgh. She then completed her medical degree and masters of business administration at Jefferson Medical College/Widener University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition to a year of patient safety and quality improvement training at the Armstrong Institute of Johns Hopkins Hospital, she was an internal medicine resident at Johns Hopkins, Bayview in Baltimore, Maryland. She then returned to Pittsburgh for general cardiology fellowship, a research fellowship, and a masters degree in clinical research.

Dr Johnson’s research at the interface of health equity, social determinants of health, and mobile health technology has resulted in numerous publications and federal grant funding. She is the recipient of local and national clinical and research awards and was recently named one of the National Minority Quality Forum’s 40 Under 40 Leaders in Health and in 2022 was awarded the Women as One Escalator Award for clinical research. Dr. Johnson has served on the Black Equity Coalition-Health Equity Working Group which led equity efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through her work and community engagement, she is committed to addressing racial inequity in cardiovascular care. Her clinical practice here at U of C will include general and preventive cardiology with a focus on women’s health and gender affirming care. She enjoys cooking, running, and spending time with family. She is the mother of two daughters, Leilani and Nia.

Christopher Kramer, MD

Christopher Kramer, MD

2019–2020 JUNIOR FACULTY SCHOLAR

Department of Neurology
Bio

Dr. Christopher Kramer is an Assistant Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery in the Section of Neurocritical Care. He received his medical degree from the Chicago Medical School. He then went on to pursue his Neurology residency training at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona followed by his Neurocritical Care fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota before joining the faculty at the University of Chicago in 2015.

Dr. Kramer has a passion for medical education and serves as the Neurocritical Care Fellowship Program Director and as a member of the Neurology Resident Education Committee and the Clinical Competency Committee. He is currently enrolled in the Medical Education Research, Innovation, Teaching and Scholarship (MERITS) program at the University of Chicago. Nationally, he was involved in the creation of the Essentials of Neurocritical Care, an educational endeavor for providers through the Neurocritical Care Society. He is a faculty advisor to neurology residents, is developing a simulation-based curriculum for learners of various levels and backgrounds on neurological emergencies.

His research interests include the impact of communication on providers and families in the neurocritical care unit, novel treatments for acute ischemic stroke, penetrating traumatic brain injury, prognostication after cardiac arrest, and brain death.