The Peru Gazette

Louisa Da Costa-Mendes. MD

Brady Gordon,MD

Julia Kobeissi, MD

Gurkiranjit Rattu, MD

Stefani Anash, MD

Piratheep Rajan, MD

Will begin three-year training program in July

Plattsburgh, NY – The University of Vermont Health Network – Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital (CVPH) Family Medicine Residency introduced the Family Medicine Residency Class of 2029 during its annual Match Day celebration held on March 20. Members of the CVPH Family Medicine Residency Class of 2029 will begin their three-year training program in July. They are:

• Stefani Anash, MD – a graduate of Saba University School of Medicine
• Louisa Da Costa-Mendes, MD – a graduate of Saba University School of Medicine
• Brady Gordon, MD – a graduate of St. George’s University School of Medicine
• Julia Kobeissi, MD – a graduate of St. George’s University School of Medicine
• Piratheep Rajan, MD – a graduate of St. George’s University School of Medicine
• Gurkiranjit Rattu, MD – a graduate of University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine

Match Day is a nationwide event in which residency programs and physicians are matched after a lengthy application and interview process. The CVPH Family Residency received more than 1300 applications for the six Class of 2029 spots. After reviewing each application, the program invites applicants to interview, then both the Residents and the Program’s team rank their preferences and a national data base creates the “match.”

During the Match Day festivities, Residency Program Director Maegan Cabrera, MD welcomed each member of the new class, highlighting their shared interest in serving rural communities. “Our program aims to educate new physicians while increasing health care access in the North Country – it’s exciting to Match with residents who share that priority” she said.

Dr. Cabrera added she was pleased to be able to fill all six spots as family medicine residencies across the country continue to struggle to recruit full classes. Expanded training capacity to address a projected nationwide primary care shortage continues to outpace the number of applicants to primary care specialties. “Our team has worked hard over the past year to improve our recruitment process, and it’s exciting to see it pay off” she said.

Established in 2014 to improve access to primary care in the region, The CVPH Family Medicine Residency has been successful with 60% of graduates choosing to stay in Northern New York or Vermont to practice medicine.

Partnering with the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont Medical School and University of Vermont Medical Center, CVPH Family Medicine Residency offers a three-year program that includes rotations in emergency medicine, OB/GYN, pediatrics, cardiology, surgery, orthopedics, geriatrics and community medicine. Family Medicine Residents see their own patients in the CVPH Family Medicine Center at 159 Margaret St. and at the Hudson Headwaters Champlain Family Medicine Center.