The Peru Gazette

CVPH Family Medicine Residency Faculty member Delaney Osborn, MD, left, presents graduate Nicholas Rzepski, MD with a Certificate of Completion

CVPH Residency Program advances rural healthcare

Plattsburgh, NY -, July 14. 2026 – Created to help meet the growing demand for primary care providers in rural communities, the CVPH Family Medicine Residency celebrated the graduation of seven physicians who are preparing to begin the next phase of their medical careers.

At the June 19 ceremony held at the Rainbow Banquet Hall, family, friends, fellow residents and faculty celebrated the Class of 2026: Maria Czajkowski, MD; Michal Klokner, MD; Jacob Moore, DO; T. Nicholas Rzepski, MD; Esha Sanyal, MD; Charlotte Spear, MD and Yanbo Yang, MD.

“It’s been a privilege to watch the residents grow, to learn alongside them and to see the unique ways they have shaped our program,” said Program Director Meagan Cabrera, MD.

Dr. Yang was honored with the Fern Likhite Award, presented annually in memory of Fern Likhite, MD, to recognize a resident who embodies what it means to be a family physician. A beloved and dedicated physician, Dr. Likhite practiced family medicine in the North Country for many years.

The Dr. Dave Anderson Award is presented each year to a resident who exemplifies the qualities that defined Dr. Anderson’s legacy, including irreproachable integrity, kindness and a willingness to help, teach and listen. This year’s recipient was Esha Sanyal, MD who also was honored with the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) Award. The STFM awardee is selected by faculty and students to honor a colleague who has demonstrated a strong interest in and commitment to family medicine education through teaching medical students, peers and the community.

“The future of healthcare depends on a strong primary care foundation,” said AHMC and CVPH Chief Medical Officer Lisa Mark, MD. “Through our residency program, we are developing physicians who understand the unique needs of rural populations and are prepared to provide comprehensive, patient-centered care for years to come. A true marker of our success is that the majority of our graduates decide to practice in this region or in communities very similar to ours.”

Dr. Czajkowski is practicing rural hospital medicine in Ontario, Canada. Dr. Klokner has also relocated to Ontario, where he is practicing as a hospitalist. Dr. Moore has joined Hilo Benioff Medical Center in Hilo, Hawaii, as a hospitalist. Dr. Rzepski has joined Hudson Headwaters Health Network. Dr. Sanyal has joined an outpatient family medicine clinic in Mississauga, Ontario. Dr. Spear has joined Berkshire Health Systems in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, as a wound care and family medicine physician. Dr. Yang has joined North Country Health in northern New Hampshire.

The CVPH Family Medicine Residency was created in 2013 to help address a looming primary care provider crisis in rural communities like the North Country and is a collaborative effort between CVPH, the Lerner School of Medicine and University of Vermont Health. Following a $1 million gift from the William H. Miner Foundation in 2015, the residency welcomed its first class of Residents in the summer of 2016.  Nearly 60% of all graduates have elected to stay in Northern New York and Vermont to practice medicine.

The three-year residency includes rotations in emergency medicine, OB/GYN, pediatrics, cardiology, surgery, orthopedics, geriatrics and community medicine. Additionally, Residents see their own patients in the CVPH Family Medicine Center at 159 Margaret St.

Residency is a stage of graduate medical training. Residents hold a medical degree and practice medicine under the indirect supervision of an attending physician. Successful completion of a residency program is required for physician licensure.