University of California San Francisco
UCSF School of Medicine UCSF Medical Center

Trainee Recognition Opportunities

We love our residents and fellows, so we are delighted-but not surprised-that you love them, too! Below are some ways you can show your appreciation for all their hard work.

a person smiling and holding an axolotl stuffie
Each year the Office of GME leads a recognition of our wonderful residents and fellows on Thank a Resident and Fellow Day, usually in February. In 2024, we handed out donuts at Parnassus, Mission Bay and Mt. Zion campuses. Pictured: Dr. Christian Freeman, OB/GYN, PGY4 in 2024.

Send them a quick note or card:

  • You can send a note/card through UCSF Recognize (accessible to those within UCSF through MyAccess) If you’re external to UCSF, you can email [email protected] and we’ll share your recognition to the platform.
  • Share words of appreciation and provide the full name of the physician you would like to thank.

Nominate them for an Award:

  • Exceptional Physician Award (due in November)
     
  • GME Excellence and Innovation Award (due early April)
     
    • Excellence in Education & Mentorship
      Recognizing individuals who foster exceptional learning environments, champion innovative teaching, and go above and beyond to mentor and guide the next generation of healthcare professionals and administrators.
    • Advancing Well-being in GME
      Honoring those who lead transformative efforts to promote resilience, wellness, and a culture of care and support for trainees, faculty, and staff.
    • Leadership in Community, Opportunity, Retention and Engagement
      Celebrating outstanding contributions that advance community, equity, inclusion, and belonging within GME — creating more just and inclusive learning spaces for all.
    • Excellence in Quality Improvement (QI) and Patient Safety
      Recognizing leaders who drive meaningful improvements in patient care, safety, or system processes through initiatives that engage and inspire, this improvement work may utilize QI methodology, enhance system processes, increase efficiency, or contribute to operational improvements that positively impact education, clinical care, or departmental function within our GME community.
    • Impact & Innovation in GME
      Highlighting individual and team trailblazers whose creative ideas, forward-thinking approaches, and groundbreaking projects have significantly advanced GME locally or nationally.
Graduate Medical Education Excellence and Innovation Award Winners
YearStaffFacultyTrainees
2025

Sandria Wong

Leah Pimentel

Kaitlin Zazueta

Tiffany Kwok

 

Ellen Laves, MD

Ron Balassanian, MD

Pei Chen, MD

Deborah Franzon, MD

Marisol Solis, MD

Vida Sandoval, MD

Karishma Patel, MD

Luke Bonham, MD

Natalie Neale, MD

Anoushka Sinha, MD

2024

Catherine Le


Karen Tan


Alyssa Michaels, MS

Lianne Gensler, MD

Meg McNamara, MD

Lucy Ogbu-Nwobodo, MD

Ursula Griffiths-Randolph, MD, MPH

Nicole Herrick, MD

Matthew Shear, MD

Adrian Tomes, MD

RFC Members: Timothy Gilpatrick, MD & Julia Collins, MD

2023

Jennifer Cantero

Cherise Masunaga

Carly Zapata, MD

Susan Voglmaier, MD

Max Bowman, MD

​​​​​​Timothy Dyster, MD

Divya Seth, MD

Will Zhang, MD

2022

Barbara Schrader

Brad Stark

Esther Kim, MD

 Michael Waul, MD


Biftu Mengesha, MD

Jacqueline DesJardin, MD

Margaret Robinson, MD

Jenna Essakow, MD

Imran Khan, MD

Namrata Patel-Sanchez, MD

Meesha Sharma, MD

 Priya Srivastava, MD

 Jane Symington, MD

 Stephanie Chen, MD

 Tiffany Chen, MD

2021

Kirstie Cruz

Kaitlin Clancey

 Miriam Gray

Efrat Lelkes, MD

Diana Coffa, MD

Steven Pletcher, MD

Laura Huppert, MD

Katelin Kramer, MD

Danielle Perez, MD

Special recognition for DEIA: Odinakachukwu (Odi) Ehie, MD &
Tiana Woolridge, MD

 

 

 

2020

Jannot Ross

Rachelle Bresnahan

Thuy Loan Nguyen

Sara Whetstone, MD

James Frank, MD

Vanessa Thompson, MD

Sofia Verstraete, MD

Glenn Rosenbluth, MD

Edward Miller, MD

 Alexandra (Jay) Teng, MD

David Anderson, MD

 Smitha Ganeshan, MD, MBA

Esther Hsiang, MD, MBA

Hope Caughron, MD

  Anna Fretz, MD, MHS

Jessica Dong, MD, MBA

  Ilana Garcia-Grossman, MD

Kavon Javaherian MD, MBA

Karen Hauser, MD, MPH

Teddy Peng, MD

Cati Crawford, MD  

Sara LaHue, MD

Andrew Halls, MD

Neel Pasricha, MD

 Elizabeth Lancaster, MD

 

 

2019

Andrea Siu

Carol Piunti

Sue Sheehan

Katherine Julian, MD

Mary McGrath, MD, MPH

Kristie White, MD

Manuel Pardo, MD

Carter Lebares, MD

Amanda Wallace, MD

 Brian Block, MD

Courtney Green, MD, MAEd

Wenjia (JiaJia) Zhang, MD

Michael Jung, MD

 

2018

 

Rex Dacanay

Salina Gu

Esther Chen, MD

Harry Hollander, MD

Linda Reilly, MD

George Saba, PhD

Emily Abdoler, MD

Giselle Lopez, MD

Amanda Wright, MD

 

 

2017

Mari Collings

Vicky Tateo

 Katherine Jung

Meg Autry, MD

 Brian Schwartz, MD

Larissa Thomas, MD

Diana Wu, MD

Bridget Keenan, MD, PhD

Jennifer Olenik, MD

 Andrea Rosati, MD, PhD

Lamercie Saint-Hilaire, MD

Kimberly Kallianos, MD

 

 

2016

Martha George

Sara Hoover

Sharon Salapare

 Twinkle Patel

Jean Laberge, MD

Maurice Garcia, MD

Sandrijn vanSchaik, MD

 Sumant Ranji, MD

Corinna Zygourakis, MD

Kimberly Kallianos, MD

Lekshmi Santhosh, MD

Luz Silverio, MD

Wendy Feng, MD

2015

Winnie Chan

Eve Dinh

Virginia Schuler

Robert Harrison, MD

Eric Widera, MD

Bryn Boslett, MD

Seunggu Han, MD

Jacob Robson, MD

 

2014

Amy Forseth

Soonme Cha, MD

 Erick Hung, MD

Lindsay Hampson, MD

 Anobel Odisho, MD


Special recognition for DEIA: Claire Brett, MD & Susan Promes, MD

2013

Cathy Ratti

Sue Sheehan

Hali Hammer, MD

Jeff Kohlwes, MD

Herman Bagga, MD

 

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