Meet Our Residents

Timothy Jiang Timothy Jiang, MD

Medical School: Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine, Charleston, SC

Prelim year: University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, LV

Made in China but chiseled to be a doctor in the suburbs of Charleston, SC, Timothy is a well-traveled, well-fed resident. Outside of pursuing a career in neurology, Timothy enjoys finding the beauty in cityscapes through his camera lens and exciting his taste receptors. Of refined palate in both gastronomy and the visual arts, Timothy is excited to further his training in Los Angeles while living in the constant stimulation that is, Little Tokyo.
Pegah Kahali, MD Pegah Kahali, MD

Medical School: Tehran University of Medical Sciences

Prelim year: Mount Sinai Hospitals, Bronx, NY

Pegah was born and raised in Tehran, where she finished medical school. Amazed by the complexity yet vulnerability of the human brain, she knew early on she wanted to study the brain and help those who are affected by neurological diseases. She spent a few years in Boston as a research fellow in electrophysiology and neuroimaging where they basically add pretty colors to the tracts of the brain. She also loves painting the colors of the streets in big cities, getting lost in the crowd, reading about philosophy, observing and learning about visual arts, particularly paintings and cinema.
Stephanie Liang, MD Stephanie Liang, MD

Medical School: Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA

Prelim year: California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, CA

Steph was born and raised in Guangzhou, China (aka fluent in Canto and Mando). She moved to SF with her parents after high school and then went onto college and med school in Boston. A self-proclaimed boba royalty and 25% Bostonian, she enjoys stargazing, visiting national parks, and playing the piano. Besides boba, she also tries to explore local dim sum and dessert places during her free time. She fell in love with neurology as an MS1 and considered the neuro exam a very intuitive and beautiful dance routine (thank you Movement Disorder clinic shadowing!). Fun fact: She used to be a hip-hop dancer and choreographer but hurt her back trying pole fitness (still needs PT). Fellowship DDx is broad but prefers inpatient, such as neurocritical care, stroke, and maybe even intraop monitoring. She’s excited to continue the journey in sunny Los Angeles with all the wonderful humans at Los Angeles General Medical Center.
Pardis Pooshpas, MD Pardis Pooshpas, MD

Medical School: Penn State College of Medicine

Prelim year: Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY

Pardis grew up in the pastures home to fine wine and poetry, that is, Shiraz, Iran, and moved to Los Angeles at the tender age of 14. She went to Cornell for undergrad for more pastures, and continued her conquest eastwards, to Penn State for med school then NYC for prelim year. She has come back to LA for training where her dreams began. If it wasn’t obvious, she loves watersports (swimming, kayaking, white water rafting, and is waiting to pick up surfing now that she has more time than she did at age 14.) She’s a lover of all neurology and poetry, but especially neuromuscular and autoimmune disorders so far.
Jorge Matta, MD Jorge Matta, MD

Medical School: St. George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada

Prelim year: Albert Einstein Montefiore-Wakefield, Bronx, NY

With a lush beard that often gets him mistaken for Indian or Pakistani, Jorge actually speaks fluent Spanish and is of mixed Puerto Rican and Uruguayan background. Growing up in New York, Jorge grew up singing, playing the guitar and the saxophone. He’s a foodie, fluent at board and lawn games, and loves a good pick up game of basketball. His other creative pursuit is photography. He successfully leveraged his stature, fashion sense, and instagram to slate himself as a prized FIGS ambassador. He’s very much interested in both inpatient and outpatient flavors of neurology, but leaning towards neurocritical care and stroke for now.
Sanaz Monjazeb, MD Sanaz Monjazeb, MD

Medical School: Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Roanoke, VA

Prelim year: St. Mary Medical Center, Long Beach, CA

Sanaz took the scenic route back to Southern California. Growing up in Orange County, CA, Sanaz pursued all sorts of creative talents, from playing the piano, snowboarding, and teaching her cat..cat tricks. She soon went onto medical school in Virginia near the Appalachian Mountains and obviously became an avid hiker. Her gig in the east coast did not last too long but she kept her hobby game strong; she came back as an even better snowboarder and picked up the guitar. She’s considering all sorts of things in neurology at this time, including epilepsy, stroke, and neuro-hospitalist.

Ashim Ahuja, MD Ashim Ahuja, MD

Medical school: St. George’s University School of Medicine

Preliminary Year: NY Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, Brooklyn, NY

Growing up under the luscious hills of San Gabriel Mountain, Ashim is an Arcadia native who found his way back to Los Angeles for residency. He is more than another byproduct of UCLA-USC cross-pollination. You may not immediately realize it, but his Jesuit educational background in downtown LA as a hindi teenager made him into the man he is today, not his Subaru WRX. Ashim pursues to mingle with mother nature as much as he likes to drive through them— he loves to wear earthy tones, cook, and hike.

 
Faisal Choudhury, DO Faisal Choudhury, DO

Medical school: Touro University, Henderson, NV

Preliminary Year: Desert Regional Medical Center, Palm Springs, CA

Faisal has gone to places, and mostly towards the west. Having gone to UT Austin for undergrad, he went against the trend and came out to California while everyone else is moving to Austin. A lover of live concerts and festivals, he initially kept his workplace and hobbies (or Coachella) close together in Palm Springs where he did a part of his training. He’s not just a consumer of visual arts and music; he loves to capture his travels on camera as well. Faisal is considering pursuing vascular neurology.
Kacey Hu, MD Connie Chung, MD

Medical School: University of California Los Angeles, CA

Preliminary Year: Olive View Medical Center, Sylmar, CA

What is common in New Orleans – Taiwan – California? Connie. Ever since she’s been at UCLA for medical school, Connie found herself a good fit in the robust climbing and ice cream culture in LA. Ask her for recommendations for the best taste-conscious or health-conscious ice cream in town; then ask her where to go to burn the very calories you consumed. Her two furry feline babies also keep her active in west LA— where she lives with her fiance Matt.
Kacey Hu, MD Kacey Hu, MD

Medical School: Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine, IL

Preliminary Year: Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, IL

Kacey is from the canyons of Valencia and was in Chicago for medical school but it was a natural choice to return to Southern California for its warmth, boba, and food scene. She’s well traveled, and is looking forward to more trips both locally and abroad. Ask her for recommendations before your next Asia trip and cooking recipes. She also likes to swim. Kacey is interested in the wonders of movement disorders but also open to other fields.
Chris Nguyen Chris Nguyen, MD

Medical school: USC Keck School of Medicine, CA

Preliminary Year: University of California Irvine, CA

Chris is en route to a USC Keck lifer. From Orange County originally, he did not need to look too far for happiness. After Keck School of Medicine, Chris hopped over to UC Irvine for his intern year and is back with us at USC. You might mistake his shoulders for those of a football player, but Chris likes to find more size advantage on the basketball court.
Cyrus Rais, MD, MBA Cyrus Rais, MD, MBA

Medical School: USC Keck School of Medicine, CA

Preliminary Year: Saint Agnes Medical Center, Fresno, CA

A Los Angeles native, Cyrus is the person he claims to be from LinkedIn. One might mistake his perfect smile as that of a dentist’s until they find out he has a dual MD/MBA, not to mention his extensive research background. Cyrus aims to strike a balance in everything; his networking skills are honed from MBA social mixers while his interests in cell biology, neurological disorders, and pharmacology bring out his academic side.

Colin Hill, MD Colin Hill, MD

Medical School: USC Keck School of Medicine, CA

Intern Year: Huntington Hospital, Pasadena, CA

A northern California native standing at 6’4” tall, Colin is an ex-slacker turned doctor. His salt and pepper look exudes wisdom from his nontraditional path to medicine, as well as fun life stories. He is pursuing fellowship in neurooncology.
Amanuel Kebede, MD Amanuel Kebede, MD

Medical School: University of Toledo College of Medicine, OH

Intern Year: University of Toledo Medical Center, OH

Amanuel is an ex-UCLA bruin who joined the Trojan Family with an extensive research background studying Gene expression genes at the BBB during Neurological dysfunction at UCSF and use of DCE-MRI imaging for predicting glioma grade and prognosis in primary brain tumors at Memorial Sloan Kettering. A bay area native, he has found a new home in LA, and loves to explore the food scene in Southern California. In his spare time, he enjoys exploring nature through hiking and camping, watching college sports, reading, working out and traveling.
Daniel Oh, MD Daniel Oh, MD

Medical School: Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, NJ

Intern Year: Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, NJ

Originally born in the South, but raised on the East Coast, he now comes to us from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Dan’s life philosophy involves balancing immediate and delayed gratification. Immediate gratifications include, non-stop pun-whispering, podcasts (Hidden Brain!), amateur caricatures, and golf. Dan’s interests include bridging technology and healthcare, bridging healthcare to the community, and bridges in general. Dan.
Vinod Ravikumar, MD Vinod Ravikumar, MD

Medical School: New York Medical College, NHY

Intern Year: Greenwich Hospital/Yale New Haven Health, CT

Originally from Saratoga, CA, Vinod joined Los Angeles General Medical CenterAC+USC Neurology after leaving his New Yorker lifestyle. His chic voice and mannerism is Park Ave but his clinical skills and academic interests are totally rooted in neurology, especially in LA County. Research interests are in movement disorders/binge eating behavior.
Ben Stuart, MD Ben Stuart, MD

Medical School: Zucker SOM at Northwell/Hofstra, NY

Intern Year: University of California Irvine Medical Center, CA

A northern California native, Ben is nerdier than he looks. With a formidable background in climbing the research ladder, specifically at the Brain Tumor Biotech Center at Feinstein Institute studying novel therapeutics for medulloblastoma, Ben actually is a rock-solid rock climber. Turn to him for advice in the ultimate millennial sport, and maybe neurology, too, while at it. Ben is pursuing fellowship in neurocritical care.
Tahoora Sadoughi, MD Tahoora Sadoughi, MD

Medical School: VCU School of Medicine, VA

Intern Year: Huntington Hospital, Pasadena, CA

Partially raised in the suburbs of Chicago but basically a true LA native, Tahoora explored the east coast for medical school before returning back to Southern California. She has done research in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and cerebral palsy. Other than her academic interests, she is something of a pseudo-sommelier and a guru of the LA restaurant scene. She will most likely treat all your headaches, as she pursues fellowship in Headache Medicine.