Internal Medicine Residents & Administrators – Norton

Meet the current residents and the Graduate Medical Education Team in the internal medicine residency program at Norton Community Hospital in Norton, Virginia.

Graduate Medical Education Administrative Representatives

Institutional Administrative Representatives

Bernie N. Sergant DO

Bernie N. Sergant DO, FACOI, FACP
Southwest Virginia Residency Programs
Designated Institutional Officer (DIO)
Director of Graduate Medical Education (GME)

Amanda Hall, Institutional Coordinator

Amanda Hall
Graduate Medical Education (GME)
Institutional Coordinator

Nakeeshi Sykes

Nakeeshi Sykes
System Graduate Medical Education (GME) Coordinator

Crum, Heather

Heather Crum
Corporate Student Coordinator
Academics & Research
Norton Community Hospital Greenville Community Hospital

Internal Medicine Residency Administrative Representatives

Bernie N. Sergant DO

Bernie N. Sergant DO, FACOI, FACP
Southwest Virginia Residency Programs
Designated Institutional Officer (DIO)
Director of Graduate Medical Education (GME)

Andrew Sparkman, DO

Andrew Sparkman, DO
Associate Program Director

Lilly, Michael, MD

Michael Lilly, MD
Junior Faculty, PGY-4

Stephanie Roberts, C-TAGME

Stephanie Roberts, C-TAGME
Medical Education Manager
Program Coordinator

Carla Thompson

Carla Thompson
Medical Education Specialist

Current residents

PGY-3

Sadiq, Zaynah, MD

Zaynah Sadiq, M.D.
Chief Resident
American University of Antigua College of Medicine

Sonar, Nirmay

Nirmay Sonar, M.D.
Chief Resident
Mahatma Gandhi Mission's Medical College, Navi Mumbai

DeBusk, Allison, MD

Allison DeBusk, M.D.
Lincoln Memorial University, DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine

Kaur, Gurvinder, MD

Gurvinder Kaur, M.D.
Medical University of Lublin

Masud, Parisha, MD

Parisha Masud, MD
Aureus University School of Medicine

Patel, Poonam, MD

Poonam Patel, MD
Saint James School of Medicine Anguilla

Pervaze, Shohan, MD

Shohan Pervaze, MD
American University of Antigua College of Medicine

Vinyank, Suprada, MD

Suprada Vinyank, MD
Sri Siddhartha Medical College

Michelle Wood, MD

Michelle Wood, MD

Mathew Sgouros
St. George's University School of Medicine
Not pictured.

PGY-2

Johum Haque, MD

Johum Haque, M.D.
Jinnah Sindh Medical University

Iftekhar, Rafi, MD

Rafi Iftekhar, M.D.
St. George's University School of Medicine

Khan, Faizan, MD

Faizan Khan, M.D.
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Medical University of Bahrain

Khattak, Asfand, MD

Asfand Khattak, M.D.
Bacha Khan Medical College

Kulkarni, Vaishnavi, MD

Vaishnavi Kulkarni, M.D.
Adichunchanagiri Institute of Medical Sciences

Paghdar, Smit, MD

Smit Paghdar, M.D.
Surat Municipal Institute of Medical Education and Research

Supriya Peshin, MD

Supriya Peshin, MD

Bilal Rahimuddin, M.D.
Al-Ameen Medical College

Mishell Siles Borda, M.D.
Medical University of Lublin

PGY-1

Najnin Akter, MD

Willard Gordon, DO

Jaimin Kapadia, DO

Hunter Myers, MD

Raymond Paria, MD

Mohammad Shahid, MD

Ramsha Sohail, MD

Tamanna Taznin, MD

Sanjaya Upadhyaya, MD

Testimonials from former residents

Norton Community Internal Medicine Residency can help prepare you for whichever path you choose.

The majority of the residents who graduate from our program become hospitalists; however, we have had several residents successfully enter fellowships, including cardiology, hospice and palliative care, infectious disease, nephrology and more.

“My three-year residency at Norton Community Hospital Internal Medicine Residency based in Norton, VA, had an outstanding balance of autonomy and supervision. This is not an academic university program, but my experience and education will allow me to practice medicine confidently in various healthcare environments, including rural hospitals and larger tertiary centers.”

“You will become highly confident managing Afib, NSTEMI, COPD, DKA, and other ICU-level patients. The open ICU allowed me to build confidence in my management with the added benefit of not having to compete with fellows for procedural experience. Unfortunately, given the rural location of the hospital, patient demographics are not highly variable, but there is a plethora of pathology.”

“If you are interested in fellowships, I recommend researching the fellowship programs and locations in advance, as our residency program allows and supports its residents to complete away rotations at potential future fellowship locations. We have a strong track record of graduates attending fellowships in their chosen sub-specialty fields and desired locations. I am grateful for my experience at Norton Community Hospital Internal Medicine Residency and for building long-lasting relationships with this region’s people as patients, peers, and colleagues.” – Dr. Kenny Garcia, M.D.

“As a resident physician at Norton Community Hospital, I was taught acute inpatient medicine with supervised autonomy. Today, as a fellow physician specializing in infectious diseases, I feel proficient in treating any ailment with confidence.”

“My career goal prior to and throughout medical training has been to provide care for cancer patients. After interviewing at the Norton Community Hospital internal medicine program, I immediately felt Dr. Bentley and the medical education administration were invested and supportive of my goal, even prior to starting as an intern.”

“I continued to have this unwavering support as I navigated the learning curve of intern year, chose diverse electives in my area of interest during second year and developed leadership skills as chief during my third year. Navigating the care of patients with limited resources is a unique benefit to Norton Community Hospital's program, with the support of attending physicians who care about the art of medicine and the importance of integrating humanism into the typical internal medicine curriculum.” – Dr. Sara Sadiq-Ali

“With the flexibility of diversifying rotations and the autonomy of a smaller program, I was able to work on a variety of research projects, learn in many different hospital settings and appreciate the value of consulting physicians. These experiences at Norton Community Hospital inspired me to not only pursue a hematology/oncology fellowship, but to continue training in what some patients need more than medicine – supportive care. I finished a palliative care fellowship at the University of Tennessee and look forward to completing my hematology/oncology fellowship at the same institution, thanks to my foundation of medicine built at Norton Community Hospital.” – Dr. Jessica Rich Davis

“A common misconception about smaller or more rural programs is that they leave residents underprepared for specialty training. On the contrary, my experience at Norton Community Hospital forced me to critically think and act in a patient’s best interest, when a specialty was not readily available. I became a better-rounded physician because of these situations, and they have served me well in my years since leaving.” – Dr. Jason Brown