Aisha Venugopal, MD joined the Pediatric Division of Emergency Medicine on September 7, 2023. She will be working at the Blue Ridge Urgent Care Center. Dr. Venugopal earned her medical degree from the Eastern Virginia Medical School in 2018. She completed her Pediatric residency between 2018 and 2021 at the Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters in Norfolk, VA. Beginning in 2021 Dr. Venugopal has been faculty at the Eastern Virginia Medical School Department of Pediatrics and worked in Urgent Care a the Children’s Hospital of The Kings Daughters. Welcome Aisha!!

Catalina Berenblum Tobi, 4th year UNC Medical Student, has been named the 2023 William Hersey Davis, Jr., MD Pediatric Student Scholar. Catalina impressed the selection committee with the way “she delivers patient care with a very conscious patient-centered approach. Her empathy for her patients is so strong, and the way she talks about her experiences and hopes for the future really made us all feel inspired!”

Aliese Sarkissian, MD, MBOE was a guest speaker at the August 2023 Roadmap Collaborative Action Period Calls where she shared some lessons she’s learned about engaging her colleagues in testing strategies. Dr. Sarkissian was site co-leader in the Roadmap Pilot Collaborative and is now leading a team in the current collaborative as part of her spread efforts.

Rebecca Vitale, MD, MPH joined the Pediatric Division of Endocrinology on September 1, 2023. Dr. Vitale completed her medical degree from Yale University in 2015. She also earned a Masters of Public Health from Yale concurrent with her medical degree. She was a Med/Peds Resient between 2015 and 2019 at the Yale-New Haven Hospital. Dr. Vitale completed her Internal Medicine-Pediatric Endocrinology fellowship from 2019 through 2023 at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston children’s Hospital. Welcome Rebecca!!

UNC Health will partner with Bladen County Schools to expand much-needed behavioral health care for children in the rural county. The pilot project is supported by funding from The Duke Endowment. The school-based treatment model will add therapists and open virtual care centers in all Bladen County schools.

Jennifer Sullivan joined Genetics and Metabolism on August 21, 2022. In 1994, Ms. Sullivan received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Engineering from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. She received a Master of Science in Genetic Counseling from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina in 1996. Ms. Sullivan has worked as a Genetic Counselor at Duke University since 1997. Welcome Jennifer!

Dr. Stephenson joined the Department of Pediatrics as faculty on August 14, 2023. Dr. Stephenson received her BS from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville VA in 2011 and completed her medical degree at Trinity School of Medicine, in St. Vincent & the Grenadines in 2016. She was a Pediatric Resident at the Vidant Medical Center at East Carolina University (ECU) in Greenville, NC from 2017 to 2020. She completed subspecialty training in Pediatric Pulmonology with us at UNC Children’s in 2023. Congratulations Nicole!

Katie Paul, MD joined the Pediatric Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine on August 7, 2023. Dr. Paul completed her medical degree in 2017 with us at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was a Pediatric Resident between 2017 and 2020 at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center/New York Presbyterian-Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital in New York. Dr. Paul completed her subspecialty training in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine in 2023 at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Welcome Katie!!

Alison Manikowski, PsyD joined the Pediatric Division of Hematology-Oncology on August 1, 2023. Dr. Manikowski completed her PsyD in 2020 at William James College in Newtown, MA. She was a Pediatric Psychology Resident between 2020 and 2021 at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Emory University School of Medicine. Since then, Dr. Mankiowski has worked as a Clinical Psychologist with WakeMed Health in Raleigh. Welcome Alison!!

Cara Beth Carr, MD joined the Pediatric Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine on August 1, 2023. Dr. Carr completed her medical degree in 2017 at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. She was a Pediatric Resident between 2017 and 2020 and completed her subspecialty training in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine in 2023, both from Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital. Welcome Cara Beth!!