The Edmond J. Safra Fellowship in Movement Disorders

University of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Whitley completed medical school at the University of Texas School of Medicine in San Antonio, Texas and neurology residency at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include neuroepidemiology, healthcare disparities and the development of community health initiatives for patients with movement disorders. She plans to explore barriers to health care access in underserved populations and to develop interventions to improve care for patients with Parkinson’s disease and related disorders.

University of California, San Francisco – San Francisco, California

Amir completed medical school at Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri and neurology residency at the Harvard Medical School Neurology Residency Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Within movement disorders, his research interests lie in atypical parkinsonisms, the neurocognitive effects of parkinsonism and brain mapping. 

Emory University – Atlanta, Georgia

Christopher completed medical school at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia and neurology residency at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He is eager to expand his knowledge and clinical practice in movement disorders and to contribute to new research opportunities in the field.

Northwestern University – Chicago, Illinois

Neil completed medical school at the University of Illinois in Peoria, Illinois and neurology residency at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. Neil hopes to gain a deeper insight into the experiences of people with Parkinson’s disease, acquire the knowledge and skills to optimally treat patients, and to support participation in clinical trials on disease modifying therapies.

Radboud University – Nijmegen, The Netherlands

Judith completed medical school at Utrecht University in Utrecht, the Netherlands and neurology residency at Radboud University Medical Centre in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. She hopes to gain the knowledge and skills needed to provide high-level care to patients with movement disorders and is concurrently pursuing a PhD in cerebellar ataxia, which she will complete in 2020.

University of Alabama at Birmingham – Birmingham, Alabama

Aditya completed medical school at Gandhi Medical College in Hyderabad, India and neurology residency at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. As a resident, his interactions with Parkinson’s patients offered profound insights into the human condition and showed him the impact that a well-trained and compassionate physician can have on the lives of patients and their families. As a fellow, he intends to build his clinical acumen as a neurologist and engage in research to further understanding of complex movement disorders.

Toronto Western Hospital - Ontario, Canada

Conor completed medical school at University College Dublin and neurology residency at Royal College of Physicians in Ireland. His PhD focused on understanding the mechanisms involved in freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease. He enjoys the diagnostic challenge of movement disorders, as well as the close relationship one develops with patients. Coming from a technical background, Conor is particularly interested in how technology can be used to better understand Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. He looks forward to becoming part of the growing global network of movement disorder specialists and advance critical research in this area.

UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology - London, England

Eoin completed medical school at University College Dublin and neurology residency at Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. Since 2018, he has worked as a movement disorder clinical and research fellow at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London, England. He is passionate about movement disorder neurology and actively involved in clinical research and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles.

Baylor College of Medicine - Houston, Texas

Chintan completed medical school at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in El Paso, Texas and neurology residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. Chintan hopes to continue his growth as a neurologist and focus on building lasting relationships with patients living with Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. The fellowship will facilitate his commitment to bridging the gap between basic and clinical research and its clinical application to patients.

The Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases at University of Florida Health - Gainesville, Florida

Juan completed medical school at University of Navarra in Pamplona, Spain and neurology residency at Houston Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas. During fellowship, Juan hopes to achieve clinical expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of movement disorders and to start building his career as a movement disorder physician-scientist. He hopes to characterize pre-symptomatic diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases and design strategies for the characterization of disease subtypes that could lead to personalized treatments and prognosis.

University of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Pavan completed medical school at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland and neurology residency through the Harvard Neurology Residency Program at Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospitals in Boston, Massachusetts. He plans to advance the treatment of patients with Parkinson disease and other movement disorders by gaining expertise during his fellowship and conducting clinical research to improve early diagnosis and expand available treatment options.

Fleni Hospital - Buenos Aires, Argentina

Sergio Castillo-Torres is a clinical neurologist, currently working as an assistant professor of neurology at the Hospital Universitario (Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León), a teaching hospital in Monterrey, Mexico. He decided to become a neurologist because of the intellectual challenges of the neurological examination and lesion localization. Early in his training, he became thrilled by the protean clinical manifestations of movement disorders and decided to pursue specialization in this field to provide the best care for patients given the scarcity of specialists.

The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre – Montreal, Canada

Steve Joza completed a doctorate in pathobiology at the University of Toronto, medical degree at Queen’s University at Kingston, and neurology residency at the University of Alberta. He is excited to start his fellowship training in movement disorders with a focus on researching the early prodromal stages of Parkinson’s disease.

Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital - Paris, France

Poormina Jayadev Menon is currently completing her third year of neurology training in Ireland and undertaking a Masters in Genomic Medicine at Cambridge University. Through the Edmond J. Safra Fellowship, she hopes to gain a deeper understanding into the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s disease, the genetic variants responsible for this condition and the evolution of this disease. She aspires to contribute to the cumulative effort of developing a therapy that can prevent progression for patients with Parkinson’s disease. She is excited to spend the next two years learning clinical skills from the phenomenal physicians at the ICM as she pursues her ambition of becoming a movement disorders physician.

Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center - New York, New York

Andrea Yoo was born in South Korea; raised in Queens, New York; and completed her undergraduate studies at Cornell University.  At NYU Grossman School of Medicine, she fostered her interest in movement disorders studying art therapy intervention and visual spatial processing in Parkinson’s disease. She is Chief Resident in Neurology at New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell and is researching chemodenervation for cervical dystonia and migraines. As an Edmond J. Safra Fellow at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, she hopes to expand her clinical knowledge to multiple areas in movement disorders and pursue clinical research in Parkinson’s disease, including disease-modifying agents and novel targets for non-motor symptoms.

The Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases at University of Florida Health - Gainesville, Florida

Jun “John” Yu is currently a neurology resident and aspiring movement disorders fellow at the University of Florida Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases. His clinical and research interest in neuromodulation therapies for Parkinson’s disease stemmed from his longstanding fascination with brain networks and advanced technologies. As a determined clinician-scientist, Dr. Yu aims to hone his skills for a successful academic career providing comprehensive, interdisciplinary, patient-centered care for individuals with PD and advancing understanding of basal ganglia circuits and physiology through the continued innovation and optimization of neuromodulation therapies.