Program Year 2 Residents 2023 - 2024
Lara Ambrosi, M.D.
Medical School: State University of New York, Stony Brook
Undergrad: MCPHS University
Activities/Hobbies: exploring restaurants and breweries, reading, astrology, spending time with loved ones, and learning to cook!
Home Country: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins for several reasons, but most importantly was the strong sense of community I felt during interview day. Everyone was so friendly and genuine and made me feel right at home! I’m also very interested in the opportunity to receive advanced training through the FAST program and to use my fourth year to pursue training in social EM with a focus on advancing health equity.
Lara Ambrosi (she/her) was born in Geneva, Switzerland and grew up moving between France, Senegal and Argentina. She was an undergraduate at MCPHS University in Boston, where she pursued a bachelor’s in science. After college, she worked in clinical research both at Tufts Medical Center in Boston and NYP-Columbia Medical Center in NYC for three years before pursing her MD at Stony Brook. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with loved ones, reading good books, exploring new restaurants and learning about astrology!
Julencia Curtis, M.D., M.S.
Medical School: Howard University College of Medicine
Undergrad: Letourneau University
Activities/Hobbies: Playing basketball, working out, traveling, eating, painting, wine tasting, and sitting on the beach!!!
Home Country/State: Bahamas/Florida
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins because of the people. While doing my sub-internship at Johns Hopkins, I was immediately welcomed with open arms and enjoyed every interaction with both the faculty and residents. In addition to having the opportunity to serve the underserved, I knew that the stellar training and academic resources provided by Hopkins would help me in becoming the doctor I’ve always wanted to be.
Julencia Curtis was born in The Bahamas but grew up in Central Florida. She attended college at Letourneau University in Texas where she also played collegiate basketball while earning a degree in Biology. She worked as an emergency department scribe in the DFW Metroplex and enjoyed her time as an AAU basketball coach in Fort Worth, Texas. Prior to attending medical school, she received a Master’s Degree in Medical Sciences from Mississippi College. Julencia enjoys spending time with her family and friends, mentoring the youth, traveling, and learning about different cultures. Her academic interests include global health, social emergency medicine, and health disparities.
Paul Hahn, M.D.
Medical School: St. Louis University School of Medicine
Undergrad: New York University
Activities/Hobbies: Weightlifting, Camping, Brunch
Home Country: Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins for its dynamic residency with an abundance of clinical and non-clinical opportunities, sick and diverse patient population, and Baltimore’s young and vibrant energy.
Paul Hahn was born in Worms, Germany. He spent his childhood and early adulthood growing up in Germany, Ireland, India, and Canada. Paul came to the United States to attend his undergraduate education at New York University. He spent an additional year in New York City after his graduation, working as a research assistant. He subsequently attended medical school at St. Louis University in Missouri, where he discovered his interests in emergency medicine, critical care, and clinical research. He hopes to continue to cultivate these experiences during his residency at Johns Hopkins.
Josephine Lo Bello, M.D.
Medical School: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine
Undergrad: Harvard College
Activities/Hobbies: Latin/ballroom dance, creative writing, guiltily watching reality TV
Home State: Florida
Why Johns Hopkins: I fell in love with Hopkins on interview day. The people I met were so incredibly genuine, kind, and committed to serving the community in which they live. These were the folks I wanted to be my mentors/co-residents. The opportunities afforded by the FAST program were also very exciting and a huge pull—and of course I’m very excited to explore Baltimore!
Josie Lo Bello was born and raised in Miami, FL, right next door to the Everglades. She traded sun for snow after graduation, and completed her undergraduate in Chemical and Physical Biology at Harvard College, where she also trained and worked as an EMT. She attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for medical school (Go Heels!) and is excited to be joining the Hopkins family. Her academic interests include caring for older adults as well as EMS and prehospital medicine. In her free time, she can be found out ballroom dancing, cooking, or spending quality time with family and friends.
Robert Lord, M.D.
Medical School: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Undergrad: Harvard College
Activities/Hobbies: Contemporary art, comic book collecting, exploring Baltimore’s cultural and culinary landscape
Home State: Maryland
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins for the Emergency Department’s unique combination of a welcoming culture with its world-class leadership, staff and trainees, as well as the opportunity to serve Baltimore’s diverse patient population.
Robert Lord grew up in Tokyo, Japan and North Potomac, Maryland, but has proudly called Baltimore his home for the last 12 years. During medical school, Robert took an extended leave of absence to co-found Protenus, a healthcare compliance analytics platform that leverages artificial intelligence to reduce risk for patients, providers and healthcare institutions across the nation. As a recognized expert in healthcare technology, Robert has been invited to speak at conferences such as HIMSS, HLTH, and AHIMA, as well as by the U.S. Senate, where he helped articulate the risks posed to healthcare data by various cybersecurity threats. Robert continues to have interests in digital health, entrepreneurship, healthcare cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence as applied to clinical and operational decision-making, though he is most excited about the opportunity to learn and grow at Johns Hopkins while caring for our city’s patients.
Nelson Malone, M.D., M.P.H.
Medical School: Harvard Medical School
Graduate: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Undergrad: Howard University
Activities/Hobbies: Running, Yoga, Travel, Dancing, Eating food (that I probably didn’t make lol), Pretty much always up for an adventure
Home State: Virginia
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Johns Hopkins because well…it’s Hopkins!! One of the oldest medical institutions in the land with a long-standing commitment to the underserved, it has a reputation of excellence and innovation in healthcare. It serves as the perfect combination of patient-centered care with top-notch academic resources and rigor. The Johns Hopkins 4th year FAST program also affords me the opportunity to pursue a niche within the field aimed at advancing health equity and social justice.
Nelson Malone was born and raised in Richmond, VA. He attended Howard University (Bison/HBCU Pride!) as a first-generation student, graduating summa cum laude with a B.S. in Chemistry prior to enrolling at Harvard Medical School. While at Harvard, he served as SNMA President and Co-founder/Co-chair of the Racial Justice Coalition, recently receiving the 2020-2021 HMS Presidential Scholars Public Service Award. Additionally, Malone pursued a Masters of Public Health at Johns Hopkins as a Sommer Scholar, focusing on research methods, leadership, and health policy. He is excited and humbled to return to Baltimore and serve the residents of Charm City!
Kevin Mortazavi, M.D., M.H.S.
Medical School: University of California, Davis
Graduate: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Undergrad: University of California, Riverside
Activities/Hobbies: Skiing, hiking, stand-up comedy, political advocacy, and traveling
Home State: California
Kevin Mortazavi grew up in San Diego, CA where he was raised by his great-grandmother and great-aunt. He attended the University of California (UC), Riverside where he obtained a BS in Neuroscience. Subsequently, he attended Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health where he earned his MHS through the Mental Health Department and a Graduate Certificate in Health Disparities and Health Inequalities. After graduate school, he returned to California to attend UC Davis School of Medicine. While in medical school, Kevin established The Dr. Montakhab Foundation in honor of his late great-grandmother. To date, the foundation has provided over $35,000 in scholarships for women, refugees, and non-traditional students pursuing degrees in STEM. Kevin is ecstatic to return to Johns Hopkins for his EM residency where he can further explore his interests in emergency psychiatry, policy, and advocacy. Personally, Kevin is proud to support his fiancé, William Jacobson, as a dentist, educator, published author, and artist. Kevin also enjoys cycling, traveling internationally, and spending time with his feline therapist, Sigmund.
Jenna Paul-Schultz, M.D.
Medical School: David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Undergrad: Johns Hopkins University
Activities/Hobbies: Hiking, cooking/baking, drawing/painting, plant-raising
Home State: Pennsylvania
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins because at the end of my warm interview day I felt completely at home with and energized by the warm welcome of the faculty, staff, and residents. I was completely drawn in by the program's diverse patient population, unique fourth year opportunities and obvious commitment of the faculty, staff, and residents to the continuous learning and improving in the art of Emergency Medicine and care for their patients.
Jenna Paul-Schultz grew up outside Philadelphia and went to college at Johns Hopkins, originally for neuroscience and pre-med. While there she decided to switch focus from pre-med to creative writing and studio art. After college she traveled abroad and worked in Kathmandu, Nepal as a grant writer for nine months. Afterwards, she found herself in rural Zambia as a Health Extension volunteer for the Peace Corps. Following her stint abroad she returned to the states to take her pre-med classes at Bryn Mawr College and then worked as an EMT in Denver. She then attended UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine where she participated in their Global Health program, an interest she hopes to pursue at Johns Hopkins. Her hobbies include travel, hiking and camping, drawing and painting and cooking and trying not to kill her plants.
Arunsrinivasan (Arun) Ponshunmugam, M.D., M.B.A.
Medical School: Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Undergrad: Dartmouth College
Activities/Hobbies: Running, stargazing, cooking
Home State: Florida
Uniquely, the training at Hopkins affords resources and scheduled time to explore interests beyond clinical care. The training at Hopkins, the faculty, the breadth of the patient population, the resident class, and the willingness to support resident interests all seemed exceptional during my conversations with Hopkins faculty and staff.
Arun Ponshunmugam grew up in southern India and Jacksonville, Florida. He attended Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire where he studied Geography. Immediately after college, he attended the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth for medical school and then the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth for business school as a part of the Dartmouth MD-MBA program. Arun's professional interests are in healthcare entrepreneurship, global health and clinical work in emergency medicine.
Luxi Qiao, M.D., M.Phil.
Medical School: Washington University School of Medicine
Graduate: University of Cambridge
Undergrad: Williams College
Activities/Hobbies: Running/taking long walks while listening to K-pop, traveling and finding places to hike, reading mystery novels, cross-stitching, trying new coffee shops and restaurants
Home State: Florida
Why Johns Hopkins: I chose Hopkins because of the opportunity to serve a diverse patient population such as the one in Baltimore, the strength of Hopkins’s global health infrastructure and mentorship from the FAST curriculum, and the many resident-led initiatives at the program showed me how much the program values resident wellbeing and empowerment. Most importantly, the warmth of the EM community at Hopkins was palpable even over a virtual platform, and it meant a great deal to me that everyone I met spoke genuinely of their passion for the specialty, for patient care, and for service.
Luxi Qiao was born in China and grew up in Tallahassee, FL. She majored in Chemistry during her time at Williams College, and then worked on developing PET tracers as part of a master’s degree at the University of Cambridge. Though she enjoyed bench research, a desire to make a more front-line impact in patients’ lives brought Luxi to study medicine at Washington University. Working with the diverse and underserved patient population of St. Louis drew her to the social mission behind emergency medicine. She also developed an interest in global health and women’s health after a research project on Zika virus in collaboration with researchers from the UK and Brazil. Luxi is excited to be back on the east coast and to continue explore her interests in global EM and social EM while at Hopkins!
Bliss Rogers, D.O.
Medical School & Undergrad: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Undergrad: St. Mary’s College of Maryland
Activities/Hobbies: Painting, board games, aqua aerobics and cheering on the Baltimore Ravens!
Home State: Maryland
Why Johns Hopkins: I wanted to be a member of the Johns Hopkins family following the first day of my sub-internship in the ED. I chose Johns Hopkins for the collaborative team environment, value placed on creativity and innovation, and passion for teaching at every level. This coupled with opportunities to pursue my passions in patient advocacy, leadership, and medical education made Johns Hopkins the obvious choice.
Bliss Rogers was born and raised in the suburbs outside of Baltimore. She attended St. Mary’s College of Maryland, graduated with a B.A. in Biology, and was a member of the offshore sailing team. Bliss worked as a medical scribe at St. Mary’s Hospital and Shock Trauma at the University of Maryland Medical Center before attending Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. As a lifelong Marylander, she is excited to return home for residency at Johns Hopkins! Outside of the hospital, Bliss enjoys painting (she entered college considering an art major) and spending time with her husband Austin and their cat Smushy.
Dorothy Yim, M.D.
Medical School: Wayne State University School of Medicine
Undergrad: UCLA
Activities/Hobbies: Writing (poetry and prose!), reading, playing the piano and obsessing over classical music, cooking, gardening, loving on my cats
Home State: California
Why Johns Hopkins: Everything about this program impressed me, from the faculty's passion for teaching and mentorship to the unparalleled opportunities in serving such a diverse community. Most importantly, I felt that this was a program that prioritized developing well-rounded clinicians who would not only excel at emergency medicine but would also become the most compassionate and thoughtful versions of themselves, both as a physician and a human being. As someone who cares deeply about the humanities and its intersection with medicine, I knew there wasn't a better place than Johns Hopkins to zero in on truly patient-centered care and its dedication to the community and beyond.
Dorothy Yim was born and raised in southern California near the Los Angeles area. She received her BS in Physiology at UCLA and worked as a neurosurgery scribe for two years before attending medical school at Wayne State University, where she fell in love with emergency medicine. Outside of medicine, she is an avid writer of all things, including a collection of poetry and her first novel, and spends most of her days either in front of a piano or a good book. She is beyond excited about starting residency at Johns Hopkins and is looking forward to serving the diverse community of Baltimore.