Family Medicine: First Year Residents

Erij grew up in Canada, in the diverse city of Waterloo, Ontario, where she developed an appreciation for different cultures and perspectives. Raised by Tunisian immigrant parents, she developed an early commitment to giving back to underserved communities. She attended the University of Waterloo, where she studied Biomedical Science. During her undergraduate years, she worked as a medical assistant in a family medicine clinic, an experience that solidified her desire to pursue medicine and sparked her interest in family medicine.

After college, Erij moved to Orlando, Florida, where she completed a master’s degree in Biotechnology at the University of Central Florida. During this time, she served as a Guardian ad Litem volunteer advocate for children experiencing abuse and neglect, deepening her commitment to working with vulnerable populations.

Erij attended medical school at the Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine in Miami, where she became involved in community-based initiatives serving underserved populations through longitudinal household care, street medicine, and preventive health outreach. These experiences reinforced her passion for building meaningful patient relationships and addressing barriers to care.

Erij is excited to join Cambridge Health Alliance and be part of a program that shares her commitment to health equity, community-based care, and serving diverse patient populations. Outside of medicine, Erij enjoys traveling, photography, baking, and seeking out new experiences. She is always drawn to new adventures, whether that means swimming with sharks, chasing sunrises, or saying yes to spontaneous plans.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Janani grew up splitting her time between the suburbs of Philadelphia and spending her summers in India. These experiences fostered an early appreciation for how cultural context, community structure, and access to resources shape individuals’ daily lives and health outcomes, leading to a lasting curiosity about health inequities and their broader societal impact.

She attended Case Western Reserve University, where she earned a BA in Chemical Biology and a Master’s degree in Public Health. Following graduation, she worked as a clinical research coordinator in West Philadelphia, engaging with pediatric patients and families across home, school, and clinical settings to improve asthma outcomes. This experience expanded her understanding of what care can look like when stakeholders collaborate, particularly when initiatives are grounded in data and community needs.

Janani received her medical degree from Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, where she continued to explore the intersection of clinical care and public health. Through her research, she evaluated the feasibility and sustainability of school-based health interventions, including the implementation of mental health programming for adolescents. Her work reinforced her interest in integrating clinical care with systems-level change to improve access and outcomes. She also volunteered at a free clinic during medical school, where she contributed to both patient care and clinic operations, further deepening her commitment to serving underserved communities. Janani is thrilled to join the Tufts Family Medicine Residency and train alongside like-minded peers! Her interests include women's health, health policy, and school-based health interventions. Outside of medicine, she enjoys running, dancing, and exploring new cities with friends and family.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Leah grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan and earned her undergraduate degree in Nutritional Science at Michigan State University before completing medical school at the University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences. During medical school, Leah was involved in leadership and advocacy initiatives focused on health equity, diversity, and community engagement. Leah is passionate about building strong relationships with patients and believes that understanding each patient’s story is essential to providing compassionate and effective care. Her experiences working in community clinics and participating in global health outreach has strengthened her commitment to caring for diverse and underserved populations. She is excited to continue this work as a Family Medicine resident at Tufts University Family Medicine Residency at Cambridge Health Alliance and to serve the Malden community. Her medical interests include community health, health equity, and longitudinal primary care. Outside of medicine, Leah enjoys spending time with family, friends, and her two cats Pudge and Miso. She also enjoys trying new restaurants, and exploring new places.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Simon grew up in Needham, MA, just west of Boston. He studied Biology at the Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he conducted research identifying therapeutic targets for Naegleria fowleri, the "brain-eating amoeba." While he valued the scientific work, he realized something was missing—connection with people. That clarity came through a shadowing experience at Boston Children's Hospital, where he saw how medicine brings science and human connection together. After graduating, Simon worked as a Clinical Research Coordinator at the Healey Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital. There, he supported patients and families navigating a devastating diagnosis while helping to advance the first platform trial in ALS. Working closely with a terminal patient, and serving as part of their care team solidified his commitment to becoming a physician.

He went on to attend Tufts University School of Medicine, where he co-led "Welcome Alliance," a student-run initiative providing physical exams for uninsured immigrant and refugee children so they could attend school and participate in sports. This experience deepened his commitment to underserved communities and strengthened his passion for building meaningful patient relationships. His interests in continuity of care, community health, neonatal medicine, and palliative care ultimately drew him to family medicine. While rotating at both the CHA Malden Care Center and CHA Everett Hospital, Simon experienced the dedication of each member of the team, from front desk staff to attending physicians, all working toward a shared goal of improving patient care. After this, he knew CHA was where he wanted to train. Simon could not be more excited to join the Tufts/CHA Family Medicine Residency and looks forward to becoming a family physician who provides compassionate, full-spectrum care across all stages of life. Outside of the clinic, Simon enjoys snuggling with his cats Benedict (Benny) and Toblerone (Tobi), playing competitive soccer and volleyball, and eating his wife's baked goods.

Pronouns: He/Him/His

Claire was born in Cheshire, CT. Her family owned a small business, and working there taught her the importance of hard work and the value that people with different backgrounds bring to the team. She attended Providence College and studied biology and neuroscience. During college, she volunteered at a clinic for uninsured Rhode Islanders, which sparked her interest in caring for underserved populations. After college, she worked as a medical assistant at a dermatology clinic, where she developed an appreciation for longitudinal patient-physician relationships.

She attended medical school at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. While there, she started a student organization that volunteered with the case management department at Boston Healthcare for the Homeless. She learned the challenges of navigating the complex web of social services as well as how to turn an idea into action. She also conducted research on medical education on justice-involved populations, which showed her the inequities that this often-ignored population faces and how we can combat them as physicians.

Claire is proud to be continuing her education at Tufts/CHA FMR, a residency program that shares her values of health equity and compassionate, comprehensive care for all. Her clinical interests include reproductive healthcare, addiction medicine, integrative medicine, and group visits. In her free time, she enjoys baking bread, Pilates, and embroidering.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Meghna was born and raised in Michigan. As an older sibling and eldest child, her interest in medicine developed alongside her love for attending to others’ stories. When she moved to Providence, Rhode Island for college and medical school, these interests expanded to include a consideration of the structural factors impacting health, first through her undergraduate Public Health studies and later through her involvement with community organizing.

During medical school, she worked alongside community members and classmates on several curricular development initiatives, including the creation of an Incarceration and Health pre-clinical elective and a complete redesign of the medical school’s substance-use counseling curriculum to center a framework of harm reduction. In building relationships with community members through these initiatives, she became involved with a local group organizing against medical neglect in the state’s carceral system and in support of the right to due process for community members on probation. These experiences solidified her belief that medicine is political and inseparable from anti-oppressive, community-driven work, a framework that she often saw upheld by family medicine colleagues.

Meghna is thrilled to join the Tufts/CHA family medicine residency where she hopes to continue to develop an anti-oppressive, structurally-informed approach to providing care in partnership with patients. Her clinical interests include Reproductive Justice, abolition medicine, palliative care, adolescent medicine, and continuing to improve her Spanish to provide bilingual care. In her free time, Meghna enjoys cooking for and with loved ones, spending time in the sun, finding the best strawberry ice cream, and making progress on her ever-growing list of books to be read.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Vivian grew up in Hillsdale, NJ a suburb just outside of New York City. She attended Pennsylvania State University as part of a combined 7-year BS/MD program with Sidney Kimmel Medical College. After completing her undergraduate studies, she worked as a medical scribe and phlebotomist during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, where she developed a passion for advancing equitable, high-quality, community-centered care.

During medical school, Vivian volunteered at Prevention Point and witnessed the profound impact of preventive care and community-based interventions in reducing HIV transmission and advancing public health in Philadelphia. At Sidney Kimmel Medical College, she served on the Diversity Council and American Medical Women's Association while engaging in diverse research initiatives, including developing a novel artificial intelligence system for fully automated intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography interpretation at the University of Pennsylvania and studying rapid inpatient methadone titration in pregnant patients with opioid use disorder.

Vivian is thrilled to join the Tufts Family Medicine Residency at CHA, where the program's supportive community and commitment to health equity and advocacy strongly resonated with her. She looks forward to advocating for her patients and empowering them to lead healthier lives. In her free time, she enjoys running, trying new recipes, exploring new restaurants, and spending quality time with her friends and family.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Aya grew up right here in Malden, Mass and completed her undergraduate studies at Boston University, where she studied Health Sciences and Early Childhood Education. After graduation, she worked with the Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center, where she supported donor families and assisted in neuropathology research, which deepened her appreciation for both science and patient centered care.

She went onto attend medical school at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. Throughout her training, Aya has been passionate about health equity, prevention, and community-based care. She’s worked closely with underserved populations, both locally and abroad, including a medical service trip to the Dominican Republican and Haiti, where she helped provide primary care services and contributed to developing systems for longitudinal patient follow-up. She’s also been actively involved in public health initiatives, addressing food, insecurity, and nutritional literacy.

Aya believes that building trust, fostering continuity, and advocating for patients are at the core of family medicine. Growing up in a diverse community and training in both New England and New Jersey, Aya has developed deep appreciation for caring for patients from a wide range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds. She’s excited to continue training in a community that values patient center care, health equity, and strong physician-patient relationships. Her clinical interests include preventative care, women’s health, and advancing health equity within the communities she serves.

Outside of medicine, Aya enjoys horseback riding, reading, spending time with family and friends, and staying active outdoor outdoors.

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers