Research

University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, UH Rainbow Babies & Children's, and Case Western Reserve University are leading institutions in research nationwide. We pride ourselves on being one of the most well-funded academic institutions in the country. Residents pursue research projects and scholarly work based on their academic interests, including in bench research, clinical and translational research, population health research, quality improvement, educational research and curriculum development, advocacy work, and others. Resident scholarly work is supported by rich institutional resources, including:

• Research curriculum for all residents
• Research track for interested residents
• Financial support for conference presentations
• Invested mentors
• Outstanding librarian support
• Quality improvement opportunities
• Statistician solely for resident projects
• Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Focus

Quality improvement and patient safety are both heavily emphasized at University Hospitals and UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital. Residents learn the basic principles of the model for improvement. They also learn how to design a QI project during the first two years of residency to prepare them to complete a QI project by the end of their residency. This project may also serve as a scholarly activity. Additional rotations or electives in QI such as Lean/Six Sigma training can be pursued and are encouraged.

Scholarly Work

In addition to their clinical experiences, all residents also complete a scholarly project during their training. Past resident projects have ranged from basic science to clinical research, global health projects, and quality improvement work. Their work has been presented at national conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals.

Recent resident publications and presentations:

Shradha Chhabria, MD, MPH; Mackenzie Cater, MD, MBA; and Shwetha Sudhakar, MD, on behalf of the Pathways to Health for Cleveland Refugees Initiative. Pathways to Health for Cleveland Refugees: A Resident-Led Bidirectional Exchange in Health Systems Navigation and Cultural Humility. AAP COICFH Fall Newsletter.

Chhabria SM, LeBron J, Ronis SD, Batt CE. Diagnosis and Management of Hypertension in Adolescents with Obesity. Curr Cardiovasc Risk Rep. 2024;18(8-9):115-124. doi: 10.1007/s12170-024-00740-x. Epub 2024 Jul 30. PMID: 39105085; PMCID: PMC11297811.

Chhabria SM, Pérez JA, Neeland IJ. Impact of an MRI Body Fat Imaging Report on Obesity-Related Cardiometabolic Risk: Findings From the BODY-REAL Study, A Randomized Trial. Obes Sci Pract. 2025 Nov 12;11(6):e70099. doi: 10.1002/osp4.70099. PMID: 41245699; PMCID: PMC12612552.

Okunogbe A, Bisanzio D, Spencer G, Chhabria S, Powis J, Nugent R. The economic impacts of COVID-19 hospitalizations, intensive care unit admissions, and deaths related to overweight and obesity. PLOS Glob Public Health. 2025 Jun 4;5(6):e0001445. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001445. PMID: 40465788; PMCID: PMC12136452.

Amber Estes and Olivia Rizzo; From White Coat to Whiteboard: Curriculum Creation for Chief Residents; AIMW25 Workshop IM Chief Residents Track; 4/7/2025

Amber Estes and Olivia Rizzo; A Resident-Driven Curriculum: Physician Advocacy and Civic Health for Internal Medicine Residents; AIM25 Poster Presentation; 4/7/2025

Estes A, Frey M. Empowering Resident Advocates: Development of a Peer-Driven Physician Advocacy Curriculum for Internal Medicine Residents. SGIM Midwest Regional Conference, Cleveland, OH. Oct 20, 2025.

Reifenberg J and Craven, D.  "Diaphragmatic Dysfunction And Management In PBX1 Mediated Neonatal Respiratory Failure”. American Thoracic Society May 17-20, San Francisco, California.

Salama M, Abboud H, Hirunpattarasilp C, Weinert-Stein K, Chandrasekhar V, Stehouwer N. Unmasking Autoimmunity: A Thymic Cancer–Associated Case of Dual-Antibody Paraneoplastic Limbic Encephalitis . American College of Physicians National Abstract Competition Finalist - San Francisco, CA, April 2026.

Janis A, Rondinelli J. Irreversible Vision Loss in a Teenager with Allergic Fungal Rhinosinusitis. AAAAI Annual Meeting; February 28th, 2026. Philadelphia, PA. Poster presentation.

Janis A, Withey J, Borgia RE. A NOD2 Mystery. ACAAI 2025 Annual Scientific Meeting; November 7th, 2025; Orlando, FL. Poster presentation.

Janis A, Lopes JP. When Fevers Persist: A RIPK1 Variant in a Teen with Autoinflammatory Symptoms. NICER Symposium. September 19th, 2025; Minneapolis, MN. Poster presentation.

Janis A., Lopes JP. The Many sides of RIPK1. Clinical Immunology Society Annual Meeting. May 2nd, 2025. Philadelphia, PA. Poster presentation.

Callahan B, Janis A, Reddi S, Nowak AS, Thomas R, Przyklenk K, Santia C, Pelshaw C. Understanding medical students’ knowledge and attitudes about cerebral palsy. PM&R. Published online 2025. doi:10.1002/pmrj.13420

Sathya Areti, Zahra Abbas, Mohannad Wazirali, Daniel Craven. A Case of PYCR-1 related cutis laxa with Mounier-Kuhn syndrome. American Thoracic Society, May 2024.

Sathya Areti, Mackenzie Cater, Sarah Redmond, Nicholas Newman, Courtney Veltri, Leila Hojat. An Inpatient Resident-Driven Quality Improvement Initiative to Address EMR Penicillin Allergy Labels. Department of Medicine Research Day; Poster. May 2024.

Areti, Sathya; Roesch, Erica; Lopes, Joao Pedro. A Role for Immunoglobulin Replacement Therapy in Cystic Fibrosis: A Case Report. Clinical Immunology Society; Poster. May 2024.