Page Content

Alumni

Geriatric Medicine Fellowship graduate, Dr. Bartley, speaks with a colleague at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

The most important indicator of the success of a training program is found in the outcomes of the graduates upon completion of their training. Our Geriatric Medicine Fellowship graduates are able to provide high-value, compassionate care to older adults in clinical settings across the continuum including:

  • Primary care geriatric medicine clinic
  • Subspecialty clinics
  • Acute care of the older adult hospital unit
  • Hospital-based specialty consultations
  • Long term care (skilled nursing facility, subacute rehabilitation)
  • Home based care

Words from past alumni

Hear from those who have experienced our training program first-hand as you read what a few of our graduates had to say about their experience in the Geriatric Medicine Fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

Sara Medina-Bielski, M.D.

Sara Medina-Bielski, M.D.

2023 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

Mayo Clinic is a unique environment where you can see interesting cases from around the world and work with some of the top doctors in their field while also serving the community in Rochester, Minnesota. The environment at Mayo Clinic is very collegiate and teaching is a top priority. I feel I have been well-supported throughout my training at Mayo Clinic to help me build my career goals and achieve those goals.

Show more
Vanessa Crerar, D.O.

Vanessa Crerar, D.O.

2023 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

When I spent time in a nursing home facility, I fell in love with the stories patients would tell and I was challenged by how to best manage their multifaceted medical care. This fellowship allowed me to be engaged in several avenues of geriatric care - outpatient, inpatient, short-term nursing, long-term care, and homebound evaluations. This fellowship also allowed me to further my training in medical directorship and complete the requirements towards becoming a certified medical director, which was an opportunity special to our Geriatric Fellowship at Mayo Clinic.

Show more
Alisha Garel, M.D.

Alisha Garel, M.D.

2023 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

The rotation opportunities and the individualized curriculum designed to meet your career goals are incredible! Mayo Clinic provides a strong geriatric medicine foundation while also giving you an opportunity to focus on the skills and training you desire to be as prepared as possible after graduation. This fellowship experience is unique to Mayo Clinic, providing an extremely well-rounded education, all while working amongst an incredible faculty of educators. Every member of our team, whether in the clinic, the hospital, or behind the scenes is always here to provide support and guidance which helps the fellows to stay focused on their educational goals.

Show more
Allyson Palmer, M.D., Ph.D.

Allyson Palmer, M.D., Ph.D.

2022 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

I have known I wanted to pursue geriatrics since the beginning of medical school. After receiving my M.D. from the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine and my Ph.D. from Mayo Graduate School, I fell in love with Rochester. I decided to continue my training at Mayo Clinic due to the collegial atmosphere, focus on patient-centered care, amazing educators, and potential for interdisciplinary research collaborations.

I am a co-owner of Thesis Beer Project, a microbrewery in Rochester, with my husband Adam. In my free time, I love to garden, listen to live music, travel, and spend time with our two Shiba Inus and our long-haired cat, Sam.

Current position: Faculty, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Hospital Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Show more
Lara Magnabosco, M.D., M.A.

Lara Magnabosco, M.D., M.A.

2022 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

So many reasons! The people, opportunities on subspecialty rotations, and that the patient's needs always come first. I love geriatrics because I enjoy older adults and appreciate getting the opportunity to learn each person's story and health narrative. I also like the patient-centered care model as geriatrics is a multidisciplinary field that actively works to engage patients (or caregivers) in the healthcare collaboration process.

I also love to spend time outdoors and really enjoy all of the greenspace and trails in Rochester.

Current position: Faculty, MD Anderson, Houston, TX

Show more
Wesley Godfrey, M.D.

Wesley Godfrey, M.D.

2021 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

I came to Mayo for geriatrics training for several reasons. First, there was no other program that I found that truly achieved the goal of putting the patient first in all things. It was clear during my interview that everyone, from senior-level consultants to bedside nurses, to housekeepers, shared this important goal. I was very impressed by the structure, leadership, and educational opportunities afforded fellows on the geriatric inpatient service. Lastly, the chance to learn — very frequently one-on-one — with world-renowned leaders in clinical and translational geriatric medicine has been an incredible privilege that I will never regret.

Current position: Faculty, Intermountain Health, St. George, UT

Show more
Richie Xu, M.B.B.S.

Richie Xu, M.B.B.S.

2021 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

I love Mayo Clinic's unique approach to patient care and clinical education. The Geriatric Medicine Fellowship offers a structured curriculum of geriatric education by exposing us to a variety of sub-specialty rotations. Moreover, the program strives to customize the elective blocks to match our career goals.

I have enjoyed living in Rochester, Minnesota. I love to hike on the many trails and parks in Rochester in the summer, and, in the winter, I love to spend weekends snowboarding at local ski resorts.

Current position: Faculty, Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Kentucky

Show more
Shano Thiyagalingam, M.D.

Shano Thiyagalingam, M.D.

2020 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

I chose the Geriatric Medicine Fellowship at Mayo Clinic because I knew that the experience I would gain from such a highly-ranked institution would be an asset in my care of patients. There was a rich clinical resource of world experts and research opportunities. I also really appreciated how friendly and professional the core faculty staff were during my interview. I had two mentors during my training. I published a full manuscript, presented at several local and national conferences, and published multiple abstracts in several journals. Since graduating, Mayo Clinic's high reputation has helped me obtain competitive opportunities in academic medicine.

Current position: Faculty, West Virginia University, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Morgantown, WV

Show more
Jad Sfeir, M.D.

Jad Sfeir, M.D.

2019 Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Graduate

The Geriatric Medicine Fellowship has innumerable assets but one of the most important for me was the ability to tailor the training towards my career goals. The program is set up in a way that minimizes clinical burden and maximizes education. The schedules allow for ample time to discuss cases and get the most educational value out of every patient. In addition, we rotate through different specialty clinics to learn the different aspects of geriatric care and learn from world-renowned experts in every field. Finally, there are vast opportunities for scholarly work depending on individual trainee aspirations ranging from quality improvement projects to clinical and bench research.

Current position: Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Show more
Graduation of Mayo Clinic residents and fellows

Mayo Clinic Alumni Association

The Mayo Clinic Alumni Association will help you stay in touch with your Mayo Clinic colleagues, maintain a valuable professional connection to Mayo Clinic throughout your medical and/or research career, participate in continuing medical education, and more.

Learn more