Get to know our residents
Our residents are a diverse group that come from a variety of backgrounds and have unique experiences and interests. We look forward to getting to know you as well!
PGY 1
Jeffrey Farooq, MD
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Medical School: University of South Florida
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health in West Michigan? I have been very fortunate to have been able to spend time pursuing my education in amazing cities like Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Boston, Tampa, Seattle, and now Grand Rapids! I am excited to explore this beautiful city with its abundance of natural landscapes. I am also thrilled to join the Corewell Health team to care for the entire West Michigan population.
Clinical Interests: My clinical interests within neurosurgery include trauma and cerebrovascular surgery (open and endovascular). On a macroscopic scale, I am interested in public health reform to improve access to quality care for patients.
Hobbies: I love animals! Outside of the hospital, you will most likely find me at the zoo, aquarium, or pet shelter. I spent a lot of time on my grandparent's small family ranch, and I hope to have my own small ranch one day so that I can raise and care for all kinds of animals. If I am not busy with animals, I am probably riding rollercoasters or enjoying some of the natural landscapes around town.
PGY 2
Sarosh Irfan Madhani, MBBS
Hometown: Karachi, Pakistan
Medical School: Aga Khan University
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health? Corewell Health, through its unique location in West Michigan, offers excellent variety and quality of surgical cases. The availability of experienced faculty and staff, as well as state-of-the-art facilities, makes Corewell Health in West Michigan an excellent place for neurosurgical training.
Clinical Interests: I have a keen interest in endovascular neurosurgery, but am open to exploring other sub-specialties.
Hobbies: I enjoy exploring natural locations (parks, beaches, hiking trails, etc.). At home I enjoy listening to and reading Urdu poetry.
PGY 4
Thiago Scharth Montenegro, MD
Hometown: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Medical school: Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro
Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? Spectrum Health is a center of excellence with a great surgical volume and this team is composed of leaders in the neurosurgical field.
What are your clinical interests? I am still open to explore all neurosurgical fields.
Hobbies: In my free time I like to play and watch soccer and spend some time with my family.
PGY 5
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Mohamed Abouelleil, MD
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine
Why did you choose Spectrum Health? I felt very comfortable with the faculty and staff. The learning environment at Spectrum is very positive, and I ultimately felt that this program would allow me to reach my potential academically and professionally.
What do you like most about your program? What I look forward to is learning from the faculty and staff.
Clinical Interests: I'm still not quite sure if there is anything specific part of neurosurgery that I'm most interested in.
Living in West Michigan: I enjoy the many options for recreation and entertainment that this area provides. There are a variety of parks, lakes, and local shops that I am looking forward to exploring,
Hobbies: My hobbies include Working out, playing and watching sports, and reading.
PGY 6
Andres F. Restrepo-Orozco, MD
Hometown: Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Medical School: University of Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
Why did you choose Spectrum Health? Spectrum Health serves as a major tertiary and quaternary center in West Michigan and most of North Michigan, which brings high level of acuity and volume. The breadth and quality of surgical exposure offered by Spectrum having primary stroke center certification status, a first-class epilepsy monitoring unit and a strong neuro-oncology program were difficult to surpass. Remarkable, experienced and friendly faculty with state-of-the-art technology and facilities made choosing Spectrum an easy task for me.
What do you like most about your program? Being a young program, I am really impressed with all we have accomplished in such a short period of time. The great leadership and commitment of the faculty to education and building a strong residency program is evident by wanting to position us a leading neurosurgery program in the country. I truly like the early surgical exposure and technical skill development offered as well as the commitment to research.
Clinical Interests: My clinical interests are neurosurgical oncology, skull-base neurosurgery and vascular neurosurgery.
Living in West Michigan: West Michigan/Grand Rapids has been a wonderful place to live for its nature, State parks, campsites, gorgeous sandy beaches, trails, cultural and social life. A medium-sized city where you will certainly find friendly people, delicious food, great sporting and cultural events, and excellent breweries.
Hobbies: I enjoy playing tennis, outdoor activities like camping, hiking, backpacking, drinking coffee, reading non-fiction, snorkeling/scuba diving while on vacation.
PGY 7
Leonard H. Verhey, MD, PhD
Hometown: Ancaster, Ontario, Canada
Medical School: Central Michigan University College of Medicine
Why did you choose Spectrum Health? The program at Spectrum Health offers a unique opportunity to grow with a young enthusiastic residency and help inform the shape of it along the way. Moreso, the unprecedented exposure and high volume of neurosurgical problems availed already at a junior level was very appealing.
What do you like most about your program? The attendings are palpably committed to developed residents that are competent and technically sound. The program avails a very rich exposure to nearly all elements of neurological surgery, recognized by their holding of many recognitions/certifications for their commitment to the treatment/management of neurosurgical problems.
Clinical Interests: I entered residency with a keen interest in academic pediatric neurological surgery. I have developed a particular interest over the last two years in both the technical aspects and management of acute patients on the vascular and skull base/tumor services.
Living in West Michigan: It's proximity to Lake Michigan and Northern Michigan, it's small town traffic situation with a moderate town amenity availability make Grand Rapids an ideal place to settle for residency with my wife and kids.
Hobbies: My Hobbies included enjoying food, gardening, outdoor activities such as cycling and fishing, and really anything with my wife and kids.