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
Elizabeth Bushong, MD
Hometown: Yucca Valley, CA
Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health in West Michigan? I am ecstatic to join the Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency at Corewell Health in West Michigan. Through my medical school rotations and research collaborations with the program, I learned how unique and special this program is. I am most excited to start operating early in my training and to learn through a mentorship based model. I also greatly appreciate the breadth of reconstructive and cosmetic cases this program provides. And without ENT or OMFS residencies, I am excited for the quantity of head and neck reconstruction and facial trauma. When I was a medical student, I felt incredibly supported by the program's residents and attendings. I feel fortunate to continue learning from such esteemed and caring surgeons who will support me through my training.
Clinical interests: My clinical interests include craniomaxillofacial trauma, hand surgery, and pediatric craniofacial surgery.
Hobbies: In my free time, I enjoy walking around Reeds Lake, running, tennis, traveling and catching up with friends and family.
Morgan Sainsbury, MD
Hometown: San Luis Obispo, CA
Medical School: Creighton University School of Medicine
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health in West Michigan? I am looking forward to being a part of a program that offers both a supportive, welcoming learning environment and training of the highest quality! I am excited by the personal and professional growth I will gain here through hands-on mentorship and diverse learning experiences. As well, I am eager to become a part of the Grand Rapids community through service and explore the beautiful nature of West Michigan!
Clinical interests: I am interested in many areas of plastic surgery, including hand and craniofacial surgery and am excited to further explore these interests during residency!
Hobbies: I enjoy weightlifting and exercise, watching TV/Movies, cooking and baking and spending time with my husband and dog!
Rachel Weber, MD
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Medical School: Medical College of Wisconsin
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health in West Michigan? I'm most excited to learn from the excellent faculty in my program and others. I look forward to exploring Michigan's outdoor spaces and searching Grand Rapids for the best cup of coffee. Growing up in the Midwest, it's an honor to continue caring for individuals in the region.
Clinical interests: As of now my plastic surgery interests are broad, encompassing all facets of reconstructive surgery. I get excited equally about microsurgery, breast, hand and craniofacial subspecialties.
Hobbies: In my spare time I enjoy creating and admiring art, specifically medical illustration as of late. I am passionate about global surgery and stay involved in advocacy organizations that keep me learning about the nuances of healthcare reform. Running is one of my favorite ways to enjoy the outdoors and indoors you can find me spending time with my cat.
PGY 2
Ellie Gschwendtner, MD
Hometown: Naperville, IL
Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health? I'm most excited to train in the field I love as part of a group of amazing and inspiring residents and faculty. After my rotation with the team as a medical student, I knew the bar had been set by the high level of camaraderie and respect inherent throughout the program. When added to the early operative experience and diversity of cosmetic and reconstructive cases, there's nowhere else I would rather complete my training!
Clinical interests: General reconstructive plastic surgery, microsurgery and rural medicine.
Hobbies: Spending time with my partner and my cat, wheel-throwing and hand-building ceramics, traveling, downhill skiing and skincare.
Humza Nadeem Mirza, MD, MS
Hometown: Portage, MI
Medical School: University of Michigan Medical School
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health? I am thrilled to join Corewell Health in West Michigan's plastic surgery program as it offers a unique opportunity to learn from highly skilled surgeons and be part of a cutting-edge practice at the forefront of surgery. The chance to work with state-of-the-art technologies and innovative techniques in a supportive and collaborative environment ignites my passion for plastic surgery and fuels my eagerness to contribute to the field and help my future patients.
Clinical interests: I am clinically interested in breast reconstruction, oncologic disease and reconstruction after trauma.
Hobbies: In my free time I love to cook, make music, workout and explore.
Darin Patmon, MD
Hometown: Jacksonville, FL
Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
What excites you about your residency/fellowship at Corewell Health? The plastic surgery residency program at Corewell Health in West Michigan provides a unique privademic structure that exposes residents to the business of medicine. As someone heavily involved in medical entrepreneurship, I believe this model gives graduating residents a competitive advantage when entering the workforce. Additionally, our mentorship model gives residents one on one time with attendings from day one of intern year. When looking for a residency program, I was seeking a program with high operative volume without significantly compromising work life balance. I believe Corewell Health in West Michigan provides that healthy balance.
Clinical interests: I am interested in pediatric craniofacial surgery and investigating ways to minimize the healthcare disparities seen in this patient population. Additionally, I am interested in leveraging medtech to create unique solutions to improve patient outcomes.
Hobbies: During my time off, I enjoy traveling with my wife and son and exploring new children's museums. Our favorite so far is the Boston's Children's Museum!
PGY 3
Jacob Franke, MD
Hometown: Maeystown, IL
Medical school: Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I choose to Spectrum Health for residency because of the vast amount and variety of training opportunities. With over thirty faculty, the faculty-resident ratio provides terrific surgical autonomy with early operative experiences. Without an ENT or OMFS residency here, the plastic surgery residents get an incredible breadth of training in head and neck reconstruction and facial trauma. The affiliation with Michigan State University also provides endless opportunities for research and other scholarly activities. This program has the 'priva-demic' model of plastic surgery training, which provides broad academic and private practice exposure to create well-rounded surgeons that can practice anywhere.
What are your clinical interests? My clinical interests include hand surgery, microsurgery and peripheral nerve surgery.
Hobbies: I enjoy being outdoors. My hobbies include golf, running, weight training and spending times with my friends and family.
PGY 4
Nina Livermore, MD
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Medical school: The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? I chose Spectrum Health because of how welcomed I felt despite it being a virtual interview. This program will give me all the opportunities I need to succeed career-wise, while also providing the support to grow on a personal level.
What are your clinical interests? My clinical interests are hand surgery, pediatric craniofacial surgery and oncologic breast reconstruction
Hobbies: I love trying new fitness classes/activities, reading novels of all sorts, going out for karaoke and spending time with my dog Gnocchi.
Megan Sommers, MD
Hometown: Pipestone, MN
Medical school: University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine
Why did you choose Spectrum Health for your residency/fellowship? After rotating as a 4th year medical student, I knew that Spectrum Health was the program for me. What stood out the most was the early operative experience, high level of surgical autonomy and supportive culture within the institution. The large faculty-to-resident ratio, combined with the mentorship based training model, provides the unique experience to learn a diverse number of skill sets. Additionally, the program ensures residents are equipped to enter any fellowship or private practice with their well-run resident clinic during the 5th and 6th years.
What are your clinical interests? My clinical interests include craniomaxillofacial trauma, breast and microsurgery.
Hobbies: My interests outside of medicine include hiking, traveling, running, yoga, golfing, reading, breweries and spending time with family and friends.
PGY 5
Daniella Anderson, MD
Why I chose this program: When I rotated at Spectrum Health as a medical student, I was very impressed by the collegial surgical culture, resident driven education, and exposure to different types of practice including an academic model and private practice model. This program is also very resident-focused— because there are no plastic surgery fellowships at Spectrum Health, residents and interns operate one-on-one with attendings. The mentorship-based training model also allows residents to develop close relationships with faculty. While many graduates have matched into competitive fellowships, several have also been able to go straight into private practice.
What I’m looking forward to the most about this program: Early operative time as an intern and exposure to a diverse mix of reconstructive and cosmetic plastic surgery.
What attracted me to Grand Rapids and West Michigan: It’s a relatively affordable place to live with great food, tons of breweries, and friendly people.
Clinical interests: breast surgery, general reconstruction, aesthetic surgery
Hobbies: music, concerts, surfing, piano, running, volleyball, breweries, sports, outdoor activities, aromatherapy, spending time with my boyfriend and family.
Nicholas Wesely, MD
Why I chose this program: I chose this program because of the great support system among the residents and faculty, high patient volume, and large number of faculty members, which allows for a diverse range of skills sets to learn from
What I’m looking forward to the most about this program: Seeing and treating patients, gaining clinical experience/skill sets in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and getting to know the colleagues I will be working with.
What attracted me to Grand Rapids and West Michigan: The diverse nature it provides. Whether it is outdoor activities, culinary experiences, or artistic affluence you are looking for, Grand Rapids offers a myriad of fun activities you can experience in that realm. Since I love to explore different interests, Grand Rapids is a wonderful place to call home.
Clinical interests: Aesthetic and reconstructive surgery, microsurgery, craniofacial, global health
Hobbies: I am happiest when outdoors and enjoy anything from hiking to mountain biking to skiing to water sports. When not outdoors, I like to cook, play piano, sing, draw, read, or binge watch a new Netflix show. I am very competitive and enjoy game nights with board and card games.
PGY 6
Joseph Gorvetzian, MD
Why I chose this program: This program easily topped my rank list for a number of reasons. it epitomized the 'priva-demic' model of plastic surgery training, with broad academic and private practice exposure to produce well- rounded surgeons who were ready for anything and everything. It had a robust resident clinic, a unique academic/trauma service whereby the chief residents essentially fulfill the role of an attending, and an emphasis on early operative autonomy. But ultimately, I chose this program because of the people. I felt like I was being welcomed into a family, where everyone already knew my name and knew my application and were excited to have me. It had that unparalleled, intangible quality of being ‘the full package’ that I rarely experienced while on the trail.
What I like about the program: Huge case volume and variety, tons of operating from day one, incredible teaching-oriented attendings, lots of research opportunities, and an awesome group of residents to learn, train, operate, and hang out with.
What I like about Grand Rapids and West Michigan: The beaches are jaw-dropping, people are super welcoming, and there’s an amazing food and beer scene. Plus, the cost of living is so reasonable that you can afford to enjoy it all!
Clinical interests: Craniomaxillofacial, facial aesthetics, micro, hand
Hobbies: Golfing, rowing scuba diving, cooking, hiking, wine collecting, perusing art galleries and antique stores
Mitchell Gauger, MD
Why I chose this program: I was immediately attracted to this program because of the camaraderie I saw between residents and attendings. This is one of the few interviews on the trail where I knew all residents and attendings had studied my application. This program is deeply committed to resident recruitment. When I learned more about the program, I was sold. This program has a unique training program that seamlessly blends academic and private practice plastic surgery experience. Many of our graduates have gone on to pursue very competitive fellowships, and others have been able to dive into practice and have extremely successful early years. The chiefs consistently have high operative numbers when they graduate. This, combined with the autonomy and sound clinical decision making that our program emphasizes allows our graduates to be versatile and successful with whatever they chose to do.
What I like about the program: Our program has an incredible balance between academic and private practice medicine. I feel that whatever direction I pursue professionally, I'll be well trained and supported by the program. Our residents get to operate with Grand Rapids Plastic Surgeons throughout the city, many with diverse backgrounds. We as residents benefit from this diversity by developing a wide variety of techniques and skills. Plastic Surgery is all about developing a large skill set, and then using those skills creatively. Our program does an excellent job of fostering that.
What I like about Grand Rapids and West Michigan: Grand Rapids offers the feel of a large city, without many of the inconveniences. There's a great restaurant and brewery scene, and the city is easily walkable. Grand Rapids is a young city and there are always people out and about looking for fun things to do. West Michigan has an abundance of activates to choose from. There's beautiful sand beaches; rivers to kayak, float, and fish; wineries to tour, and an endless supply of outdoor activities.
Clinical interests: Hand Surgery, General Reconstruction, Facial aesthetics, Lower extremity reconstruction
Hobbies: Swimming, golfing, fishing, canoe camping, cross country skiing