Residents

Chief Residents

Conor Kinford

Conor Kinford, MD

Hometown: Agoura Hills, CA
Undergraduate School: Cornell University
Medical School: Tufts University School of Medicine
Career Interests: Colorectal surgery, trauma critical care
Hobbies: Soccer, video games, attending sporting events
Fun Fact: I have the same middle name as my father and grandfather
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? Our program is small enough that it feels more like a family than a group of individuals
Thurston Kallas

Thurston Kallas, DO, MS

Hometown: Shabbona, IL
Undergraduate School: Northern Illinois University
Graduate School: Northern Illinois University
Medical School: Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine
Career Interests: Rural/global surgery, trauma and critical care surgery
Hobbies: Connoisseur of meats and fine brews
Fun Fact: My wife is a veterinarian
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? We have a wide array of case variety for a community hospital, from Whipples and esophagectomies to gallbladders and hernias, with everything in between

PGY-4

Nicole Gherlone, MD

Hometown: Orange, CT
Undergraduate School: University of Connecticut
Medical School: Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University
Career Interests: Plastic and reconstructive surgery
Hobbies: Yoga, baking, skiing
Fun Fact: I'm a twin, but we're unsure if we're identical or fraternal
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? I love the close-knit and comfortable feel of the people and program!

Jane Spann, MD

Hometown: Alpena, MI
Undergraduate School: University of Michigan
Medical School: Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Career Interests: Breast surgery, general surgery
Hobbies: Playing tennis, trying new restaurants, going to movies
Fun Fact: I was born in Santa Fe, NM
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? All of our attendings are very approachable

PGY-3

William Choi

William Choi, MD

Hometown: Cohasset, MA
Undergraduate School: Rice University
Medical School: Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine
Career Interests: MIS, colorectal, plastic surgery
Hobbies: Tennis, exercising, sleeping
Fun Fact: I was born in Jakarta, Indonesia
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? I was looking for a hands-on program with a collegial atmosphere located in a major city.
Diana Tang, MD

Diana Tang, MD

Hometown: Streamwood, IL
Undergraduate School: Capital University
Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine - Rockford
Career Interests: Minimally invasive surgery, bariatric surgery, medical education
Hobbies: Orangetheory Fitness, baking, trying new foods
Fun Fact: I'm a huge fan of the professional tennis tour
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? Our intern year is housed solely at Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago, allowing us to truly acclimate to being surgical residents while subsequent years facilitate great growth as we train in a variety of practice settings across the Chicago area. Plus, interns never work 24-hour shifts!

PGY-2

Johnathan Beldin, MD

Johnathan Beldin, MD 

Hometown: Marengo, IL
Undergraduate School: University of Notre Dame
Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine - Rockford
Career Interests: Trauma critical care, surgical oncology, general surgery
Hobbies: Alpine skiing and coaching
Fun Fact: I’m on the board of directors for a community radio station
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago provides us the best that Chicago has to offer — a community program in a great part of the city and great exposure to academic and trauma rotations at outside institutions.
Maxwell Cocco, MD

Maxwell Cocco, MD 

Hometown: Ann Arbor, MI
Undergraduate School: University of Michigan
Medical School: Central Michigan University
Career Interests: General surgery, HPB, trauma critical care
Hobbies: Exercise and fitness
Fun Fact: I rode a small motorcycle over 1,000 miles across Vietnam during medical school
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? We are able to train in a good community hospital with robust outside academic rotations, all in a great location.

PGY-1

Jordyn Grewal, MD (Categorical)

Hometown: Berthoud, CO
Undergraduate School: University of Colorado at Boulder (Sko Buffs!) 
Medical School: Furman University
Career Interests: Trauma/Critical Care, Global Surgery 
Hobbies: Long distance running, baking, accumulating an unnecessarily large number of house plants, hanging out with my very large dog, and paddling the lake! 
Fun Fact: I have cacti that I have been growing from seeds for over a year. The tallest one is an inch and a half tall!
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? I was drawn to the SJH program because of the faculty’s commitment to early operative experience and high levels of autonomy in the senior years. Additionally, I was seeking a program that would afford robust experiences operating in both community and academic settings. St. Joes was particularly interesting to me because of the opportunity to learn in a high-volume, high-acuity, yet lower-resource trauma center at Sinai, which will provide invaluable experiences that will translate well to my interest in practicing global surgery in low-resource regions

Akshita Patel, MD (Categorical)

Hometown: Nashville, TN
Undergraduate School: University of Tennessee-Knoxville
Medical School: Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine
Career Interests: Plastic/Cosmetic surgery, MIS
Hobbies: traveling, dancing, painting, exercising, fashion
Fun Fact: I’ve solo travelled to Australia and New Zealand. My name means ambition
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? I am able to pursue surgical training in my favorite city and in close proximity to home. I wanted a program with early operative experience and a collegial environment amongst residents and attendings

Rene McNeillie, MD (Preliminary)

Hometown: Houston, TX
Undergraduate School: University of Houston
Medical School: University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB)
Career Interests: Interventional radiology (UTMB), teaching, medical education
Hobbies: Rock climbing and gardening
Fun Fact: My favorite color is orange, I absolutely cannot watch scary movies, and I have a fraternal twin
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago? The people of course! I wanted to go to a program with a supportive learning environment and high resident morale!

Justine Izah, MD (Preliminary)

Hometown: Gary, IN
Undergraduate School: IU- Bloomington
Medical School: Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN
Career Interests: Pediatric anesthesiology
Hobbies: Sewing, photography, sketching, baking and collecting plants
Fun Fact: My living room couch is pink and my favorite decade is the 70s because of the music and the fashion
Why Ascension Saint Joseph - Chicago?  I really wanted to be in a location that is close to my family since I like to go home on the weekends to do laundry and barbecue with my parents and grandma. I also wanted to be at a program where I would get to know everyone well while exploring my anesthesiology 

Residency Alumni

2024
  • Minimally Invasive/Bariatric Surgery Fellowship —Menorah Medical Center; Kansas City, KS
  • Trauma/Surgical Critical Care Fellowship —University of California Riverside; Riverside, CA
2023
  • Global Surgery — World Medical Mission; Papua New Guinea
  • Vascular Surgery Fellowship — Eastern Virginia Medical School; Norfolk, VA
2022
  • Breast Surgery Fellowship — Cleveland Clinic; Cleveland, OH
  • Endocrine Surgery Fellowship — University of Calgary; Alberta, Canada
2021
  • General Surgery — Chicago, IL
  • Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship — Saint Luke's Health System, Kansas City, MO
2020
  • Surgical Critical Care Fellowship — Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
  • Plastic Surgery Fellowship — University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
2019
  • General Surgery — Pasadena, CA
  • General Surgery — US Navy, Great Lakes, IL
2018
  • Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship — University of Texas, Austin, TX
  • Houston Vascular Surgery Fellowship — Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI
2017
  • Breast Surgery Fellowship — University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
  • Rural General Surgery — Edenton, NC