Message from Program Director
The residency training program at Westchester Medical Center/New York Medical College is steeped in a tradition of close faculty mentorship and broad clinical exposure. We take particular pride in focusing our collective energy on a small group of residents and in carrying these residents through a demanding yet rewarding training process of producing independent neurosurgeons. Our graduates have gone on to match in elite subspecialty fellowships and into top academic positions across the country. But even more importantly, we believe that residents who train here carry a high ethical standard and that they are recognized by colleagues as high integrity practitioners.
In my mind, our program is distinguished by its homegrown feel – this is not assembly-line training but rather a program that holds resident training close to its heart. Residents are valued and their training comprises the core mission of the Department. The resulting camaraderie and relationships borne of this are a unique feature of the training. The program has supplemented these core values with exposure to all subspecialty areas of neurosurgery and some of the most advanced technology available to us in the field. There is a progressive mindset within the institution and department that have enabled residents to go beyond the traditional training paradigm. We are very supportive of each resident’s path as it evolves during their years in the program.
I want our residents to recognize opportunities for mentorship and professional development from the day they begin junior residency, with graduated responsibilities until they are able to individually complete neurosurgical cases in their senior and chief years. Our faculty is skilled at balancing supervision with operative autonomy, with the result that our residents leave here confident in their individual abilities. This is largely because we are invested in training residents who are confident surgically but who also understand the principles and nuances of surgical judgment. I strongly believe that we are a motivated group of faculty who are driven to do the right thing, and it is our hope that this philosophy is shared by our residents until they ultimately implement it in their own practice.
Simon Hanft, MD
Section Chief, Neurosurgical Oncology
Westchester Medical Center
Associate Professor, Neurosurgery
New York Medical College
Program Overview
The Department of Neurosurgery at Westchester Medical Center/New York Medical College has been continuously accredited for 25+ years without any significant citations. Our last site visit was in 2012 and the program is fully accredited. As of July 1, 2020, we accept two residents per year for our seven-year training program. Our primary site is Westchester Medical Center and the adjacent Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. Hackensack University Medical Center serves as a second training site.
Our faculty is composed of experts across all neurosurgical subspecialties. Each faculty member is fully committed to mentoring and teaching residents to achieve excellence in clinical and academic neurosurgery, which includes both clinical and basic science translational research. Our residency program is a seven-year program and the goal is to produce master surgeons at the end of the training period.
Program Curriculum
How to Apply
Our residency program participates in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Applications will ONLY be accepted through ERAS.
Application Requirements:
Through ERAS, please submit the following:
- Three Letters of Recommendation (maximum of four)
- USMLE Step 1 and Step 2
- Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE) Letter
- Curriculum Vitae
- Personal Statement
- Medical School Transcript
- If applicable, your standard certificate from the ECFMG. This is required prior to the start of residency.
Contact Us
Simon Hanft, MD
Program Director
Christine Loscri
Residency Program Manager
Email: [email protected]
Mailing Address
Westchester Medical Center
Department of Neurosurgery
100 Woods Road
Valhalla, NY 10595
Fax: 914.493.2424
Current Residents
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Ilona Cazorla-Morales – Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine
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Eris Spirollari – New York Medical College
- Shaye Busse, MD -University of Central Florida College of Medicine
- Cameron Rawanduzy, MD – New York Medical College
- Eric Feldstein, MD – New York Medical College
- Sauson Soldozy, MD – University of Virginia School of Medicine
- Austin Carpenter, MD – Georgetown University School of Medicine
- Ilya Frid, MD – Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
- Monica Mureb, DO – New York Institute of Technology COM
- Sabrina Zeller, MD – Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical Schoo
- Ilya Frid, MD – Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine; Residency & Fellowship: Neurosurgery Residency, Westchester Medical Center, New York Medical College
- Nitesh Damodara, MD – Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Program Alumni
- Jared Cooper, MD – Fellowship: Endovascular Neurosurgery, WMC
- Tolga Sursal, MD – Fellowship: University of Virginia, Spine Surgery; Current Position: Senara Martha Jefferson Hospital, Charlottesville, VA
- Michael Kim, MD – Fellowship: University of California, Irvine, Skull Base Surgery; Current Position: Assistant Clinical Professor, UCI and Practice in Long Beach, CA
- John Wainwright, MD – Fellowship: Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Complex Spine Surgery; Current Position: Westchester Medical Center, Valhalla, NY
- Anubhav Amin, MD – Fellowship: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Neurosurgical Oncology; Current Position: Assistant Professor, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
- Arthur Wang, MD – Fellowship: Columbia University, Endovascular Surgery ;Current Position: Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
- Jennifer Ronecker, MD – Fellowship: Barrow Neurological Institute at Phoenix Children’s, Pediatric Neurosurgery; Current Position: Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Phoenix, AZ
- John Gillick, MD – Fellowship: Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Complex Spine Surgery; Current Position: Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ
- Craig Shannon, MD
- Michael LaBagnara, MD – Fellowship: The University of Virginia, Complex Spine Surgery; Current Position: Semmes Murphey Clinic, Memphis, TN
- Dhruve Jeevan, MD – Fellowship: The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Current Position: St. David’s HealthCare, Austin, TX
- Jayson Neil, MD – Fellowship: University of Utah, Skull-Base Surgery; Current Position: HCA Midwest Health, Kansas City, MO
- Ryan Ormond, MD, PhD – Fellowship (2012): Emory University, Neuro-Oncology; Fellowship (2013): William Van Wagenen Fellowship, University of Bonn; Current Position: Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO
- Ladislau Albert, MD – Current Position: Practice in San Antonio, Texas
- Amrith Jamoona, MD – Fellowship: University of Indiana, Endovascular Neurosurgery; Current Position: Sutter Health, Sacramento, CA
- Ibrahim Omeis, MD – Fellowship: Johns Hopkins, Complex Spine Surgery and Spine Oncology; Current Position: Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Baylor University, Waco, TX
- Avinash L. Mohan, MD – Fellowship: Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, Pediatric Neurosurgery; Current Position: Brain and Spine Surgeons of NY, White Plains, NY
- Mark Hornyak, MD – Fellowship: University of Utah, Skull Base Surgery; Current Position: Associate Professor of Neurosurgery, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
- Virany Huynh Hillard, MD – Fellowship: University of Utah, Spine Surgery; Current Position: Brain and Spine Surgeons of NY, White Plains, NY
- Joseph DeMattia, MD – Fellowship: Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Neuro-Oncology; Current Position: Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY
- Chiedozie Nwagwu, MD – Fellowship: Methodist Hospital and Indiana Neurosurgery Group, Endovascular Neurosurgery; Current Position: University of California, Irvine, Director of Cerebrovascular Surgery
- Joshua Rosenow, MD – Fellowship: Cleveland Clinic, Pain and Functional Neurosurgery; Current Position: Northwestern University School of Medicine, Director of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
- Craig Goldberg, MD – Current Position: St. Peter’s Health Partners, Latham, NY
- Kaushik Das, MD – Fellowship: Barrow Neurological Institute, Spine Surgery Current Position: Brain and Spine Surgeons of NY, White Plains, NY
- Michael Hahn, MD – Current Position: Practice in Kingston, NY
- John McNulty, MD – Current Position: Practice in Hudson, NY
- Amed Rawanduzy, MD – Current Position: Practice in New Rochelle, NY