Uday Aloka (Idaho) completed medical school at Mosul College of Medicine during the outbreak of the
war in Iraq. He completed an Internal Medicine residency and one year of Anesthesia residency there
before immigrating to the US. During his training he worked for the US Army as a medical interpreter
and liaison which led to his interest in PTSD and refugee populations. Since immigrating to the US he
has been working as a health navigator with Catholic Charities in San Diego. In addition to PTSD he is
interested in Child Psychiatry. He enjoys many sports (soccer, ping pong, volleyball) reading and
listening to music.
Carl Astbury (Idaho) received his BS from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and then obtained his
wilderness EMT degree prior to matriculating at Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine of Midwestern
University. In medical school he did some paleontology research with his Anatomy professor but
ultimately still has a goal of wanting to work in space psychiatry. He is an outdoor enthusiast and has
traveled to 45 states and 20 National Parks. In addition to collecting books and vinyl records, he enjoys
observing his African Grey and Umbrella Cockatoo.
Angela Argyropoulos received her BS in General Psychology and Biology from the University of Michigan
before matriculating at the same school for medical school. In medical school she has worked as a tutor,
a genetics study group leader and has participated in many national organizations including the
American Medical Women’s Association. She has done research seeking to understand the ways in
which genetic polymorphisms predispose individuals under stress to the development of depression.
She enjoys cooking and baking and has developed expertise in Greek pastries! She also enjoys running,
biking, yoga and aerobic kickboxing.
Nathan Bell received his BA in economics from Macalester College. After college he worked as a
research assistant with the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington
comparing the efficacy of two different telephone-based interventions to treat pain in people with MS,
SCI and amputation. He is currently a medical student at the University of Washington where he is an
active volunteer in the Project Homeless Connect and a local teen shelter (ROOTS). He has also
participated in medical volunteer work in Argentina. His interests include news and current events,
printmaking, drawing, playing piano and guitar and hiking.
Ryan Billington (Idaho) was born and raised in Coeur d’Alene Idaho and received his BS in Biology from
Walla Walla University. He is currently at Loma Linda University School of Medicine where he has held
many leadership positions in student government and served as President of his medical school’s
student association. His passion for volunteering has taken him as far as Borneo to do service work. He
is the student wellness officer at his school and has a particular interest in burnout, depression and
resiliency. He enjoys writing, literature, longboarding, unicycling, and wake boarding.
Jeffrey Clark received his BS in Neuroscience from Brigham Young University. He is currently obtaining
his MD at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University School of
Medicine. During medical school he received an NIMH fellowship grant and studied the effects of
infliximab on depression and responses to psychotherapy in children with IBD at University of Pittsburgh
School of Medicine. He presented this research at the annual AACAP meeting. He has volunteered as a
child life volunteer at the Cleveland Clinic. He has strong interests in child and adolescent psychiatry and
enjoys casual running and modernist cooking.
1959 NE Pacific Street | Box 356560 | Seattle, WA 98195 | 206.543.3752 | Fax 206.543.9520 | uwpsychiatry.org
Elena Derkits received her BA in Neuroscience from Barnard College and then participated in research at
the New York State Psychiatric Institute for three years, studying schizophrenia through basic science
research, epidemiology and cognitive evaluation. Currently she attends Emory University School of
Medicine where she has received the peer nominated award of “Most likely to save the American
Medical System”! She is the Vice President of Programming for Health Students Taking Action Together,
a non-profit that unites health professional students through service, education and advocacy. She has a
passion for health policy and program development to reduce health disparities for individuals with
serious mental illness. She enjoys West African and modern dance, rock climbing, Vinyasa yoga,
Capoeira, travel and adventures in molecular gastronomy.
Dana Dieringer received her BS in Biochemistry from Beloit College before matriculating at the
University of Wisconsin for medical school. In medical school she has been an active advocate for
geriatric minority patients and received a primary care community project award for her work with the
St Croix Tribal Health Clinic entitled “Elder Mental Health and Wellbeing”. She has also done some
political advocacy work through the Wisconsin Medical Association, co-authoring a LGBT Elder health
resolution for the state of Wisconsin. She has strong interests in rural and geriatric psychiatry. Her
interests include reading and writing fiction and poetry, woman and gender studies, crossword puzzles
and hiking.
David Harari received his BA in Philosophy from Yeshiva University in New York City. He then attended
Union Graduate College and obtained a Masters in Bioethics before joining the University of Vermont
for medical school. In medical school he was involved in a research project looking at medical student
mistreatment and volunteered in No One Dies Alone. He was chosen to complete a summer psychiatry
certificate program at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. He has a strong interest
in child and adolescent psychiatry and was a Kingenstein CAP fellow. His interests include biking, hiking,
cantillation, bioethics, coffee-brewing, winemaking, playing drums, photography, traveling and spending
time with family.
Lindsay Heuser received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Bowdoin. After college she
joined AmeriCorps and worked with low income children to improve education and recreation
opportunities as well as with the HIV population assisting with life skill education. She attends medical
school at University of Colorado where she has done research on Patient-Doctor Communication with CSTAHR. She is interested in community psychiatry and teaching. She loves climbing mountains and has
climbed 36 mountains over 14,000 feet! In addition she runs marathons. She is a piano player and
composer with 20 years of performing experience.
Marilynn Holman received her BS in Microbiology and her MD from the University of Oklahoma. In
medical school she had unique psychiatry experiences including an international rotation in Japan where
she observed inpatient and outpatient psychiatry. She is currently completing her PGY1 year in
Pathology at the University of Washington. Very quickly at the start of her residency she realized that
pathology was not a good fit and missed the patient interactions and stories that she loved in psychiatry.
She is an avid home chef, enjoys hiking with her husband and dog and practices pilates for relaxation.
Matthew MacKinnon grew up in Vermont and received his BA in Psychology and will receive his MD
from the University of Vermont. After his undergraduate degree he worked as a behavioral
interventionalist in a residential home for children with emotional challenges. During medical school he
participated in multiple research projects including antidepressant efficacy, stress reduction in opiate
addicted patients and adult family home alternatives to assisted living facility or skilled nursing homes to
name a few. He is a hockey player and also enjoys coaching the sport. He plays guitar, loves to read and
write articles for his website.
TJ Orthmeyer (Idaho) received his BA in English and Communications from University of Washington
where he was on the football team (Go Huskies!). He worked as an ophthalmology technician which
influenced his desire to go in to medicine. He is currently a student at Pacific NW Osteopathic School in
Yakima and concurrently he has obtained his MBA in health care management. He was also very
involved in leadership of student organizations and served as the student government executive vice
president. He is interested in consult liaison, addictions and palliative care. He is married with two
daughters and is very close to his family and friends. He enjoys college football, loves to read and has a
diverse taste and love for music from classic rock to classical and rap.
Alissa Petrites completed her BA in humanities at Scripps College before joining AmeriCorps where she
was involved in implementing QI programs to improve primary care in San Francisco. She is currently in
medical school at the University of Michigan where she is part of the Global Health and Disparities Path
of Excellence. In medical school she has participated in research on health care providers coping with
perinatal death in Ghana. In addition, Alissa worked in South Africa to establish a national system of
breast milk banks as a means to address pediatric HIV and other child health issues. As a future
psychiatrist she hopes to promote social justice and equity. She enjoys yoga, pilates, cooking, baking,
meditation, gardening, and painting.
Caitlin Rippey was born in Washington DC but raised in West Africa where her parents worked in
development. She received her BS in neurobiology and her BA in comparative literature at the
University of Washington. She is currently an MD/PhD student at the University of Washington. She has
volunteered in numerous activities in the Seattle area including shelters and the student-run
dermatology clinic. Her PhD research studied the role of rare genetic variants in schizophrenia which
involved working with research participants in the US and abroad. Her interests include the philosophy
of mental health, global health, social justice organizing, cargo bicycles, song-writing, performing and
painting.
Paul Saladino received his BS in Biology and Chemistry from William and Mary before receiving his
degree as a Physician Assistant from George Washington University. He worked as a PA in Cardiology
for 4 years but found himself needing to know more about physiology and searching for deeper
questions which led him to retrain to become a physician. He is currently at the University of Arizona.
He is interested in Complementary and Alternative Medicine and Microbiomes. He is passionate about
the outdoors and extreme sports including 50 mile trail run competitions and he has hiked the entire
Pacific Crest Trail.
New PGY2s
Candice Barnett received her BA in Business Administration from La Sierra University before receiving
her Master’s degree in Information Technology from the American Intercontinental University. She
received her MD at Loma Linda University in 2007 and then completed her PGY1 Psychiatry year at Mt
Sinai Beth Israel in NYC. She took leave from her medical career to join her husband who was stationed
in Japan with the Air Force to start a family. Since her break from residency she has taught clinical skills
to Japanese doctors, volunteered at the outpatient psychiatry clinic on base and taught at a private
elementary school. For the past three years, she has been working part time at the VA Loma Linda. She
is interested in global health and child and adolescent psychiatry. She enjoys her family, cooking, music,
traveling and hosting bible study.
Tova Fuller received her BS, MS, PhD and her MD from UCLA. Her MS is in Biomedical Engineering and
her PhD is in Human Genetics. Initially torn between medicine and psychiatry she opted for medicine.
She is currently an Internal Medicine resident at Columbia which she will complete in June 2015. During
her medicine residency she found the counseling and end of life care the most rewarding so she wishes
to train in Psychiatry. She is interested in advocacy and caring for marginalized populations. She enjoys
oil painting, piano, and listening to and finding new electronic R&B music.
David Zacharias received his BA in Chemistry and Biology from Trinity International University. He
completed his MD at Mayo Clinic and MPH at Harvard. He is currently completing his PGY-2 year in
Anesthesiology at Vanderbilt Medical Center and has now decided to switch into Psychiatry. During
medical school, he did several rotations at NASA which led him to anesthesia initially but his love of the
patient-physician relationship, a growing interest in holistic medicine, and a desire to care for the
underserved brought him back to Psychiatry. He has volunteered with the homeless, prison inmates,
underprivileged youth, refugees, and victims of poverty and human trafficking. He enjoys rock climbing,
hiking, guitar, traveling, and good conversation over good beer.