Meet our Residents!
► Alumni

Jose Lopez-Vera, MD
Private Practice, Georgia

Horeb Cano Gonzalez, MD (Administrative Chief Resident)
University of Indiana transplant fellowship, Indiana

Peter Yu, MD
Private Practice, Texas

Ashtyn Barrientes, MD (Administritive Chief Resident)
- Hometown: Odessa, TX
- Undergrad: University of Oklahoma
- Med School: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso
- Clinical/Research interests: General Surgery, MIS
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Singing, hanging out with my golden retrievers and my husband, college football
- Future plans: Breast Surgical Oncology Fellowship, University of Kansas

Rainna Coelho, MD (Administritive Chief Resident)
- Hometown: Greenville, TX
- Undergrad: University of North Texas, Denton, TX, 2016
- Med School: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, Lubbock, TX, 2020
- Clinical/Research interests: Undecided
- Fun facts/Hobbies: yoga, hiking, playing with my dog, puzzles, binge watching series, cooking
- Future plans: Surgical Oncology Fellowship, St. Johns/UCLA Santa Monica

Keyon Mohebzad, MD
- Hometown: Houston, TX
- Undergrad: UT Austin Class of 2016 for BS in Math, BS Comp Sci, MS Comp Sci
- Med School: UTMB Galveston 2020
- Clinical/Research interests: Vascular Surgery
- Fun facts/Hobbies: I’ve trained in 8 martial arts
- Future plans: Head and Neck Oncology Fellowship, Head and neck oncology, Toronto
► PGY-5

Natalia Cavagnaro-Barba, DO
- Hometown: Guadalajara, Mexico
- Undergrad: University of Texas at Austin
- Med School: Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, 2021
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Whittling, traveling, cooking/eating

Connor Hogan, DO
- Hometown: Kohler, WI
- Undergrad: Carthage College, Kenosha, WI
- Med School: Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine of Midwestern University, 2021
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Soccer, Fishing, and Cooking

Shinyeong Jeong, MD
- Hometown: South Korea, Cheonan
- Undergrad: University of Texas at Austin
- Med School: The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 2021

Ali Siddiqui, MD
- Hometown: New Jersey
- Undergrad: Claremont McKenna College, California
- Med School: St. George’s University 2021
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Football (soccer) fan and have moved every 4 years both inside and outside the US.

Andrew Youssef, MD
- Hometown: Tallahassee, FL
- Undergrad: Florida A&M University College of Pharmacy, Tallahassee, FL, 2015
- Med School: Meharry Medical College School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 2020
- Clinical/Research interests: Vascular surgery, MIS
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Watching and playing soccer, traveling, working on my car
► PGY-4

Saira Ahmed, MD
- Med School: Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine & Science
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Baking, Art – Painting and Ceramic, Watching Anime, TV Shows, and Movies and Spending Time with Family and Friends

Kayla Nguyen, MD
- Hometown: Houma, LA & Keller, TX
- Med School: University of Texas Medical Branch School of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Rock Climbing and Board games

Vishal Patel, DO
- Med School: University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Hobbies: Cooking, painting and home improvement

Shreena Patidar, MD
- Hometown: Frisco, TX
- Med School: Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine
- Hobbies: Traveling and global health, learning languages, attending music concerts, gardening, playing basketball

Duyen Quach, MD
- Hometown: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam & Philedelphia, PA
- Med School: Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Tennis, Badminton, Ping-Pong, Painting Cooking, Piano, Learning languages, Hiking & Camping
► PGY-3

Joseph Daodu, MD
- Med School: The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Auto and Motorcycle Repairs, Basketball, Weight Lifting, Hiking, Hip-hop Music, Mentoring

Jean-Pierre Kochkarian, MD
- Hometown: Beirut, Lebanon
- Undergrad: University of Houston Main Campus, graduated 2019
- Medical School: University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), John Sealy School of Medicine at Galveston, graduated 2023
- Hobbies: Playing the piano, music, cars, cooking, baking, traveling.
- Fun facts: First name is French, last name is Armenian, but I’m Lebanese. I was a black belt in Taekwondo in my teenage years

David Ortiz, MD
- Med School: Spencer Fox Eccles School Of Medicine At The University Of Utah
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Mystery and Horror Movies, Soccer, Guitar, Running, Traveling, Teaching Sunday School

Rachel Wright, MD
- Med School: Creighton University School of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Rock Climbing, Watercolor Painting, Hiking, Running, Spanish Language, Robotic Surgery
► PGY-2

Shehroze Akhter, MD
- Med School: University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Pickleball, Speed Cubing (Rubik’s Cube record is 27 seconds)

Christine Castillo, DO
- Med School: Touro University Nevada College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: inkering, DIY Projects, Upcycling

Lorenz Estrella, MD
- Med School: Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Video Games, Knitting, Cooking, Working Out

Rachael Wong, MD
- Med School: Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Hiking, Trying new foods, Volunteering at a camp for kids affected by parents with cancer
► PGY-1

Elizabeth Neihoff, MD
- Med School: Creighton University School of Medicine

Niosha Price, MD
- Med School: Ross University School of Medicine

Anila Punjwani, MD
- Hometown: Sugar Land, Texas
- Undergrad: Texas A&M University
- Med School: Saint James School of Medicine
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Cooking foods from around the world, reading, volunteering, and brunching

Aneeq Qazi, MD
- Med School: Federal Medical and Dental College
Meet our Staff and Faculty!
►Kingwood General Surgery

Mike K. Liang, MD, FACS
- Position: Professor of Surgery, University of Houston; Program Director HCA Healthcare Kingwood General Surgery Residency Program
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Hometown: Manhattan, Kansas
- Undergrad: Northwestern University, 1995
- Med School: University of Kansas, School of Medicine, 1999
- Residency: University of Colorado, 2004
- Clinical interests: Minimally invasive surgery, robotic surgery, foregut surgery, hernia surgery, and abdominal wall reconstruction.
- Research interests: Randomized controlled trials, Research quality, Product safetyhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=liang+mike&sort=date
- Fun facts/Hobbies: My family is my foundation and core. We love outdoor activities and travelling.
- Webpage link: drmikeliang.com

John Paek, MD
- Position: Bariatric Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Residency: Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center
- Clinical interests: Surgical weight loss procedures including gastric sleeve and gastric bypass

Kendell J. Sowards, MD FACS
- Position: Faculty general and bariatric surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Hometown: Colleyville, Texas
- Undergrad:The University of Texas, 2006
- Med School: UT Health McGovern Medical School, 2010
- Residency: UT Health McGovern Medical School, 2017
- Fellowship: UT Health McGovern Medical School, Minimally Invasive Surgeons of Texas, Bariatric and Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship, 2018,
- Clinical/Research interests: Bariatric surgery, robotic surgery, minimally invasive surgery, foregut surgery, and hernia surgery.
- Fun facts/Hobbies: Spending time with family, painting, live music.
►Kingwood Vascular Surgery

Maria Codreanu, MD
- Position: Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Surgery

Kousta Foteh, MD
- Position: Vascular Surgery

Hunter Ray, MD
- Position: Vascular Surgery
- Location: HCA Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: University of Texas at Houston
- Residency: Vascular Surgery at University of Texas at Houston
- Clinical/Research interests: Endovascular and open vascular surgery, Venous disease
- Website: https://gulfcoastvasc.com/physicians/profile/Dr-Hunter-Ray-MD

Eric Trestman, MD
- Position: Vascular Surgery
- Location: HCA Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: Louisiana State University Health Science Center
- Residency: Vascular Surgery at Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York
- Clinical/Research interests: Aortic aneurysms, carotid disease, limb salvage, Venous disease
- Website: https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=eric+trestman&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
►Kingwood Surgical Oncology

Edward Berzin, MD

Mark Edgcomb
- Position: assistant professor of clinical sciences, colorectal surgeon
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Hometown: Rockford, Illinois
- Undergrad: Marquette University (2009)
- Med School: Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. Kansas City, Missouri (2014)
- Residency: Rush University- Internship Chicago, Illinois (2015), KCU-GME St. Anthony Hospital Lakewood, Colorado (2020)
- Fellowship: University of Texas at Houston-McGovern Medical School- Minimally Invasive Surgery Advanced Colorectal (2021)
- Clinical/Research interests: Advanced minimally invasive robotic and surgical for diseases of the colon and rectum, minimally invasive transanal surgery, anorectal disease, and surgical management of inflammatory bowel disease

Georg Elias, MD
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: Damascus University School of Medicine
- Residency: Boston University, Roger Williams Medical Center
- Fellowship: Texas University Medical School
- Clinical/Research interests: colon cancer screening and prevention, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease and general gastroenterology.

John C. Hardaway, MD, PH.D., FACS
- Med School: University of Missouri, Columbia
- Residency: Michigan State University
- Fellowship: Boston University

Ronald Rance, MD
- Med School: University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas.
- Residency: University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas.
- Fellowship: Division of Gastroenterology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

J. Mario Villafani, MD, FACS
- Position: Breast surgery, endocrine surgery, surgical oncology
- Location: HCA Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, Texas
- Residency: St. Joseph Medical Center, Houston, Texas
- Clinical/Research interests: Breast surgery, endocrine surgery, surgical oncology
- Website: https://millenniumphysicians.com/j-mario-villafani-md-facs/
►Kingwood Trauma Surgery

Erik Barquist, MD
- Position: Trauma Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Kingwood
- Med School: UCSF
- Residency: UCLA
- Fellowship: University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital
- Clinical/Research Interest: Brain Trauma/Injury; Methods of Ventilator Weaning
- Fun Facts/Hobbies: Dachshund Rescue

Neil Grieshop, MD
- Position: Acute Care and Trauma Medical Director
- Undergrad: University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Med School: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Jody Smith, MD
- Location: HCA Kingwood
- Med School: University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston
- Residency: Texas Tech University – Paul L Foster School of Medicine University Medical Center of El Paso
- Fellowship: Memorial Health University Medical Center Savannah
HCA Northwest

Shiree Berry, MD, FACS
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest
- Undergrad: Claremont McKenna College, 2002
- Med School: Albany Medical College, Albany, New York 2009
- Residency: Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 2014
- Clinical/Research interests: Trauma/Critical Care, Acute Care Surgery
- Fun Facts/Hobbies: I love to Travel. I have visited 6 continents and preparing for the 7th. I also enjoy adventure sports and am a self-proclaimed foodie.
- Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiree-berry-md-facs-19b0b52/

Lourne Blackbourne, MD
- Position: General Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress
- Med School: University Of Virginia / Main Campus
- Residency: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Mercy

Victoria Chang, MD
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest
- Med School: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Residency: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Fellowship: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Fun Fact/Hobbies: She speaks English, Mandarin-Chinese, and Spanish. During her free time, Dr. Chang likes to spend time with family and friends and exercise regularly.

Keonna Johnson, MD
- Location: HCA Kingwood
- Med School: University of Illinois, College of Medicine at Peoria
- Residency: Mary Imogene Bassett Medical Center, Lincoln Medical Center
- Fellowship: URMC Strong Memorial Hospital

Junuk Kim, MD
- Position: Acute Care and Trauma Medical Director
- Undergrad and Graduate: University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia
- Med School: New York Medical College in Valhalla
- Residency: St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan, New York
- Fellowship: Yonsei University College of Medicine in Seoul, Korea

Dexter Turnquest, MD, FACS
- Position: Site Director
- Med School: USF Health Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida
- Residency: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Fellowship: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Fun Fact: In his spare time, Dr. Turnquest enjoys spending time with his wife and children.
►North Cypress Surgery

Victor H. Barnica MD, FACS, FASCRS
- Med School: Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla
Puebla, Mexico - Residency: Mercy Catholic Medical Center
- Fellowship: Advanced Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgical Oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center
- Fellowship: Colon and Rectal Surgery at Southern Illinois University

Neil Desai, DO
- Position: Vascular Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Kingwood
- Med School: Midwestern University, Arizona College
- Residency: University of Texas Medical School in Houston, TX.
- Fellowship: University of South Carolina School of Medicine in Greenville, SC.
- Clinical/Research interests: Open and endovascular treatments for aortic disease, advanced vascular interventions for peripheral artery disease with limb salvage, and management of complex dialysis access.

Carlos Encarnacion, MD
- Position: Cardiac Surgery and Thoracic Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress
- Undergrad: Baylor University
- Med School: Texas Tech University Paul L. Foster School of Medicine
- Internship: Harvard Medical School Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Residency: Medical College of Wisconsin
- Clinical/Research interests: Endovascular aortic interventions and minimally invasive approaches ranging from anti-arrhythmia, valvular, coronary and thoracic oncology surgery.

John C. Hardaway, MD, PH.D., FACS
- Med School: University of Missouri, Columbia
- Residency: Michigan State University
- Fellowship: Boston University

Kim Keller, MD
- Position: Vascular Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress
- Med School: University of Arkansas College of Medicine
- Residency: University of Florida College of Medicine-University Hospital of Jacksonville,-Jacksonville, FL
- Website: kkellermdpa.com

Michael Keller, MD
- Position: General Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress
- Med School: University of Texas at Houston Medical School
- Residency: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Mercy
►Women’s Hospital

Elizabeth Bonefas, MD, FACS
- Position: General Surgery / Breast Surgery
- Location: HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
- Med School: University of Texas, San Antonio, Texas
- Residency: St. Joseph Medical Center, Houston, Texas
- Clinical/Research interests: Breast Surgery
- Website: http://www.breasthealthhouston.com/pages/home.asp

Christy Moeller, MD
- Position: General Surgery
- Location: HCA Healthcare Kingwood
- Undergraduate: University of Miami.
- Med School: University Of Texas Health Science Center McGovern Medical School
- Residency: Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine.

Stacia S. Pfost, MD
- Position: Breast Surgery
- Location: HCA Healthcare Kingwood
- Undergraduate: University of Miami.
- Med School: The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX
- Residency: The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX
- Fellowship: The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX

Sarah Weakley, MD
- Undergraduate: Columbia University
- Med School: UT-Houston Medical School
- Residency: Baylor College of Medicine
- Website: https://surgeonsofhouston.com/
►Medical Center

Ryan Barrientos, MD
- Location: Medical Center
- Med School: University of Texas Health Science Center
- Residency: University of Texas Health Science Center
- Fellowship: University of Texas – MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Website: https://hcahoustongastroenterology.com/

Kristopher M. Charlton-Ouw, MD
- Location: Medical Center
- Position: Vascular Surgery, Site Director
- Med School: Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts
- Residency: New York Presbyterian Hospital – Columbia University Medical Center in New York City
- Fellowship: Memorial Hermann Hospital and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

Amir Karni, MD
- Undergrad: Baylor College of Medicine
- Internship: Mount Sinai Medical Center

Ron J. Karni, MD
- Med School: Baylor College of Medicine
- Residency: Washington University School of Medicine
- Clinical/Research interests:General Otorhinolaryngology
Head and Neck Cancer
Head and Neck Surgery
Management of Thyroid and Parathyroid Disorders including Diagnostic Ultrasonography
Surgery of the Nose and Paranasal Sinuses
Treatment of Salivary Gland Disorders

Terry Scarborough, MD
- Location: Medical Center
- Undergrad: University of New Mexico
- Med School: University of New Mexico School of Medicine
- Fellowship: Baylor University

Stevenson Tsiao, MD
- Location: Medical Center
- Undergrad: University of Texas at Austin
- Medical School: Texas Tech School of Medicine
- Fellowship: Houston Methodist Hospital
