PGY-1 Residents
Ines Basten, MD, Adult/Child Psychiatry
Vrije Universiteit Brussel Faculteit Geneeskunde & Farmacie, Belgium
Personal interests: yoga, going to the gym, hiking, travelling, exploring New England
I applied to UMass due to its warm, friendly environment, child psychiatry track, rotations in pediatrics in child track, psychotherapy training.
Maite Cintron Pastrana, MD
University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine
Academic interests: Psychoanalysis, Therapy, and Interventional Psychiatry.
Personal interests: My interests are gardening, reading, traveling, dancing, and learning new sports.
I applied to UMASS due to the opportunity to receive training and supervision on ECT, TMS, therapy, and psychoanalysis. I ranked UMASS, given that the happiest and most grateful residents were those from UMASS.
My favorite things about central Mass are the lake views, the restaurants, the diversity, and UMASS.
Ethan Lindenbaum, DO
Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine-Virginia Campus
Academic interests: child and adolescent psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, eating disorders, college student mental health
Personal interests: Spending time with my five dogs and one cat, running, traveling, hiking, food, the beach, jazz music, did I mention spending time with my animals?
What led me to apply to UMass was the dedication to teaching, the approachable residents and faculty, and the emphasis on tailoring training to meet the needs of each unique resident. It's in a great location where you are so close to many different activities and cities. I also love all of the state parks and the wildlife in central Mass.
Lily Millen DO, Adult/Child Psychiatry
University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine
Academic interests: I am interested in learning more about the effects of early childhood trauma on development. I would like to continue my research into Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs) and ways in which we can innovate in the field of psychiatry to provide better screening and access of mental health care for child and adolescent patient populations.
Personal interests: I love to run. I guess for me it is a form of meditation and it is something that I truly do for myself. I use the time to tune out the world, to refocus and quiet my mind. Some of my other favorite activities include Hatha Yoga, creative and poetry, cooking, global travel, and spending time with my friends and family.
I am a Massachusetts native, but I have not lived in the state since I was 14 and going away to high school. I was excited to return to my home state for residency and to finally have my fellow New England sports fans surrounding me again. I chose the residency program at UMass because I know that at its core, it is training well-rounded clinical physicians. Being in Worcester, we have the privilege of caring for a distinctively diverse patient population in city that is rapidly expanding and changing. Despite being such a large institution with clinical researchers, medical students, and several residency programs, I really appreciated the supportive community and collegial environment of the program. I was also impressed by the sheer number of “UMass-Lifers”; so I had to assume there was something that drew everyone to want to stay here! I am grateful for the opportunity to train here and excited to be able to pursue my interests in Child Psychiatry at UMass.
Worcester is a growing city that is expanding and evolving very quickly. There are all kinds of new restaurants, breweries, and outdoor activities, including the local Wachusett mountain ski area. It’s also very close to Boston, which is another incredible and historic city to have fun in and explore.
Kimberly Piccoli, DO
University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine
Academic interests: addiction psychiatry, mood disorders, forensic psychiatry
Personal interests: Hiking, cooking, baking, reading
I applied to UMass for so many reasons! The program has endless opportunities to explore different areas of psychiatry, which was very important to me because I am still keeping an open mind about in which area of psychiatry I will practice. Another huge factor was the strong training in medicine and neurology!
My favorite thing about central Massachusetts is how accessible it is. There are great restaurants, hiking spots and shops nearby and easy to access. Also, Boston and Providence are both less than an hour drive, so you can always find something new.
Alexandra (Lexi) Pumilia, DO
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, Middletown
Academic interests: Child psychiatry, women's mental health, student mental health, nutrition, sports psychiatry and psychoanalysis.
Personal interests: Cooking/baking, trying new recipes, discovering new TV shows and quoting old ones, painting, home workouts, traveling, kayaking, hiking, visiting breweries and wineries
After spending every summer in the Berkshires growing up, I grew very fond of and comfortable with the idea of someday living in Massachusetts. I was immediately drawn to UMass knowing that there would be many opportunities to work with medical students and to be exposed to a wide variety of clinical opportunities within and outside of Psychiatry. Not only is the UMass system known for its academic strength, but also its strong ties to patient care for the surrounding community.
My favorite thing about central Mass is that it seems like the best kept secret (which I guess I'm giving away now). There are so many fun things to do in the area like hiking, kayaking on one of the MANY lakes, exploring breweries, going to drive-in movies and antiquing. Not to mention, there's no shortage of homemade ice cream! There is a real sense of community here and I knew it was one I wanted to be a part of.
Ariella Shayani, MD
Tufts University School of Medicine
Academic interests: Child and adolescent psychiatry, quality improvement, mental health innovation
Personal interests: Cooking, yoga, spending time with family
As UMass is the primary provider for psychiatric services for MA, I was excited about the large and diverse patient volume. I was also inspired by the innovation at the institution that is made possible by the large amount of funding provided by the state to the UMass psychiatry department.
The community here is filled with nice people!