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Department of Medicine Administration

Chair

David McManus, MD, ScM

Dr. McManus, the Richard M. Haidack Distinguished Professor, chair of Medicine and founding director of the Program in Digital Medicine. Dr. McManus completed an internal medicine residency at the University of California San Francisco and then returned to UMass Chan Medical School (UMass Chan), where he completed a cardiovascular medicine fellowship and a clinical cardiac electrophysiology fellowship. He also earned a Master’s Degree in Clinical Investigation from UMass Chan and was named Dr. Marcellette Williams Scholar in 2018.

Dr. McManus served as the department of medicine's vice chair for clinical affairs and as principal investigator for Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx grant). The goal of this grant, awarded by the National Institutes of Health, is to bring innovative ideas and strategies for testing amidst the coronavirus pandemic.

As the director of Anticoagulation Services, he led a design team to develop and implement a best practice advisory to enhance guidelines supporting anticoagulation prescription. He has also designed novel software applications and hardware to detect and manage atrial fibrillation.

As the director of the Atrial Fibrillation Program, Dr. McManus worked to improve the quality of care for patients diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. His work contributed to UMMC Receiving the AHA Get with the Guidelines Gold Award from the American Heart Association.

Dr. McManus' research has focused on the use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence for the diagnosis and management of heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders.

Clinical Profile, Academic Profile

Vice Chair for Research

Kate Fitzgerald, PhD

Dr. Fitzgerald is the Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research Chair III, professor of medicine, associate vice provost for basic science research, vice chair for research in the Department of Medicine, chief of the Division of Innate Immunity and director of the Program in Innate Immunity at UMass Chan Medical School, where she has been a faculty member since 2001. She received her BSc in Biochemistry in 1995 from University College Cork, Ireland and her PhD in Biochemistry in 1999 from Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. After pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship at Trinity College Dublin, she joined the Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, at UMass Chan as a Welcome Trust Fellow in 2001.

Dr. Fitzgerald directs an internationally recognized laboratory focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms controlling the inflammatory response in both health and disease. Her group is interested in determining how the immune system distinguishes friend from foe in order to protect the host from infection and avoid damaging inflammatory responses that lead to a wide range of inflammatory diseases. Her lab uses multifaceted approaches including immunology, biochemistry, molecular biology and genetics to understand the role of inflammasomes, nucleic acid sensing pathways and long non-coding RNAs in the inflammatory response. The long-term goal of her work is to determine how inappropriate activation of innate immunity underlies the pathogenesis of infectious, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases in humans.

Dr. Fitzgerald is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academies of Science and Medicine. She has received several awards including the Chancellor's Award for Distinguished Scholarship at UMass Chan (2019), a MERIT award from the NIH, the Saint Patrick’s Day Medal, from the Irish Government and Science Foundation Ireland, the Milstein Award for Excellence in Interferon and Cytokine research (from the International Cytokine and Interferon Society), the Eli Lilly and Company Elanco Research Award (from the American Society of Microbiology) and the BD-Biosciences Investigator Award (from the American Association of Immunologists). She is ranked amongst the top 1% most cited researchers for Immunology for the last three years (Thompson Reuters, 2014-2019) and is a Past President of the International Cytokine and Interferon Society (2019-2021).

Academic Profile, Lab

Vice Chair for Clinical and Translational Research

Fernando Martinez, MD, MS

Dr. Martinez is the academic chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine and vice chair for clinical and translational research. In his role as academic chief, Dr. Martinez will lead the academic functions of the faculty through the Medical School and help grow the division’s research portfolio. As vice chair, he will work to advance the clinical and translational research missions of the Department of Medicine by growing the number of high-impact trials, increasing the number of investigator-initiated trials, and promoting scientific inquiry among early career physicians and scientists. Additionally, he will co-direct the Department of Medicine Clinical Research Core with Dr. Kate Fitzgerald, chair the Research Core Executive Committee, and oversee the Department of Medicine Clinical Research Core’s faculty and clinical and administrative staff. Dr. Martinez will also provide scientific support to the Cancer Research Organization (CRO) leadership team.

Dr. Martinez joined the Department of Medicine from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, where he was chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and the Bruce Webster Professor of Medicine in the Joan and Sanford I. Weill Department of Medicine. He is also a practicing physician at New York Presbyterian Hospital. Before becoming chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, Dr. Martinez was professor of internal medicine and associate chief for clinical research in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Michigan Health System in Michigan and served as medical director of Pulmonary Diagnostic Services and co-medical director of the Lung Transplantation Program. Dr. Martinez is a world-renowned physician-scientist recognized for his seminal studies in the phenotypic and functional classification, and clinical interventions in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and interstitial lung disease. Dr. Martinez has over 670 publications, and over 13,000 citations, and has led numerous studies on COPD and ILD, funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. His current research focuses on translational aspects and clinical trials in COPD and interstitial lung disease. He also currently serves as the editor-in-chief of the prestigious American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine “Blue Journal.”

Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs

Kimberly Eisenstock, MD

Dr. Eisenstock currently serves as the clinical division chief for Hospital Medicine, associate chief medical officer for UMass Memorial Medical Center, and the vice chair for Clinical Affairs in the Department of Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School. In these roles, she is an advocate for acute clinical care and is leading clinical practices with multi-disciplinary approaches in advocating for patients and fellow healthcare providers.

A graduate of UMass Chan and the internal medicine residency program, Dr. Eisenstock is a widely respected leader who consistently demonstrates excellence in medicine. Clinically, she actively cares for patients within the hospital setting and was at the forefront of the fight against COVID-19.

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Vice Chair for Education

PY Fan, MD

Dr. Fan, a professor of medicine, did his residency and fellowship in nephrology at Duke. He joined the UMass faculty in 1993 and has received many honors and awards including winning the Outstanding Medical Educator Award five times.

Dr. Fan was an associate residency director for 2 years before directing the Fellowship Program in Nephrology from 2002-2014. In 2010, he became a Learning Community mentor (serving as Head of Tatnuck House from 2014 to 2018).

Clinical Profile, Academic Profile

Vice Chair for Ambulatory Affairs

Deborah Blazey-Martin, MD, MPH

Dr. Blazey-Martin is vice chair for Ambulatory Affairs, chief of General Internal Medicine, and associate professor of medicine in the Department of Medicine. Dr. Blazey-Martin earned her medical degree from the Boston University School of Medicine. She completed her residency in Primary Care at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and holds a Master of Public Health degree from Harvard University School of Public Health.

Dr. Blazey-Martin joined UMass Chan in January 2023. Before arriving at UMass Chan, she was at Tufts Medical Center, where she served as chief of General Internal Medicine from 2013-2022. She served as the Quality Medical Director for the Tufts Medical Center Local Care Organization from 2021-2022 where, under her leadership, the group rapidly improved from last to first in the network for quality. She has also served on the boards of the New England Quality Care Alliance from 2014-17, the Wellforce Medicare (2014-2017), and MassHealth (2015-2022) accountable care organizations (ACOs). She was a co-founding member and inaugural chair of the Tufts Physicians Organization Women in Medicine and Science Committee, and served on the PO Committee for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Dr. Blazey-Martin has held multiple academic and educational appointments including the associate program director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program and the director of Resident Education for General Internal Medicine, both at Tufts Medical Center. She was the recipient of the Castle Connelly Exceptional Women in Medicine award, 2017-19, and the Kritzman Primary Care Teaching Award at Tufts Medical Center in 2017.

In her role in the Department of Medicine at UMass Chan, Dr. Blazey-Martin oversees the Division of General Medicine and the Department’s ambulatory strategy and operations. She also supports ambulatory physician leads and works closely with Medical Center and System leaders in this capacity to provide high-quality ambulatory care, access, and a positive work experience for ambulatory physicians, advanced practitioners, and clinic staff.

Clinical Profile, Academic Profile

Associate Vice Chair for Faculty Development

Pranoti Mandrekar, PhD

Dr. Mandrekar is a professor of medicine and associate vice chair for faculty development in the Department of Medicine. She also serves as a program director for the Translational Science Program in the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the Summer Research Program at UMass Chan Medical School. Dr. Mandrekar earned her PhD in Cancer Biology from the University of Bombay in India. Following her PhD studies, she completed postdoctoral training with a focus on signaling mechanisms related to macrophage activation and pro-inflammatory cytokine production through the Worcester Foundation and at UMass Chan Medicine School in the labs of Dr. Lawrence Dangott and Dr. Gyongyi Szabo, respectively.

In her role as associate vice chair for faculty development, Dr. Mandrekar provides support to enhance the careers of Department of Medicine faculty and help them reach their goals. She works with faculty through various initiatives including facilitating the development, implementation, and evaluation of professional development and training. She also provides guidance and mentorship to faculty as they work toward promotion and tenure, including the preparation of their necessary documentation. Additionally, she works to promote collaborative research and scholarly activities by helping to create faculty connections and works collaboratively with Dr. Fitzgerald to provide mentorship in research activities across the department.

Academic Profile

Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice

Terrell Y. Johnson, MD

Dr. Johnson, director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice, is also an assistant professor of medicine in the Department of Medicine. Dr. Johnson earned his medical degree from Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. He completed his residency at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Brighton, MA, and holds an undergraduate degree from Tougaloo College.

Dr. Johnson excitedly joined UMass Chan/UMMH in August 2023, and prior to that served as an assistant professor of medicine at Boston Medical Center. He has dedicated his career to addressing health care disparities in both graduate and undergraduate medical education. As a valued educator who has contributed to several pipeline programs over his career, he currently leads the PRISM (Pipeline for UnderRepresented Students in Medicine) program in the Department of Medicine which continues to expand under his leadership. He is also a learning community mentor in the T.H. Chan School of Medicine at UMass Chan.

In his role as director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice, he provides support for all divisions inside the department, aiding recruitment efforts, curriculum development, and fostering inclusive efforts across the department. He has led department-wide trainings on unconscious bias and continues to lead the charge to increase scholarly work related to diversity and equity across the department.

Clinical Profile

Chief Administrative Officer; Department of Medicine, Neurology, Dermatology and Tri-River

Maureen Bresee-Ferreira, MBA

Mo has worked in hospital administration for over 20 years. Having earned her Masters at John Hopkins University while she was Hospital Administrator for Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital for six years.

In 2007, Mo joined UMass as an associate administrator for the Department of Medicine. During this time, she oversaw, the Gastroenterology, Pulmonary, Palliative, and Hospital Medicine divisions in the Medical Group which housed over 110 providers and had a combined annual revenue of $26M.

Using her strengths in collaborating with the Medical Center’s Service Lines she was successful in identifying trends and highlighting opportunities to improve performance, performing analytical studies to provide the economic basis for management decisions, and implementing strategic plans to improve operational/financial performance system-wide. Along with successfully developing and managing the Divisions’ annual Group Practice budgets, produce forecasts and models to increase clinical revenue for the Department. She was able to gather and utilize appropriate industry benchmarks to establish standards and reporting methodology to foster ongoing process improvements. Mo was promoted to CAO for the Department of Medicine in 2018.

Senior Administrator for the Department of Medicine, Neurology, Dermatology & Wellstone

Karen Griffin, EdD

Karen Griffin has an EdD in Higher Education/Administration from Northeastern University. Karen has over 25 years of experience in research administration. She currently oversees the Administrative Services Group (ASG) in Research Administration, human resources and education within Medicine, Neurology, Dermatology & Medicine.