UCSD Radiology Department Homepage
Chapter Chief: Victoria Vuong, MD, ScM
Faculty Advisors: Alexander Norbash, MD, MPH; Andrew Yen, MD; Jennifer Chang, MD
Local projects leadership: Edward Smitaman, MD; Dorathy Tamayo-Murillo, MD
Global projects leadership: Victoria Vuong, MD, ScM
UCSD Free Clinic
Victoria Vuong, MD, ScM is a diagnostic radiology resident at the University of California San Diego and the co-chief of the UCSD RAD-AID Chapter. Throughout her time at the University of Southern California, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Rush Medical College, she was involved in multiple local and global health outreach programs, providing community services, such as tutoring, lectures, and primary health services, and participating in international outreach programs with Global Medical Brigades in Honduras and Make a Change International in India. She has brought her passion for global health to both diagnostic and interventional radiology, visiting Tanzania with Road2IR as a third-year radiology resident. She is actively helping to develop her residency’s global health track and is excited to continue building UCSD’s presence with RAD-AID International through her participation with RAD-AID Guyana.
Fregenet Gichamo, MD is a Diagnostic Radiology resident at the University of California San Diego. She was bestowed Doctor of Medicine (MD) from the Jimma University College of Public Health and Medicine in Ethiopia. During her medical training, she started volunteering by coordinating successful blood donation campaigns. After graduation, she served as a dean of the College of Medicine and Health Sciences of Wachemo University where she led an initiative of establishing a medical school, building it from the ground up by recruiting faculty for the new university and facilitating and engaging in teaching core medical courses. As a result of this initiative, the College of Medicine and Health Sciences of Wachemo University is one of the emerging public medical schools. Moreover, Fregenet led research initiatives that alleviated some of the society’s core issues through working with the community. A prime example was a community service project to eradicate harmful traditional practices to remove female genital mutilation (FGM). Fregenet has been a member of the Jimma University graduate and postgraduate fellowship (JUGPGF) and the Ethiopian Christian Medical and Dental Doctors Fellowship (CMDDF), local organizations which give free medical service for underserved communities. She also continued fundraising and participating in different medical missions. She is also a co-founder of Generation Empowerment Program (GEP), a program aimed at youth development, including helping youth to define their vision, mission, and goal, and to provide mentorship for youth who want to pursue medicine and STEM fields. Fregenet aspires to establish a partnership between UCSD and low resource residency programs, such as in Ethiopia, to cultivate educational opportunities in imaging-based outreaches and to assist developing countries through international radiology services.
Andrew Yen, MD is an Associate Clinical Professor in chest imaging. In his current role as radiology residency program director, he is enthusiastic about the global health initiative and a staunch supporter.
Jennifer Chang, MD was an Assistant Professor at UC Davis in the Division of Neuroradiology and the Program Director for the UC Davis Radiology Residency before joining UCSD. She is now an Associate Professor in the Division of Neuroradiology and is interested in resident and fellow education and curriculum, with a passion for mentoring. Dr. Chang has been involved in the global health community since residency, even authoring a publication on how to establish a radiology global outreach elective. She is excited to continue supporting UCSD’s global health programs and fostering resident interest in global health.
Edward Smitaman MD: “As a member of the local community, I enjoy finding ways to make a difference. My son and I volunteer each Sunday for two hours at the North University Community Library Bookstore where we help process and sell books that have been donated. The proceeds of these sales average around $1000 monthly, and support improvements that make a difference for the library, its patrons, and select charities throughout San Diego. On these afternoons, I also provide free math and basic sciences tutoring services for library patrons. I’ve donated my time to local schools in the La Jolla area, including my son’s former school, Torrey Pines Elementary, where I participated in campus beautification efforts and fundraising events like the La Jolla Arts and Wine Festival. I’ve become a faculty advisor for Salk Institute Partners, as well as for the UCSD Free Clinic in Pacific Beach, where I will be working with others on staff to provide point-of-care diagnostic ultrasounds to medically underserved San Diegans. I’ve also had the honor to serve as the faculty mentor for the UCSD Radiology Community Service Committee, with whom I have arranged an Encinitas beach cleanup, served meals at Father Joe’s Village, and participated in various 5K runs in San Diego. Finally, I am working as a faculty advisor at La Jolla High Biomedical Innovations Pathway teaching and cultivating local high school students’ interest in healthcare and biomedicine careers.”
Dorathy Tamayo-Murillo MD is a diagnostic radiologist at the University of California San Diego. She is a founding member of the UCSD RAD-AID chapter, where she currently serves as a local project leader. She was actively involved in implementing the first free ultrasound services at the UCSD free clinic. She remains engaged in community outreach, with a particular interest in promoting the educational development of first generation and low income high school, college and medical students. She has lead education opportunities both at Chula Vista High School, her alma mater, and addition schools in the South Bay. With the help of the radiology residents they have provided opportunities including anatomy workshops, ultrasound workshops and early education advice and mentorship. She graduated from Harvard Medical School, where she was an active leader of the Latino Medical Student Association, and engaged in mentorship and community outreach. During her medical training Dr. Tamayo-Murillo has volunteered her time at medical clinics in Costa Rica, Mexico, and Guatemala, providing basic medical care to communities with limited access. During her radiology training at Boston University she served as the radiology liaison for the Committee for the Social Determinants of Health, inviting socially active speakers and researchers to give lectures to the radiology residency. Dr. Tamayo-Murillo is currently involved in research aimed at a better understanding of Latino health and is an affiliated investigator for the largest US epidemiologic study of Latinos, Project SOL.
For questions about the UCSD RAD-AID Chapter, please contact Victoria Vuong at vvuong@health.ucsd.edu