Current Head and Neck Surgery Residents

Jesse Qualliotine, MD (PGY-6)
Hometown: Fairfax, VA
Undergrad: Columbia University; Biomedical Engineering
Medical School:  Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Outside Interests:  Dog beach, rock climbing, jogging, succulents, music
Research Interests: Nanoengineering applications in Head & Neck surgery, HPV-associated oropharynx cancer, translational research

Joshua Stramiello, MD (PGY-6)
Hometown: Tampa, FL
Undergrad: University of South Florida; Biomedical sciences, minors in Anthropology and Biophysics
Medical School: University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine
Outside Interests: Outdoor activities with my kids and playing guitar
Research Interests: Innovation in Otolaryngology, 3D printed pediatric airway stents, Tele-robotics

Emily Funk, MD (PGY-5)
Hometown: Lancaster, PA
Undergrad: Stetson University; Spanish
Medical School:  Penn State University College of Medicine
Outside Interests:  traveling, baseball, exploring San Diego, boating, music/concerts, local wines and beers, cooking, hiking, reading
Research Interests: robotic technology, innovative design, tumor virology and immunology

Robert Saddawi-Konefka, MD, PhD (RSCH/PGY-5)
Hometown: South Bend, IN
Undergrad: University of Southern California, Neurosciences
Medical School:  UCSD
Outside Interests:  Surfing, Camping and Backpacking, Family Time
Research Interests: Immuno-Oncology, Immunotherapies and Mechanisms of Tumor-Immune Resistance

Omid Moshtaghi, MD (PGY-4)
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Undergrad: San Diego State University; Biology.
Medical School: University of California, Irvine.
Outside Interests: Surfing, hiking, camping, and spending time with family.
Research Interests: Hidden hearing loss, dizziness, tinnitus, patient decision making, and bioelectric technology.

Kayva Crawford, MD (RSCH/PGY-4)
Hometown: Portland, OR
Undergrad: University of Washington; Spanish, Bioethics and Humanities
Medical School: Tufts University School of Medicine
Outside Interests: marathon running, piano, reading, hiking, painting, baking
Research Interests: population-based research, head and neck oncology, pediatric otolaryngology

Farhoud Faraji, MD, PhD (RSCH/PGY-4)
Hometown: Sacramento, CA
Undergrad: University of California, Berkeley; Molecular & Cell Biology
Medical School: Saint Louis University
Outside Interests: Terrestrial and marine naturalism, scuba and freediving, climbing, hiking, yoga, travel, culinary arts, sailing, live music, horticulture and botany.
Research Interests: Head and neck oncology, metastasis biology, transcriptional biology, cell-mediated immunity, medical education.

Morgan Davis, MD (PGY-3)
Hometown: Jackson, Mississippi
Undergrad: University of Mississippi (Ole Miss); Biochemistry, minors neuroscience and biology
Medical School: University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Outside Interests: working out, playing with my dog Cali, traveling, cooking, Netflix
Research Interests: Facial analysis, tissue regeneration and healing especially in minority populations, head and neck oncology, vestibular migraine

Benjamin Ostrander, MD (PGY-3)
Hometown: Kenwood, California 
Undergrad: University of California, San Diego - Bioengineering, Global Health 
Medical School: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine 
Outside Interests: Music (from playing guitar and piano to attending concerts), the great outdoors (cycling, hiking, camping, surfing...), art (museums, photography, painting), food & drink (discovering, appreciating, cooking, brewing…) 
Research Interests: Biodesign and surgical innovation, global surgery, facial reanimation, taste and olfaction 

Mena Said, MD (PGY-3)
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Undergrad: University of California, Los Angeles; Biology
Medical School: University of California, Davis
Outside Interests: Running, golf, cheering on the UCLA Bruins
Research Interests: Comparative effectiveness research, clinical informatics

Jeffrey Bernstein (PGY-2)
Hometown: Carmichael, CA 
Undergrad: UC Berkeley
Medical School: UC San Diego
Outside Interests: Running, Cycling, Birding, Outdoors, Live music
Research Interests: Vestibular schwannoma, invasive fungal sinusitis, sinusitis-related neurocognitive changes, functional/structural neuroimaging

Samuel Early, MD, MS (PGY-2)
Hometown: Vancouver, WA
Undergrad: Stanford University; BS Biomechanical Engineering 
Graduate School: Stanford University; MS Bioengineering
Medical School: University of California - San Diego
Outside Interests: Cycling, hiking, running, kayaking, baking, Taiwanese street food, sustainable seafood
Research Interests: Hearing loss, Vestibular Schwannoma, cholesteatoma, drug delivery to the middle and inner ear

Andrew Yousef (PGY-2)
Hometown: Glendora, CA
Undergrad:University of California, San Diego - Human Biology & Economics
Medical School: University of California, San Francisco
Outside Interests: Hiking, basketball (both playing and watching), working out, viola, attending concerts, traveling, crosswords
Research Interests: Surgical education, bettering care and outcomes in underserved populations

Tammy Pham (PGY -1)
Hometown: San Diego, C
Undergrad: Yale University; Cognitive Science
Medical School: University of California, San Diego
Outside Interests: rock climbing (both indoor and outdoor), board games, coaching high school robotics, playing with my family's kitten
Research Interests: genetics of age-related and noise-induced hearing loss, medical and surgical education, robotics and innovations in surgical technology

Benjamin Bernard (PGY -1)
Hometown: Overland Park, Kansas 
Undergrad: University of Missouri-Kansas City; Liberal Arts, Chemistry
Medical School: University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine 
Outside Interests: playing sports (basketball, tennis, and spikeball), watching sports (Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, now the San Diego Padres!), exploring the outdoors (hiking/cycling/traveling), and discovering new restaurants
Research Interests: epigenetic drivers of head and neck cancer, implementation of immunotherapy in head and neck cancer, precision medicine and genomic sequencing