White River Health and UnitedHealthcare: What You Need to Know.
Welcome to the White River Health (WRH) Internal Medicine (IM) Residency Program. We are an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited program taking ten (10) residents per year. The WRH IM Residency Program is located at White River Medical Center in Batesville, Arkansas 90 miles north of Little Rock, Arkansas and 120 miles west of Memphis, Tennessee.
Our program is a traditional three-year Categorical Internal Medicine Residency Training. Our WRH community-based residency program partners with the College of Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Residents have the unique opportunity to train in a vibrant, relational community and hospital with the advantages of training with a recognized academic medical center.
| Title | Time | Days | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Board Review | Noon to 1:00 pm | Monday & Wednesday | Residents review ACP MKSAP topics in each of the Internal Medicine subspecialties. Residents are required to complete assigned MKSAP questions monthly. |
| Case Conference | 2:00 pm to 3 pm | Tuesday | Residents collaboratively analyze and learn from the clinical details of a patient's presentation, diagnosis, management, and outcome. |
| Clinical Case Lecture | Noon to 1:00 pm | Friday | Residents review a specific patient case to illustrate and teach medical concepts, diagnostic reasoning, treatment approaches, and relevant clinical knowledge. This engages learners and provides a practical context for understanding theoretical concepts in real-world clinical scenarios. |
| Grand Rounds | Noon to 1:00 pm | Thursday | Via broadcast from UAMS, residents learn new research findings, discuss complex cases, and review recent medical advancements. |
| Mortality and Morbidity | Noon to 1:00 pm | Monthly | Residents review and discuss cases that involve adverse outcomes (morbidity) or patient deaths (mortality) to promote a culture of patient safety, quality improvement, and continuous learning within the healthcare organization. |
| Journal Club | Noon to 1:00 pm | Monthly | Residents gather to critically review and discuss selected research articles from medical journals. The primary goal is to facilitate the appraisal of current medical literature, promote evidence-based practice, and encourage meaningful discussions about the clinical implications of research findings. |
| Simulations | 8:00 am to 10:00 am | Friday | Residents participate in an interactive workshop that simulates a medical emergency scenario and train to effectively respond and manage critical situations. |
| Forums | Noon to 1:00 pm | Bi-Monthly | Residents have an opportunity to anonymously provide constructive feedback to the program.
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| Doctor's Dilemma | Noon to 1:00 pm | Bi-Monthly | Residents team up for a medical competition to quiz their diagnostic and clinical knowledge. |
| Hospital Committee Opportunities | As Scheduled | As Scheduled |
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We are looking for enthusiastic, hard working physicians with a passion for serving a rural community.
Submit an application through the Electronic Residency Application Service®. The link is provided below for your convenience.
Eligibility Qualifications for the White River Health ACGME Accredited Internal Medicine Residency Program
Our program sponsors only ECFMG J1 visas. A minimum USMLE Step 2 score of 240 is required.
Designated Institutional Official
Internal Medicine Program Director
Internal Medicine Program Coordinator, 2025 APDIM Program Administrator Rising Star Award Recipient
WRH Internal Medicine Residency Program provides residents with quality education through access to a professional learning environment in an engaging community. WRH offers a high quality, innovative, and unique Graduate Medical Education experience. Residents at WRH, mentored by an outstanding faculty, develop the skills to provide excellent medical care to patients from diverse backgrounds.
We wish our residents the best in their professional careers. Our graduates and their last known professional career locations are listed below.
Ragda Ahmed, MD
OSF HealthCare, Rockford, IL - Primary Care Physician
Karlo Cano, MD
UAMS, Little Rock, AR - Endocrinology Fellowship
Kimberley Ho, MD
UAMS, Little Rock, AR - Endocrinology Fellowship
Esther Kabaswaga, MD
Saint Frances Hospital, Tulsa, OK - Hospitalist
Alena Malik, MD
One Brooklyn Health, New York City, NY - Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowship
Raheel Qureshi, MD
University of Texas, Tyler, TX - Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowship
Maruf Sarwar, MD
University of Tennessee, Memphis, TN - Cardiology Fellowship
Kristen Soberay, MD
UAMS Little Rock, AR - Nephrology Fellowship
Keith Stoltzfus, DO
Virginia Tech Carilion Clinic, Roanoke, VA - Critical Care Fellowship
Priya Sunkara, MD
Louisiana State University, Shreveport, LA - Rheumatology Fellowship
Keren George
Baylor Scott & White, Temple, TX - Senior Staff Physician
Anupriya Gupta
Signature Healthcare, Stoughton, MA - Primary Care Physician
Aakash Hans
UTMB Galveston, TX - Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellow
Vallerie Jain
John Peter Smith Hospital, Fort Worth, TX - Palliative Care Fellow
Michael Johnson
Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge, LA - Hospitalist
Henna Khan
HSHA St. Mary's Hospital, Decatur, IL - Hospitalist
Joseph Markey
SSM Health, St. Louis, MO - Hospitalists/Nocturnist
Sanket Nayyar
Med Center Health, Bowling Green, KY - Hospitalist
Duska Riaz
University of Texas, San Antonio, TX - Infectious Disease Fellow
Tyler Barker, MD
Hospitalist, St. Bernard's Healthcare, Jonesboro, AR
Deanna Cochran, MD
Geriatric Fellowship University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Little Rock, AR
Neelima Gonugunta, MD
Hospitalist & Outpatient Internist, White River Health Batesville, AR
Nathanael Hall, MD
Hospitalist, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth Fort Worth, TX
Silpa Kumar, MD
Geriatric Fellowship Duke University Durham, NC
Jackson Musuuza, MD
Assistant Professor/Hospitalist University of Wisconsin Madison, WI
Dheeraj Posa, MD
Hospitalist, Louisiana State University Health Sciences, Shreveport, LA
Sagarika Ranga, DO
Internal Medicine Physician, Optum, New Port Richey, FL
Joey Sanders, MD
Hospitalist, St. Bernard’s Healthcare Jonesboro, AR
John Clark Shell, MD
Infectious Disease Fellowship University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL
Writing informative healthcare articles for area residents is a very fruitful and rewarding aspect of the White River Health Internal Medicine Residency program. One of the key components of our residency curriculum is community outreach. We believe in prioritizing resident physicians developing competent clinical skills, and in helping them understand the importance of talking to their patients and reaching out to their community. A significant issue in our society today is the rise in a mistrust of science. While the reasoning is multifactorial, a lack of evident outreach from the medical community may contribute to the uncertainty between providers and patients. Our hope with this project is to play our part in alleviating the spread of misinformation and allow our residents to earn the trust of our community.
All of our residents are accepting patients at White River Health Internal Medicine.
The schedule reflects a 4+1 system. Residents rotate through a four week block followed by one week divided between White River Health Internal Medicine (Continuity Clinic) and research.
| Rotation | Location | Inpatient/Outpatient/Research Percentage | Duration (Weeks) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admission | White River Medical Center | 100/0/0 | Two |
| Cardiology | White River Medical Center | 25/75/0 | Three |
| Continuity Clinic | White River Health Internal Medicine | 0/50/50 | 10 |
| Hematology/Oncology | White River Medical Center | 25/75/0 | Two |
| Internal Medicine Wards | White River Medical Center | 100/0/0 | 20 |
| Neurology | White River Medical Center | 75/25/0 | Two |
| NF | White River Medical Center | 100/0/0 | Two |
| Pain Management | White River Medical Center | 0/100/0 | One |
| Pulmonology | White River Medical Center | 20/80/0 | Three |
| PGY Level | Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Program Year 1 (PGY-1) | $ 56,000.00 |
| Program Year 1 (PGY-1) Educational Stipend | $ 800 |
| Program Year 2 (PGY-2) | $ 57,000.00 |
| Program Year 2 (PGY-2) Educational Stipend | $ 800 |
| Program Year 3 (PGY-3) | $ 59,000.00 |
| Program Year 3 (PGY-3) Educational Stipend | $ 800 |
White River Health offers a competitive and comprehensive salary and benefits package to meet our residents health, financial well-being, and work-life balance. Learn more about benefits at WRH Benefits.
