NEONATOLOGISTS
Jay Dintaman, M.D.
Jay Dintaman completed his undergraduate training in Biochemistry at the University of Delaware and then worked in the biotech industry for three years prior to returning to medical school. He received his Doctorate in Medicine from the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD in 2003 and subsequently trained in Pediatrics and Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine through the military National Capital Consortium based out of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Dr. Dintaman lives in Takoma Park, MD with his wife and three children and enjoys travel, skiing, and camping with his family.
Gregory Downing, D.O.
Gregory Downing, D.O., Ph.D. is the Founder of Innovation Horizons, LLC, a consulting practice with an emphasis on innovation and technology adaptation in health care. Previously, he was the Founding Executive Director for Innovation in the Immediate Office of the Secretary at the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In this position, his primary responsibilities were focused on the promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship as valued attributes of workforce engagement across HHS. Prior to his arrival at HHS in 2006, Dr. Downing served at the National Institutes of Health since 1993 in research, policy, and program management roles. Dr. Downing earned his medical degree from Michigan State University and his Ph.D. in pharmacology from the University of Kansas. He is widely known for his entrepreneurial applications of data to provide innovative solutions to complex health care management issues. Dr. Downing has an active medical practice in pediatrics and maternal-newborn critical care.
Chrys Gaitatzes, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Gaitatzes attended Purdue University (W. Lafayette, IN) as an undergraduate, and Boston University School of Medicine (Boston, MA) where she received her medical degree and a Ph.D. in Molecular Pharmacology. She continued on for Pediatric Residency Training at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore in the Bronx, NY where she was also a Chief Resident. She completed her Neonatology Fellowship at Children's National Medical Center in (Washington, DC). She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and their two children. In her free time she enjoys traveling the world with her family and friends.
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Johnna Mahoney, M.D.
Dr. Mahoney received her undergraduate degree at Penn State University. She attended Georgetown
University for a Masters in Physiology before returning to her alma mater Penn State for her medical
degree. She completed her pediatric residency at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia,
PA, and her neonatology fellowship at the Thomas Jefferson University/Christiana Care/Nemours
Children's Hospital program in Philadelphia and Delaware. In her spare time she enjoys reading fiction,
exploring new cities, starting organizing projects that she will never finish, and cooking with her
husband.
Janel Hino, M.D.
Janel Hino, MD is a founding member of CNA and has been at Holy Cross Hospital since 1998. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia and has a masters degree in chemistry from American University. Dr. Hino was a chemist for several years before obtaining her MD from Eastern Virginia Medical School. She competed both her pediatric residency and neonatology fellowship at Children's National Medical Center in Washington DC. Dr. Hino is committed to global medicine in developing countries and has traveled to Haiti and Uganda to promote current neonatology practices. She is married with two children and enjoys hiking, gardening and traveling.
Sharon Kiernan, M.D.
Dr Kiernan received her undergraduate degree from Williams College and her medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia at VCU where she was elected to AOA. She completed her pediatric residency at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and her neonatal-perinatal fellowship at Georgetown University Medical Center. Dr. Kiernan lives in Northern Virginia with her husband. Her favorite activities include visiting her grandchildren, reading novels, photography, and walking the beaches on Cape Cod.
Jessica McAdoo, M.D.
Dr. McAdoo graduated from North Carolina A&T State University with a Biology degree. She received her medical degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine. Staying in her home state of NC, she completed her residency in Pediatrics and fellowship in Neonatology at Duke University Medical Center. Dr. McAdoo thinks a trip along the Amalfi Coast should be on everyone's bucket list.
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Matthew Picard, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Picard received his bachelor's degree from Harvard University, medical degree from Stanford University and Masters of Public Health degree from the George Washington University. He trained in Pediatrics and Neonatology at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. His professional interests include infant nutrition and non-invasive respiratory support. He lives in Montgomery County and loves travel and long distance running & cycling while managing to root for both the Nationals and Red Sox (as long as they never meet each other in a World Series).
John Rouhani, M.D., M.B.A.
Dr. Rouhani attended West Virginia University as an undergraduate and obtained his medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean. He completed residency training in Pediatrics and a fellowship in Neonatology at East Carolina University. He later earned a Master of Business Administration degree with a focus on health care from Eliizabethtown College. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and three children. In his spare time he enjoys playing squash, riding his bike, and spending time with his family.
Stephanie Sheppard, M.D.
Dr. Sheppard is a midwesterner at heart and completed her undergraduate degree at University of Michigan, followed by medical school at the Ohio State University (yes- it's possible, and she's still a Michigan fan- Go Blue!). She moved to the east coast for pediatric residency at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC, and after a year of working with CNA as a hospitalist, she went on to then do her fellowship at Georgetown. She found her way back to CNA after fellowship, and thinks she'll stay a while In her spare time, she enjoys spending time outdoors, reading, and doing just about anything with her husband and two young children.
Dora Rioja-Mazza, M.D.
Dr. Rioja-Mazza has been a Neonatologist at Holy Cross Hospital since 2008. She received her medical degree from the University of San Martin de Porres, Lima, Peru. After her residency training in Pediatrics at Lincoln Hospital in New York City, in a program affiliated with Cornell University’s Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences, she completed a fellowship in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine at Georgetown University Hospital. She lives in Washington, DC, with her husband and daughter. In her spare time she enjoys swimming, cooking and traveling.
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Ashley Sherwood, M.D.
A native of beautiful Athens, Georgia, Dr. Sherwood earned her undergraduate degree from
Duke University and her medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. She completed
her Pediatric training at the Boston Combined Residency Program at Boston Children’s Hospital
and Boston Medical Center. She returned to her alma mater for her fellowship in Neonatal
Perinatal Medicine, as well as a Master of Management degree in Clinical Informatics at the
Fuqua School of Business. She is currently pursuing her Master of Business Administration
degree at The George Washington University. Dr. Sherwood lives in Northern Virginia with her
husband and two children. When she is not attempting to develop her yoga practice, she
enjoys skiing, hiking, and baking.
Zaneta Forson-Dare, MBBS.
Zaneta Forson-Dare completed medical school in the United Kingdom at University College London. After working in the National Health System for a few years, she then moved across the pond to New Haven, Connecticut to do her Pediatrics residency and then her Neonatal-Perinatal fellowship at Yale University. She lives in Montgomery County with her husband and two children. In her spare time, she loves cooking, travelling, and spinning in circles with her children. Otherwise, she loves watching shows about other people building, designing, and organizing their homes.
Dawn Walton, M.D.
Dr. Walton is a local and graduate of University of Maryland in College Park and George Washington University School of Medicine. She did her residency, chief residency, and fellowship at Children's National Medical Center. She lives in Upper Montgomery County with her husband and three children where she enjoys watching her daughters compete in Irish Dance, playing board games with her son, hiking, and cooking.
NEONATAL NURSE PRACTITIONERS
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Susan Basile, NNP-BC
Susan Basile has been a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner at Holy Cross Hospital for 25 years. After working as a NICU staff nurse at Albany Medical Center in New York, she relocated to Maryland and graduated from the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Program at Georgetown University Hospital. She lives with her husband, two sons and rescue dog, Jake. In her spare time Sue enjoys cooking and golfing.
Susie Reed-McCullough, M.S.N., NNP-BC
Susie grew up in Prince George’s County, MD. She was actually born at Holy Cross Hospital! Some years later, she received her BSN from University of Maryland School of Nursing. She worked as a bedside nurse in the NICU at Holy Cross Hospital for nine years before returning to school for her MSN at East Carolina University. After graduating, she joined CNA as a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. When she isn’t working, she enjoys cooking, baking, and running. She lives in the area with her two daughters, dog, and cats.
Jenny Berg, NNP-BC
Jennifer Berg attended D'Youville College in Buffalo, NY where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. She obtained her nurse practitioner degree at Georgetown University. She has worked in Neonatal Intensive Care Units caring for fragile newborns since the beginning of her nursing career. She has lived in Montgomery County, Maryland for most of her life and currently resides in Germantown, MD. She likes to buy and collect yarn and once in a while knits.
Cheri Bird, DNP, NNP-BC
Cheri earned her undergraduate degree from the Mary Washington College. She then went on to earn an Associates Degree in Nursing from Germanna Community College, a Bachelors Degree in Nursing from Old Dominion University, and a Doctorate in Nursing Practice from the University of South Alabama. Prior to coming to Holy Cross, Cheri worked primarily in Virginia. In her spare time Cheri enjoys doing Jazzercise, traveling, and spending time with her 3 children.
Lilly Hull, MSN, NNP-BC
Lilly Hull earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia. She then served in the U.S. Navy at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, which included two deployments, one to the middle east and one to southeast Asia on a hospital ship. In addition, she worked at other DC-region civilian academic and community NICUs. She earned her Masters of Science in Nursing from Duke University. She continues to serve in the U.S. Navy reserves. She enjoys reading, baking, working out, spending time with her husband, daughter, and two yorkies.
Alison Newman, MSN, NNP-BC
After graduating from Vanderbilt University, Alison moved to the Washington Metropolitan area to work as a staff nurse in the NICU at Children’s National Medical Center. A few years later, she earned her Master of Science in Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania. She has been a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner at Holy Cross Hospital for more than 25 years. She is married and is the mother of two adult sons. Alison enjoys travel, entertaining friends and working in her garden.
Yvette Pugh, MSN, NNP-BC
Yvette Pugh obtained her undergraduate nursing degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. Her nursing experience has been in Maternal and Child Health including Labor and Delivery, Antepartum/Postpartum, Newborn Nursery, and the NICU. She then attended Stony Brook University for graduate school where she received her neonatal nurse practitioner degree. She joined Community Neonatal Associates in 2016 and has an interest in late preterm infants. In her spare time, Yvette enjoys Zumba and spending time with family and friends.
Laura Rogers, MSN, NNP-BC
Laura Rogers obtained her bachelor's degree in nursing from the University of Delaware and her master's degree from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Prior to joining Community Neonatal Associates as a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner she worked in the NICU at Children's National Medical Center as a nurse. She lives with her husband and two children. When she isn't caring for her toddler and baby she enjoys running and cooking.
Mary Smith, NNP-BC
Mary Smith has taken care of NICU infants since graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Maryland. She started her career in the NICU at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC and graduated from the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Program at Georgetown University. Mary returned to the NICU at Children’s National Medical Center until 1993 when she joined the Holy Cross Hospital NICU. Mary enjoys traveling with her husband visiting their four grown children and resides in Highland, Md.
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Lee Walker, NNP-BC
Beverly Walker, NNP-BC has been a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner for 25 years. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Nursing and attended the Georgetown University Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Program. She lives in Bowie with her daughter Gaby and their rescue mini poodle Fifi. In her free times she loves to travel, read, work on her garden and express her artistic talents in adult coloring books.
Alanna Dessouky, NNP-BC
Alanna Dessouky grew up in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio and earned her undergraduate degree from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio majoring in Family Studies and Psychology. After relocating to the DC area, she went on to earn her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Marymount University in Arlington, VA. She worked as a NICU staff nurse at George Washington University in Washington, DC for many years while she raised her two young children and went back to school. She earned her Masters of Science in Nursing from University of Connecticut and started working at Holy Cross Silver Spring in the midst of Covid. She is passionate about all things Cleveland, entertaining friends, as well as spending time with her husband, daughter , and son (who are growing up way too fast!) with their black lab, Luna.
PEDIATRIC HOSPITALISTS
Anand Bundi, MD
Dr. Anand Budi joined All India Institute of Medical Sciences in India at 16 years of age. This is the premier Medical Institution in South East Asia. He completed Pediatric Residency and worked as Registrar and Junior faculty for 4 years and went to Sydney, Australia for a Neonatology Fellowship. He trained at the University of Connecticut for Pediatrics. He worked as the Chief resident at All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL which is an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University. He came to Hagerstown, Maryland in 1998 and joined Opal Court Pediatrics in 2003. He also works with the NICU and Special Care nursery in the region providing care for premature infants during the hospital course and after discharge. Dr. Budi is a very active part of the medical community at the regional hospital where he serves on various boards in different capacities.
Simran Kalra, MD
Dr. Kalra received her bachelor’s degree from University of Maryland Baltimore County and medical degree from New York Medical College. She completed her pediatric residency at VCU. She has grown up and currently lives in Montgomery County. She enjoys bike riding and salsa dancing.