Our Residents

We built the house, they made it their home…

Angela Chen, MD

•Med School: California University of Science and Medicine
•Undergrad: Washington University in St. Louis
•Hometown: San Francisco
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A fashion designer or local running shoe store owner.
•Favorite Hobbies: Running, traveling, afternoon naps, trying new restaurants.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Running around Mission Bay.
•The best part of KPEM: The people!!!

Matalin Hegardt, DO

•Med School: Pacific Northwest University
•Undergrad: University of Washington
•Hometown: San Diego, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A chef. I love to cook and try out new recipes!
•Favorite Hobbies: Traveling, cooking, yoga, skiing, beach days/surfing, exploring with my Australian shepherd.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Beach days with friends and seeing my family!
•The best part of KPEM: The people! Everyone is so kind, welcoming and encouraging! 

April Huckleberry, MD

•Med School: University of Arizona College of Medicine - Tucson
•Undergrad: Northern Arizona University 
•Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A dog walker
•Favorite Hobbies: Cycling, volleyball, thrifting, cooking, a spicy cocktail with girlfriends
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Eat fish tacos, beach volleyball, anything outside!
•The best part of KPEM: I am feeling the love from faculty, it is clear that they care about us and want us to succeed. I have also enjoyed the variety of patients and procedures in the ED so far. Also, my 5 coresidents are all amazing! 

German Lavenant Jr, MD

•Med School: Keck School of Medicine of USC
•Undergrad: UCLA
•Hometown: San Diego, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A sports podcaster or fitness/nutrition coach.
•Favorite Hobbies: Working out, playing basketball, watching sports, going to breweries, playing golf on days off, visiting all of San Diego's beautiful beaches.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Kayaking/biking/throwing a good Carnita Asada in Mission Bay.
•The best part of KPEM: The amount of learning I get every day working exclusively 1 on 1 with an attending every day + everyone being so chill.

Erik Schatzer, DO, MS

•Med School: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Georgia
•Grad School: Clemson University, MS in Bioengineering
•Undergrad: Clemson University
•Hometown: Barnwell, SC
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: Opening my own brewery.
•Favorite Hobbies: I love going to concerts! I try and get out of the city regularly to go enjoy some nature!
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Brand new to San Diego and I'm trying out everything I can!
•The best part of KPEM: KPEM is such a supportive environment.  The people are all here to help each other and lift each other up!

Andrew Tabone, DO

•Med School: Touro University California
•Undergrad: UC Santa Barbara
•Hometown: Pleasant Hill, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A coffee shop owner or attempting to pursue an Anthony Bourdain lifestyle traveling the world and sampling different cuisines.
•Favorite Hobbies: Hiking, camping, gyming, live music, checking out different restaurants/coffee shops/bars, couch rotting
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: So much to do and explore in SD it's hard to say. After a few short months of being here I would say sunsets at the beach, the endless food scene… there is literally something going on every week once you get off shift!
•The best part of KPEM: So far I think the resident to faculty ratio is excellent. You get to learn from faculty that are invested in your learning and you get to learn from several faculty that have trained all across the US. There is no shortage of experience to learn from and if there is a procedure available you will most definitely have the opportunity to do it!

Kevin Cabrera, DO, MS

•Med School: Midwestern University, AZCOM 
•Grad School: USC
•Undergrad: UCLA (Go Bruins!)
•Hometown: North Hills, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: A Grammy Award Winning Artist. Or a Luxury Travel Agent. 
•Favorite Hobbies: Singing, line dancing, traveling the world (31 countries and counting), volleyball, and chasing sunsets. 
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Line dancing as often as possible, exploring new speakeasies, and paddle boarding around the bay. 
•The best part of KPEM: The approachability of the attendings, opportunities to pursue my global medicine and DEI passions, and the ability to serve a large Spanish speaking community. 

Jacques Lowe, MD

•Med School: Carle Illinois College of Medicine
•Undergrad: Cal State Long Beach
•Hometown: Orange County, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: living in a van living a nomadic lifestyle or be a bartender in some foreign country.
•Favorite Hobbies: Climbing, snowboarding, scuba diving, traveling, coffee, mixology 
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Going to the 3 different Japanese grocery stores <5mins of each other, catching a flight from TJ, watch the sunset over the ocean at the beach.
•The best part of KPEM: I genuinely feel supported by my co-residents and admin… the people are dope, location isn’t too bad either 😎🌊☀️.

Otto Maurer, MD

•Med School: University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine 
•Undergrad: University of Oregon
•Hometown: Eugene, OR
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: a teacher.
•Favorite Hobbies: Playing basketball, watching bad reality tv, and cooking.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Going to the beach.
•The best part of KPEM: Location, co-residents, and all of the provided food :)

Samer Metri, MD

•Med School: George Washington University
•Undergrad: UC Irvine
•Hometown: San Diego, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: a software engineer. From learning about new tech to building websites, I love all things technology.
•Favorite Hobbies: Surfing, scuba diving, landscape photography, and watching Formula 1.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Chilling at the beach. Whether it’s surfing a nice swell or snorkeling on a calm day, I like to spend my free time in the ocean.
•The best part of KPEM: The KP Community. We're a tightly knit class of residents supported by awesome faculty who are really invested in teaching!

Patrick Sheedy, MD, MPH

•Med School: Tulane University School of Medicine 
•Undergrad: Northeastern University 
•Hometown: Williston, Vermont
•If I wasn’t a doctor, I’d be: a ski bum and who knows if I would have ever left home!
•Favorite Hobbies: Skiing, running, eating new foods, being outside
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Sunsets on the dog beaches
•The best part of KPEM: Motivated attendings. They choose to work with residents and are not required to, so you end up with only those who enjoy and look forward to working with residents

Edgar Vega, MD

•Med School: UCSD SOM 🔱
•Undergrad: Williams College 🐮🟣🟡
•Hometown: Escondido, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor: Definitely would have gone pro in basketball… was getting scouted by the Lakers front office but messed up my pinky 😂.
•Favorite Hobbies: Customizing sneakers, gym, going down YouTube rabbit holes, saving IG reels and never looking at them again.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Going to the dog beach, grabbing some lunch and having a quick meal at the park, going to the #1 baseball park in America (Go Padres 🤘🏽).
•The best part of KPEM: The faculty being so invested in our learning and growth. On shifts, attendings will grab you aside and offer you a procedure because they know a resident is working. A nice bonus to the the resident:faculty ratio.

Sara Amen

•Med School:  California University of College and Medicine
•Undergrad: UCSD
•Hometown: San Diego
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be a Coffee Barista! I worked at Starbucks in college and would love (and still might) open my own coffee shop
•Favorite Hobbies: Cooking, hiking, beach, snowboarding, wine tasting, taking care of my plant babies, eating overpriced acai bowls, and learning to brew my own kombucha
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Relaxing at the beach, Padre games, eating at any of the million amazing restaurants, Taco Tuesdays in Pacific Beach at World Famous (this was a college tradition)
•The best part of KPEM: The amazing residents and faculty who genuinely support you and love to teach! San Diego has always been my home, but KP has made it feel even more special

Arpita Gupta

•Med School: UC Riverside School of Medicine
•Undergrad: UC Riverside
•Hometown: Redlands, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be a food blogger or teacher.
•Favorite Hobbies: Traveling, spending time with family and friends, Yelp Elite-ing, cardio kickboxing, dancing.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Balboa park, beaches, and trying new restaurants
•The best part of KPEM: Definitely the people! Supportive co-residents and working one-on-one with attendings who love to teach!

Ricky Huang

•Med School: Tulane University SOM
•Undergrad: Duke University
•Hometown: Highlands Ranch, CO
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be involved in scouting/basketball analytics for a college team
•Favorite Hobbies: Playing soccer, seeing live music, watching college basketball, travel abroad, beaches
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Definitely going to the beaches
•The best part of KPEM: The people - from co-residents, faculty, and program leadership! One on one shifts with a diverse group of faculty who are awesome to work with and who love to teach

Darius Martins

•Med School: University of California, Irvine
•Undergrad: University of California, Santa Barbara
•Hometown: Palos Verdes, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be a college professor! I tutored and held lectures while I was in college and really enjoyed that experience.
•Favorite Hobbies: Traveling and playing video games, basketball, and fantasy football.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Hanging out by the pier, trying out new gluten-free bakeries with my wife, and finding local coffee spots.
•The best part of KPEM: Definitely the culture! The faculty here are genuinely invested in your learning and care about your well-being. It's also tough to beat the San Diego weather.

Anndres Olson

•Med School: Washington State University
•Undergrad: University of Portland
•Hometown: Ridgefield, WA
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be a Professional Gamer
•Favorite Hobbies: Concerts, hiking, video games, traveling.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Anything by the beach / on the water.
•The best part of KPEM: The people!

Roree Phillips

•Med School: OHSU
•Undergrad: Western Colorado University
•Hometown: Bishop, CA
•If I wasn’t a doctor: I’d be a dog sitter or interior designer
•Favorite Hobbies: Mountain biking, surfing, snowboarding, petting dogs, the bean game.
•Favorite thing to do in San Diego: Group surf with friends followed by some live music, pizza, and sour beer!
•The best part of KPEM: The People! Everyone here is so kind, laid-back and welcoming. The resources and support that the faculty, KP, and our support staff offer are top notch. Also, being able to go for a surf before or after a shift is a dream come true.

Alumni