INTERNAL MEDICINE RESIDENCY
core faculty
AHMAD KAMAL, MD, MSC
Director, Research Pathway
Dr. Kamal graduated from the University of California at Irvine in 1995 with a B.S. in Biology and received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1999. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Gastroenterology at Stanford in 2006, during which time he also earned an MSc in Clinical Epidemiology.
In addition to serving as associate chief of the division of gastroenterology. Dr. Kamal is vice chair of internal medicine and director of the clinical research pathway, an innovative program that provides internal medicine residents mentoring and protected time for clinical research. He is also an associate professor of medicine (affiliated) at Stanford, and is active in teaching medical students, residents, and fellows. He has also received an outstanding mentor award from Stanford’s biodesign program.
Dr. Kamal has been named a fellow of the American Gastroenterological Association, and been recognized several times in the “Top Doctors” list. Most recently, he was one of 6 recipients of Silicon Valley Business Journal’s Excellence in Healthcare Award.
Dr. Kamal has also been active in clinical and health services research, authoring 20 peer-reviewed publications, over 40 abstracts, and 7 book chapters. He is a peer reviewer for several journals in the fields of gastroenterology and hepatology.
In this free time, he enjoys traveling and spending time with his family.
Cheryl J. Ho, MD
Director, Social Medicine and Advocacy Pathway
Dr. Ho grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. She graduated with honors from Stanford University with a BS in Biological Sciences in 1996. She obtained her M.D. from the University of California, San Diego in 2000 and completed her Internal Medicine residency at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. She is board certified in both Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine.
After her chief resident year at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Dr. Ho joined the faculty as one of the two co-founders of the Valley Homeless Healthcare Program, in which she worked to create a nationally-recognized program that serves the most vulnerable in Santa Clara County. Under her leadership as Medical Director from 2008-2012, she started SCVMC’s first MAT (Medication Assisted Treatment) program for individuals with opioid use disorder in the primary care setting. Dr. Ho also was a pioneer in starting and nationally disseminating the concept of shared medical appointments for individuals with Opioid Use Disorder. She established the Individualized Learning Pathway in Social Medicine and Advocacy and is an Associate Professor of Medicine (Affiliated) at the Stanford School of Medicine.
Her current roles include Medical Director of Hope Clinic, which is a clinic for individuals in Permanent Supportive Housing, as well as Medical Director for VHHP’s North County programs. She also works as a consultant with the UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs in their effort to expand MAT access across the state of California. In 2017, she was awarded Clinician of the Year by the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved. Her research interests are in opioid use disorder and outcomes of individuals living in permanent supportive housing.
Outside of the hospital, Dr. Ho enjoys spending time with family and her faith community.
JACKIE BOTROS, MD
Division Chief of Hospitalist Medicine
Dr. Botros graduated from UCLA in 2004 with a B.S. in Molecular Cell Biology and received her M.D. from UCSF in 2009. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency at UC Davis and completed a Chief Medical Residency in 2013 prior to joining the hospitalist group at VMC.
She has served as the Clinical Competency Committee Chair for the Internal Medicine Residency since 2015.
Her interests include resident wellness and mentorship, quality improvement, and patient safety. Dr. Botros loves traveling and spending her free time enjoying the outdoors with her family.
Jennifer Rodriguez S., MD MS
Internal Medicine Clerkship Site Director – Stanford School of Medicine
Dr. Rodriguez graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2010 with a BS in Neuroscience and received her MD from Baylor College of Medicine in 2015. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UMPC) in 2018. She then went on to complete the Academic Clinician Educators Fellowship, Hospitalist Track at UPMC with a Master’s in Medical Education. She joined the hospitalist group at VMC in 2021.
Dr. Rodriguez has a variety of interests in medical education and faculty development. She currently serves as the internal medicine site clerkship director for Stanford medical students. In this role it is her mission to ensure students get a valuable and educational experience in internal medicine to lay the foundation for the multiple medicine issues they will come across regardless of what area they specialize in. She also serves on the Respectful Environment and Mistreatment Committee for Stanford Medical School. She is committed to resident education and is part of the Clinical Competency Committee. She is also the Chair for Faculty Development in Medical Education for the Department of Medicine at VMC.
Outside of the hospital, Dr. Rodriguez spends most of her time with her husband and young children. She enjoys cooking vegetarian and plant-based meals, reading, and exercising. As a transplant to California she appreciates spending time outdoors in the wonderful weather.
Thomas Ormiston, MD
Internal Medicine Clerkship Site Director – Geisel School of Medicine
Dr. Thomas Ormiston graduated from UC Davis in 1992 with degrees in Psychology and Political Science. After obtaining his M.D. from University of California, San Francisco in 1997, Dr. Ormiston trained at the SCVMC Internal Medicine Residency and worked as Chief Resident at SCVMC in 2000.
In 2001, he joined the Internal Medicine Faculty as a Hospitalist at SCVMC. From 2003-12, he was the Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program. He established the Individualized Learning Pathway in Hospitalist Medicine and currently serves at the Internal Medicine Clerkship Site Director at SCVMC for medical students from the Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine. Other ongoing projects and interests include readmission risk assessment, physician-pharmacy partnerships, and transitions in care from hospital to home.
Outside of the hospital, he enjoys hiking, running on the hill trails around the valley, traveling, and photography.
STEPHANIE CHAN, MD
Coordinator for Hospitalist Learning Pathway
Dr. Stephanie Chan graduated with honors from Harvard-Radcliffe University with a BA in biology in 1990. She obtained her M.D. from the University of California, San Francisco in 1994, after which she completed her internal medicine residency at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.
Following her year as a chief resident, she joined the faculty as one of the first six teaching hospitalists at this institution. Dr. Chan is also an Adjunct Associate Clinical Professor at the Stanford School of Medicine, and has served as the internal medicine clerkship director at VMC for over 20 years.
Dr. Chan is passionate about teaching the appropriate use and application of evidence-based medicine. She underwent intensive training in the McMaster University Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Workshop, with a special focus on teaching EBM to residents and medical students. She is also the co-founder and editor-in-chief of ProfessorEBM.com, an online teaching resource for inpatient internal medicine with over 1,000 subscribers.
Outside of work, Dr. Chan enjoys reading, outdoor sports photography, photo editing and spending time with her family.