Family Practice Residency Program Faculty Members

Family and Community Medicine Residency Program

Our Faculty

Jerry Potts, MD

I am a native of the Twin Cities, attended medical school at the University of Minnesota (graduated in 1980), and did my family residency in the US military (Fort Ord, California). I joined the Department of Family Medicine at HCMC as a faculty physician in 1987. My previous roles include Medical Director of the Clinic and Assistant Department Chief. I have been department Chief since 2007. My interests include colposcopy, LEEP, OB and minor surgery. I am also the busy parent of two daughters ages 14 and 17.

Allyson Brotherson, MD
My name is Allyson Brotherson and I am a transplant from Trinidad in the Caribbean. I taught Junior High School in Trinidad before coming to the United States. I did a Master's degree in Molecular Biology, before deciding that I preferred working with people instead of sea urchins, although I did some cool work with the expression of superoxide dimutase gene. After graduating from the University of Maryland Medical School, I worked for two years as faculty in the Family Practice Residency after two years of private practice. I live with 2 wonderful men, my husband who has been the wind beneath my wings and our son.

Kimberly Petersen , MD

My life is characterized by excess. I work too much, have too many kids and way too many pets. My passion is finding balance and clarity out of all the chaos. I also try to be a role model for multi-tasking. I live in the city with my family which includes 5 daughters, 4 cats, a dog and a bunch of fish.

Chuck Anderson, MD
Several years ago, I was an HCMC resident after which I did a Sports Medicine Fellowship year under the tutelage of Rob Johnson, MD. After a year in private practice, I returned in 1990 as a faculty member. My "free time" is spent with my family (wife, 3 boys and two dogs), often at a sporting event and occasionally at our cabin. My current duties include being Co-Director of our Sports Medicine Fellowship Program and the Medical Director of the Family Medical Clinic.

Brendon Cullinan, MD
I grew up outside Chicago, IL, but also lived in Texas and Germany. I was a college Astrophysics major in Boston, where I discovered the people-side of that field to be a little thin. I then taught high school in Florida and finally realized that the Midwest is my home and medicine my calling. Minnesota is a great place to live; there is a humility here that coexists with an expectation of excellence in what we do. Oh, and I was a country doctor in rural Minnesota before coming back to HCMC. I love obstetrics and enjoy learning and teaching quality improvement and the business of medicine.

Dave Councilman, MD

Dave Councilman is a 1993 graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and 1996 Graduate of HCMC Family and Community Medicine Residency. He enjoys teaching, working with patients with developmental disabilities, working on the Family Medicine Inpatient Service, and learning from colleagues and residents. Outside of work he enjoys spending time with his wife Robin, who is also a Family Physician in the HCMC system, two children, and numerous pets.

Susan Hasti, MD
I have been practicing medicine since 1992.I attended the U. of Minnesota Medical School and completedmy residency at Wilson Hospital in Johnson City, New York.After working in private practice in Connecticut for 7 years,Ireturned toMinnesota to work in Community Health in St Paul.I joined the Department of Family Medicine at Hennepin County Medical Center as a faculty physician in 2010. I have participated in medical relief trips in Central America andspeak Spanish and a little French. I am actively involved in health care reform, primarily focusing at the state level.

Masha Hemmati, MD
I was born and raised in Iran. In 1981, I graduated from medical school and practiced as a general practitioner and teacher. In 1990, I completed Urology residency training in Iran and practiced, taught, and trained residents following my residency. In 1998, I moved to the Twin Cities and found HCMC as a perfect match for my heart and soul in medicine. In 2004, I graduated from the Family Medicine Residency Program and joined the faculty. I have enjoyed the diversity and am daily rewarded by being able to contribute to the mission of bringing health care to underserved people. My special interests include ambulatory surgery and geriatrics. My wife and I have been married for 21 years and have one son. Our son graduated from high school in 2007, and is now in college. Outside of medicine, I enjoy my family, visiting with friends, running, biking, and golf.

Michelle Karsten, MD
I am a cheesehead transplant. I was born, raised, and educated in Madison, WI, all the way through medical school. I moved to the Twin Cities to attend residency. I completed my first year at Regions Hospital in St. Paul and transferred to HCMC for my last two years and have stayed on as a faculty member here at the Department of Family and Community Medicine. My areas of interest are maternity care, family planning, and adolescent care. I live in South Minneapolis not far from Whittier Clinic with my husband, Jake, son Zach and two mutts.

Abby Kirschner, LICSW
I am Abby Kirschner, the Co-Director of Behavioral Medicine in the residency. I am originally from New York and although I have lived in Minneapolis for over 25 years, people still tell me I am a New Yorker. I went to graduate school in Madison, ran away from home, decided to travel the country to find a place to live and ran out of money in Minneapolis. I have worked at HCMC for over 30 years, first as a Pediatric social worker in the hospital and then as a supervisor of Peds and OB in a combined hospital social work supervisor and Behavioralist in the Family Practice Residency. Currently, I am working in the residency only teaching the Dr. Pt relationship, psycho –social issues and resident health and wellness. I enjoy playing tennis, gardening and visiting my family and friends in Texas, Vermont, Massachusetts and Florida.

Nancy Newman, MD
I've been at HCMC Family Medicine Residency since 1993. I grew up in a small town outside of Boston. After graduating from Carleton College in Minnesota I spent a few years in Washington, D.C., and then decided to go to medical school. Nine years later after CWRU Medical School (Cleveland, Ohio) and family medicine residency and family systems fellowship (both in Rochester, NY) I moved back to Minnesota. I practice and teach family medicine both in the clinic and the hospital. I have particular interest in physician-patient relationships that are challenging, as well as teaching about "the family in family medicine." Outside of medicine I enjoy gardening, camping, attending Quaker meeting and going to my kids’ soccer games.

Tsewang Ngodup, MD
I joined the department as a resident physician in 1997. Fortunately, I was able to continue working as a faculty. I enjoy spending time with my family and friends as much as I am able.

Lourdes Maglaya-Pira, MD
I am a foreign medical graduate from the Philipines. I completed an OB-GYN residency training in the Philipipines and moved to the US in the late 80's. I completed my family medicine residency training at HCMC and started working in the department in 1996. I divide my time seeing patients at FMC and Northpoint Clinic. I am in charge of the G3 gynecology rotation and I love to teach OB-GYN stuff even in the wee hours of the morning on call. I have a 22 year old daughter (who wants to be a doctor), a 16 year old son who wants to be a basketball player and a very supportive husband. Family life and church activities keep me busy off work. I enjoy teaching..., and music/movies when I find the time.

Sandy McTavish, MSN, FNP

Sandy is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner who began with the faculty of the Family Medicine Residency Program in 2010. She is the Coordinator of the geriatric nursing home rotation. Sandy graduated from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, in 1992 with a Master of Science degree in Nursing. Prior to joining the Family Medicine Department, she practiced with Healtheast Medical Care for Seniors. She was a faculty member of the Inver Hills-Century College Department of Nursing. She practiced with Regions Department of Family and Community Medicine with a focus on addiction medicine, correctional medicine, and general family practice, including obstetrics. Prior to this, she practiced with Model Cities Community Health Center (now Open Cities) and with the University of Texas Regional Perinatal Clinic. Her special interests include geriatrics and integrative medicine. In her spare time, she enjoys signing in a choir, gardening, classical music, and gourmet foods.

Kara Parker, MD
I have been faculty at HCMC Family Medicine Department for 4 years, after graduating from the program, and have enjoyed the diversity, and also the rapid change that we are undergoing. HCMC is a place dear to my heart, and I daily contribute to the mission of bringing health and healing to people who cannot access it on their own. In fall 2006, I pursued my Integrative Medicine interests and began practicing Holistic Medicine at the HFA Alternative Medicine clinic, and also opened my own private practice called Seven Bridges Holistic Medicine. I enjoy assisting patients to live vibrantly and to prevent illness by encouraging them to take care of a themselves on all levels - body, mind, emotions and spirit. I savor being a physician that clients bring their supplements and wellness plans to for review, and share their experiences of care from community alternative medicine practitioners with. I also thrive on being a model for and teaching medical students and residents patient-centered holistic care in this exciting new era of medicine we are entering.

Joe Sierra, MD
I graduated from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, completed three years of general surgery residency at St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee, and then entered private practice in Colorado. Following seven years in private practice, I moved to Minneapolis to become a resident in Family Practice at Hennepin County Medical Center. Upon completion of my residency in 1992, I joined the family practice department as a faculty physician. I am the father of four children, and grandfather of one, and I work hard to keep up with volleyball, baseball and concerts. I have been married for 24 years. I enjoy gardening, astronomy, painting and my wife's quilting. My special interests include ambulatory surgery, urgent care and health care for the homeless.

Selma Sroka, MD

I am mother of three adult children who are finding their own place in the world and who continue to teach me many lessons about life and relationships. I continue to enjoy and be challenged by their growth and development on a daily basis. I have learned a great deal from the people who show up in my clinic seeking help, guidance, or sometimes just a good listener. And I continue to learn from the doctors/residents who come from all over the world for training in Family Medicine here at HCMC Family Medicine Residency Program. Our faculty are multi-cultural with a broad variety of interests and are, in general, open and supportive to individual passions and growth within the context of providing the best possible care for families and training the best family doctors that we can. I am grateful and feel privileged to be a part of this wonderful group. By working with resident/physician wellness, I have learned a great deal about teaching in a more integrative and experiential way. And I am also site leader for the Integrative Medicine in Residency project, in collaboration with 7 other family medicine programs across the country, learning the trick of collaboration for the purpose of helping to transform graduate medical training. Over the past 20 years I have gradually shifted my practice more and more toward Integrative Health, as I have learned to take a broader, more holistic and patient-centered approach. Our HCMC/Whittier Clinic’s Integrative Health Clinic is growing and expanding to meet the demanda of the community, and I am excited to have a part in this growth.