Our Fellows

Our Fellows

2022-2023

Christine Bui, MD

Christine was born in LA and raised in Orange County. She received a BS in Biology from Yale University in 2010 and an MD from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in 2015. She completed a combined residency in internal medicine and pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital. Following that, she completed a fellowship in pediatric cardiology at Stanford University, where it became clear that cardiology patients could benefit from palliative care. Her career vision is to integrate palliative care with adult and pediatric cardiology, and her research interests include artificial intelligence and qualitative research.

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Helen Chernicoff, MD

2nd year Geriatric and Palliative Medicine fellow

Helen grew up in Los Angeles, did her undergraduate studies at UC Berkley, and then attended medical school at UCLA. She did family medicine residency and was chief resident at Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills.  She then completed a two year health services research fellowship at UCLA.  After fellowship she led a team of 12 researchers at a private health services research firm, Health Benchmarks, and precepted UCLA medical students at the LA Free Clinic and Venice Family Clinic.  She has volunteered for many years as camp medical director for a summer camp with a special needs inclusion program.  Most recently she invited her mother in law with dementia into her family home and cared for her during her last five years of life.  Her family’s experience with navigating care for a loved one with advanced dementia, culminating with a positive experience with home hospice, led to her interest in the Geriatrics and Palliative combined fellowship.

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John Horton, MD

was born and raised in San Diego, California. He graduated from Duke University with a degree in Neuroscience and completed medical school at UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. He continued at UCLA for residency training in adult psychiatry where he also served as chief resident during his final year. John's interest in palliative care stems from earlier exposures to the field while working as a clinical trial coordinator studying HIV/AIDS-related cancers. He hopes to build a career that focuses on addressing the psychological impact of life-limiting illnesses and expanding behavioral health support for patients living with complex illness.

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Tiffany Hsu, MD

Tiffany was born and raised in Orange County, California. She attended Brown University as part of the eight-year Program in Liberal Medical Education, during which she received a Bachelor's degree in English in 2012 and her M.D. in 2016. She completed her residency in internal medicine at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, CA. Tiffany went on to work as a hospitalist at Torrance Memorial Medical Center, where her encounters with patients and families, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, deepened her interest in palliative care. She hopes to develop her skills not only to deliver quality palliative care, but also to empower patients, families, and other providers to better understand it.

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Sarah Jensen, MD

 Sarah was born and raised in the Boston area. She graduated from Northeastern University in 2012 with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. She then stayed in the city to work as a biochemist at a startup drug discovery company. A few years later, she moved to Los Angeles to get her MD from UCLA at the David Geffen School of Medicine. She stayed at UCLA to complete her residency training in Internal Medicine and worked an additional year as chief resident. In those roles, her interests included education, mentorship, recruitment and resident well-being and debriefing. She hopes to continue her passion of palliative medical education and supporting her colleagues during her fellowship and throughout her career. 

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Jessica Lucier, MD  

Jessica was born and raised in southern California. Following studying philosophy at Harvard, she lived in Paris, Baltimore, and San Diego, before attending medical school at UCLA. She took a year off between her third and fourth years to work in healthcare consulting. She gladly returned to clinical medicine and completed a residency in Med Peds. Clinically, she is interested in both adult and pediatric palliative care, with a particular interest in children with chronic illnesses across transitions of care. She also hopes to also develop complementary skills in medical education.

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Marina “Molly” Sprague, MD

Marina grew up in Santa Barbara, CA. She graduated from Middlebury College in Vermont with a double major in Molecular Biology-Biochemistry and Spanish in 2013. She then completed a Master of Science in Crime Scene Investigations at George Washington University in 2015. Upon determining her future lay in medicine, she pivoted and earned her medical degree at UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine in 2019 before completing Internal Medicine residency also at UCLA. Molly’s interest in Palliative Medicine grew from her passion in connecting with her patients and facilitating aligning their medical care with their values.  

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Brandon Wolfeld, MD

Brandon was born and raised in Fair Lawn, NJ. He graduated from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary with degrees in Film Studies and Modern Jewish Studies, respectively. He graduated from Ross University School of Medicine in 2019 and then went on to complete his medical education in Internal Medicine at Temple University. While at Temple he completed a Masters in Urban Bioethics; there, he nurtured an interest in the relationship between social engagement and health. He plans to look at ways that feelings of community impact well-being.

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Marielle Bolano, MD

1^st year Geriatric and Palliative Medicine fellow

Marielle grew in the San Francisco Bay Area. As an undergraduate at UC Berkeley, she developed an interest in medicine, public policy, and improving care for older adults who have been economically and socially marginalized. She joined a research team at UCSF investigating health needs and care delivery for incarcerated and homeless older adults. She then attended medical school at UC Davis and completed her residency and chief year in Internal Medicine at UCLA in the primary care track.  Serving and learning from her homeless veteran patients at HPACT has reinforced her academic interests and she is excited to pursue a career in Geriatrics and Palliative Care.