Pediatric Residency Program Faculty

Melissa Ruiz, MD, MPH - Program Director

Ambulatory Pediatrics

Originally from southern California, Dr. Ruiz completed her undergraduate studies at Georgetown University and earned her medical degree from Columbia University. She completed a pediatric residency, a chief year, and her master’s degree in public health at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She returned to California and gained experience in various practice models and medical residency education during her time in the Southern California Community Pediatric Fellowship. With eight years as a primary care pediatrician for medically complex children in Ventura, Dr. Ruiz now serves as the Program Director for the Cottage Children’s Medical Center Pediatric Residency Program. Passionate about caring for children in foster care and those with special needs, Dr. Ruiz is also actively involved with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), serving on the board of directors for AAP California Chapter 2 for the past eight years, currently as chapter president.

Melissa's Bio

Rachel Cohen, MD - Associate Program Director

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Born and raised in Santa Barbara (born at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, in fact!), Rachel spent several years on the east coast for college, working in clinical research, and medical school before returning to California for residency at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Landing back in Santa Barbara as a hospitalist has been a delightful return to her roots.

Rachel's Bio

Lisa Jacobs, MD - Associate Program Director

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Lisa grew up in the Bay Area, attended Stanford University for undergraduate then ventured to Southern CA for medical school.  After her pediatrics training and chief residency year at UCLA, she moved to Miller Children’s Hospital where she took on the Associate Program Director (APD) role for the UCLA pediatrics residency program as they established a new training site. 

Lisa's Bio

Lori Brown, MD

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Dr. Brown serves as a member of our pediatric hospitalist team, and leads our efforts in quality improvement in the newborn nursery. In her spare time, Dr. Brown would describe herself as an avid runner who enjoys tennis, and who can’t wait to do some real traveling. 

Lori's Bio

Maria Demma Cabral, MD

Adolescent Pediatrics

Before coming to California, Dr. Cabral was an assistant professor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (2015-2018) and was an associate professor at the Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine (2018-2022). Since joining Cottage Health, Dr. Cabral has been providing a consultative service to adolescent and young adult health and wellness.

Maria's Bio

Amelia Castro, MD

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Genevieve Cruz, MD

Pediatric Neurology

Born in Richmond Virginia, she likes to point out that she has never lived anywhere longer than 5 years, so her roots are far reaching. She made it to California via Egypt, England, Louisiana and Texas, but she’s home now!

Genevieve's Bio

Alexandra Eidelwein, MD

Pediatric Gastroenterology

Dr. Eidelwein was born in Sao Paulo and raised in southern Brazil. She has extensive experience with inflammatory bowel disease and is Co-PI for Cottage’s membership in the Improve Care Now (ICN) Collaborative. She brings an intelligent and caring approach to the population she serves, and is an essential part of our GI team. In her off hours, she enjoys spending time with her daughter, biking and making a delicious pao de queijo. She is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese. We take her word for it on that last one.

Alexandra's Bio

Catherine Ekwa-Ekoko, MD

Neonatology

Catherine Ekwa-Ekoko is interested in Neonatology as a whole but is especially interested in supporting families as team members in the care of their babies by providing family centered care. She is also is interested in following NICU patients through discharge and providing support and continuity of care in our follow-up clinic. She is currently IBCLC certified.

Catherine's Bio

Christopher Ferber, MD

Pediatric Endocrinology

Dr. Ferber is a lifetime Southern California native. He completed his residency training in pediatrics at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, as well as an additional year as Chief Resident, followed by returning to UCLA for his fellowship training in pediatric endocrinology. He has a particular interest in medical education, as well as type 1 diabetes and technology including insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors. His hobbies outside of work include board and card games, pickleball, and escape rooms.

Erika Fernandez, MD

Neonatology

Dr. Fernandez has been a dedicated neonatologist for more than 20 years, passionately caring for the tiniest and newest members of the Santa Barbara and Central Coast community. Since joining Cottage, she has become the director of the Cottage Residency NICU rotation and has developed a robust teaching schedule for our trainees as well as regular mock codes.

Erika's Bio

Jeffrey Frazer, MD

Pediatric Cardiology

Historically itinerant, Dr. Jeffrey Frazer would like nothing better than to be spending each month moving from one country to another- well, nothing better than working as part of our amazing residency program. A pediatric cardiologist during the day, and a kid at heart at night, Dr. Frazer is most proud of our wonderful residents and our residency community and culture.

Jeffrey's Bio

Jenna Holmen, MD

Pediatric Infectious Disease

Jenna is another Santa Barbara native (also born at Cottage). She spent about 10 years back east including time for undergraduate education, a master's degree, and medical school and happily returned to CA to complete her pediatric residency and pediatric infectious disease fellowship at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland as well as an MPH at UC Berkeley. She finally made her way back home to Santa Barbara to work at Cottage in 2022.

Dena Hubbard, MD

Neonatology

Born and raised in Missouri, Dr. Hubbard's love for travel has led her to a very unconventional commute from Kansas City to Santa Barbara! Dr. Hubbard is a neonatologist and Director of Quality at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital’s NICU. Dr. Hubbard provides skilled mentorship to colleagues and trainees in advocacy for infants, maternal-child health, and surviving and thriving in the profession of medicine.

Dena's Bio

Asneha Iqbal, MD

Pediatric Hematology/Oncology

Jordan Justice, MD

Pediatric Emergency Medicine

Dr. Justice was born and raised in Los Angeles. He completed his undergraduate training with a degree in biomedical ethics and his medical degree at the Tel Aviv University Sackler School of Medicine in Israel. He also completed the University of Arizona’s combined Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics residency program and is board certified in both Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics.

Jordan's Bio

Drew Kelts, MD

Pediatric Gastroenterology

Raised in Boston, Dr. Kelts is an incredibly caring and energetic physician. He has built the Pediatric Gastroenterology program from a modest beginning to the robust multi-physician regional center for care that it is today. He has strong interests in Obesity, Nutrition, and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Drew's Bio

Mellad Khoshnood, MD

Pediatric Neurology

Adrienne Macdonald, MD, MPH

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

A Santa Barbara native, Dr. Macdonald is a pediatric hospitalist and the Director of Inpatient Pediatrics. She attended Berkeley for her undergrad degree and earned a Master of Public Health degree, followed by UC Irvine for medical school, as part of the newly established PRIME-LC program. She completed her pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Oakland before returning home to the central coast.

Adrienne's Bio

Andy Newcomer, MD

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Raised in rural Missouri, Dr. Newcomer was a film studies major at Columbia University in New York and then moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film and television before getting his medical degree at Temple University in Philadelphia. He was a chief resident in pediatrics at UCLA before becoming a pediatric hospitalist at UCLA for eight years prior to joining the team at Cottage.

Andy's Bio

Luke Noronha, MD

Pediatric Pulmonology

Kaitlyn Olson, MD

Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Born and raised in North Carolina, Dr. Olson came to California for residency training, and never looked back. When she is not a Hospitalist, she enjoys gardening, sewing, and raising her active family. She completed the Kentucky Derby marathon. We are told no horses were employed during the marathon, but we’re not really sure. The photos seem to have gone missing.

Kaitlyn's Bio

Miriam Parsa, MD

Pediatric Rheumatology

Another native Angelino, Dr. Parsa shares her time with us as the only Pediatric Rheumatologist between Los Angeles and the Bay Area, and with her family. Now serving as the Chief Pediatric Medical Officer, she oversees program development for the Cottage Children’s Medical Center. She enjoys hiking the local foothills with her dog, and has a very healthy addiction to sports.

Miriam's Bio

Rebecca Pifer, NP

Concussion Clinic

Born and raised outside of Detroit, Michigan, Rebecca is one of 7 children, which include 5 adopted siblings. She new from an early age that she loved taking care of children. She has spent much of her career assisting in the operating room, and is skilled in the placement of chest thoracotomy tubes, central and arterial lines.

Rebecca's Bio

Treavor Robison, MD

Pediatric Critical Care

Dr. Robison joined the Cottage Children’s Medical Center PICU team in summer 2023 and is the director of the Cottage Residency PICU rotation. He completed his pediatric residency and pediatric critical care fellowship at University of California – San Diego & Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, CA. His research interests include clinical informatics, quality improvement and ICU rehabilitation.

Treavor's Bio

Zohreh Shoar, MD

Pediatric Endocrinology

Dr. Zohreh Shoar is a Pediatric Endocrinologist, focusing her work on children with a variety of conditions related to the hormone-producing glands in the body including diabetes, thyroid disorders, abnormalities of growth, and adrenal insufficiency. Dr. Shoar’s clinical leadership emblemizes her devotion to evidence-based care in this fast moving field. 

Zohreh's Bio

Laura Sices, MD

Developmental/Behavioral Pediatrics

Moving to Santa Barbara from Boston, Dr. Sices leads our Developmental/Behavioral Pediatric program. A native of New Hampshire, she spent part of her childhood in France. She brings a perfect balance of academic rigor and parental compassion to her work. She is esteemed by her colleagues and families alike.

Laura's Bio

Tamara Taketani, MD

Pediatric Gastroenterology

A native Californian, Dr. Taketani was raised in Monterey Park. When she is not practicing pediatric gastroenterology here at Cottage, she enjoys hiking, baking, gardening, and entertaining her dog.

Tamara's Bio

Kathy Chung Thrash, MD

Neonatalogy

A true (and rare!) Angelino, Dr. Thrash was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. She serves as Medical Director for the NICU. She balances her clinical responsibilities and research interests with outdoor activities raising her three children. To decompress, she is an avid endurance Pelotoner, and enjoys indoor rock climbing. To our knowledge, she is the only member of our faculty to have climbed Machu Picchu and Mt. Kilimanjaro!

Kathy's Bio

Shivani Upadhyay, MD

Pediatric Hematology/Oncology

Born and raised outside of Chicago (Go Bears!), Dr. Upadhyay has embraced the climate and lifestyle of Santa Barbara. She loves the outdoors for hiking, spending time with her family (including a seemingly variable number of dogs), reading and eating (no regrets!). She particularly loves the long-term relationships that her group creates with their patients.

Shivani's Bio

Christophe Le Renard, MD

Pediatric Hospital Medicine and Cottage Health Chief Medical Information Officer

Dr. Le Renard serves as a Hospitalist and as the Chief Medical Information Officer for Cottage Health. Raised in Los Angeles, he translocated to Santa Barbara from San Luis Obispo, he enjoys the lifestyle that the community provides. He and his family can be frequently found at the beach and are very active in sports. When he is at home, he takes his downtime watching great movies and shows. He is fluent in French and Spanish, and knows how to say croissant in seven languages.

Christophe's Bio

Eric Grossman, MD

Pediatric Surgery and Trauma

Born in New Jersey, Dr. Grossman spent 20 years living in Chicago (for reasons that we find somewhat obscure) before moving to California, where he is firmly ensconced with his family. He is particularly interested in Pediatric Trauma, serving as the Medical Director for that program, as well as for the Pediatric Specialty Clinics. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking with his family, and playing with their new dog.

Eric's Bio

Robert Kanard, MD

Pediatric Surgery

Dr. Kanard, our Medical Director for Pediatric Surgery worked his way west from Cheyenne, Wyoming. He started out as an English Lit major, and we believe has the distinction of being the only member of our faculty to be a playwright, having written a one-woman play about Penelope, the wife of Ulysses. He taught English in Tokyo for three years, became fluent in Japanese and traveled extensively in Asia. Somewhere in all of this, he changed gears and became a pediatric surgeon.

Robert's Bio

Steven Barkley, MD

Neonatology

Dr. Barkley is a lifelong Californian. Born in San Diego, raised in Pasadena, he came to Santa Barbara in 1987 with his partner, Dr. Barbara Donnelly, to open the region’s first NICU. In his off time, he enjoys running, sailing (in the boat he built), kayaking (in the kayak he built), woodworking (on the workbench he built) and travel (in the plane he built. OK, this one isn’t true).

Steve's Bio