Since 1934, Kern Medical has been training residents and
health care professionals in our community.
Academics
EM Residents
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Class of 2024
Bianca Arechiga, DO
Bianca.Arechiga@kernmedical.com
Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Undergraduate: Baylor University
Medical School: UNTHSC-Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: exploring new cities, spending time with family/friends, spoiling
my dogs, eating, going to concerts, trying new things
Fun facts: Fun facts: In another life, I would’ve loved to be a racecar driver!
Cecilia Santos Jimenez, MD
Hometown: San Jose, CA
Undergraduate: University of California, Santa Cruz
Medical School: Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee
Hobbies: I enjoy collecting vinyl records (80’s music being my favorite).
I picked up watercolor painting while in medical school. Another hobby
of mine is bicycle restoration.
Fun facts: During medical school I was able to visit 10 new states. Everybody
in my house has a name that starts with a C, including our chihuahua Cutie
Edward McCrink, DO
Hometown: Orange County, CA
Undergraduate: Concordia University, Irvine, CA
Medical School: Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, PA
Hobbies: World Cup soccer, backpacking, fishing, mountain biking, dog training
and raising my 5 year old Vizsla – Otto!
Fun facts: I have delivered pizzas to Kobe Bryant and the inventor of Hot Pockets.
Favorite thing about Kern Medical: awesome teaching environment, very approachable
faculty and trauma staff, and having only a few other residency programs
means more for us!
Afomia Mesfin, MD
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Undergraduate: University of California, San Diego
Medical School: UCSF School of Medicine
Hobbies: going to the beach, going on walks with friends, traveling, dancing
(I love salsa dancing!), watching reality tv shows
Fun Facts: One of my life goals is to visit every continent (except Antarctica,
not a fan of the cold) – so far, I’ve explored four of them.
Edward Pak, MD
Hometown: La Cañada, CA
Undergraduate: La Sierra University, Riverside CA
Medical School: Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Hobbies: snowboarding, Hiking, Backpacking, Cooking, Trail Running, Basketball
Fun Facts: I was a Boy Scout in high school and as our yearly fundraising
project, we would go door-to-door and sell + deliver manure fertilizer.
Carol Tang, MD
Hometown: Chino Hills, CA
Undergraduate: University of Southern California
Medical School: Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
Hobbies: Doing anything with my dogs (Kiyo pictured above), hiking, traveling,
watching Marvel movies, playing board games
Fun Fact: Watched all 23 Marvel movies in order within 2 weeks right before
taking Step 2 CK and CS
Angela Tseng, DO
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Undergraduate: University of California, Santa Barbara
Medical School: Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Lynchburg VA.
Hobbies: Basketball (Go Lakers), crossfit, spikeball, spending time near
any body of water, hiking, reading, cooking, and board games.
Fun Fact: When I was a kid, I wanted to be a fire engine (verbatim) or
a Power Ranger. Later, I became more realistic and aimed for getting into
the WNBA. Then I got really realistic and became a doctor
Class of 2025
Mike Chin, DO
Mike.Chin@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Undergraduate: UCLA
Medical School: Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: I'm obsessed with climbing, I love bouldering and lead climbing.
I have a little youtube channel about my climbing adventures. I spend
my free time traveling, camping, and hiking with my significant other.
and some EDM!
Fun Fact: My puppy named "shong shong" is turning 19.
Geocel-Grace Castanares, DO, MPH
Geocel-Grace.Castanares@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Bakersfield, CA
Undergraduate: University of California-Davis
Graduate School: University of South Florida
Medical School: Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: yoga, scuba diving, hiking, salsa and bachata dancing, cooking,
traveling, listening to country music, horseback riding, early AM workouts
Fun fact: I won “Most Outgoing” in high school and if I wasn’t
in medicine, I would have loved a career in public relations or media.
Kelsey Schrage
Kelsey.Schrage@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Undergraduate: California Lutheran University
Graduate: Georgetown University
Medical School: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: I used to competitively ride horses across the southwest in three
day eventing, until career ending injury, broke my spine (don't worry
I'm ok!) - now just trail rides here and there, started Pilates while
in residency, traveling, retail therapy, wine tasting, frequenting the
warm Florida beaches in St. Pete/Gulf side beaches with my family, and
my most favorite is SLEEPING.
Fun facts: I have lived in 8 states, but California is my favorite.
Seth Larsen
Seth.Larsen@kernmedical.com
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Undergraduate: San Diego State University
Medical School: Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, College
of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: playing and recording music, rock climbing, scuba diving, tennis,
spikeball, ping pong, movies and TV, traveling, hiking, spending time
with family
Fun facts: If I wasn't doing medicine I would probably be pursuing music
professionally! One of my favorite things in the world is playing shows
and jamming out with a solid group of musicians. My first band, Catharsis
of a Mute, released two albums while we were still in high school and
to this day they are something I am most proud of!
https://soundcloud.com/jevon-huang
https://youtu.be/vYXT7oYCr5A
https://youtu.be/UvYUViP6ojc
Jairo Garcia
Jairo.Garcia@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Hawthorne, CA
Undergraduate: UC Irvine
Medical school: Charles R. Drew University/ DGSOM at UCLA
Hobbies: Playing guitar, running, I would want to go back to picking up
boxing, love The Simpsons pre-season 13ish (and other cartoons), watching
music analysis videos (blows my mind every time), I like driving such
as road trips (calming no lie)
Fun/odd fact: Chances are I have not seen your favorite classic movie,
and if I did, I probably would have a tough time recalling scenes, characters
or time of events... I can't remember movies well.
Charles Anderson, DO, FAWM, DiMM
Charles.Anderson@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Buffalo, NY
Undergraduate: Daemen College
Medical School: LUCOM
Professional Interests: Aeromedical EMS, prolonged field care, disaster medicine
Hobbies: Hanging out with my wife and our dog. Flying. Climbing. Floating
in the pool. Traveling whenever we get the chance.
Fun Facts: I could fly an airplane by myself before I could drive a car
by myself. Go Bills!
Maria Jose Araujo
Hometown: Richmond, VA
Undergraduate: College of William and Mary
Medical School: University of Texas Health Sciences Center in Houston
Hobbies: Running, obscene amounts of snuggling other people’s dogs,
and playing music
Fun fact: 4 of my 7 piercings I did myself, a là Parent Trap
Class of 2026
Kiley Clark, MD
kiley.clark@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Granite Bay, CA
Undergraduate: Texas State University
Medical School: American University of the Caribbean
Hobbies: Running, dirtbiking and camping!
Fun Fact: I just bought my first house and spending all my free time remodeling!
Kenneth Lam, MD
kenneth.lam@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Orange County, CA
Undergraduate: University of California, Irvine
Medical School: Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
Hobbies: Cooking fancy dishes, jamming on guitar & piano, acapella/karaoke,
hiking, working out, swimming, traveling, DIY projects
Fun fact: I lived in 5 countries by the time I was 7 years old
Matthias Park, MD
matthias.park@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Olympia, WA
Undergrad: UC San Diego
Medical School: Washington State University
Hobbies: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, baking bread
Fun fact: I was a combat medic before medical school.
Jordan Karroll, DO
jordan.karroll@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Undergraduate: Santa Clara University
Medical School: Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: Hot Sauce, Xbox, Cooking, Soccer, Traveling
Fun Fact: My favorite band is Tenacious D, and I have the slightest addiction
to ice cream.
Brittney Banfer, DO
brittney.banfer@kernmedical.com
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Undergraduate: California State University, San Marcos
Medical School: Western University of Health Sciences of the Pacific Northwest
Hobbies: hiking, camping, anything involving water, long naps, coffee,
spending time outside with the pups
Fun Fact: I just adopted a new puppy - Oakley
Lawrence Liu, MD
lawrence.liu@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Walnut, California
Undergraduate: UC San Diego
Medical school: Medical College of Wisconsin
Hobbies: I used to play badminton competitively and attended many tournaments,
now I just play for fun and help coach kids. I also enjoy working out,
swimming, and rock climbing!
Fun fact: I was born with natural white hair
Vincent Adams, MD
Vincent.adams@kernmedical.com
Hometown: Modesto, CA
Undergraduate: Kansas State University
Medical School: University of Kansas School of Medicine
Hobbies: Bodybuilding, car restoration, martial arts, overlanding, hiking, traveling
Fun facts: I’ve bench pressed 400 lbs and passed the Federal Air
Marshal Qualification Course (TPC)
Class of 2027
Arsen Mkrtchyan, MD
Hometown: Reseda, CA
Undergraduate: University of California Irvine
Medical School: Ross University School of Medicine
Hobbies and Interests: Weightlifting, Running, Playing Football, Working
on my car, Car detailing, Playing video games, Traveling the world, Going
out on spontaneous adventures, Going to the movies, Spending time with
friends and family, Playing Durak, Cooking and perfecting new dishes (Steak
is my favorite), and trying new food.
Fun Facts: My fastest half mile time is 1:56, Fastest 3 mile time is 14:49.
Jasmin Custodio, MD
Hometown: Visalia, CA
Undergraduate: California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo
Medical School: St. George’s University, Grenada
Hobbies: Board games, karaoke, wine tasting, cooking, getting cats to like
me, all things Taylor Swift
Fun fact: I can devour 5lbs of shrimp in one sitting.
John Gooch, MD
Hometown: Tracy, CA
Undergraduate: California State University Stanislaus
Medical School: Medical University of Lublin
London Knight, DO
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Undergraduate: Santa Clara University
Medical School: Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hobbies: Going on walks with my two dogs, going to the gym, meditating,
trying new recipes, playing Xbox, binge watching shows, and reading long novels
Fun fact: I have a rather large fear of bees (I’ve never been stung).
I am aware and appreciate all that they do for our environment, but if
one flies nearby, I will abandon you and run to safety.
Munyal Zira, MD
Hometown: Bakersfield, CA
Undergraduate: University of Prince Edward Island, Canada
Medical School: St. George’s University School of Medicine
Hobbies: I’m a huge foodie whether it’s cooking it or trying
out restaurants. I’m a serial audiobook listener (I have all but
3 badges in my collection). My favourite thing to do is travel and spend
time with my family, I am always looking forward to the next travel experience.
Fun Fact: I love to eat burgers. I once ate a burger everyday from different
restaurants for a month straight. I do not recommend that diet, but it
was worth it!
Seungj Hwang, DO
Hometown: Orange County, CA
Undergraduate: University of California Irvine
Medical School: Touro University Nevada
Hobbies: Spoiling my dog Happy, annoying my brother, losing at board games,
road trips, zoning out, açaí bowls and boba
Fun Fact: I’m from SoCal and used to work at a water amusement park
in high school, but never actually learned how to swim.
Thinh Tran, MD
Hometown: Palm Desert, California
Undergraduate: The Master's University, Santa Clarita, CA
Medical School: Ross University School of Medicine
Hobbies: I enjoy traveling and exploring new places. I also like hitting
up the arcades and batting cages to relieve stress.
Fun facts: I'm a huge Dodger's fan. Go Blue!