Leadership

Dr. Grace Kajita

Program Director

Grace Kajita, MD graduated from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed her residency in Internal Medicine-Primary Care at New York University. She stayed on in the system as a clinician-educator based at the Manhattan Veterans Affairs Medical Center and was an Associate Program Director in the Internal Medicine Residency. She joined Wakefield as the Program Director in 2014.

Samantha Lawson-Butler, BA, C-TAGME

Program Administrator

Samantha Lawson-Butler graduated from Montclair State University with a degree in English. She started her career as a grants coordinator for a non-profit agency and came to Wakefield in 2004. Her experience includes grants and coordination of medical student and medical fellow training. She became Program Administrator in 2018.

Dr. Joseph Hong

Associate Program Director

Dr. Joseph Hong graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in 2013 and completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center. He joined the Wakefield program in 2016 as an academic hospitalist; besides his commitment to patient care and house staff training, he is also an enthusiastic supporter of point-of-care ultrasound and has worked on developing a POCUS curriculum for both internal medicine residents and hospitalists at Wakefield. Dr Hong became an associate program director in 2020.

Dr. Eva Metalios

Associate Program Director

Eva Metalios, MD, Medical Director for Internal Medicine at Wakefield Ambulatory Care Center, Associate Program Director for Wakefield Internal Medicine Residency, Associate Professor of Medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, is a clinician educator and primary care physician. She has spent almost three decades at Montefiore providing care, developing programs, and conducting research, specifically with torture survivors and asylum seekers in the United States. Prior to becoming faculty at Einstein, Dr. Metalios received her undergraduate degree in philosophy from Barnard College, and medical degree from New York Medical College. She completed her Primary Care Internal Medicine residency and Chief Residency at Montefiore. Her academic interests include musculoskeletal medicine and women's health.

Dr. Olena Slinchenkova

Associate Program Director

Dr. Olena Slinchenkova completed her medical degree at Dnipropetrovsk State Medical Academy in 2001. After completing her Internal Medicine Residency at Wakefield in 2014 she served as Chief Resident and then was recruited as one of the first teaching hospitalists at Wakefield. Dr. Slinchenkova has taken on increasing levels of responsibility including serving as sub-internship site director and clerkship site director. Most recently, Dr. Slinchenkova became the Director of Medicine services and APD for Internal Medicine Residency at Wakefield.

Dr. Kristin Swedish

Associate Program Director

Kristin Swedish, MD, MPH is a clinician educator at the Wakefield Ambulatory Care Center. She graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where she also completed residency in General Preventive Medicine and obtained her MPH. She came to Montefiore for Social Internal Medicine/Primary Care residency and upon its completion in 2014, started at Wakefield. Dr. Swedish joined program leadership in 2016 as the Director for Scholarly Activity and Research and became an APD in 2020.

Dr. Arsh Chowdhary

Chief Medical Resident 2026-27

Arsh Chowdhary, MD, attended medical school in Mumbai, India, before moving to New York to pursue residency training at our Wakefield residency program. His passion for teaching and mentorship inspired him to apply for the role of chief resident, and he looks forward to playing a role in the continued excellence of the Wakefield program. “The people at Wakefield make this an amazing environment to work and learn in,” he says. “From the very beginning, all the attendings, nursing and ancillary staff, housekeeping—everyone is so supportive and welcoming.” He also loves serving Wakefield’s patients. “The patients we see often have poor access to healthcare and are very sick by the time they get to us. Having the opportunity to help them and playing just a small part in their journey is something I value deeply,” he shares. He plans to pursue a career in pulmonary and critical care medicine. Growing up in India, he rode horses competitively and briefly played on India’s national golf team. He still enjoys hitting balls at the driving range when he has the time, in addition to trying new restaurants.

Dr. Hemali Rochlani

Chief Medical Resident 2026-27

Hemali grew up in Mumbai, India, surrounded by physicians in her family, so medicine always felt like the natural path. That pull has only grown stronger since starting residency. She matched at Montefiore Wakefield for her Internal Medicine training, where the support of mentors and co-residents from intern year onward shaped both her clinical growth and her decision to apply for chief. As chief, she's looking forward to being a steady presence for her co-residents, someone they can turn to as they grow into their roles, while also learning the operational side of the job, from scheduling logistics to developing as a clinical educator. Outside the hospital, she likes experimenting with different cuisines and, by her own admission, catching up on sleep. After her chief year, she'll pursue a fellowship in Pulmonary Critical Care, with a particular interest in pulmonary hypertension and ECMO.

Quick Links

Wakefield Internal Medicine Residency Program

Leadership

Dr. Grace Kajita

Samantha Lawson-Butler, BA, C-TAGME

Dr. Joseph Hong

Dr. Eva Metalios

Dr. Olena Slinchenkova

Dr. Kristin Swedish

Dr. Arsh Chowdhary

Dr. Hemali Rochlani