Third Year Residents

Catherine Boucher, DO

Undergrad: University of Richmond
Medical School: University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine

Personal Information:
I grew up in a small town outside of Bangor, Maine. While I still think it's one of the prettiest places to live, I moved away to Virginia for college and have moved down to Pennsylvania to try something new. I am a self-proclaimed band/theater geek, and I also like to cook and spend time with friends.

Why Family Medicine:
Family medicine provides the best opportunity to work with patients over a long period of time and to learn about them within the context of family, social stressors, and other factors that affect health.

Why Williamsport:
Even though I did not do any rotations here during medical school, I immediately felt welcomed during my interview day--not just by the residents, but by the faculty and staff as well. I was looking for a program that provides a safe learning environment as well as strong OB opportunities. Williamsport fit the bill.

Raphael Escovar, MD

Undergrad: Rice University, Houston, TX
Medical School: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, Lubbock/El Paso, TX

Personal Information:
Ever since I can remember, my vision of a "doctor" was the rural/small town physician who saw everyone and did everything. To me, this means having continuity of care, building long-lasting relationships with your patients, listening to your patients, and taking a holistic approach to their treatment/management - often requiring one to venture outside the scope of medicine in order to treat their medical problems. Complex problem-solving and close relationships with patients are what brought me to family medicine.

Why Family Medicine:
I was initially attracted to family medicine because it encompasses the widest variety medicine. This variety provides daily challenges and constant drive to become a better physician. Through my family medicine experiences I have found that, in addition to this variety, the family physician has the greatest opportunity to make an impact on patients' lives through teaching, preventative medicine, and patient advocacy.

Why Williamsport:
Ultimately, I want to be a rural physician in some isolated nowhere, running my small practice (and my wife, hers) and taking care of everyone. With that said, I want to train in a place that is small enough to provide me that rural atmosphere, yet large enough to give me enough volume and diversity of pathologies, and Williamsport provides both. (It didn't hurt that my wife likes her program in pediatrics at our near-by rival hospital.) As far as moving to PA from TX, well, we like a change of scenery every now and again, and it helped that PA is some sort of hybrid where South meets Northeast.

Jesse Hickland, MD

Undergrad: Baylor University
Medical School: Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara

Personal Information:
I grew up in a small town in upstate New York with a large and very supportive family. I spent a lot of my childhood playing outside with my twin brother and dreaming of being a professional athlete. As I got older I began to have interests in other things including science and medicine. These particular interests led me to move away from home to attend Baylor University in Texas. As a student at Baylor, I gained two very important things, a great education and an amazing wife, Hillary. My wife and I are happily married and have recently added a new member to our family, our beautiful daughter, Shayne.

Why Family Medicine:
I have always had a goal of contributing to a rural community like the one in which I grew up. These communities have many needs and demand physicians with diverse and practical skill sets. Family physicians care for a wide variety of patients and problems, making them well-rounded and ideal for serving rural areas.

Why Williamsport:
I believe that Williamsport has the best resources, teachers, and support system to help me become the most well-rounded physician I can be.

Matthew Meeker, DO

Undergrad: Ursinus College
Medical School: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

Personal Information:
I was born in Bethlehem, PA, and grew up in Orefield, PA. Early on, my mom, an open heart unit nurse, and dad, a high school technology education teacher, instilled in me a passion for both medicine and teaching. When I'm outside of the medical world, I enjoy anything that takes me outdoors whether it's hiking, mountain biking, climbing, camping or kayaking. Other interests include travel, movies, music and Philadelphia sports, especially the Phillies.

Why Family Medicine:
I was initially attracted to family medicine because it encompasses the widest variety medicine. This variety provides daily challenges and constant drive to become a better physician. Through my family medicine experiences I have found that, in addition to this variety, the family physician has the greatest opportunity to make an impact on patients' lives through teaching, preventative medicine, and patient advocacy.

Charles Pagana, MD

Undergrad: Penn State University
Medical School: Penn State University College of Medicine at Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

Personal Information:
I was born right here in Williamsport, PA, as both of my parents were originally from this community. I grew up for the most part in Selinsgrove, which is just about an hour south of Williamsport. My hobbies/activities include both playing and watching most sports, especially football, basketball, baseball, tennis and golf. Along similar lines, I get outdoors as much as I can and enjoy hiking, skiing, biking, and hunting. With college sports I am obviously a big Penn State fan. Oddly, since my dad was a Notre Dame grad, I've grown up cheering for the Fighting Irish, as well. For pro sports, I'm a miserable Philly fan all the way! After many months of planning a large wedding, my wife, Jessica, and I were married in July 2011.

Why Family Medicine:
After I realized that my dream of becoming a professional athlete would not be coming true, I started college thinking that I could see myself become a doctor. Although I was never pressured or pushed, having multiple family members who are physicians probably steered me in that direction. Furthermore, with my dad as a family physician, I always admired the relationship he had with his patients and the way he could connect with them and their families. Still, I started medical school thinking that there was no way I would choose the same specialty my other family members did. Nevertheless, I decided to keep an open mind about each of my third-year rotations. I did my family medicine rotation here at Williamsport, and although I tried to deny it to myself at the time, I realized by the end of the year that I without a doubt enjoyed practicing the full scope of medicine, as a family physician does. Since it was my rotation at Williamsport that made me realize my love for family medicine, I knew that this was the place for me to further my training to become a well-rounded family physician.

Michelle Skinner, DO

Undergrad: University of Delaware
Medical School: Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, California

Personal Information:
I grew up in the suburbs of Washington, DC, surrounded by a large extended family. As expected with a typical Catholic family, I am blessed to have at least 50 relatives at my holiday events. My mom loves to ballroom dance and is an aspiring photographer. My dad loves fast cars and is actively involved in his church choir. I am the oldest of three children. My sister, June, is a kindergarten teacher and has two wonderful girls, Kylie and Madilyn. My brother has an economics degree from WVU, and he works for a recruiting firm. When I have free time, I try to go home to see my nieces or drive to Annapolis for a boat ride and waterskiing. To relax, I enjoy reading from my nook, cross-stitching, and scrapbooking.

Why Family Medicine:
When I was in medical school, my advisors kept telling me that, as I rotated through all the different specialties, "you'll know which one is right for you." Well, that just did not happen for me. My problem was that I liked everything. Ok, well, not everything, since I can't honestly say that I enjoyed my 16-hour days on surgery. Regardless, I think that family medicine is the best way to combine a little bit of everything. It offers the opportunity to coordinate all aspects of care and treat the whole patient rather than just a system. Family medicine also offers the unique opportunity to use osteopathic techniques on a daily basis and I hope to eventually integrate osteopathic principles into my practice.

Margaret Young, DO

Undergrad: DeSales University
Medical School: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

Personal Information:
I was born in Philadelphia and spent the majority of my life in relatively rural Orwigsburg, PA, located in Schuylkill County. I am one of four children in a very close-knit family. In college, I first pursued a degree in mathematics, as I enjoy analytical thinking and problem-solving, but the sciences kept calling. I decided to pursue chemistry as well and go to medical school. During medical school, I studied hard and also met Dave, my future husband. We recently married and now both work as physicians in Williamsport. In my spare time, I enjoy doing cross stitching, watching movies and musicals, as well as hiking and the outdoors.

Why Family Medicine:
My dad went to medical school after beginning a career as a pharmacist, where he met my mom, also a pharmacist. They are devoted medical professionals, and I guess you might say that rubbed off on us. My oldest brother specializes in internal medicine and pediatrics. My other brother is a veterinarian. My sister is interested in medical physics. Growing up, I learned a respect for medicine as one of the highest and most intellectual forms of service to others. Osteopathic family medicine is particularly interesting to me, as I have observed many cases over the years when the family physician cares for not only the patient, but the entire family as well, going far beyond the walls of the traditional office setting. I want to be that person for others.