Meet our New ACP Fellowship Graduates: Krystal, Christine & Sean

This post is part of a blog series highlighting Northwell Health’s Advanced Clinical Providers (ACP).This month, we’re highlighting three “Truly Ambitious” PAs who recently graduated from our inaugural Emergency Medicine and Cardiothoracic Surgery ACP Fellowship Program class. Currently we offer four specialties for our ACP Fellowship Program:  Emergency Medicine, Cardiothoracic Surgery, Orthopedics, and Radiation Medicine.

Our Advanced Clinical Providers (ACP) are some of our most ambitious team members, and these new graduates of our Fellowship Program are no exception!

Recent fellowship graduate Krystal Garcia, MS, PA-C fell in love with the fast pace and high pressure of emergency medicine during her clinical rotations as a Physician Assistant (PA) student.

“Once I graduated, I was determined to start my career in emergency medicine,” she said. “But I also wanted to be sure that my first job was in a supportive environment that would allow me to grow and excel. I knew  that the Emergency Medicine Fellowship Program fellowship at Northwell would give me the access to clinicians that could teach me the skills I needed to be a knowledgeable and proficient provider.”

Krystal’s favorite part of her Emergency Medicine Fellowship was working in the Southside Hospital Emergency Department. “Everyone that I encountered at the hospital from nurses to physicians to ACPs and consultants, helped make my fellowship exceptional.” she explains.

Not only did Krystal’s fellowship expand her clinical knowledge, it also gave her the confidence to succeed in a career that requires the ability to continuously learn and adapt. She now has a strong foundation to always continue to grow along with new innovations in medicine. Krystal is now a physician assistant in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Staten Island University Hospital after graduating from the fellowship program.

Gain essential clinical skills in a new specialty

Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellow, Christine Olivencia, MS, PA-C, wholeheartedly agrees. After completing her physician assistant studies at Hofstra University, she enrolled in our ACP fellowship in Cardiothoracic Surgery. “After completing an elective rotation in CT Surgery during school, I knew that was the field I wanted to work in,” Christine tells us.

“I was aware there would be a learning curve working in such a high acuity environment,” she continues. “I felt the fellowship would provide the training and education necessary for a smooth transition into my current role as a PA in Cardiothoracic Surgery at North Shore University Hospital.”

Christine’s favorite part of her fellowship was the people she met and the relationships she built during the program. She also felt that she was given the chance to grow in every way possible. Her knowledge base expanded, and her procedural and OR skills improved exponentially.

“I learned how to look at a case and use that clinical information to develop a plan and impact outcomes, all the while keeping the patient first in mind,” she says. “I gained confidence through the fellowship to continue to grow into the provider I’ve always wanted to be.”

Optimize your growth and development

Our third fellowship graduate, Sean Storey, MS, PA-C, explains his decision to join Northwell, “The mission and goals of Northwell’s Cardiothoracic Surgery (CTS)  Fellowship strongly reflected my personal objectives to be trained at the highest level of proficiency and develop the critical thinking skills necessary to be successful in cardiothoracic medicine.”

During his fellowship, Sean found the mentoring environment and educational structure to be “phenomenal.” He was able to optimize his growth and development by working across the CTS service line at multiple Northwell locations, and now works as a Physician Assistant in Cardiothoracic Surgery at Southside Hospital.

“My fellowship allowed for an amazing learning environment that was paramount to my transition into professional practice. The clinical environment at Northwell accelerated my growth in ways that could have taken years to obtain and has given me a deeper understanding of my clinical roles and confidence in my clinical decision practices.”

Like all of our PAs highlighted this month, Sean would “absolutely recommend” a fellowship at Northwell Health. He, like Krystal and Christine, stresses the opportunity to accelerate individual growth and development and make a successful transition as part of a team that is rethinking and reimaging health care every day.

Learn more about our fellowship programs for PAs and NPs.