2023-2024 NNCI Scholars

I grew up in the southwest suburbs of Chicago. I received a Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry at Loyola University Chicago. I received my medical degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. I am currently a PGY-4 completing my psychiatry residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I have plans to complete my Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry (BNNP) fellowship after graduation. My professional interests include research, interventional procedures (i.e., ECT, TMS, DBS), and catatonia.

I am currently a PGY-3 Psychiatry Resident at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.  Although I am enjoying the hot weather now, that has not always been the case. I grew up and my family lives in Rhode Island, a small but special state. I then studied Zoology as an undergraduate at the University of Florida and subsequently studied Evolutionary Biology as a graduate student at THE Ohio State University. I spent some time doing research at Standford University in the Immunology and Bone Marrow Transplant departments before starting medical school at Stony Brook University on Long Island, New York. I have special interests in substance use disorders, eating disorders, and medical education.

Gaurav is a fifth year psychiatry resident at University of Toronto. He obtained his BSc in Neuroscience at McGill University and his MD at University of Toronto. His clinical and research interests include providing care across the lifespan for people with psychosis spectrum disorders, the interplay of biological and environmental factors in establishing clinical high risk for psychosis, collaborating on participatory research with people with lived experience of mental illness, and global mental health. He got his start in teaching as a STEM educator for youth in remote communities in Nunavut prior to medical school. He is a regular contributor to the PsychEd Podcast, a psychiatry education podcast for medical learners by medical learners, and has a passion for translating research in neuroscience for mental health clinicians and the public.

Kate is a PGY3 resident at Westchester Medical Center. She studied Neurobiology and Behavior at Cornell University where she completed an honors thesis on memory and rational decision making. Throughout her training, she has engaged in research and education, striving to ground clinical practice and advocacy in biological advances. She is interested in forensic, consult liaison, and community psychiatry. Her NNCI submission explored how our improving understanding of trauma can motivate and contribute to the decriminalization of mental illness in the justice system.

Abigail Mansfield, MD, FASAM, graduated with a Psychology degree with a Neuroscience Concentration, from Denison University. She attended Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) for her medical education and psychiatry residency. She is certified in Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and Addiction Medicine by the American Board of Preventative Medicine. Dr. Mansfield employs eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for trauma, along with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
Since 2013, she has practiced in public mental health through the Virginia Beach Community Services Board, holding leadership positions in Adult Outpatient Services and Crisis Stabilization/Withdrawal Management. She has also engaged in private practice and EVMS contract work. Dr. Mansfield became an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at EVMS in March 2022.
Currently, Dr. Mansfield supervises the Emergency Department Psychiatry rotation and runs an outpatient clinic focusing on medication management and trauma-related psychotherapy. She instructs on Trauma-Informed Psychotherapy, Addiction Medicine, Psychiatric Interviewing, and Eating Disorders. She advocates for the LGBTQ+ community and emphasizes patient-centered, trauma-informed care.

Megan Spelman is a PGY-4 psychiatry resident at the University of South Florida. Prior to graduating from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine-Bradenton, she received her undergraduate degree in biology from State University of New York at Geneseo and her master’s degree in neuroscience from the University at Buffalo. Her background in cognitive neuroscience continues to influence her professional interests, which include neuropsychiatry, consultation-liaison psychiatry, and geriatric psychiatry. She is currently serving as the Education Chief Resident for her program, and she is extremely excited to be a 2023-2024 NNCI scholar in hopes of building on her skills in resident and medical student education. In her spare time, she loves reading, cats, and krav maga.

B. Katherine Karlay is a native of Shreveport, Louisiana. She graduated from Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Minors in Chemistry and Spanish. She received a post-baccalaureate degree from Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and a Medical Doctorate from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. During her medical school tenure, she served as Student National Medical Association President and founded the Diversity Council and Students Advocating for Medical Equality to raise the voices of minority medical students and patients. As an Albert Schweitzer fellow, she served at the New Orleans Women’s Shelter providing weekly health education for unhoused families and expanded those services to other shelters. She is currently a fourth-year general psychiatry resident at the University of Texas at Southwestern in Dallas, TX where she is a part of the Interventional Psychiatry Concentration, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, and Social Media Committee. As a resident, she is helping develop an Electroconvulsive Therapy program at Parkland Health and Hospitals which will increase access to interventional psychiatric services for patients in the public sector. Katherine is married with children. Outside of medicine, Katherine enjoys spending time with her family, skating, traveling, brunching, and being a “sports mom”. She is an active volunteer in her church and community. She enjoys engaging in community discussions in efforts to increase mental health awareness and mitigate stigma.