Priya Bhave, Co-Editor in Chief (she/her)
Priya Bhave is a second year medical student at HMSOM from East Brunswick, New Jersey. Prior to medical school, she worked as a physician assistant in a medically underserved area. She developed a passion for primary care and healthcare accessibility and uses writing as a way to express herself. Her other interests include running, watercolor painting, and origami.
Mira Blecherman, Co-Editor in Chief (she/her)
Mira Blecherman is a second-year medical student from Wayne, New Jersey interested in pediatrics and child advocacy. Mira loves literature and pursued this passion through her creative writing & Hebrew language minors at NYU. Mira spent her gap year working at a mental health tech startup and volunteering at a farmers’ market in NYC. She is so happy to launch Ripple Magazine as a creative outlet for members of the Hackensack Meridian community.
Aaradhana Natarajan, Editor (she/her)
Aaradhana Natarajan is an M2 at HMSOM. Raised in New Jersey, Aaradhana is passionate about the state’s history, including its role in American arts and letters. She is interested in global medicine, health policy, and the ways different experiences of embodiment are represented in written and visual mediums. A passionate proponent of the importance of the humanities across scientific fields, Aaradhana is excited to help create a platform for students to develop and share their artistic voices while preparing to enter medical practice.
Leigh Plasil, Editor (she/her)
Leigh Plasil is an M2 at HMSOM from Ridgewood, NJ interested in Pediatrics. Leigh has been interested in painting and drawing from a young age, and would often create artwork for school pamphlets and shows. Leigh is excited to be a part of the Ripple team to help showcase the many talents of our students. Her other interests include tennis, cooking, and baking sourdough bread.
Sania Ali, Editor (she/her)
Sania Ali is an M2 at HMSOM from Northern VA interested in infectious disease and public health policy. Her interest in arts & medicine started when she worked with resident artists at the Lombardi Cancer Center in DC to bring live music, art displays, and craft activities to patients and staff at the clinic. She is excited to launch Ripple Magazine as a space for individuals to share their creative expressions of health with the rest of the community.
Mackenzie Fox, Editor (she/her)
Mackenzie is a second-year medical student from Charlestown, Rhode Island. She has a longstanding passion for reading and writing, at one time debating a career in writing or in medicine before learning from physician-writers before her that it is possible to accomplish both. She is now an aspiring physician who intends to write young adult fiction one day. Mackenzie is grateful to collaborate with students to establish HMSOM’s medical arts magazine, Ripple, and hopes that the magazine will highlight the value of combining the arts and humanities with the clinical setting.
Mai Hatazaki, Editor (she/her)
Mai is a second-year medical student from Queens, New York interested in surgery and women’s health. During her gap years, she worked at a food microbiology start-up, which combined her love of science and the culinary arts. Mai is excited to help create a platform for HMSOM students to publish their creative work.
Allison Piazza, MHA, MLIS, Faculty Advisor (she/her)
Allison Piazza is thrilled to be Ripple Magazine's faculty advisor. Allison was a Medical Librarian at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine for 5 years, and currently holds adjunct faculty status at the school. She is a (very!) amateur collage artist.
