Core Faculty

Patty Hennigan, PhD (she/her)

Core Faculty: Behavioral Medicine & Wellness
Clinical Focus: Pain and Wellness Groups
Psychology Internship: Contra Costa Regional Medical Center
Graduate School: California School of Professional Psychology

Born and raised in Virginia, I came to Contra Costa as a psychology intern in 1993 and ended my internship year thinking it would be my dream job to work here someday. After working with Berkeley Primary Care and the Berkeley Mobile Crisis and Homeless Outreach Teams, I was thrilled to return to Contra Costa in 2001. I love working with the underserved and with such talented and dedicated Family Medicine faculty and residents. My clinical interests are in community and health psychology, integrative medicine, and motivational interviewing. I specialize in working with chronic pain patients. I love teaching residents Behavioral Medicine and supporting their well-being and growth throughout residency. Outside of work, I enjoy time with my husband and son, friends, reading, travel, and cheering on the Warriors and Giants.

Skender Najibi, MD (he/him)

Core Faculty: Longitudinal and Specialty Ambulatory Education
Clinical Focus: Primary Care, Chronic Pain
Residency: Contra Costa Family Medicine Residency Program
Medical School: Oregon Health and Science University School of Medicine

After completing medical school in Portland Oregon at OHSU, I moved back to my home state of California where I completed residency at the CCFMRP in 2021. Shortly after graduating, I started my full-time outpatient practice at my continuity clinic from residency, the West County Health Center. In January of 2022, I was appointed as the chronic pain consultant for West County and now see patients in my own chronic pain clinics while supporting my colleagues in this new role. I joined the core faculty in June of 2022 because of my interest in teaching and resident education, to support and contribute to the outpatient residency curriculum, and to build a framework for continuity mentorship for residents in the outpatient teaching experience.

Angela Rodgers, MD, FAAFP (she/her)

Core Faculty: Wellness, Health Equity, Academic Medicine
Clinical Focus: Emergency Medicine
Residency: Contra Costa Family Medicine Residency Program, Chief Resident
Medical School: UC Davis School of Medicine, Transforming Education and Community Health for Medical Students (TEACH-MS)

Advocacy, education, and wellness are passions of mine. As a first-generation college and professional school graduate, I am the proud product of incredible preparatory programs such as Upward Bound, the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS), and the Medical Student Preparatory Education Program (MSPEP). As a woman of color from a community historically underrepresented in medicine, I value serving and advocating for those from vulnerable communities. I joined the core faculty in the summer of 2022 and love being a part of this amazing team. After completing the UCSF Faculty Development Fellowship and the inaugural AAFP Leading Physician Well-being (LPW) Program, I spend my time engaged in educating both clinical and well-being related topics. As a Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) Leadership through Scholarship Fellow, I welcome collaboration with others to produce scholarly writing to promote the amazing work of family medicine. When I am not on shift, I love exercising, sleeping, reading, and spending time exploring the beautiful Bay Area.

Goutami Sanyal, MD, MSc (she/her)

Core Faculty: Global Health
Clinical Focus: Ambulatory care, Obstetrics
Residency: University of Tennessee Health Center - Jackson Family Medicine Residency
Medical School: Ross University School of Medicine

I came to Contra Costa as a Global Health Fellow after completing residency in a busy, unopposed, full spectrum training program in West Tennessee. My fellowship experiences during the last two years have been in Malawi, Peru, and Mexico, and consistently demonstrated how inequity in healthcare functions across the world. I strongly align with Contra Costa’s mission to train versatile, clinically competent, and compassionate physicians who take care of a diverse and often marginalized patient population. My clinical role includes women's healthcare, especially postpartum care, as well as ambulatory clinics. I’m also committed to immigrant and refugee healthcare/advocacy and volunteer at a border health clinic in Tijuana, Mexico as part of my larger global health interests. In my leisure time, I enjoy taking care of too many houseplants, yoga, cooking, and hiking the many beautiful trails in the Bay.

Priyanka Tulshian, MD (she/her)

Core Faculty: Clinical Competency Committee, Education/CurriculumDevelopment, Scholarship
Clinical Focus: Inpatient Medicine
Residency: Boston Medical Center Family Medicine
Medical School: Albany Medical College

Born and raised on the East Coast, I found myself here at Contra Costa for the Global Health Fellowship. I was lucky to find a community committed to working and serving traditionally marginalized populations, similar to those I met in residency. Here, I have been focused on inpatient medicine and to work on advancing education and curriculum within our residency to match national trends in graduate medical education. I enjoy working with residents on their passion projects in the context of scholarship as well. Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my community and living the minivan carpool life with my husband and three boys.