Meet our faculty
Joumana Chaiban MD, MBA, FACE
Program Director
Dr Chaiban is currently a Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Founding Program Director of the Endocrinology Fellowship Program at Advocate Christ Medical Center/ Advocate Health Care in Illinois. She received her Medical Degree from Saint Joseph University in Lebanon and her Masters in Business Administration from Harbert College of Business at Auburn University, Alabama.
Dr Chaiban completed Internal Medicine Residency and Endocrinology Fellowship for the first time at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon then another Internal Medicine Residency and Endocrinology Fellowship at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. After which, she joined Saint Vincent Charity Medical Center where she had different roles: she served as the Medical Director for the Joslin Diabetes Affiliate, the Chair of the Endocrinology Division, the Director of the medical weight loss management at the Bariatric Surgery Center as well as the Chairperson of the IRB committee.
During that time, she was a Clinical Assistant Professor with Case Western Reserve University. After this enriching experience, she joined the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Lipid Research at Washington University as Associate Professor of Medicine before moving to Advocate Health Care in Illinois. She is past president for the Midwestern Section of the American Federation of Medical Research and past member of the ABIM Item- Writing Task Force for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. Dr Chaiban has been serving on the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology (AACE) Board of Directors and Board of Trustees since May 2020. She is the Vice-Chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee at AACE and is quite active on several other AACE committees. She has published widely in several peer-reviewed journals and presented her work at numerous national and international conferences.
Mohammed Kazi, MD
Dr Kazi has received his medical degree from Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences in Pakistan. He has completed his internal medicine residency at West Virginia University, Charleston West Virginia and his Endocrinology fellowship at University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson Mississippi. Dr. Kazi is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism.
He is currently working as a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at University of Illinois at Chicago, and Staff Endocrinologist at Advocate Health Care. He is an Activity Director of the Multidisciplinary Endocrine Tumor Board Meeting at Advocate Christ Medical Center. He is a recipient of "Excellence in Teaching Awards" in 2016 and 2019 from Advocate Christ Medical Center. He has also received "Hero Award" from the Secretary of VA Medical Center while working during hurricane Katrina. He has published several interesting articles in different medical journals.
Michele Obeid, MD
Dr. Michele Obeid completed her Bachelor’s degree in Biology and obtained her medical degree from the Lebanese American University in Lebanon. She then relocated to the United States, where she completed her internal medicine residency training at Hurley Medical Center in Flint, Michigan. Following her residency, Dr. Obeid pursued a fellowship in Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Dr. Obeid has actively participated in research, including both basic science and translational studies. Her research involved working with mice and pigs, aiming to advance the understanding of various medical conditions and develop innovative treatment approaches. Additionally, she has been involved in numerous quality improvement projects, with a recent focus on osteoporosis screening.
Dr. Obeid maintains active memberships in prominent medical associations, including the Endocrine Society, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.
Nora O’Byrne, MD
Dr. O'Byrne is a Chicago-area native, went to medical school and completed internal medicine residency at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine and Loyola University Medical Center. She then completed diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolism fellowship at Harbor-UCLA. Dr. O'Byrne is interested in all areas of endocrinology and enjoys working in a team setting.
Ruchita Patel, DO
Associate Program Director
Dr. Patel completed her internal medicine residency at University of Illinois at Chicago/Advocate Christ Medical Center. She completed an additional year as Chief Resident. Subsequently, she completed her fellowship in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, IL. During her fellowship, she completed a Bone Preceptorship at Columbia University Medical Center in NY. After completion of her fellowship, she returned to Advocate Christ Medical Center and joined the endocrinology division to work among those who encouraged her to pursue endocrinology.
She serves on the Inpatient Glycemic Control Committee at Advocate Christ Medical Center and was a committee member of the Internal Medicine Residency Clinical Competency Committee. She is the Associate Program Director and Chair of the Clinical Competency Committee and Program Evaluation Committee of the Endocrinology Fellowship Program at Advocate Christ Medical Center. In addition, she was a member of the Item Writing Task Force for the ABIM Endocrinology section. She has co-authored book chapters and has been published in peer-reviewed journals. Her clinical interests include diabetes and general endocrinology.
Tahira Yasmeen, MD, FACE, FACP
Dr. Yasmeen is American Board Certified in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. She is currently a member of the endocrinology council and Section Chief of Endocrinology at Advocate Christ Medical Center (ACMC). She has a special interest in safety and quality and has been the Chair of Glycemic Control Committee at Advocate Christ Medical Center. She works in collaboration with system committees to review and revise order sets and protocols pertaining to inpatient glycemic control and hypoglycemia in addition to reviewing outpatient endocrine therapy plans.
Dr. Yasmeen is a Core Faculty Endocrinologist at ACMC for the Internal Medicine Residency. She received her Medical Degree from the Aga Khan University Medical College in Pakistan where she was awarded Scholarships for being among the top 10-15% students. She completed Residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Illinois/Christ Hospital and Medical Center and Fellowship in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She went on to work as an Internist and Endocrinologist at Rea clinic in Illinois. She joined ACMC as faculty endocrinologist in 2006 and currently holds the appointment of Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at University of Illinois at Chicago.
Dr. Yasmeen sees general endocrinology patients and has special interest in Diabetes and Technology, Thyroid and Adrenal disorders. In 2012, she had earned MVP nomination for patient satisfaction. She participated as a Planner and Facilitator for Department of Medicine Faculty Development Program from Nov 2012 through Oct 2017. Dr. Yasmeen served as Site Director for UIC Endocrinology Fellowship at ACMC for several years which has enhanced her experience in training fellows in Endocrinology. She has received numerous accolades with her passion for teaching: she received the award for “Specialist Teacher of the year” award in 2010, “Department of Medicine-Chairman’s Award for Excellence” in 2013, Excellence in Teaching for the Section of Endocrinology in 2016.
Dr. Yasmeen has been very active in scholarly activities. She was named Physician of the Quarter for Research/Scholarly activities in Nov 2015. She has published case reports in peer-reviewed journals and has presented several abstracts at national and regional conferences.