Seven doctors graduate family medicine residency program

Seven physicians recently completed their residency training at the former Houston Healthcare, now Emory Hospital Warner Robins, and are preparing to begin their careers as practicing physicians. Houston Healthcare integrated into the Emory Healthcare system in June. To continue serving the state’s health care needs, four of the seven graduates will remain in Georgia.

A commencement ceremony was held on June 20, 2025, at the Cary W. Martin Conference Center in Warner Robins to celebrate the accomplishments of these dedicated individuals. Each has spent the past three years training in the middle Georgia community through the Houston Healthcare Family Medicine Residency Program.

The Class of 2025 includes:

• Josue Gibbs, MD, who will practice as a hospitalist at Emory Hospital Perry in Perry, Georgia.

• Jordan Hults, MD, who will join UPMC Kane Primary and Specialty Care in Kane, Pennsylvania to practice family medicine.

• Ishani Patel, MD, who will provide family care at the Cranbury Medical Group, part of RWJ Barnabas Health, in East Brunswick, New Jersey.

• Nisarg Patel, MD, who will practice family medicine at Piedmont Macon North in Macon, Georgia.

• Sideana Raymond, MD, who will practice family medicine in Boynton Beach, Florida.

• Javielys Rodriguez-Casiano, MD, who will provide urgent care services at Emory Healthcare’s Med-Stop locations in Warner Robins and Bonaire, Georgia.

• Jaylun Smith, MD, who will join Piedmont Physicians at Newnan Professional Center Outpatient Clinic in Newnan, Georgia, to practice family medicine.

In recognition of outstanding achievement,Jordan Hults, MD, was named Resident of the Year, an honor selected by Houston’s Family Medicine Residency Program’s faculty, nurses and staff. The graduating class also selected this year’s top preceptors: Jennifer Murphy, MD, a full-time faculty member, as Outpatient Preceptor of the Year, and Ravi Shekarappa, MD, an internal medicine physician, as Inpatient Preceptor of the Year.

“These graduates represent the future of health care—well-trained, compassionate and committed to improving access to quality care,” says La Toya Jackson-Street, DO, program director of the Houston Family Medicine Residency Program. “We’re incredibly proud of their accomplishments and confident in the impact they will make in the communities they serve.”

Launched to help address the shortage of primary care providers in Middle Georgia and beyond, the family medicine residency program emphasizes hands-on experience, community engagement and continuity of care. Residents gain a solid foundation to succeed in diverse practice settings and meet the growing needs of today’s patients.

About Emory Healthcare

Emory Healthcare, with 29,500 employees and 11 hospitals, is the most comprehensive academic health system in Georgia. System-wide, it has 3,028 licensed patient beds, more than 3,800 physicians practicing in more than 70 specialties, serving metro Atlanta and Georgia. It also provides services to greater Georgia through a joint venture at St. Francis–Emory Healthcare in Columbus, six regional affiliate hospitals and its clinically integrated physician network.