Adam Blaine, MD
University of Washington
adam-blaine@uiowa.edu
Growing up in Wyoming and spending my entire life in the West, I never expected to find myself in Iowa. But on residency interview day, I was struck by the kindness, humility, and genuine enthusiasm of everyone I met. Dr. Manish Suneja and Dr. Katie Harris fostered an atmosphere of warmth and mentorship that stood out—and those qualities have only deepened throughout my time here.
Residency has been the most transformative chapter of my medical journey. I’ve had the privilege of learning from brilliant, compassionate colleagues and mentors who have shaped me into the clinician I am today. The collaborative spirit among faculty and co-residents is truly exceptional, and through every challenge, the internal medicine community has remained one of the most meaningful and rewarding parts of my life.
As chief resident, I’m honored to give back to the community that has supported me so fully. I aim to empower our internal medicine residents to build purposeful careers rooted in clinical excellence. In my role as the CRQS chief, I look forward to advancing quality improvement and patient safety while deepening our engagement with rural and global health. Most of all, I am excited to support our residents and help foster a culture of curiosity, compassion, and collaboration.
Outside of medicine, you’ll often find me running the trails around Iowa City with my dog, Lola, or training for my next triathlon. I also enjoy skiing fresh powder in the Mountain West and exploring new adventures while traveling around the world.
Tyler Maggio, MD
Southern Illinois University
tyler-maggio@uiowa.edu
I grew up in Rockford, Illinois, as the only child to my parents, both clinical pharmacists. They would often chat about work when I was young, so much so that my first word was “vancomycin.” Okay, maybe I am stretching the truth (it was actually “hot”), but my parents’ careers truly did spark my interest in medicine. They spoke of TPN, INR, antibiotics, and more, always describing a different set of tasks each workday that made me even more curious. I enjoyed the sciences in school and found myself enthralled with the idea of using that knowledge to understand the human body. I carried these interests with me to college at the University of Illinois, which helped deepen my understanding while aligning me further toward my goal of becoming a doctor.
In medical school, I was naturally attracted to internal medicine due to the cerebral nature of the specialty. Developing an understanding of physiology and pathology to create management plans for chronic diseases was a strong motivator for me, as were the clinical discussions with peers and faculty. I looked forward to seeing how patients progressed over time and whether the teams’ interventions had the expected results or not. I also had many wonderful mentors, several of which were graduates of this very internal medicine program. Interview season eventually came along, and it was clear to me that Iowa was the program to help me accomplish my goals.
This residency program takes young doctors and transforms them into exceptional clinicians equipped to handle any challenge that comes their way. The program is clinically rigorous but makes time for dedicated education, thoughtful mentorship, and tailored scholarship in education, research, health equity, and more. I found great support in the leadership of this program, including the former chief residents, and aspire to maintain and improve upon the current excellence of Internal Medicine at Iowa. As Chief Resident, I hope to expand upon the current learning climate and challenge our residents to continuously improve in the name of patient care. I hope to support each resident’s professional goals while helping to train extraordinary internists.
My future career plans will include some degree of entanglement between kidneys and medical education. I will be applying for nephrology fellowship this year and hope to continue building upon some of my Distinction in Medical Education (DIME) work during this Chief year. Outside of work, my wife and I love traveling and hosting dinner parties, with our 8-month-old son usually providing the entertainment. I am excited to work with all the new interns as well as my co-Chiefs and the rest of the program leadership, and I am confident it will be a year to remember. Go Hawks!
Marcus Osman, MD
University of North Dakota
marcus-osman@uiowa.edu
My desire to become a physician developed from my own personal experience with celiac disease as a child. This experience offered some insight into what it means to be both a patient and a physician. I was amazed by my physician’s inquisitive nature and blown away by how improved my quality of life was after starting a gluten-free diet. This formative experience inspired me to pursue a biology degree at Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. While there, I worked as a CNA in the very endoscopy center where I underwent my diagnostic EGD. After my undergraduate studies, I completed medical school at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND.
When I interviewed at the University of Iowa for residency, it was clear this was a special place. The program leadership was welcoming, thoughtful, and genuinely invested in my career goals. I was drawn to the opportunity to train at a nationally respected academic center with the familiarity and support of a Midwestern community. That impression has only strengthened over the past three years. The leadership, my co-residents, and the greater Iowa City community have shaped me both personally and professionally and given me so much as I have grown as an internist.
As a Chief Resident, I hope to give back by fostering the same culture of excellence and support that I have benefited from. I aim to be a resource, an advocate, and a steady presence as we move through the year together.
Outside the hospital, you will most likely find me exploring Iowa City with my amazing wife, Madison, and our beautiful daughter, Margot. We love the local festivals, parks, shops, and restaurants, and we never miss a chance to cheer on our Hawkeyes, whether at the arena or from our couch.
I felt honored to have been chosen as a Chief Resident and look forward to contributing to resident education, wellness, and scholarship in the coming year. Following this year, I plan to pursue a fellowship in Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Mackenzie Walhof, MD
University of Iowa
mackenzie-walhof@uiowa.edu
I am an Iowa native, born and raised in Northwest Iowa in a small farming community, but I have been captive to the Iowa City area since I moved here for medical school. I quickly fell in love with the hospital, the city, and the people. When my husband and I first moved to Iowa City as newlyweds, we lived in a small apartment not far from the hospital and I enjoyed the short walk or bike ride to the med school. I continue to be surprised and impressed by the amount of green and nature in the city and throughout the campus.
I became interested in internal medicine during my third- and fourth-year rotations through medical school as I enjoyed the complex discussions that were had about patients. The attendings and residents were experts of medicine and the IM program at Iowa always made medical students feel welcome. When I matched here for residency, I knew that Iowa would always feel like home. This culture has continued through residency. Our education has always been prioritized, and the staff are engaging and committed to teaching. Dr. Manish Suneja has always emphasized that wellness is something that should not be sacrificed and makes a commitment to developing the camaraderie as well as academic excellence of the program. When I had to tell him (twice!) that I was pregnant during residency, he only ever showed support and never expressed doubt in my ability to balance medicine and motherhood.
Outside of medicine, my husband and I are raising our 4 children (currently ages 6, 5, 2, and 10 months), which makes home life more like a circus. We enjoy traveling, cheering on our favorite sports teams (sorry Hawkeyes, my husband is an Iowa State grad – go Cyclones!), and trying new things (as a decidedly terrible runner and biker, I signed up for my first triathlon this year)!
I’m looking forward to using this next year as Recruitment Chief to continue to develop educational and leadership skills while conveying to incoming potential residents exactly why Iowa is such a fantastic and supportive place to train. I plan to pursue a hematology & oncology fellowship following this year and hope to refine the heme-onc education in our residency program!