Morning Session 1

Alanna Higgins Joyce, MD, MPH, is an attending pediatrician in the Division of Hospital-Based Medicine at Lurie Children’s, caring for hospitalized children and newborns. She is also Clerkship Director in Pediatrics where she oversees medical student programming and assessment. In this role Alanna works with faculty, staff, and administration across several institutions for the training of medical students in patient care settings. Alanna is an Associate Professor at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine; she has published and spoken nationally in the areas of medical education, faculty feedback, and curriculum development.

Alanna holds an MD and an MPH from Tulane University and completed residency training in Pediatrics at the former Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. She has a Master of Science in Teaching and experience teaching middle-school science. Alanna earned her bachelor’s degree in cognitive science from Northwestern University. She is a mother of three boys and a lifelong ballet dancer.

Dr. Higgins Joyce sees patients at Lurie Children’s – main hospital location and Northwestern Medicine Prentice Women’s Hospital.

Maheen Quadri, MD, MSc, is an attending physician in the Division of Advanced General Pediatrics and Primary Care and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

She attended Case Western Reserve University for college and medical school, after which she completed a pediatric residency at Riley Children's Hospital in Indiana and a general academic pediatrics fellowship at Children's Memorial Hospital/Lurie Children’s.

Dr. Quadri has published and spoken nationally in the areas of vaccine communication, obesity medicine, and medical education. 

Dr. Quadri sees patients in primary care, resident continuity clinics, and in Wellness & Weight Management clinic. The locations are Lurie Children’s Outpatient Center & Physician Office – Pediatrics in Uptown, and Lurie Children’s Outpatient Center in Lincoln Park.

Avani Shah, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in The Division of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine at Lurie Children's. She completed her pediatric residency at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and her pediatric pulmonary fellowship at Lurie Children's.  She is the Medical Director of the High-Risk Asthma Program at Lurie Children’s and the Pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship Program Director.   

Dr. Shah’s academic interests include medical education, and her clinical focus is on severe pediatric asthma and children who are dependent on chronic invasive mechanical ventilation.  

Dr. Shah sees patients at Lurie Children’s main hospital location and at Lurie Children’s Outpatient Center in Lincoln Park.

Ruchi Gupta, MD, MPH, has over 20 years of experience as a board-certified pediatrician and health researcher and serves as the founding director of the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research (CFAAR) at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Lurie Children's. 

She is world-renowned for her groundbreaking research in the areas of food allergy and asthma epidemiology, most notably for her research on the prevalence of pediatric and adult food allergy in the United States. She has also significantly contributed to academic research in the areas of food allergy prevention, socioeconomic disparities in care, and the daily management of these conditions. To reduce the burden of these diseases and improve health equity, she and her team develop, evaluate, and disseminate interventions for families and conduct work to inform local, national, and international health policy. 

Dr. Gupta is the author of the Food Allergy Experience and Food Without Fear, has written and co-authored over 200 peer-reviewed research manuscripts, and has had her work featured on major TV networks and in print media. She and her team strive to improve the lives of children and their families through their research and hope to continue finding answers and shaping policies around allergic conditions.

Dr. Gupta sees patients at Lurie Children’s Outpatient Center in Lincoln Park and Lurie Children’s Outpatient Center & Physician Office – Pediatrics in Uptown.