Our Faculty

Great doctors are not simply trained in medical knowledge; they have learned how to be thorough, compassionate, and resourceful as well.  The Overlook Hospital medical education faculty are dedicated to teaching every resident how to be the best physician possible.  Each faculty member enthusiastically offers themselves as mentors to help residents achieve their goals.

Jeffrey Brensilver, MD, FACP,
Program Director and Chairman

Dr. Jeff Brensilver recently joined the Overlook Hospital faculty as chair and program director of the Department of Medicine. With twenty-years of experience in leadership roles at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt in New York City and Sound Shore Medical Center in Westchester, NY, Dr. Brensilver offers an approach to medical education that blends personal mentoring with a focus on pathophysiologic reasoning and an emphasis on interpersonal communication skill development.

Dr. Brensilver attended Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, followed by an internal medicine residency at Bellevue Hospital Center and Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City.  He then completed a nephrology fellowship at Tufts New England Medical Center, Boston, MA.  Each of these educational experiences exposed him to outstanding clinicians, scientists and educators. As a transplant nephrologist, Dr. Brensilver developed his educational philosophy: a broad, deep knowledge of general internal medicine defines the consummate internal medicine physician, enabling him or her to guide patients through medical, psychological and spiritual crises.

Dr. Brensilver enjoys daily participation in noon report and clinical rounds. He ensures that residents gain experience in medical ethics and in palliative care. He has published widely and works directly with residents on their scholarly projects.

Gina LaCapra, MD, FACP, Associate Program Director

Gina LaCapra, MD, associate program director of Overlook Hospital Internal Medicine Residency Program, received her Bachelor’s of Arts in Biochemistry from New York University and completed a post baccalaureate program at Columbia University.  She graduated from University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) – New Jersey Medical School, and completed her internal medicine residency at UMDNJ – Cooper Hospital University Medical Center.   Dr. LaCapra is board-certified in internal medicine and is currently a fellow in the American College of Physicians.

Before joining Overlook Hospital in 2004, she was associate director of medical education for Union Hospital in NJ. At Overlook Hospital, in addition to her role as associate program director, Dr. LaCapra focuses her clinical duties on consultative medicine including perioperative care of the surgical patient, noon report, inpatient teaching rounds, outpatient office hours, board review, morbidity and mortality conference, elective/selective curriculum development, research development and the American College of Physicians' Challenge Bowl. She won the Mentor of the Year Award from the internal medicine residents in June 2008. Her academic interests include dermatological manifestations of systemic diseases, medical disease during pregnancy and other women's health issues, vaccine-preventable illnesses, thyroid disease and other endocrine disorders, hematological disorders and medical ethics.

Sharen Anghel, MD, Medical Student Clerkship Director,
Hospitalist

Sharen Anghel, MD completed her undergraduate education at Rutgers College in New Brunswick, NJ and received her medical degree from UMDNJ - New Jersey Medical School.  Her internship and residency were completed at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in 2007.  She joined our faculty in August 2007, and now directs the medical student clerkship program. Her special interests are medical education and quality improvement/patient safety. Some of the Department of Medicine projects she currently leads or participates in are: venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis and anticoagulation management, diabetes mellitus performance improvement, Rapid Response Team, mortality reduction and computer provider order management systems. Many of these projects she mentors residents through, establishing a culture of change and patient safety.

Eve Benvenuti, MD, Ambulatory Care Preceptor

Eve Benvenuti, MD, is board-certified in internal medicine and acts as the preceptor for the residents at the Vauxhall Community Health Center - ambulatory teaching site.  She is also a clinical assistant professor of medicine UMDNJ - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. 

After graduating from New York University School of Medicine in New York, Dr. Benvenuti completed a residency at SUNY Health Sciences Center at Syracuse.  Prior to joining Overlook Hospital in 1993, she worked at the Harvard Community Health Plan in Cambridge, MA; the Hitchcock Clinic, NH; and Muhlenburg Hospital, Plainfield, NJ.

Dr. Benvenuti has received several teaching awards.  Her interests include outpatient medicine and preventive medicine.

Michelle Elkins, MD, Geriatrician

Michelle Elkins, MD attended medical school at the Université Louis Pasteur in Strasbourg, France and completed her residency in internal medicine at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, PA. She is board-certified in internal medicine with a certificate of added qualifications in geriatrics and holds a long-term care medical director certification.

Dr. Elkins has over 20 years of experience in geriatrics and long-term care, medical education, medical leadership and bioethics. She recently served as corporate medical director for a large health care system's long-term care division, comprising of nine nursing homes and three assisted living facilities. Dr. Elkins is the recipient of the NJ Society on Aging 2005 Gerontologist of the Year award. She is the current president of the NJ Medical Director's Association.

Mirela Feurdean, MD, Director of Ambulatory Care Center

Mirela Feurdean, MD attended University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Gr. T. Popa," Iasi, Romania and was among the top 10 percent of her class. She completed an OB/GYN residency in Romania and is board-certified. Dr. Feurdean completed a second residency in internal medicine at Sound Shore Medical Center, New York and was chief resident. She later joined their internal medicine faculty and received the Best Teacher award. In July 2008, she joined our faculty. Her main interests are diabetes, women's health, and students and resident education.

Lynne Todd, MD, Faculty, Hospitalist

Lynne Todd, MD completed her undergraduate education at the University of Kansas in Lawrence and received her medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine in Dominica, West Indies. She finished her internship and residency at Sound Shore Medical Center in New York. She worked as a hospitalist at Nyack Hospital in NY before joining our faculty in January 2008. Dr. Todd spends most of her time running one of the inpatient medical education teams and also precepting in the outpatient resident clinic. Her special interests include student and resident education, primary and preventative medicine, and perioperative evaluation and treatment. Her current projects with the residents include a review team on rapid response and a hypertension performance improvement module.