Medical College of Georgia

05/08/2026

One of MCG’s newest doctors was featured on WRDW-TV for his commitment to rural healthcare.

Alvaro Cortez’s journey to become a doctor started in rural Dalton, where he watched his parents struggle to find care for his baby sister.

05/07/2026

Lots of mugging for cameras before today's hooding ceremony.

05/07/2026

Congratulations to the Class of 2026 for reaching an important milestone in your medical education. With the rainy weather, this year’s class gathered inside the old medical college building for the traditional class photo.

05/07/2026

Join us online today for the livestream of the Class of 2026 Hooding Ceremony, starting at 2 p.m. from the Bell Auditorium: https://vimeo.com/event/5867840
Hooding is an annual rite that formally acknowledges a medical student’s achievement by administering the Hippocratic Oath and presenting the academic hood, which is worn during the Commencement Ceremony.

05/06/2026

For Puja Punukollu, the path to becoming a physician has never been just about medicine. It has always been about impact.
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/from-classroom-to-community-puja-punukollus-multifaceted-journey/
Planning to go into family medicine, Punukollu came to Augusta University through its Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine program.

“I want to be an excellent physician but also someone who can lead, advocate, and shape systems that impact communities,” says Puja Punukollu.

05/06/2026

MCG researchers move forward with breakthrough tear fluid research.
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/mcg-researchers-move-forward-with-breakthrough-tear-fluid-research/
Two major advances in ocular health research – a newly awarded grant and a published database – have recently come out of the Medical College of Georgia, paving the way for significant improvements in patient diagnosis and treatment.

"Scientists have found that there is a lot of molecular information in the tear fluid which we can correlate with health and disease,” says Ashok Sharma, PhD.

05/05/2026

The first person in his family to go into medicine, Alvaro Cortez is also a trailblazer in being trained at a regional Medical College of Georgia campus.
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/md-mph-graduate-alvaro-cortez-looks-to-serve-communities-that-shaped-him/
Cortez, earning a Doctor of Medicine and a Master of Public Health, is preparing for a career in primary care rooted in northwest Georgia and in communities like the one that raised him.

05/04/2026

Recently, an inaugural group of six students who are living and learning at MCG’s Southwest Campus in Thomasville visited Washington, D.C. They are participating in a clinical leadership immersion elective, something unique to MCG’s Southwest Campus. While there, they had the chance to share firsthand with federal lawmakers about their clinical experiences in Thomasville and Southwest Georgia.

They met with HHS Assistant Secretary for Health, Admiral Brian Christine, who is a physician and a native Augustan; U.S. Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff; and Congressmen Buddy Carter and Rick Allen. The meetings gave them the opportunity to further develop leadership skills by providing valuable, real-world context to ongoing national conversations around physician workforce development and rural health access.

05/01/2026

In today's Dean's Diary: Alumni Weekend brings almost 100 members of the Class of 1976 back home; MCG psychiatrists supporting primary care physicians at FQHCs across Georgia; and more.

May 1, 2026 May 1, 2026Dean's Diary - Medical College of GeorgiaAlumni Weekend 2026, Billy Lanier, Boadie Dunlop, Elizabeth Gray, Ellen LeMosy, Janelle McGill, John Cinicola, Natasha Savage, Satish RaoDavid C. Hess, MD Dear Medical College of Georgia Friends, Alumni Weekend brings almost 100 member...

04/29/2026

We are pleased to recognize Eric Ragazino, MD, who has been named Phoebe’s Outstanding Physician of the Year, an honor awarded to physicians who demonstrate exceptional clinical excellence, compassion, innovation, and commitment to patient-centered care.

Dr. Ragazino serves as MCG’s Southwest Campus Psychiatry Director and leads the psychiatry curriculum for Albany-based medical students. He completed his psychiatry residency under the tutelage of Boadie Dunlap, MD, MS, who is the new Chair of Psychiatry at MCG.

The Physician of the Year award is based on nominations from colleagues and patients and recognizes individuals who embody Phoebe’s mission to improve the lives they serve through leadership, professionalism, and meaningful impact across clinical and academic settings.

04/27/2026

Adil Rasheed, PhD, an assistant professor and researcher with the Immunology Center of Georgia in the Medical College of Georgia, has been recognized with the Biomedicines Young Investigator Award.
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/immcg-researcher-wins-biomedicines-young-investigator-award/
The award, established in 2020, is designed to recognize early-career researchers in the field of biomedicines who have earned their PhD/MD within the past 10 years, produced ground-breaking research and made a significant contribution to the advancement of biomedicines.

“It is rewarding to see how these individual pieces of work throughout my career fit into research themes," says Adil Rasheed, PhD.