Chief Residents
Welcome from the Chiefs
Welcome to the Highland Hospital Internal Medicine Residency Program website and thank you for your interest in our program!
Our IM Residency Program provides the opportunity to work in a safety-net hospital that cares for vulnerable populations in the East Bay, experience a vast diversity of clinical pathology, and foster your individual professional development. Every person in our program, from intern to program director, aligns with the Alameda Health System mission statement of “Caring, Healing, Teaching, Serving All”. Our shared commitment to our patients and our passion for learning are the backbone of the culture within our Highland Family.
A major focus in our training is to have residents experience autonomy with supervision. This allows you to take full ownership of your patient, in both inpatient and outpatient settings, and develop into a confident and competent physician. Our former residents have gone on to have successful careers as primary care doctors, hospitalists, and have entered many competitive fellowships across the country. As a result of our training, our graduates have the reputation for being prepared for anything and “just getting it done”.
As this year’s chiefs, we wish to foster a welcoming environment with an open door policy, create a culture of engagement and inquiry, and make our educational conferences lively and fun. We will continue to steer the improvements to our program based on resident-directed feedback.
Your 2025-2026 Internal Medicine Chief Residents,
Samantha Garcia, Filip Kaniski, John Mogannam, Ebunoluwa Oshinuga.
Samantha Garcia, MD
Chief Resident
Samantha Garcia was born and raised in the San Jose Bay Area, She's always felt rooted in community, movement, and connection. She went to college at LMU in Los Angeles and medical school at SGU in Grenada. She loved living on a Caribbean island. She's a runner and outdoor enthusiast who finds balance in staying active and grounded through time with family. Doing residency in the East Bay has given her the the opportunity to grow both personally and professionally while serving a diverse and vibrant patient population. Professionally, she's passionate about hospital medicine and value work that embraces culture and aim to create meaningful connection to the communities that she serve.
Filip Kaniski, MD
Chief Resident
Filip Kaniski was born in Zagreb, Croatia. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor majoring in Neuroscience. After graduating, he spent two years as a fellow at the National Cancer Institute focusing on healthcare delivery research in lung cancer patients. He attended medical school at St. George's University and completed the categorical track Internal Medicine residency at Highland Hospital. Filip chose to train at Highland after rotating here throughout his fourth year of medical school and being impressed by the high academic standard set by his attendings despite the time constraints and emotional challenges inherent in practicing within a safety-net system. He feels a tremendous sense of purpose practicing medicine in Oakland and is humbled by the stories of sacrifice and determination that have brought his patients under his care. Filip's academic interests focus on medical education, and professionally he plans to pursue a fellowship in hematology/oncology. Outside of work, Filip is an avid road cyclist and can be found climbing Mount Tamalpais early in the morning on most weekends and occasionally at sunset during long summer days. He also enjoys occasionally playing but mostly watching soccer, particularly cheering on Croatia during international events. The rest of his time is mostly spent chasing after and learning French with his one-year-old son.
John Mogannam, DO
Chief Resident
John Mogannam grew up in the East Bay, specifically Concord, California. He received his undergraduate degree at UC Davis in Cell Biology with a minor in Bioinformatics. After some time working for Vituity Practice Management, he attended medical school at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona where he received his DO degree. He was thrilled to be able come back to the Bay Area to complete his residency at Highland with a focus on Clinical Education and hopes to continue his training with a fellowship in Palliative Care. He credits Highland and his mentors for making him an empathetic, clinically sound physician, and his patients for patients for expanding his limits and keeping him humble. Outside of the hospital, John enjoys cooking at home, long walks with a good podcast, and watching his favorite tech Youtubers. Living in Oakland has exposed him to the rich cultures the city has to offer, and some of his favorite local spots include Shan Dong, Nido’s Backyard, Tay Ho, and Bar Shiru.
Ebunoluwa Oshinuga-Atere, MD
Chief Resident, Primary Care Track
Ebunoluwa was born person in Carson, California. She went to undergrad at University of California, Riverside then completed a three-year post-baccalaureate at California State University, East Bay while simultaneously working in human resources (HR) and accounting for Direct Urgent Care in the Bay Area. For medical school she attended St George’s University SOM. She completed her internal medicine- primary care tract residency at Highland Hospital. She chose to pursue her training at this institution due to its strong academic foundation in resident education, the breadth and complexity of its clinical pathology, and the institution’s warm, supportive environment. Working in an underserved community such as Highland has been an immensely rewarding experience for her and has provided invaluable learning opportunities, both professionally and personally. Outside of her professional responsibilities, she is a devoted wife and mother. She values spending quality time with her church community and maintain an active lifestyle through at-home spinning workouts.