Yaw Boachie-Adjei, MD | Hand Division
After graduating from Brown University with an Honors Degree in Human Biology, Dr. Boachie-Adjei received his MD from Tufts University School of Medicine and completed an Orthopaedic Surgery Residency at the University of Virginia. While there, Yaw developed an interest in all conditions of the upper extremity and made the decision to pursue dual fellowship training. Yaw has completed 2 years of subspecialty training, first in Hand/Microvascular surgery and then in Shoulder and Elbow surgery. After his fellowship, Yaw was an attending surgeon with the Southeast Permanente Medical Group based in Atlanta Georgia for 9 years. He’s been involved for the last 20 years with the Foundation for Orthopedics and Complex Spine (FOCOS) which is a volunteer group with the mission of providing orthopedic care to underserved populations in Ghana west Africa.
In his spare time, Yaw enjoys staying healthy by running, cycling, and chasing waves at the beach. He says finds joy by spending time with his family–his wife and two young girls.
Joseph Cline, MD | Arthroplasty Division
Dr. Cline joins Duke after completing a fellowship in hip and knee reconstruction at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. Prior to his time at Rush, Joe completed his orthopaedic surgery residency in Memphis, Tennessee with the Campbell Clinic. A Raleigh native, he completed his undergrad degree at Davidson College and received his medical degree from UNC. Joe has an interest in minimally invasive hip and knee replacement, as well as complex primary and revision arthroplasty.
Joining him in Raleigh are his wife, Meg, and their son Robert. They are excited about the chance to be close to family and explore the growing Raleigh-Durham area.
Luting Eckensweiler, DO | Sports Medicine
Originally from Chicago, Dr. Eckensweiler completed medical school at Midwestern University.
Luting did her family medicine residency at Chicago’s Resurrection Medical Center. After residency, Luting came to Duke to complete a sports medicine fellowship and stayed on as a faculty member following its completion. Luting’s academic interests include diagnostic and procedural ultrasound, medical education, and treating the female athlete and soccer athletes.
In her free time, Luting enjoys traveling and being outside with her husband and two dogs. She says she is excited to further her career at Duke and have the time to get to know the area wearing a new hat!
Neill Li, MD | Hand Division
Dr. Li recently completed his hand surgery fellowship at the Mayo Clinic where he developed an interest in treating patients with brachial plexus injuries as well as upper motor neuron injuries (cerebrovascular accidents, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries). Prior to Mayo, Neill attended the University of Notre Dame majoring in music with a concentration in piano performance, followed by medical school at Loyola University Chicago, and orthopaedic residency with a combined trauma fellowship at Brown University. Alongside his clinical training, Neill has developed an interest in basic and translational research to further understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms governing peripheral nerve regeneration in order to develop therapies that improve upon the rate of regeneration and return of function.
In his free time, Neill enjoys spending time with his wife, Dionne, a gastroenterologist and accomplished violinist (don’t get her started on how many presidents she’s played for…), by playing music and exploring restaurants. He also enjoys cheering for Notre Dame football (when they’re not losing to Marshall)!
Ankit Patel, MD | Pediatrics Section of TOPPS
Dr. Patel grew up in Virginia Beach, VA, and completed his undergraduate studies at William and Mary, double majoring in Philosophy and Neuroscience, while minoring in Art. After William and Mary, Ankit studied applied comparative philosophy and comparative religions in a student-sustained, self-sufficient, character-building, residential education system (or as he refers to it, the best two years of his life) in India. Ankit went on to study Allopathic medicine, while also briefly pursuing (hoping to continue his pursuits in the future) Eastern Medicine in Europe. Ankit completed his internship and residency training in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at East Carolina University/Vidant Medical Center in Greenville. Most recently, in Greensboro, he was able to continue practicing the full scope of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, where he worked full-time for 6 years prior to joining Duke. He and his wife (also a Duke graduate) co-founded a non-traditional not-for-profit, learner-driven school based on character development and "drawing out' a learner's intrinsic potential via Socratic dialogue.
With two young children, Ankit and his wife say they recognize that “free time” right now is a foreign concept, but they do enjoy spending time in nature, playing and discussing any sport, sharing meaningful time with friends and family, personal inquiry, philosophical discussions, and spiritual pursuits.
Christian Pean, MD | Trauma Division
Dr. Pean was raised in McAllen, TX. A graduate of Georgetown University, Christian completed medical school at Mount Sinai School of Medicine and did his orthopedic surgical training at the NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital. Christian was the first orthopaedic resident selected for the Strategy and Policy Track resulting in a Certificate in Health Policy for Clinicians which he completed concurrently at the NYU Wagner School of Public Policy. His research thesis, “Value-Based Care for Orthopedic Trauma Surgery,” highlighted policy-based incentives to align surgeons with health systems to improve health equity. He is on the board of the global health non-profit, Orthopedic Relief Services International where his focus is on surgical education and sustainability in Haiti. Christian completed his Orthopaedic Trauma and Reconstruction Surgery Fellowship at Harvard Medical School Trauma at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston where he had training in both surgical management of complex fractures as well as total hip arthroplasty for traumatic conditions.
Christian’s research focuses on utilizing AI, machine learning, health policy, and clinical practice innovation to address racial health disparities in surgical care. Christian is the Co-Founder of Azra Care, a digital health company committed to leveraging technology to coordinate health access to improve racial health equity and address social determinants of health for patients with musculoskeletal health conditions.
Christian is married to Kim Truong, a Health Policy Project Coordinator for the Cardiac Surgery Department at Mass General Hospital. They are expecting their first child together in late September.