Geisinger’s Young Doctors Receive Awards

Three Geisinger providers have been recognized by the Pennsylvania Medical Society (PAMED) for achievement early in their careers.

Interventional cardiologist Nicholas Ierovante, D.O., and family medicine physicians Joanna Kraynak-Appel, D.O., and Hans Zuckerman, D.O., are among PAMED’s Top Physicians Under 40 for 2023.

They were nominated by their peers and selected by a committee of PAMED members who yearly honor the best of the best early-career physicians in the state.

“We had a lot of great nominations, but these candidates stood out among the rest,” said Kristen Sandel, M.D., PAMED president-elect and chair of the awards committee. “With their ambition and innovative ideas, they will shape and shine bright in the future of medicine.”

Dr. Ierovante practices at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton and also serves as assistant professor in the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine for Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine. He specializes in interventional and structural heart procedures, and he is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular disease, interventional cardiology, nuclear medicine and echocardiography.

His nominator said his “passion for patient care is unparalleled,” and that he “has dedicated his career to serving the citizens of Pennsylvania and exemplifies the future of medicine.”

Dr. Kraynak-Appel is the associate director of Community Medicine in Columbia County and assists in managing Geisinger Primary Care clinics in Benton, Berwick, Buckhorn and Elysburg. She is a board-certified physician who specializes in family medicine, and she has clinical interests in women’s health and chronic disease management.

Her nominator called her an “incredible person” who “embodies and exceeds all the tenets anyone would want from their physician.”

Dr. Zuckerman practices at Geisinger Pottsville and serves as division chief of the Department of Community Medicine for Schuylkill County and Geisinger Kulpmont in Northumberland County. He is a board-certified physician who specializes in family medicine, and he has clinical interests in preventive care, infectious diseases, obesity and women’s health.

His nominator said, “as a leader, his patient-centric views and encouraging reminders on why we do what we do are contagious throughout his clinics” and that “he inspires everyone from the support staff to the providers to provide the best possible care to patients.”