Our faculty strives to live up to their reputation of being the most supportive and approachable, while teaching residents to treat a diverse, under-served patient population. We focus on training outstanding, balanced residents, in a hospital and outpatient environment dedicated to teamwork, community service, work/life balance and physician wellness. Residents cite our faculty as the highlight of the program and the reason they came here.

Ronald Chambers, Jr., MD, FAAFP | Program Director | DIO

Dr. Chambers grew up in Shasta Lake, CA with the lifelong desire to become a fourth generation family physician. He went to UC Santa Barbara for undergrad, attended medical school at George Washington in Washington DC, performed his residency at Dignity Health Methodist Hospital, completed fellowships in Faculty Development, Program Director Development, and earned the title of Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians. He is the Program Director for the Dignity Health Methodist Family Medicine Residency Program, Chair of the Family Medicine Department, Chief of South Sacramento Hill Physicians, Medical Director for Mercy Family Health Center, Medical Director for Mercy Human Trafficking Clinic, Physician Advisor for the Dignity Health Human Trafficking Response, Clinical Faculty for UC Davis, and Clinical Associate Professor for California Northstate University. He has worked in the Surgeon General's Office on Healthy People, the UCSF Gladstone Institute on HIV research, and participated in multiple global health medical trips.

As the Residency Director, he has overseen the growth and development of many programs aimed at underserved and marginalized populations. This includes the Trans-Health and Hormone clinic training program at Mercy Family Health Center as well as the Medical Safe Haven for victims of human trafficking.

His current passion is human trafficking victim and survivor care and the creation of trauma-informed, victim-centered longitudinal medical homes for survivors coinciding with resident physician education and training. Other areas of interest include humanitarianism in medicine, global health medicine, sports medicine, any outdoor activity and spending time with his wife and children. (He, Him, His)

Timothy Takagi, MD | Associate Residency Director

Dr. Takagi grew up in Long Beach, CA and received his B.S. in Fisheries Biology from UC, Davis. He did research for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, taught P.E. and worked at a suicide prevention hotline, before deciding to enter the medical field.He graduated from UC Davis School of Medicine and completed his residency training at Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield where he served as Chief Resident and spent an extra year teaching. He moved back to Sacramento and practiced emergency medicine in the Sierra foothills before taking over a solo private practice in south Sacramento. Realizing that teaching was still very important to him, Dr. Takagi joined the Methodist Residency Program in 1996. When he finds free time between work and family, he enjoys photography, music, cooking and outdoor sports. His first addiction is still volleyball, but his knees are starting to feel old. (He, Him, His)

Richard D. DeFelice, MD, MPH | Intensivist/Hospitalist

Dr. DeFelice received his MD degree from Loyola Stritch School of Medicine. He completed his residency training in Internal Medicine at the University of Arizona in 1979, then completed fellowships in Infectious Diseases and Pulmonary Disease. Dr. DeFelice is Board Certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, Infectious Disease, Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care Medicine, and oversees the Internal Medicine/ICU rotations at Methodist Hospital. He was voted as one of "Best Physicians" in Sacramento by the Sacramento Magazine.

H. Ruby Gatschet, MD | Surgery Coordinator

Dr. Gatschet is proud to have to serve the South Sacramento and San Joaquin Delta areas. Born and raised central Massachusetts, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by her Medical Doctorate at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. During her training, she most enjoyed learning about the processes of performing surgical procedures and being a part of the surgical team, and ultimately decided to pursue a residency in general surgery.

She then traveled to the central San Joaquin Valley to complete her residency in General Surgery at the University of California San Francisco in Fresno, where she was drawn most to learning about advanced laparoscopy. She therefore stayed in Fresno to complete a one-year, high-volume fellowship program with Advanced Laparoscopic Surgical Associates.

She selected bariatric surgery as a career path because of it positivity and in-depth involvement of the patient in achieving his or her goals towards health and wellness. "While the surgery is a very important part of achieving weight loss goals and resolving and improving medical problems, the pre-and post-operative education process is just as important. In many ways, we are enabling our patients with the tools to succeed."

When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her family visiting the many attractions in the Lodi and Sacramento areas, traveling to the Bay Area and Lake Tahoe, gardening, and skiing.

Sarah Chaffin, MD | Faculty Physician | Medical Director, Mercy Family Health Center

Dr. Chaffin was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley and earned her degrees in Biochemistry and English Literature at UC San Diego. Nursing a serious case of wanderlust, she spent some time in the Ecuadorian Amazon and in rural villages of Mozambique; these experiences deeply shaped her, eventually leading her to pursue a medical degree at UC Davis SOM. Here, she fell in love with Family Medicine and found a “dream” residency program in Dignity Health Methodist which shares her commitment to truly underserved communities, global health, and trying to do the right thing everyday.

Dr. Chaffin is passionate about medical education and is thrilled to be staying on as faculty at Methodist. Her academic interests include full-spectrum Family Medicine, inpatient and critical care medicine, global health, women’s health, procedures, and medical education. When she’s not on call, Dr. Chaffin still drinks her coffee black, enjoys spending time with her husband, actively nurtures her inner plant lady, creates a (delicious) mess in the kitchen, wishes she was in the mountains, and wants to find out what else God has in store for her. (She, Her, Hers)

Matthew Gibson, MD | Faculty Physician

Matthew Gibson grew up in Sacramento. His academic path went from Cosumnes/American River Colleges with a transfer to UC Davis (B.S. in Neurobiology), then to The Ohio State University (M.D.), and back to UC Davis (residency in combined Family Medicine/Psychiatry). He is currently completing an advanced training program in psychoanalytic psychotherapy through the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis.

In July 2017, Dr. Gibson joined the faculty of the Dignity Health Methodist Family Medicine Residency, where he uses his dual training to teach family medicine with an emphasis on mental health. He believes that healthcare should be widely accessible as well as comprehensive. He values a team approach, tailored to the individual needs and goals of each patient. His philosophy in both teaching and patient care is to support each person in living their best life. He is living his own best life alongside his wife and their four children. (He, Him, His)

Toussaint Mears-Clarke, MD | Faculty Physician

Dr. Mears-Clarke grew up in Kingston, Jamaica, where he first learned the importance of service to others. With the help and support of his family, he had the opportunity to travel to and receive an outstanding education in the United States. He received his B.A. from Oberlin College, and his Medical Degree from the University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine. His passion for care for the underserved then took him to Chula Vista, CA where he completed his residency and Chief Year at Scripps Mercy Family Medicine Residency. After graduation, he spent one year working with the residency program as Junior Faculty. His passion for medicine is rooted in a deep desire to provide quality care for the under-insured and uninsured community. He is elated to join the Dignity Health Methodist Family Medicine Residency, whose values align with his own. 

His academic interests include Obstetrics, Global Health, and Point Of Care Ultrasound. He is passionate about providing care for underserved and marginalized populations, and has completed training in LGB and Trans-specific health care to better meet the needs of the Sacramento LGBT community. 

During his free time, Dr. Mears-Clarke, enjoys spending time with his wife, playing various instruments, his favorite being the ukulele, road biking, reading about the latest technology, and experimenting in the kitchen. He is thrilled to be teaching within the Dignity Methodist Family, and looks forward to training the next-generation of Family Medicine physicians. (He, Him, His)

Nancy Nguyen, DO | Faculty Physician

Dr. Nguyen was born and raised in Southern California. She received her bachelor’s degree in biology at UC Irvine. She graduated from Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Vallejo. During medical school, she moved to Denver where she learned to appreciate the mountains and craft beers. As much fun as it was in the Rockies, she is a California girl at heart and knew it was time to come back. She completed her residency training at Mercy Methodist Family Medicine Residency with the Magnificent Seven. She is thrilled to return to her Mercy Methodist family as a faculty physician.

She splits her time between the residency program and Timberlake Family Practice. Her interests include playing the piano, Sunday brunches, hiking, camping and avoiding cooking at all costs. When she is not at work, she enjoys spending time with friends, riding around town on her cruiser and reading non-medical books. Dr. Nguyen and her trusty sidekick, Scooby, are die-hard Chargers fans. Go Chargers! (She, Her, Hers)

Rahat Saied, MD | Pediatrics Coordinator

Certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, Dr. Saied specializes in the care of infants, children, teenagers and young adults. Dr. Saied received his medical degree from Dow Medical College in Pakistan and completed his post-graduate training at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio and the University Of California, Davis Medical Center. He established Elk Grove Pediatrics, Inc., in 1983. In addition, since 1981, he has been affiliated with the UC, Davis Medical Center, Sacramento and currently holds the position of associate clinical professor in the Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Saied also maintains staff privileges at Methodist, Mercy and Sutter Hospitals.

Amir Sweha, MD | Chief Medical Officer, Hill Physicians Medical Group

Dr. Sweha received his MD degree from Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt, before completing his family practice residency at UC, Davis Medical Center where he also served as chief resident. He completed a faculty development fellowship at UC, Davis and UC, San Francisco before joining the faculty at UC, Davis and becoming the Medical Director of the UCD Family Practice Center. In 1996, he joined Mercy, bringing academic expertise to the community based residency program. His clinical interests include practice management, office surgical procedures and preventive medicine. Dr. Sweha has been Program Director and Director of Medical Education for Mercy since 1998. He led the residency program through two accreditation cycles with outstanding record. He is an Associate Clinical Professor with the Department of Family Practice at the University of Southern California.

Jennifer Cox | Program Director

Jennifer Cox, is Program Director, Human Trafficking Medical Safe Haven, for Dignity Health’s Family Medicine Residency and system Human Trafficking Response Program (HTRP) Residency Advisor. Jennifer has been strategically involved in Dignity Health's system-wide human trafficking initiative since 2015, serving on the HTRP steering committee, and as Community Health Specialist, Jennifer lead initiative support for the human trafficking program at 5 of Dignity Health’s Hospital facilities in the greater Sacramento service area. Prior to this role, Jennifer served 5 years as Executive Director for a community based resource center and medical clinic in Sacramento, CA. Jennifer concurrently served 12 years as an ICCE certified women’s health educator for Sutter Health and  20 years as Director of Women’s Community Outreach Programs in Davis, CA.

For the past 25 years, Jennifer’s program support for vulnerable populations has taken her internationally to Kosovo, Brazil, and Greece.