Family/Internal Medicine & Behavioral Health Clinic – Ventura

Dr. Simon Akl was raised in Los Angeles, California where he attended a full immersion French American school through High School. He was accepted to California State University Fullerton as a President’s Scholar graduating with a B.S. in Health Sciences and a double minor in Kinesiology and French. He then went on to attend medical school at Western University of Health Sciences where he quickly discovered his passion for teaching resulting in his selection as a pre-doctoral teaching fellow in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine. Simon developed an interest for family medicine with his focus on continuity care while emphasizing the importance of lifestyle choices such as diet and exercise. He feels blessed to continue his training and participate in an exciting growth process at CMHS. Outside of his medical profession, Simon comes from a Lebanese family which influenced him to learn French and Arabic. During his free time he enjoys traveling, playing basketball and volleyball, outdoor activities at the beach, hiking and camping. He looks forward to serving the Ventura community!

Khozema Campwala completed his medical training at St. George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada and residency at Akron General Medical Center, OH and Wheeling Hospital, WV. Following graduation, he moved to Ventura, CA and has been practicing Family Practice, Obstetrics and Urgent Care at Community Memorial Hospital. He is Board Certified in Family Practice and a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Practice. He is Clinical Assistant Professor and serves as Faculty and Associate Program Director for Family Residency Program at CMH.

Dr. Michelle Daucett is the Family Medicine Program Director.  She received her BS degree from the University of Oregon and her DO degree from Western University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific.  She completed a rotating internship at OSU Medical Center in Tulsa, OKlahoma before going on active duty in the US Air Force.  After completing Emergency Medicine and Flight Medicine training, she served at the USAF Hospital at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma City and completed board certification by ACOFP.

She returned home to Ventura County in 1995 and spent the next 20 years practicing family and emergency medicine, serving as the Medical Director for the Santa Paula Hospital Emergency Department from 2006-2015 before joining the CMHS GME team in the inaugural year. In her role as Program Director, she also precepts residents and students at the Midtown Medical Clinic.

Upon completion of her medical training, Dr. Foraste moved to beautiful Ventura. She started her private practice in East Ventura, and practiced in the same location for over 30 years. After obtaining her 100 Ton Master Captain’s license, she took a four year sabbatical on her sailboat with her twin sons and husband, traveling Europe, Turkey, the Middle East, Canary Islands, the Caribbean, Panama Canal, Central America, Mexico and up the Pacific Coast to Ventura.

She has now joined Midtown Medical since October, 2017 and many of her patients followed her here to Midtown. Dr. Foraste emphasizes preventive care and a healthy lifestyle. She enjoys training the residents, sharing her experience and pearls of wisdom with the doctors of tomorrow. In addition to sailing, she is an avid skier, scuba diver, and bicyclist and she encourages her patients to be active and responsible for their own health.

Ronald D. Pollack, M.D. is Site Director for the Psychiatry Residency and Lead Psychiatrist for the Outpatient Clinics at Community Memorial Health System.  He teaches psychiatry to primary care residents at both the Community Memorial Health System and the Ventura County Medical Center.  His previous responsibilities included Medical Director of Prototypes Women’s Recovery Program, Psychiatric Advisor to Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association, and Lead Psychiatrist for the Ventura County Jail.  His prior appointments include Chair, Department of Psychiatry in Family Medicine, Northridge Medical Center–UCLA School of Medicine, 1981-1991.  Dr. Pollack received his MD degree from Chicago Medical School in 1977, interned at Los Angeles County Hospital, 1977-1978, and completed his residency in Psychiatry in 1981, with an emphasis on psychiatry in family care.  He is board-certified in General Psychiatry.

Dr. Kayvahn Steck-Bayat was born and raised in the San Francisco bay area. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Washington, received his medical degree at Albany Medical College, then completed his Obstetrics & Gynecology residency at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. He then completed a two-year accredited fellowship in Minimally Invasive GYN Surgery at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix while simultaneously completing a second fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona’s Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. He enjoys serving the community, loves taking excellent care of his patients, and is continually inspired by those around him. Outside of healthcare, he enjoys spending time with his growing family, edible gardening at home, and playing music as a DJ.

Dr. Ambareen Ahmed was born and raised in Maryland. Dr. Ahmed completed her undergraduate degree at George Washington University.  She then worked for 4 years at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center coordinating pain management research while simultaneously completing a Masters in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics at Johns Hopkins University.  When Dr. Ahmed then went onto medical school at Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences.   Dr. Ahmed’s hobbies include playing with her adorable cat, traveling and eating, and building with Legos.

Dr. Aashish Daulat was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada and spent much of his childhood competing locally and nationally as a tennis player. After high school, he attended Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, North Carolina where he completed my B.S. in Health & Exercise Science and a minor in Psychology and Chemistry. After working for a year as a tennis coach, he was accepted into medical school at Touro University Nevada where he recently received his doctorate degree in osteopathic medicine. He chose primary care due to the diversity of patients and pathology that one encounters on a daily basis and the strong, lifelong relationships that one is able to form with patients throughout their medical career. He also hope to one day pursue further training in primary sports medicine which will allow him to work closely with high school and collegiate athletes. In his free time, he loves to watch/play sports, travel, hang out with his dogs, and visit craft breweries, coffee roasteries, and distilleries. Dr.  Daulat looks forward to the next chapter in his medical career as a resident in Ventura at Community Memorial Hospital.

Dr. Griffin Elbert was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Biology and Chemistry at Marian University. While there, he was a three sport athlete, as well as a CrossFit trainer and nutrition coach. He received his Doctorate in Osteopathic Medicine from Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MUCOM) and chose to go into family medicine with an emphasis on lifestyle and sports medicine. In his free time, Griffin enjoys Olympic weightlifting and spending time outdoors with his wife and four-legged children.

Born to a Chinese-American, Air Force Major father and a loving Filipino-immigrant mother in Colorado Springs, CO, service and hard work became her guiding foundation. Kristyna primarily grew up in Las Vegas, NV and moved to Miami, FL after high school graduation. There she studied Biology at the University of Miami and worked in a fast-paced and multicultural environment, deepening her understanding of disenfranchised communities. A few years later, she was called by the Cascade mountains and relocated to gorgeous Oregon to attend WesternU COMP-NW for osteopathic medical school training.

In her free time, Kristyna loves all things yoga, practicing her mediocre Spanish skills, and playing sports. She is a travel junky, a movement optimist, a Spikeball addict, enjoys intermediate status as a snowboarder and volleyball player, and more recently, a beginner surfer! Day-to-day, she is fueled by good music, healthful nutrition and laughter with friends.

Yoga trained in India, she plans to teach her patients and colleagues how to incorporate mindfulness practices, such as meditation, to optimize self-care and to cope with practitioner burnout. She is wholeheartedly grateful to call California home and is honored to serve the Ventura community. Always seeking truth and leading with compassion, Kristyna is an adventurer, knowledge seeker and wellness warrior. She currently envisions a bright future in global and integrative medicine.

Dr. Chelsi Hoshiwara attended the University of Arizona where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences and continued her education at A.T. Stil University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona.  She has a big heart for the under-served and had the opportunity to serve in many organizations including Habitat for Humanity where she helped build brick houses in a village located in Guangzhou, China. After residency, she hopes to volunteer and serve the homeless population whether that be through a clinic or mobile RV unit. She also has an interest in Hospice care. She loves spending time with her husband and two adopted dogs Kaylo and Cooper and can’t wait to introduce them to the sunny days on the beach. When she is not exploring with her dogs, she enjoys playing pickleball, tennis, and visiting her favorite place on Earth, Disneyland!

Alex Murdoch was born and raised in Santa Barbara, CA. He is the third of six children and loves spending time with his family. He grew up surfing nearby Rincon Beach with his dad and two brothers. He went to Utah to attend Brigham Young University where he majored in business management with an emphasis in entrepreneurship. He became very interested in medicine after experiencing some personal health challenges around that time. He is grateful that these motivated him to go to medical school and feels they provided him with empathy for those who are ill. Alex is a big proponent of lifestyle medicine and looks to incorporate good nutrition, exercise, sleep and stress management into the care of all his patients. He enjoys playing guitar, growing vegetables, baking sourdough bread and studying languages.