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Director, Hospice and Palliative Medicine Residency Program
Phone: 828-257-4769
Mission Palliative Care
509 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
Josh Baru, MD, graduated medical school from the NYU School of Medicine and went on to complete his training in internal medicine at the University of Chicago Hospital.
After graduation he completed a fellowship in clinical Medical Ethics at the MacLean Center for Ethics of the University of Chicago. In 2006, Josh went on to become a hospitalist at Cook County Hospital (aka John H. Stroger Hospital) in Chicago where he discovered his passion for Palliative Medicine, subsequently becoming board certified in Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
During his tenure at Cook County Hospital, Josh developed an interest and expertise in medical education. He went on to win several teaching awards and helped design and implement curricula for the School of Medicine at Rush Medical College.
In 2014, Josh devoted his entire clinical practice to Palliative Medicine and became the program director for the Rush/Stroger Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellowship program. He was the director for this program until he joined the faculty at Mission Health.
Josh’s academic interests include medical ethics, the care of the under served, and medical education.
He loves to cook and is a passionate, though not very productive, gardener.

Assistant Program Director
Phone: 828-257-4769
Mission Palliative Care
509 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
After fellowship, she practiced as a palliative medicine attending at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and served as an Instructor of Medicine at the Harvard Medical School. While at MGH, Dr. Whitlock was active in teaching medical students, residents, and fellows. During her time in Boston, she also completed the Harvard Medical Ethics Fellowship.
Dr. Whitlock currently serves as the Assistant Program Director for the Asheville Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship and the Associate Program Director for the UNC School of Medicine Asheville Campus. She remains active in teaching learners at all levels. She is particularly interested in teaching advanced communication skills.
Sandy has loved living in Asheville with her husband and three kids. She loves running and gardening.

Faculty
Mission Palliative Care
509 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
Dr. Sharpe is interested in expanding the influence and availability of palliative care, and in making healthcare in general more person-centered and responsive to the problem of suffering. To this end, he is active in developing primary palliative care curricula and teaching medical students, residents, and fellows. Other areas of special interest include pediatric palliative care, deprescribing, narrative medicine, and substance use disorders.
Casey lives with his wife and son in Black Mountain.

Mission Palliative Care
509 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801

Phone: 828-277-4800 Fax: 828-255-2944
CarePartners Health Services
68 Sweeten Creek Road
Asheville, NC 28803
My interest in Hospice and Palliative Care began when I was freshman at Davidson College. I volunteered for The Hospice of Charlotte and had valuable experiences that greatly influenced me throughout my medical training at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia and at MAHEC Family Medicine here in Asheville, NC. Following my training, I had the privilege of joining the HPM Fellowship Program as one of the first Fellows from 2011-2012. Upon completion of the program, I joined the CarePartners team and began working at Solace, a 26-bed inpatient Hospice facility. Outside of work, I enjoy cooking, hiking, playing music and spending time with my family.
Interdisciplinary Team
Medical Staff
Critical Care Medicine
Mark Hellreich, MD
Asheville Pulmonary
Ethicist
Mary Caldwell, MDiv MA
Mission Hospital
Neurology
Alex Schneider, MD
Mission Neurology
Oncology
Michael Messino, MD
Cancer Care of WNC
Pain Management
Edward Lewis
Carolinas Center for Advanced Management of Pain
Pharmacist
Courtenay Wilson, Pharm D
MAHEC
Radiation Oncology
Eric Kuehn, MD
Mountain Radiation Oncology
Past Fellows

Hospice/Palliative Fellow

Hospice/Palliative Fellow

Fellow

Fellow

Fellow

Fellow