Hi! I’m MacKenzie Cutia. I was born and raised in the small town of Clarion, PA, before my family moved to Florida in 2011. Growing up, my father was a rural family physician who inspired me to pursue family medicine from a very young age. I earned a B.S. in Biology from Florida Gulf Coast University, where I got involved in breast cancer research and advocating for preventative medicine. Graduating college a year early, I decided to take a year to pursue clinical research in Savannah, GA, before attending medical school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, FL.

I am thrilled to be a resident with MAHEC Boone! I initially connected with the program during a rotation in my 4th year of medical school. The patients and community welcomed me in an instant, and I knew this was a place I could call home! As a family medicine physician, I cherish the opportunity to care for patients through all stages of life, fostering lasting relationships along the way. My professional interests include women’s health, osteopathic manipulative medicine, pediatric medicine, and obstetrics.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family and husband hiking, brewery hopping, rock climbing, and playing with our amazing chocolate lab, Hoss.

Dr. Dhaliwal (pronounced dolly-wall) will insist you call her Dr. Olivia. She is eager to be following in the footsteps of her late grandfather, a rural Appalachian family doctor, and her late father, a radiation oncologist who grew up in Punjab, India. Dr. Olivia’s various lives before medical school include teaching high school on the Rosebud Indian Reservation (just prior to med school), teaching bareback therapeutic horseback riding in the Berkshires, teaching and practicing yoga (since age 9), coaching and working out at CrossFit (since 2012 - currently at CF Postal in Boone!), cooking and baking almost everything from scratch and supporting local food producers in the process, and serving on the board of the Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture here in Boone. She takes a holistic, preventative approach to care that centers relationship, understanding, and the belief that there is more than one right way to do everything. She is trained in traditional Chinese medicine including acupuncture and herbalism, and loves delivering babies and caring for whole families the way her grandfather did.  She is so grateful to be here in Boone completing her full-spectrum family medicine residency training, in a place where she is held accountable by her patients and community to take good care of everyone – because we are all related.

Hi y’all! My name is Haley Dicken. I grew up in Jamestown, Kentucky, a small town on Lake Cumberland. I spent much of my childhood outside and with my grandma on our family farm. Therefore, much of my desire to pursue a career in medicine was informed by disparities I saw in my rural community while growing up.

I attended the University of Kentucky where I received degrees in Biology and Neuroscience. After my undergraduate studies, I decided to stay at UK for medical school. During my third year, I was placed at Jamestown Healthcare for my rural family medicine rotation -- a clinic mere miles from where I grew up. Up to that point, I had planned to keep an open mind to each specialty; however, in my family medicine rotation I finally saw what my life as a doctor could be and I loved it. In my time there, it became clear to me the substantial impact of family medicine on my community. The thought of playing a role in that touched my heart in a way that I have difficulty finding words to explain. Feeling respected and being seen as a confidant, expert, and ally to patients was truly what I had been seeking in a career. It was as if I was auditioning for my dream job. That was the first and only rotation I felt that way; I took that as a sign and never looked back.

I was drawn to the MAHEC-Boone program because I felt I could receive excellent training that would prepare me to practice full-spectrum family medicine, while living in a beautiful mountain town. After leaving my interview day, I remember calling my best friend on the drive home to Kentucky and crying about how much I loved my experience in Boone. Needless to say, I am excited to get to serve this community and learn from and alongside so many kind and compassionate providers!

My interests within family medicine include serving rural, underserved populations specifically in Appalachia, as well as addiction medicine and procedures. Outside of medicine, I love playing pickleball and tennis, hiking, thrifting, and spending time with my fiancé Donovan and our son Ambrose (he’s a cat).

Hi! My name is Matt Hodges, and I grew up in the flatlands of central Indiana. I attended Wabash College for my undergraduate, where I studied mathematics. Prior to attending medical school at the Indiana University School of Medicine, I worked as a data analyst for a rural health department in Crawfordsville, Indiana and as a health educator in southeastern Kentucky. These experiences instilled in me the desire to devote the rest of my career to providing sustainable, high-quality care to rural communities.

My professional interests include prenatal and mom/baby dyad care, caring for families affected by substance use disorders, and community-based participatory research.

Outside of medicine, I’m a hiker and a voracious bookworm. I’m in an active two-person book club with my wife, Becca. I’m always happy to exchange favorite trails and books. My other hobbies include listening to and playing all sorts of music, and I have recently begun learning how to restore antique clocks. Becca and I are thrilled that our journey has brought us to Boone.

I am an Appalachian State Alumni who is blessed to be back in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I have lived in different areas of the country but claim the mountains as my home. I enjoy the outdoors, watercolor painting, and spending time with my fiancé and our little dog. 

Hello! My name is Emily Moore, and I am from Knoxville, TN. I attended college at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City where I majored in Biology and minored in Spanish. After finishing my undergraduate degree at ETSU, I spent several months living in Nicaragua volunteering in a rural hospital and doing research on the water quality in rural areas. When I returned home, I completed my Master of Public Health in Applied Epidemiology at the University of Arizona and went to medical school at Lincoln Memorial University, DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine. Before starting medical school, I wore many hats including being a substitute teacher, creating a city-sponsored smoking cessation program for federal housing residents in Knoxville, and working in medical simulation at the University of Tennessee Medical Center.

I was drawn to the MAHEC-Boone program because I could tell immediately how invested this program is in the local community (and how beautiful the city is!) Some of my professional interests include rural and community health, global health, health education, and behavioral health.

Outside of medicine, I love cooking, movies, kayaking, thrifting, and taking care of my aquarium and many plants. My favorite movie is Knives Out, and I enjoy repurposing thrifted furniture. In fact, the only thing in my apartment I bought new is my bed. Feel free to ask me about fishkeeping as well. I’ve learned more than I ever dreamed about how to care for fish- I kept multiple goldfish alive for over 4 years!

A fun fact about me is that I have ziplined over an active volcano in Nicaragua.