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Speaker Bios

Alan Nager, M.D.

Dr. Alan L. Nager is Director of the Division of Emergency and Transport Medicine at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles since 1997.  The Emergency Department treats 62,000 patients annually and is the only Level I Pediatric Trauma Center in southern California.

He has lectured extensively on a variety of emergency medicine topics including several on injury prevention and disaster preparation.  He is a member of several organizations dealing with health, injury prevention, and disaster planning and was a consultant for the Los Angeles Poison Control Center for four years.  In addition, Dr. Nager has been involved with a number of disaster activities including:  Los Angeles Volunteer Disaster Team, Bioterrorism and Disaster Planning; California State Committee, Los Angeles County/Department of Health/RAND Corporation, as a consultant regarding the psychological consequences of a terrorist incident.  Dr. Nager has also attended a number of courses dealing with disaster planning, ranging from decontamination to disaster training, and implications of weapons of mass destruction.  He participated and evaluated a bioterrorism disaster drill in Long Beach and furthered his knowledge by attending an intensive disaster-training course in Israel.  He has also participated in a number of research endeavors including disaster knowledge and retention and pediatric disaster preparedness.

Dr. Nager received his undergraduate degree in Public Health and Child Psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1982 and received his medical degree from the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1987.  He completed his pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and completed his fellowship training in Pediatric Emergency Medicine at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in 1992.  He is currently working toward a Master of Health Administration from the University of Southern California.

Andrew Curtis, Ph.D.

Andrew Curtis, Ph.D., Department of Geography at the University of Southern California and former Director of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for Remote Sensing and GIS for Public Health at Louisiana State University. His research interests include the geography of health, with a particular emphasis on spatial analysis and geospatial technology. In 2005 after the landfall of Hurricane Katrina, he and his WHOCC lab were part of an LSU team providing geospatial support for search and rescue operations in the Louisiana Emergency Operation Center. He continues to work on various Katrina related recovery projects, including developing new geospatial approaches to capture post-disaster data.

Barry P. Markovitz, MD, MPH

Barry P. Markovitz, MD, PHY is the Director of Critical Care Medicine and the Medical Director of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles and is Professor Anesthesiology and Pediatrics at the USC Keck School of Medicine.  He is trained in Pediatrics (Children's Memorial Hospital, Chicago), Anesthesiology (Hospital of the University of Pennnslyvania, Philadelphia), and Pediatric Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia).  His interests include informatics (founding member of the Virtual Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, picu.net), the role of evidence-based medicine in Pediatric Critical Care (as the editor of hte PedsCCM Evidence-Based Journal Club on PedsCCM.org) and participation in numerous multicenter clinical trials ( on the Scientific Steering Commitee of PALISI: Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators.)

Dean Carmen A.Puliafito, MD, MBA

Carmen A. Puliafito, M.D., M.B.A., is Dean of the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, holder of the May S. and John Hooval Dean’s Chair in Medicine, and Professor of Ophthalmology and Health Management at the Doheny Eye Institute. Dr. Puliafito assumed his role at the Keck School on November l, 2007.

Dr. Puliafito is recognized as co-inventor of the technology of optical coherence tomography (OCT) and being the first ophthalmologist to use this technology to study the human macula in health and disease. From the first publication about OCT in 1991, to the implementation of the first clinical system two years later, Dr. Puliafito has led in the development of OCT technology-----a technology which has truly revolutionized retinal practice and made a real difference for both patients and retinal specialists. From a single system at the New England Eye Center at Tufts University School of Medicine in 1993, OCT has grown to have a global impact----now with more than 7,000 systems in use every day throughout the world. For his work on OCT, Dr. Puliafito was awarded (along with James Fujimoto and Eric Swanson) the 2002 Rank Prize ----the world’s most prestigious award in optoelectronics. Throughout his career Dr. Puliafito has been an innovator, most recently participating in the introduction of bevacizumab (Avastin) for the treatment of retinal disorders. He was the first to describe the use of semiconductor diode laser for retinal photocoagulation and did pioneering basic science research in excimer laser photoablation and optical breakdown and photodisruption.

As a chair of two departments of ophthalmology over a 16 year period, Dr. Puliafito established himself as one of most creative and successful leaders in academic ophthalmology. From 2001 to 2007, he served as Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine. He earned acclaim for creating and enacting a strategy for growth that would propel Bascom Palmer to new heights in clinical practice, education and research. The faculty increased from 33 members to 70. Two satellite patient care centers were opened in Naples and Plantation, Florida, extending Bascom Palmer’s services across South Florida. He guided fundraising for and development of a $22 million, seven acre campus in Palm Beach Gardens that represents the most technologically advanced eye care center in the United States. Bascom Palmer’s research funding rose from $2.5 million in FY 2002 to more than $8 million in FY 2007, and its clinical revenues rose from $16 million to a projected $35 million in 2007.

Bascom Palmer seized back the No. 1 ranking in U.S. News and World Report’s rankings of eye hospitals in 2004, three years after his arrival and since increased its lead over Johns Hopkins’ Wilmer Eye Institute, having been ranked No. 1, 4 years in a row.

Prior to his work at Bascom Palmer, Dr. Puliafito served as founding director of the New England Eye Center and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at Tufts (1991 to 2001). There he accepted and met the challenge of  building an eye program at Tufts that could compete with well-established Boston-area counterparts; during this time he solidified his credentials as an administrator by earning an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Puliafito started his career at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, where he was founder of the Laser Research Laboratory , Director of the Morse Laser Center,  a member of the Retina Service and Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School.  A graduate of Harvard College and a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Puliafito completed his residency and fellowship at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, as well as fellowships in ophthalmic pathology and vitreoretinal diseases and surgery.

 

Carol Meyer

Carol Meyer has over 32 years of County and military service.  She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Nursing and a Master’s in Public Administration.  She has held several key positions in the field of health care administration and was recently appointed to the position of Director of Governmental Affairs for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services in May of this year. 

Prior to that, she functioned as the Director of Emergency Medical Services, coordinating the largest multi-jurisdictional EMS system in the country.  As the Director of Governmental Affairs for DHS, she hopes to impact health care through the legislative and political arenas with emphasis on expanding access and ensuring the financial stability public hospital system in Los Angeles County, the true health care safety net.

 

Christy L. Beaudin, PhD LCSW CPHQ, FNAHQ

Christy L. Beaudin, PhD LCSW CPHQ FNAHQ is Vice President and Chief Quality Officer at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. Dr. Beaudin earned her doctorate in health services from the UCLA School of Public Health, Master of Social Work from San Diego State University, and Bachelor Degree in Criminal Justice from California State University San Bernardino. She led quality improvement efforts for PacifiCare Behavioral Health and Value Behavioral Health and served as Vice President, Research and Development at Magellan Behavioral Health. Dr. Beaudin has supported hospitals, managed behavioral healthcare organizations, health plans in preparing for and maintaining state licensure and NCQA, URAC and Joint Commission accreditation. She is widely published, serves on several editorial boards/review panels, and is a national subject matter expert on health care quality, behavioral health, and managed care. Additionally, she teaches the preparation course for the Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality. Dr. Beaudin currently supports state and national quality initiatives for the National Association for Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions, Child Health Corporation of America, California Children’s Hospital Association, and California Hospital Association.

Christy Jordan-Morrow

Chris Jordan-Morrow has been a practicing Registered Nurse since 1990. She started out her career in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the University California Irvine Medical Center where she developed a love for working with infants, families and children. After 10 years Chris moved on to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Loma Linda University Medical Center, where she made the decision to return to graduate school and graduated in 2006 with a double masters: MSN/CNS in the Growing Family and a MPH in Health Promotion.  Chris joined the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles family 10 months ago, as the Injury Prevention Coordinator. It is her desire to continue in pursuit of her passion to continually grow and learn the best practice in keeping children safe from unintentional injuries of all kinds. 

Cleotide Gonzalez, PhD

Coty Gonzalez is an associate research professor in the Department of Social and Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).  She is the founding Director of the Dynamic Decision Making Laboratory at CMU.  Dr. Gonzalez obtained a PhD in Management Information Systems from Texas Tech University in 1996.  She was initially appointed as an assistant and then an associate professor in the Computer Engineering Department at Universidad de las Americas Tepper School of Business for three years before becoming an assistant professor and then associate research professor in the Social and Decision Sciences Department.  Dr. Gonzalez' research goal is to provide concrete theories, methods, and tools that will improve the way individuals make decisions in dynamic environments.  She uses multiple research methods including laboratory experiments with interactive decision making games (DMGames) and cognitive computational modeling.  Her research is sponsored many institutions including: Natinoal Sciences Foundation, the Army Research Laboratorise, and the Office of Naval Research.  She has published numerous articles and presenter her work in several national and international meetings.

David B. Hoyt, M.D. FACS

 Dr. Hoyt received a BA degree with honors from Amherst College, followed by an M.D. degree from Case Western Reserve University in 1976.  From 1976-1984 Dr. Hoyt was a Surgical Resident and Research Fellow at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and Scripps Immunology Institute.  He joined the faculty at UCSD and immediately became involved in their Trauma Service where his role as Director lasted from 1989 – 2006.  In 1995 he was appointed Professor of Surgery and was awarded The Monroe E. Trout Professorship in Surgery at UCSD (1996).  In 2006 Dr. Hoyt was appointed to the position of Chairman, for the Department of Surgery, as well as being awarded the distinct honor of being named the John E. Connolly Professor of Surgery, at the University of California, Irvine.

Dr. Hoyt has distinguished himself within the Department of Surgery, having delivered numerous named lectures, received multiple significant awards from his colleagues as well as scientific organizations, while serving in positions of leadership.  Dr. Hoyt continues to serve as an advisor for many graduate students. 

He is a member of the American Surgical Association, Surgical Biology Club, Western Surgical Association, and Society of University Surgeons and holds membership in other prestigious surgical organizations.  He is currently the immediate Past President of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Past President of the Society of General Surgeons of San Diego, Past President of the Shock Society, Past Chairman of the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma, and currently Medical Director of Trauma at the American College of Surgeons.  He has been a visiting professor at a large number of institutions nationally and internationally and is an Editorial Board Member of six journals.  Dr. Hoyt consistently received significant public research funding while a member of the UCSD faculty, and continues to do so in his role as Chairman for the Department of Surgery at UCI.  He is the author of over 450 publications. He was recently awarded the American Heart Association Resuscitation Science Lifetime Research Achievement Award and The American College of Surgeons Distinguished Service Award. 

David Samuel Markenson, MD

Dr. David Markenson is a board certified Pediatrician with Fellowship training in both Pediatric Emergency Medicine and Pediatric Critical Care.  He is currently working as the Director of the Center for Disaster Medicine at the School of Public Health at New York Medical College School of Public Health and Chief of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at the Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center.  In additional to his hospital appointments, Dr. Markenson is an Associate Professor of Public Health at the School of Public Health and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at New York Medical College in Valhalla, New York. 

His career has been dedicated to improving the approach to pediatric care, disaster medicine, EMS and emergency medicine.  He is the Principal Investigator on several federal grants related to Pediatric Disaster Medicine.  Most recently he directed the project which created National Model Pediatric Protocols and developed National Guidelines for Persons with Disabilities. Dr. Markenson began his career as a paramedic in college, an area of medicine he still is heavily involved with today. 

Dr. Markenson is a graduate of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York.

Edbert Hsu, M.D., M.P.H.

Edbert Hsu, M.D., M.P.H. is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine and the Director of Training at the Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR) at Johns Hopkins. Combining his international health background with a special interest in disaster medicine, Dr. Hsu has worked on emergency medicine program development and disaster preparedness around the world. Currently, he serves on the leadership group of CEPAR, is a  co-investigator with the DHS Center for the Study of Preparedness and Catastrophic Event Response (PACER) and has worked closely with the National Disaster Life Support Educational Consortium (NDLSEC). Dr. Hsu is an associate Editor for the Journal of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness and has been the recipient of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Young Investigator Award and the AMA Foundation Leadership Award. 

Elizabeth Ablah, PhD, MPH

Dr. Elizabeth Ablah, Assistant Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Wichita, is the Program Director for Emergency Preparedness at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Wichita, Kansas.

Dr. Ablah’s recent emergency preparedness research includes evaluating: integrated disaster drills, multiple point of dispensing (POD) drills, and training for first responders, public health and health professionals, county commissioners, and behavioral health professionals.  She is currently interested in understanding why some health professionals do not report to work when needed during an emergency.

 

Elizabeth Garrett

Elizabeth Garrett is the Vice President for Academic Planning and Budget at the University of Southern California and the Sydney M. Irmas Professor of Public Interest Law, Legal Ethics, Political Science, and Policy, Planning and Development.  She is also the co-Director of the USC-Caltech Center for the Study of Law and Politics (CSLP).  She served as Vice Provost of Academic Affairs for the academic year 2005-06.  She serves on the Board of Directors of the Initiative and Referendum Institute at USC which is affiliated with the CSLP.  President George W. Bush appointed her to serve on the nine-member bipartisan Tax Reform Panel that released its final report in November 2005.  She is the Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee of the National Governing Board of Common Cause.  Her primary scholarly interests are legislative process, direct democracy, the federal budget process, study of democratic institutions, statutory interpretation, administrative law, and tax policy.  She is the co-author of the Fourth Edition of the leading casebook on legislation and statutory interpretation, Cases and Materials on Legislation:  Statutes and the Creation of Public Policy (West Publishing 2007) and the second edition of Legislation and Statutory Interpretation, published by Foundation Press in 2006.  She is a co-editor of Fiscal Challenges:  An Interdisciplinary Approach to Budget Policy (Cambridge University Press 2008).  She is the author of many articles and book chapters, analyzing campaign finance laws, courts and political parties, various congressional procedures, judicial review of regulatory statutes, the initiative process, and the California recall.  Before joining the faculty of USC, she was a Professor of Law at the University of Chicago, where she also served as Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs, and she has been a visiting professor at the California Institute of Technology, Harvard Law School, the University of Virginia Law School, Central European University in Budapest, and the Interdisciplinary Center Law School in Israel.  Before entering academics, she clerked for Justice Thurgood Marshall on the U.S. Supreme Court, and she served as legal counsel and legislative director for Senator David L. Boren (D-Okla.).  She is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and a member of the editorial board of the Election Law Journal.

Evan Nadler, M.D.

Dr. Nadler attended the University of Pennsylvania for his medical school training.  He went on to the Cornell University Medical Center for his general surgery residency.  During his residency, he spent 2 years at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh as a research fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Henri Ford studying the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis.  After returning to NY to complete his general surgery training, Dr. Nadler returned to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh to complete his pediatric surgery training.  While there, Dr. Nadler published a number of manuscripts describing the patterns of traumatic injury in children.  Currently, Dr. Nadler is an Assistant Professor of Surgery and the Director of Minimally Invasive Surgery at New York University School of Medicine where he has been since 2004.  Dr. Nadler served on New York State Centers for Bioterrorism Preparedness Planning Pediatric Task Force and currently serves on the National Advisory Board for the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles Pediatric Disaster Resource and Training Center.

HENRI R. FORD, M.D.
Vice President and Chief of Surgery
Professor and Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs, in the Department of Surgery at the Keck School of Medicine

Henri R. Ford, M.D., is vice president and chief of surgery at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), and Professor and vice chair for clinical affairs in the Department of Surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

Dr. Ford was professor and chief of the Division of Pediatric Surgery and surgeon-in-chief at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine prior to joining CHLA in January 2005.

Dr. Ford is a member of the Executive committee of the board of trustees of CHLA and a member of the board of directors of the University Children’s Medical Group.  He is also a member of the Executive Leadership Team and the medical executive committee of CHLA.  As surgeon-in-chief and vice president for perioperative services, he oversees the entire perioperative services area at CHLA.  Under his leadership, CHLA has developed a robust, state of the art minimally invasive surgery program.

Dr. Ford has demonstrated “…truly exceptional leadership…” in pediatric surgery and has conducted the definitive studies on pediatric trauma in the United States and his investigative studies have generated new insights into the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis, the most common and the most lethal disorder affecting the gastrointestinal tract of newborn infants.

Dr. Ford has been active on local and national professional and scientific committees:

• Association for Academic Surgery, including service as secretary (1999-2001); president-elect (2001-02); and president (2002-03).  He is a member of the AAS/SUS relations committee (2002-present).
• Society for Black Academic Surgeons, including service on the program committee 2000-02) and secretary (2002-present).
• Surgical Infections Society, including service on the education and fellowship committee (1998-01); councilor (2001-04); and Treasurer (2006-present).
• American College of Surgeons, Southwestern Pennsylvania Chapter, including service on the program committee (1998-01; chair, 2000-01) council chair (2001-04); president-elect (2003-2004); Board of Governors (2006-present); Nominating Committee of the Board of Governors (2006-present); Surgical Forum Committee (2007-present).
• Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, including service on the bylaws committee (2000-present) and the publications committee (2004-present).
• American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (2004-present).
• American Board of Surgery (2007-present)
• American Pediatric Surgical Association nominating committee (2006-present)

Dr. Ford’s research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through the Injury Free Coalition for Kids, the National Trauma Registry for Children and the American College of Surgeons. He also has received industry support for his research from Ethicon, Inc., Medinox Corporation and the H.J. Heinz Co.

He is the author of more than 300 publications, book chapters, invited manuscripts, abstracts and presentations.

Dr. Ford is a member of the editorial board of numerous professional publications, including Pediatric Critical Care Medicine (2001-04), Surgery (2001-04), the Journal of Surgical Research (2001-2005), the Annals of Medical Sciences (2000-present) , Surgical Infections (1998-present), the Journal of Pediatric Surgery (2005-present), Pediatric Surgery International (2005-present).

He has been an ad hoc reviewer for numerous other professional publications, including Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology (2002-present), the Journal of Leukocyte Biology (2002-present), the Canadian Journal of Gastroenterology (2002-present), Cancer Detection and Prevention (2001-present), the Journal of the American Medical Association (2001-present), Gastroenterology (2000-present), the American Journal of Physiology: Gastrointestinal & Liver Physiology (2000-present), the Journal of Trauma (2000-present), the Journal of Immunology (2000-present), Shock (2000-present), the Journal of Surgical Research (2000-present), Digestive Diseases (1999-present), the Journal of Pediatric Surgery (1997-present) and the Archives of Surgery (1996-present).

Dr. Ford is a fellow of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Surgeons.

He is a member of numerous professional and scientific societies, including the Surgical Biology Club, the American Surgical Association, the American Physiological Society, the British Association of Pediatric Surgeons, the American Trauma Society, the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the American Pediatric Surgical Association, the Society of University Surgeons, the Shock Society, the Surgical Infection Society, the Society of Black Academic Surgeons and the Association for Academic Surgery.

Dr. Ford received his bachelor’s degree in public and international affairs, cum laude, from Princeton University in 1980.  He received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1984.

Dr. Ford did his internship (1984-85) and residency (1985-87; 1989-91) in general surgery at New York Hospital Cornell Medical College. He completed a research fellowship in immunology (1987-89) in the Department of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh.

Dr. Ford completed a clinical fellowship (1991-93) in pediatric surgery at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. 

Jeffrey L. Rubin 

Mr. Rubin has been involved in health care administration and planning for over thirty years in both the private and public sectors.  His experience includes Emergency Medical Services system development, disaster medical services planning and operations, public health program administration and primary care clinic management.  He currently serves as the Chief of the Disaster Medical Services Division of the California Emergency Medical Services Authority.  In this capacity he is responsible for the state's policies and plans for the medical response to major disasters and the provision of technical assistance to local governments to enhance their ability to meet the medical needs of disaster victims.

A partial list of Mr. Rubin’s memberships and affiliations include:

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations’ Hospital Emergency Preparedness Roundtable; National Academy of Science, Institute of Medicine Committee to Evaluate the Metropolitan Medical Response System; Johns Hopkins Center for Civilian Biodefense Strategies Hospital Response to Bioterrorism Conferences; ECRI's Center for Healthcare Environmental Management; National Disaster Medical System Annual Conference Committee; American Hospital Association Invitational Forum on Hospital Preparedness for Mass Casualties; Sloan Foundation Medical and Health System Incident Management System Review Panel; Department of Health and Human Services Medical Capacity and Capability Working Group

Jennifer M. Weiss, M.D.

Director, Sports Medicine Program

Childrens Hospital Los Angeles

Assistant Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic

Surgery – Keck School of Medicine @ USC

Dr. Weiss specializes in the treatment of children with:

• Sports Medicine in Children and Adolescents
•  Trauma
• Hip disorders
• Foot disorders  - (including clubfeet)

 

Dr. Weiss received her undergraduate degree from Williams College and her medical degree from The Mount Sinai School of Medicine.  She completed her residency in orthopaedic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and a fellowship in pediatric orthopaedics at the Children’s Hospital, Los Angeles. She then took extra training at the Children’s Hospital in Boston in pediatric sports medicine.

 

 Dr. Weiss is a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America

 

Jim Crabtree

Jim Crabtree, RN, BSN, MICN began his career as a trauma nurse in the Emergency department at Martin Luther King hospital in Watts California during the cocaine wars of the 1980s. For the next decade he taught at Los Angeles County's Paramedic Training Institute developing many new curricula. Since 1996 through his position at the Los Angeles County EMS Agency, he has been involved in researching and teaching hospital staff, EMTs, Paramedics and firefighters medical responses to all types of terrorism including mass casualty decontamination.  He teaches the medical component of the LA Sheriff and FBI Basic Post Blast Investigator’s course. He has taught at emergency care conferences throughout the United States as well as Tallinn Estonia and Mumbai India. Jim has published articles in the medical literature on topics as diverse as Terrorism, Geriatrics and the History of Emergency Medicine. His 2006 article “Terrorist Homicide Bombing: A primer for preparation” involved the review of over 108 different citations and travel to Israel to personally confer with peer experts in researching the proper techniques of responding to terrorist bombing attacks.

Joseph J. Tepas III, M.D. FACS, FAAP

Joseph J. Tepas III, M.D. FACS, FAAP is Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics at the University Of Florida College Of Medicine/Jacksonville and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Surgery. He is certified by the American Board of Surgery in the specialties of Pediatric Surgery, Surgical Critical Care, and General Surgery. His primary clinical interests are neonatal surgery and pediatric surgical critical care, especially as related to care of the severely injured child.  Dr. Tepas is an internationally recognized leader in trauma care and trauma systems design.  He was Principal Investigator for the Florida Emergency Medical Services for Children federal demonstration project, and is a consultant to the Florida Office of Trauma for development of the web based state trauma registry.   He is a member of numerous editorial boards of scientific journals and was Co-Principal Investigator of the National Pediatric Trauma Registry.  Dr. Tepas is the author of 115 peer-reviewed publications, 30 book chapters, and 170 national presentations.  Dr. Tepas’ primary areas of investigation have been focused on childhood injury control, neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis, traumatic brain injury in children, and the molecular biology of organ system dysfunction. Current research activities include co-principal clinical investigator of a multi-institutional NIH funded investigation of biomarkers of acute brain injury and medical director of the Kiwanis International Pediatric Trauma Registry and Knowledge Base.  Dr. Tepas is a member of the trauma system medical advisory committee of the Florida Department of Health, and is the consultant to the Florida Office of Trauma for development of the new web-based state trauma registry.

Jonathan I. Groner, M.D.

Jonathan I. Groner MD is the Trauma Medical Director of Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and Professor of Clinical Surgery at The Ohio State University College of Medicine.  He has a busy clinical practice focusing on pediatric trauma, burns, and wound management.

Dr. Groner currently serves on the Emergency Medical Services Board for the State of Ohio, and he is the immediate past president of the Central Ohio Trauma System.  He is also a member of the trauma committee of the American Pediatric Surgical Association and a member of the First Aid Science Advisory Board, which will publish first aid standards in 2010.

 

Dr. Groner also maintains a strong interest in medical ethics and is a nationally and internationally recognized expert on physician participation in executions by lethal injection in the United States.

Kathy Crow

Kathy Crow is the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator of St. Mary Medical Center. She teaches CBRNE, Hazmat/Decon courses, trauma classes and coordinates multiagency disaster drills. Prior to St. Mary Medical Center she was the Emergency Preparedness Consultant at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Disaster Resource Center, the American Heart Association Community Training Coordinator and an ER nurse for 25 years. Kathy is a training officer for the Defense Medical Readiness Training Institute (DMRTI) for the Department of Defense at Fort Sam Houston. She is faculty at the Combat Care Casualty Training programs for the US Army and teaches HERT for MCI courses at Noble Training Center in Anniston, Alabama. She is a member of the Emergency Nurses' Association and teaches Trauma Nursing Core Course. She is an instructor at Cal State University Long Beach at the undergraduate and graduate levels in Hospital Administration and Community Health Nursing. She lectures on hospital disaster management and HAZMAT at the Long Beach City College EMT program.

 

Kay Fruhwirth, RN, MSN

Originally from Michigan, Kay Fruhwirth received her nursing degree (BSN) in 1980 from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana and a Masters Degree in Nursing Administration from California State University Dominguez Hills in 1995.

Ms. Fruhwirth spent over 20 years working at Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital in Whittier California (1980-2001).   During her tenure there she worked as a critical care nurse and then nursing supervisor, Emergency Department and spent the majority of her career as the Administrative Director, Emergency Services (from 1987 through 2001).  She also served as the hospital Disaster Coordinator from 1990 – 2001.

Shortly after September 11, 2001 she began working for Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Agency.  She currently is one of two Assistant Directors for the Agency.  Her role with the EMS Agency has been to develop and manage the Disaster Management section. In this role she works at the cutting edge to prepare the Los Angeles health care community to respond to the effects of disasters including terrorism through training programs, equipment purchases and direct participation in a volunteer response team DMAT CA-9.  She also serves as the Coordinator for the Hospital Preparedness Program in Los Angeles County.

 

Leonard Levy, M.D.

Dr. Leonard A. Levy is Associate Dean for Education, Planning and Research as well as Director of the Center for Bioterrorism and All-Hazards Preparedness and Professor of both Family Medicine and Public Health at the Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Fort Lauderdale.  The Center, which began immediately after 9/11, is one of only seven in the nation in the National Education Strategy Team charged by the U.S. Assistant Secretatary for Preparedness and Response to develop a national template to train physicians, other health professionals, and first responders in all-hazards preparedness.

 

In addition to his clinical education in podiatric medicine Dr. Levy holds a Master of Public Health degree from the Faculty of Medicine, School of Public Health of Columbia University.   Dr. Levy has authored almost 100 journal articles as well as two major texts, one monologue, and has lectured throughout the nation to physicians, other health professionals, and other groups. He has served over the past 30 years in such academic medical positions as a president, vice president, dean, associate dean, and faculty member in institutions from coast to coast. Some of the universities in which he has served are Stanford University School of Medicine (Clinical Associate Professor of Dermatology), the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (Consultant to the President), the State University of New York at Stony Brook Health Science Center (Dean, School of Podiatric Medicine and Professor of Podiatric Medicine) , Des Moines University of the Health Sciences ( Dean and Professor of Podiatric Medicine, College of Podiatric Medicine) and Nova Southeastern University where he is currently located.

Linda Tripoli

Linda Tripoli has over 30 years in the Healthcare Industry, the last 12 years representing the Hospital Association of Southern California as the Client Liaison for the hospital emergency communication system, ReddiNet(r) Rapid Emergency Digital Data Information Network.  Linda has trained over 400 healthcare facilities, agencies and first responders in 18 California Counties on this premier emergency communication system.  She sits on mutiple county disaster preparedness committees as a resource for disaster communications and preparedness.  She has assisted in the planning, design development, and implementation of multiple disaster exercises and has worked with several multi-disciplinary agencies for disaster communication exercises.  She has been instrumental in the coordination of disaster communications between hospitals, long term care facilities, and ambulance, fire and police dispathc centers, public health departments and Emergency Medical Services agencies.  Additionally, Linda has participated in the Steering COmmittees for the Southern California EMS Conference, California Stateide Disaster Conferences and individual county Disaster Conferences as the vendor liasion and coordinator and has participated in several national disaster preparedness conferences. 

Marianne Gausche-Hill, M.D. FACEP, FAAP

Marianne Gausche-Hill, MD, FACEP, FAAP Dr. Gausche-Hill is the Director of Emergency Medical Services and Director of the EMS and Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowships at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, California. She is a Professor of Medicine at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. She is nationally known for her work as EMS researcher and educator, and for her leadership in the field of pediatric emergency medicine. She is a nationally and internationally recognized lecturer on topics in pediatric emergency medicine and prehospital care. She has also been integral in the design and implementation of a number of educational curricula in prehospital care and pediatric emergency medicine including: the Pediatric Education for Prehospital Professionals (PEPP) Course, Continuing Education Modules for Basic and Advanced Prehospital Providers, Pediatric Airway Management for the Prehospital Professional, and APLS: The Pediatric Emergency Medicine Resource. In 2004 she was awarded the ACEP National Education Award in Emergency Medicine, in 2005 was awarded the Martha Bushore-Fallis APLS award from the American Academy of Pediatrics, and in 2007 was award the Emergency Medical Services for Children Heroes Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Mark Gamble, Senior Vice President, Association Services Hospital Association of Southern California

Mark Gamble is the Senior Vice President of Association Services for the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC).  Gamble is responsible for the success of the division of Association Services, its programs, services and staff and meeting all goals, objectives and financial targets.

Prior to his appointment as Senior Vice President, Gamble served as Regional Vice President for the greater Los Angeles area from September 2003 to March 2008, in providing leadership in public policy and advocacy programs associated with health care for more than 120 constituent hospitals and health care systems. Gamble has held many positions within HASC since he joined the organization in 1995, allowing him to gain a broad level of experience in health care and association management.

Gamble is a member of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce Healthcare Committee, Rotary International, American Heart Association - California Region (STEMI) Taskforce, and Los Angeles Collaborative Steering Committee (LA Health Action). 

Martin R. Eichelberger, M.D.

Dr. Martin R. Eichelberger, renowned expert in the field of pediatric trauma care and injury control, is the chairman of Safe Kids Worldwide.  Safe Kids Worldwide is a global network of organizations whose mission is to prevent accidental childhood injury, a leading killer of children aged 14 and under.  More than 450 coalitions in 16 countries bring together health and safety experts, educators, corporations, foundations, governments and volunteers to educate and protect families.  Founded in 1988, Safe Kids Worldwide has contributed to a nearly 45 percent decline in the child death rate from accidental injuries since its inception.

In addition to his leadership at Safe Kids Worldwide, Dr. Martin R. Eichelberger is a pediatric surgeon and founder of Emergency Trauma and Burn Services at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.  The Trauma Service at Children's National Medical Center is a world renowned model of care for children and their families.  He also serves a professor of Surgery and of Pediatrics at The George Washington University School of Medicine. 

Stirred by his experiences as a surgeon and commitment to children's health, Dr. Eichelberger has devoted his career to easing the pain and suffering of children. His lifelong quest to prevent childhood injuries has led to increased research, improved safety measures and significant changes in awareness of child safety issues.

Dr. Eichelberger's pioneering efforts have led to changes in public policy such as child occupant protection laws, bicycle helmet requirements and playground safety guidelines.  He has educated a generation of parents and helped translate injury prevention research into simple programs that have a real impact on the frequency of childhood injuries.  His vision has put millions of bike helmets, smoke alarms and child safety seats into the hands of families of need.  He also lead the development of the Emergency Medical Sercies for Children's National Resource Center.

Dr. Eichelberger graduated from Princeton University and Hahnemann University Medical School.  He completed his surgical education at the Case Wesetern Reserve University Hospital in Cleveland and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia with C. Everett Koop, M.D. He holds visiting porfessorships in Latin america, Europe, the Middle East and Asia as well as the United States.

 

Mary E. Fallat, MD

Mary E. Fallat, MD is Professor of Surgery at the University of Louisville,  Division Director of Pediatric Surgery, and Chief of Surgery at Kosair Children’s Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. She has been actively involved in care of the trauma patient for over 20 years, with particular interests in pediatric trauma care and prehospital care of the injured patient.

Dr. Fallat received an undergraduate degree in biology from Northwestern University and MD degree from Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York. Her surgery residency was at the University of Louisville, with a pediatric surgery fellowship at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC. Dr. Fallat participated in the recent Institute of Medicine project “The Future of Emergency Care in the U.S. Health System” as a member of the Subcommittee on Pediatric Emergency Care. She is member of the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons (ACSCOT), and recently completed her tenure as the Emergency Services-Prehospital Subcommittee Chair and Executive Committee member.

Dr. Fallat has been continuously funded as principal or co-investigator for several Emergency Medical System for Children projects in Kentucky since 1993, and was Principle Investigator for the Trauma- Emergency Medical Services System State Grants to Kentucky from 2001-2006. She served on the Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services from 2000-2006.

Michael P. Hirsh, MD

Dr. Michael Hirsh was born in New York City.  After attending Bronx High School, he matriculated at Columbia College of Columbia University where he obtained a BA in 1975.  He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He then went ot harvard Medical School where he graduated in 1979.  He then began surgical residency training at Columbia Presbyterian University Medical Center from 1979 to 1984 and completed a pediatric surgical fellowship at St. Christopher's Hospitla for Children of Temple University in Philadelphia in 1986. Thereafter, he spent six years at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center and from 1988 to 1992 was co-director of the Trauma Center there.  He also was co-director of the Pediatric Critical Care Unit. In 1992, Dr. Hirsh left Worcester, Massachusetts, to take a position first at Allegheny General and later at Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh. He worked there from 1992 to 1997 where he began directing a pgoram of consortium of injury prevention sites led by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, based in New Yord City.  In 1997, Dr. Hirsh transferred his work to Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh where he worked until he returned to University Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in 2000.  He is a Professor of Pediatrics and Surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Director of the Divisions of Pediatric Surgery and Trauma of the University of Massachusetts Memoral Children's Medical Center.  He also became Associate Director of Pediatric Critical Care.  He became Co-Director of the INjury Free Coalition for Kids of Worcester Injury Prevention terrorism response program for the city of Worcester Disaster Medical Assistance Team, Worcester DMAT II, part of the National Agency and our local Defence System, NDMS.  Dr. Hirsh has been very involved in trying to develop a pediatric-based response for bio-terrorism and also a psychological response for the resuscitation of children traumatized by the news of bio-terrorism.

Rebecca Roberts, M.D.

                  Dr. Roberts has practiced emergency medicine for over 20 years.  Most of her experience has been in large urban public hospitals, where each day is a surge event.  She is currently the research director for the Department of Emergency Medicine at Stroger Hospital of Cook County (formerly Cook County Hospital).

                  She is also the point-of-contact for Stroger’s Center of Excellence Program, a collaborative program initiated by the Chicago Department of Public Health for Chicago hospitals.

                  The work discussed in this presentation was possible only because of support by the Chicago Department of Public Health, the U.S Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and the staff of Stroger Hospital.

 

Roel Amara, RN

Roel Amara is the Acting Chief, Disaster Management Section for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services’ Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agency.  In this role, he is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Hospital Preparedness Program, Disaster Training Unit, and the Departmental Emergency Coordination Program.

Mr. Amara has more than 10 years of experience as a Registered Nurse with seven years working in the emergency department at Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital in Whittier, California.  He joined the EMS Agency in 2001 and was responsible for the Paramedic Base Hospital and 9-1-1 Receiving Hospital programs.  Prior to his current position, Mr. Amara was a Transplant Coordinator for the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program at UCLA Medical Center, a leading transplant program in the United States.

Mr. Amara has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Scott B. Cormier

Mr. Scott Cormier serves as Director, Emergency Preparedness and Management, for the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA).  In this capacity, he oversees emergency preparedness, planning, and response for the largest private healthcare provider in the world, with 180 hospitals and 104 freestanding surgery centers around the world.  Prior to joining HCA, Scott worked with the Defense Intelligence Agency, Office for Counter-Proliferation.  In this capacity he provided technical expertise and training of detection, field analysis, and personal protective equipment and technology for Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Mr. Cormier also serves as a lead instructor with the National Center for Biomedical Research and Training, located at Louisiana State University.  In this capacity, he teaches military, federal, state, and local personnel how to prevent, respond to, collect forensic samples, and recover from incidents involving weapons of mass destruction.  He has helped to develop and present live video training seminars of WMD programs, and served as a consultant and actor in a film involving forensic collection and assay of dry powder biological agents.  He also co-developed, with Mr. Bill Patrick, a pocket guide for estimating lethal doses for the indoor release of dry powder bacillus anthracis spores.

Scott serves as a CBRNE Subject Matter Expert in review of courses funded by the Department of Homeland Security.  These courses have included Tactical Response to WMD incidents, HazMat Technician, Firefighter, and EMS response to WMD incidents, EMS treatment of WMD victims, and Incident Command/Emergency Operations for WMD.

Mr. Cormier has also served as a Senior Medical Services Officer with General Dynamics, Inc.  In this role, he performed physical exams, patient assessments, prescribed and dispensed medications, and administered treatment and care on a U.S. Navy Special Warfare research vessel operating in remote locations.  Scott also served as an Emergency Medical Services Project Manager for multiple health care systems, where he coordinated EMS and Fire Department outreach, and initiated and coordinated the implementation of a hospital paramedic program, which allowed paramedics to work in critical care units.  Scott developed disaster response plans and coordination of area hospitals, developed a decontamination training program for hospital personnel, and served on a national committee focusing on disaster preparedness and terrorism response for hospitals, and he co-authored a study on the use of Aminophylline in prehospital cardiac arrest.

 

Mr. Cormier has over 28 years of public safety experience, and is a certified Paramedic, HazMat, and Rescue instructor.  He was a founding member of the City of Pittsburgh, PA River Rescue Unit, where he served as a Dive Master.  Scott also served as an Operational Supervisor, Rescue Supervisor, and HazMat Team Chief for a large suburban EMS Authority.  He served six years in the Marine Corps as a Military Police and Corrections Specialist, and served three years in the Virginia National Guard, where he obtained certification as a Human Intelligence Collector and Interrogator.

 

Stephen V. Cantrill, MD, FACEP

Dr. Cantrill is currently the Project Director and Principal Investigator of the BNICE Colorado WMD Training Center at Denver Health Medical Center and Associate Professor in the Division of Emergency Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.  He also served as the Associate Director of Emergency Medicine at Denver Health for 18 years.  Dr. Cantrill has lectured nationally and internationally on many topics including weapons of mass destruction, disasters and disaster management and has been involved in disaster management education for more than two decades. He served as the regional medical coordinator for Denver=s participation in Operation TopOff 2000.  He has also been involved in weapons of mass destruction training for Colorado and has participated in the planning for multiple mass gathering events, including the Denver Papal visit and the Denver Summit of Eight world economic conference. He has testified at US Senate Committee hearings on bioterrorism preparedness.  He has recently served as the principal investigator on an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality regional surge capacity grant and the AHRQ HAvBED national bed availability project.  He is currently principal investigator on the AHRQ disaster alternate care facility task order.  Dr. Cantrill has more than 90 publications and has been the recipient of multiple teaching and clinical excellence awards.  He currently is a member of the National Biodefense Science Board and is board certified in the specialty of Emergency Medicine.

 

Susan A. Cox, RN, MS, CEN, PHN Director of Trauma and Volunteer Services

Sue Cox is the Director of Rady Children’s Hospital Regional Pediatric Trauma Center and also directs the department of Volunteer Services.  She is the current chair of the San Diego County Trauma Program Managers and the co-chair of the San Diego County Medical Audit Committee.  She is also a current board member of the Society of Trauma nurses and of the Trauma Research and Education Foundation of San Diego.  Ms. Cox received BSN from San Diego University with a minor in Business Administration.  She received her MS also from San Diego State University in Nursing Administration.  She has been an active clinician, administrator, and educator for the past 28 years focusing exclusively on pediatric issues with primary interests in critical care, trauma care, emergency care, disaster planning and injury prevention.  She is a prolific educator locally, nationally and internationally.  Ms. Cox’s work has been published in the Journal of Trauma Nursing, Nursing Clinics of North America and in the Emergency Nurses’ Association’s Trauma Nurse Core Curriculum.  She has been recognized for her advocacy with children’s issues by the San Diego Office of Education, the San Diego Rotary Club, the YWCA and Rady Children’s Hospital.

 

Susan M. Briggs, MD, MPH, FACS

Dr. Susan Briggs is a General and Trauma Surgeon at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Boston,  Massachusetts.  Dr. Briggs completed her surgical training at the Massachusetts General Hospital and her MPH in International Health at the Harvard School of Public Health.  She is Director of the International Trauma and Disaster Institute @ Massachusetts General Hospital and past-president of the Pan American Trauma Association. She is the editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Disaster Medicine and editor of Advanced Disaster Medical Response, Manual for Providers.

Dr. Briggs has been active, both nationally and internationally, in trauma and disaster relief activities with the United States Government and non-governmental agencies such as Project Hope and the American Refugee Committee.  Currently she is the Supervising Medical Officer of the Homeland Security/FEMA Specialty Medical Teams, including the International Medical Surgical Response Teams (IMSURT).  She has participated in numerous national and international disasters, including Armenia, the World Trade Center bombing, the Bam, Iran earthquake as head of the United States Disaster Team and, most recently, the Katrina hurricane relief in Louisiana.

Dr. Briggs has received numerous awards for her academic and humanitarian achievements, including the American Red Cross (Massachusetts Bay) Clara Barton Humanitarian Award, The National Disaster Medical System Outstanding Achievement Award, selection for the National Library of Medicine (NIH) exhibition honoring women physicians,  “Changing the Face of Medicine”, the New England Women’s Leadership Award and the New England Surgical Society’s Nathan Smith Distinguished Service Award.

RADM W. Craig Vanderwagem, M.D.

RADM W. Craig Vanderwagen, M.D., was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and sworn into office as the first Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response on March 23, 2007. In July 2006, RADM Vanderwagen was appointed HHS Assistant Secretary for Public Health Emergency Preparedness and promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral, Upper Half, U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS). He is the Secretary's principal advisor on matters related to bioterrorism and other public health emergencies. The mission of his office is to lead the nation in preventing, responding to and reducing the adverse health effects of public health emergencies and disasters.

RADM Vanderwagen has significant public health emergency and disaster response experience. Most recently, he was the Deputy Secretary's Special Assistant for Preparedness and led the teams who implemented changes at HHS recommended in the White House Report, Katrina Lessons Learned. In addition RADM Vanderwagen was the senior federal health official in the response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in Louisiana; led the public health team deployed on USNS Mercy to Indonesia to assist in the 2005 tsunami recovery; served as the Chief of Public Health for the Coalition Provisional Authority and the Ministry of Health in Iraq; and directed a portion of health care provided to Kosovar refugees during the 1999 Balkans conflict.

His federal career began with the Indian Health Service Albuquerque Area Office as a USPHS General Medical Officer at the Zuni Indian Hospital. RADM Vanderwagen also served as the IHS Office of Clinical and Preventive Services Director. He was responsible for the full scope of clinical health care programs, including quality assurance and preventive programs for 49 IHS hospitals, hundreds of clinics and health stations.

In support of the Surgeon General, RADM Vanderwagen served as the USPHS Chief Professional Officer for the Medical Category of the Commissioned Officers Corps. He provided guidance and advice on matters such as recruitment, assignment, deployment, retention and career development for more than 1,300 USPHS physicians.

RADM Vanderwagen is a board-certified family physician. He is published in several medical journals covering family practice, including, Medical Education, Children Today, and Hospital and Community Psychiatry.

RADM Vanderwagen and his wife Suzanne have three grown sons.

William A. Maheu, Senior Director Qualcomm Government Technologies

Bill Maheu graduated from the University of San Diego in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology.  He was a member of the San Diego Police Department for 28 years. During his tenure with the department Bill had many assignments including Commanding Officer of Field Operations/Special Resources, Executive Lieutenant of the Special Weapons and Tactics Team, Special Projects/Long Range Planning Lieutenant and Narcotics Sergeant.  He also directed several major projects including the 2003 Super Bowl, the 1996 Republican National Convention, the 1996 Presidential Debate, the development of the Psychiatric Emergency Response Team and the development of the Homeless Outreach Team.  Bill rose to the rank of Executive Assistant Chief of Police during which time his responsibilities included the department’s day-to-day operations, its 400 million dollar budget, the Professional Standards Section, Intelligence Section, Interoperable Communications and Information Technologies.

Bill retired from the department in January 2008 to join Qualcomm’s Government Technologies team.  In his new position Bill is on the senior management team and is responsible for business development and public safety solutions.

Bill and his wife Jane have been married for 26 years and live in the Rancho Penasquitos area of San Diego.  They have three children, Michael (24) Brigitte (22) and John (18) and enjoy snow skiing, the beach and athletics.