Virginia Moyer, MD MPH
Chair of US Preventive Services Task ForceMonday, November 07, 2011
Dr Virginia Moyer is Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics and head of the Section of Academic General Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital. In March 2011, she was named as chair of the United States Preventive Services Task Force which is an independent, volunteer panel of 16 private-sector experts in prevention and primary care that makes recommendations to primary care clinicians about preventive services such as screenings, counseling or preventive medications that may benefit patients before they experience signs or symptoms of a condition. More information about the Task Force and its recommendations, including how to comment on drafts, is available at http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org.
She received her medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine, completed her residency at Children's National Medical Center, Washington DC, and obtained a Masters in Public Health from the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston, TX. Her clinical interests include diagnostic testing and evidence-based medicine.
She is a also member of the Board of the American Board of Pediatrics, deputy editor for the journal Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and a past member of the AAP's Steering Committee on Quality Improvement and Management.
Seema Jilani, MD and Ron Cookston, EdD
Access to Care Forum ExpertsTuesday, September 27, 2011
Seema Jilani MD is a physician who specializes in pediatrics. She has worked in Israel, Sudan, Lebanon, Egypt, and the Balkans and has been a freelance journalist for Pacifica Radio and the Guardian. Her radio documentary, Israel and Palestine: The Human Cost of The Occupation, was nominated for the prestigious Peabody Award.
Ron Cookston ED is Executive Director of Gateway to Care and the Texas Association of Community Health Centers (TACHC), a private, non-profit membership association that represents safety-net health care providers in the state of Texas. Gateway to Care is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring that each resident of the Harris County / Greater Houston area has access to affordable and accessible healthcare. The Gateway to Care Collaborative is responsible for bringing in over $77 million in health care resources and improving the he
Tanya Makany-Rivera, Dr Andrew Harper, Dr Britta Ostermeyer
Mental Health Forum ExpertsMonday, May 23, 2011
Tanya Makany-Rivera is Assistant Director of Public Policy at Children at Risk where she focuses on evaluating the Mental Health Dockets for Juveniles across the state of Texas. She is a graduate of the University of Houston with a major in Sociology and minor in Political Science, who began her career at the Mayor’s Anti-Gang Office where she was a Program Manger for a youth leadership program. The focus of the program was to recruit youth from Gulfton zip code in Houston (mostly apartment complexes, immigrant population, high crime level and gang involvement). This program would provide a leadership program for at-risk youth, provide mentors, field trips and prevention techniques. As the Program Manager, Tanya would assist them with resume and college applications. In 2005, Tanya participated in the Texas Legislative Internship Program through Senator Rodney Ellis where she interned in Council Member Adrian Garcia’s office. She worked her way up as Constituent Services Director, Policy Director and finally Deputy Chief of Staff. During the 80th legislative session, Tanya was a legislative aide to Senator Mario Gallegos. In 2009 when Garcia was elected Sheriff of Harris County, Tanya became Chief of Staff for Council Member and Vice Mayor Pro-Tem, Ed Gonzalez. Tanya hopes to obtain her Masters in Business Administration.
Dr Andrew Harper is Medical Director of Harris County Psychiatric Center (HCPC) and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston where he also serves as an Assistant Dean for Educational Programs. After completing his undergraduate studies at Baylor University, Dr. Harper received his MD from the University of Texas Medical School at Houston where he also completed residencies in Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. His clinical experience is primarily in the area of inpatient child and adolescent psychiatry. He is also involved in the education of medical students and psychiatry residents. Other clinical and research interests include telepsychiatry, impulsivity and aggression, and mood disorders in children and adolescents.
Dr Britta Ostermeyer is Chief of Psychiatry at the Ben Taub General Hospital, Harris County Hospital District, the director of the Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic at Ben Taub General Hospital, the director and co-founder of the Harris County Hospital District Community Behavioral Health Program, and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Menninger Department of Psychiatry, Baylor College of Medicine and Family and Community Medicine, BCM. After training and research in neurology at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Ostermeyer completed her psychiatry residency at The New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons in New York City. She then did a fellowship in forensic psychiatry with Dr. Phillip Resnick at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. Dr. Ostermeyer is board certified in general psychiatry with added qualifications in forensic psychiatry. She is also a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. Since 2006, she has been serving as the medical director of the Texas Demonstration to Maintain Independence and Employment Project, which is a $27 million treatment demonstration project funded by the Federal Centers for Medicaid and Medicare and the Harris County Hospital District. As a neurologist, psychiatrist, and researcher, Dr. Ostermeyer has lectured extensively across the world with numerous publications in neurology and psychiatry. As an academician and teacher, Dr. Ostermeyer teaches all levels of health care providers and the lay public. In 2008, she received the Fulbright & Jaworski L. L. P. Faculty Excellence Award for outstanding efforts in education and teaching at Baylor College of Medicine and became a Member of the Academy of Distinguished Educators at Baylor College of Medicine. As a community psychiatrist, Dr. Ostermeyer does formal and informal presentations on psychiatric topics to audiences of primary care physicians, internists, and the general public. She has an interest in educating the public about psychiatric illness and in reducing the stigma associated with psychiatric conditions. As a board certified forensic psychiatrist, she has a special interest in suicide and violence risk assessments, sanity evaluations, and public health care policy. She frequently lectures on forensic topics to audiences of psychiatrists, resident psychiatrists, medical students, legal professionals, and laypersons. For more information on her accomplishments, please click here.
Ann Barnes, MD/MPH, Sonny Harpavat MD/PhD, and Nancy Thorne
Obesity Forum ExpertsMonday, February 28, 2011
Ann Barnes MD/MPH is an assistant professor of internal medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and a member of the section of general internal medicine at the Ben Taub General Hospital, Harris County Hospital District. Since 2008, she has served as Medical Director of the Adult Weight-Management Clinic in the county and is an expert in the field of obesity. She was the principal investigator of a National Institutes of Health grant entitled the African-American Weight Control Registry which concluded in June 2009 aimed at identifying important factors to lose weight and maintain weight loss. She earned her medical degree from Harvard Medical School and completed her residency in internal medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
Sanjiv Harpavat earned a Ph.D in Neuroscience and an M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He is currently a pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition fellow in the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine, with research interests in obesity. He was one of the first speakers at a Doctors For Change general meeting and will be following up on the topic of childhood obesity and current progress in Houston. He is also author, with Sahar Nissim, of Microcards.
Nancy Thorne is a Community Advocate for the American Heart Association. She had previously helped promote healthy lifestyles and healthy communities in South Carolina as an AHA Director of Advocacy. Since coming to Houston, she has helped establish a local education and awareness program called Houston DINEs empowering Houstonian consumers to ask questions about the calories they consume and asking restaurants to provide point-of-purchase nutrition information to help reduce obesity and increase healthier menu options.
Carol Alvarado
Texas State RepresentativeMonday, December 06, 2010
Carol Alvarado serves as Texas State Representative for District 145. She is a native Houstonian and lifetime resident of Houston's East End. She has served on the Houston City Council from 2002 - 2008 and Mayor Pro Tem from 2004 - 2006. Previously she served as Senior Executive Assistant to Mayor Lee Brown and legislative assistant to Congressman Gene Green. She advocates for strengthening quality of life and healthy living initiatives, including passing or authoring bills to require pre-K physical activity, eliminate trans-fats, ban a plastic carcinogen, and promote smoke-free Texas. She has also supported basic services for neighborhoods, police officers, firefighters, and various charities. She graduated from the University of Houston with a Bachelor's in Politcal Science in 1992 and a Masters in Business Administration in 2008.
Sylvia Garcia
Harris County CommissionerMonday, August 23, 2010
Sylvia Garcia serves as Harris County Precinct Two Commissioner since election in November 2002. She is the first Hispanic and first woman elected to the office. She previously served as Controller for the City of Houston and Director and Presiding Judge of the Houston Municipal System for an unprecedented 5 terms under 2 mayors, not to mention several community and civic activities. She has earned several awards from local media and organizations including a 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award. She graduated from Texas Woman's University with a degree in social work and received her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Texas Southern University.
Mark Kline, MD
Physician in Chief, Texas Children's HospitalMonday, July 26, 2010
Dr Mark Kline was appointed chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and physician-in-chief of Texas Children’s Hospital effective July 1, 2009. Dr. Kline has served as head of the Section of Retrovirology in the Department of Pediatrics and chief of Texas Children’s Hospital's Retrovirology Service since 1997 and is president and founder of the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative (BIPAI) at Texas Children’s Hospital. As president of BIPAI, Dr. Kline oversaw the establishment of an ambitious program that encompasses HIV/AIDS care and treatment and health professional education and training programs in nine African countries, as well as Mexico and Romania. BIPAI now provides HIV/AIDS care and treatment to more children than any other organization worldwide.
Dr. Kline received a B.A. degree (summa cum laude) in biology from Trinity University in 1979. He received his M.D. degree with Honors from Baylor College of Medicine in 1981. He completed his residency in pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital in 1985, having served as chief resident for the department. He also completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Baylor and Texas Children’s.
Rosie Valadez-McStay, MPH
Director, Government Relations, Texas Children's HospitalMonday, June 21, 2010
Rosie Valadez-McStay, MPH is the Director of Government Relations at Texas Children's Hospital.
Hilliard MD/MPH, Hanke MSN/RN/MPH, Cookston EdD, Livingston
Prenatal Care in HoustonMonday, March 29, 2010
Margo Hilliard, MD MPH is the Senior Vice President of Community Services for the Harris County Hospital District (HCHD). She began her career with HCHD in 1988 as Administrator of Jefferson Davis Hospital and in June 1989 was named Administrator of Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital where she served for 17 years. Notable accomplishments during her tenure include opening one of the nation’s first ambulatory clinics for HIV/AIDS patients and securing designation by the State of Texas of LBJ General Hospital as the first Level III Trauma center in Texas. Most recently, Dr. Hilliard served as one of five founding members of a community-wide collaborative, Gateway to Care, with the shared goal of ensuring access to care for an estimated 1.5 million uninsured/underinsured residents of Harris County. A native of Houston, Dr. Hilliard is a board certified pediatrician and holds an appointment as Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at The University of Texas Medical School-Houston. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Southern University, her medical degree from the State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, and her master’s degree in public health from the University of California at Berkley. She then completed a residency in pediatrics at New York Hospital/Cornell Medical School and Baylor College of Medicine, and a fellowship in pediatric infectious disease at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Hilliard is a member of the Harris County Medical Society, the National Medical Association, Houston Medical Forum, and the National Association of Public Hospitals (NAPH), where she served on the Executive Board of Directors. In addition, she is active on the boards of two local non-profit community organizations, Community Health Choice, and the Northwest Assistance Ministries. Dr. Hilliard has also served as Assistant Director of the Division of Personal Health Services for the City of Houston’s Department of Health & Human Services, and as the Physician-in-Chief for the Acres Home Community Health Center. She is a frequent speaker on public health care and health disparities affecting the uninsured, and has received numerous awards and recognitions for her leadership and service to vulnerable populations.
June Hanke, MSN RN MPH is the Nursing Director of the newborn nursery at Ben Taub General Hospital. She has extensive surveillance data on maternal and neonatal outcomes during pregnancy for over the past decade and has poster presentations at multiple meetings. She has also served as a speaker on leadership through mentoring and on planning committee for nursing symposia. She and Dr Hilliard collaborate on educating the need for improved prenatal care in Houston.
Ron Cookston, Ed.D serves as Executive Director of Gateway to Care and provides leadership to develop program service components, facilitate coordination of the broad community health service system, and facilitates linkages between the 170+ Member and Affiliated Organizations of the Gateway to Care Collaborative and provides direction for and management of the program activities. Dr. Cookston has over 20 years experience with health and human services management including senior management responsibilities in Public Health Services, Mental Retardation Services, Mental Health Services, Primary Care Services, Social Services and Community Development activities. During his career, he has frequently been related to or has coordinated research projects primarily designed to demonstrate the return on investment of community intervention activities. He currently serves as the chair of the Data Development Committee of the Trauma Care Task Force of Harris County which is responsible for establishing research and data collection protocols to monitor the use of emergency rooms in Harris County and develop data to guide key decision makers regarding system adjustments that are needed.
Sharon Livingston is Director of Honey Child Prenatal Education Program, a community outreach program. She is a member of Greenspoint Baptist Church, one of the sites of this faith-based program for African-American pregnant women designed to provide culturally-appropriate information and support needed to have the healthiest possible pregnancy and birth outcome. The intervention targets African-American women of childbearing age with a specific focus on women ages 18-35. Honey Child uses a spiritual approach to promote prenatal health. Topics include: Nutrition, Relaxation and Exercise, Prenatal Care, Self-Esteem, Preterm Birth, and Labor & Delivery. Group sessions of women who share similar due dates participate in monthly group discussions led by a facilitator. The mentor provides weekly one-on-one social support in addition to reinforcing positive health behaviors discussed in the group.
Bob Sanborn, Ed.D.
Executive Director, Children at RiskMonday, November 16, 2009
Dr. Robert David Sanborn is a noted leader, advocate, & activist for education and children and the President/CEO of Children at Risk in Houston, Texas, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to innovative change for children through research, education, and public policy. Dr. Sanborn leads Children at Risk with a dedication to inventive ideas, collaborations with like-minded groups, resource developing partnerships, and a belief that all children deserve extraordinary opportunities to succeed.
Dr. Sanborn has worked and served as a senior leader with many organizations always bringing with him a focus on innovation and education. He has served on the staff and/or faculties of Rice University, Hampshire College, Columbia University, the University of Tulsa, Emory University and the University of Massachusetts. He was previously the CEO of the Education Foundation of Harris County where his accomplishments included a significant rise in resources, partnerships, and visibility for innovative urban public education.
Dr. Sanborn earned his undergraduate degree at Florida State University and his doctorate at Columbia University in New York City. He has also served as an advisor and board member to numerous non-profit organizations.
Dr. Sanborn is an editor of the book Growing Up in Houston and has authored 12 books and over forty articles on education, career development, and related education topics. He has hosted his own radio and television programs, and has spoken to numerous conferences, civic, business, education, and student groups on a variety of topics. He has lived and worked around the world and has called home to places in Europe, Africa, and Latin America.
Oliver Fein, M.D.
Special event to be hosted at the home of Ana MalinowMonday, October 05, 2009
Oliver Fein, M.D., is a Professor of Clinical Public Health in the Department of Public Health at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University. His research and policy interests include health system reform, national health insurance, and medical education. Dr. Fein has been interested in access to care for vulnerable populations and the social responsibility of the Academic Health Center to its community. He has published work in ambulatory case-mix measurement, different methods of measuring social class and health inequalities, and comparative international health systems. He is the current President of Physicians for a National Health Program (http://www.pnhp.org). Dr. Fein's presentation will be preceded by a wine and cheese reception and followed by a short discussion period. Please RSVP for this event by going to our Meetings site, tickets are limited. For a link to Dr. Fein's presentations, please click on the following link:
Health Care Reform? What's Happening in Washington
National Health Insurance for the U.S.: Has Its Time Come?
Wine and Cheese Discussion
Special event to be hosted at the home of Judy LevisonTuesday, August 18, 2009
Doctors for Change hosted a discussion regarding national health reform led by two local leaders- Dr. Ana Malinow, past-president of Physicians for a National Health Program and co-founder of Health Care for All Texas, and Dr. Pauline Rosenau, Professor of Management, Policy, and Public Health at the UT Houston School of Public Health.
Rep. Garnet Coleman
Texas State House of Representatives, District 147Monday, November 17, 2008
Garnet Coleman has served the people of District 147 in the Texas House of Representatives continuously since 1991. Rep. Coleman http://www.garnetcoleman.com/Garnet/Biography.html has earned a reputation as a diligent leader who focuses his work in the areas of health care, economic development and education. He is a member of the House Committee on Public Health and the House Committee on County Affairs.
Nuria Homedes, M.D., D.P.H
Is access to pharmaceuticals contributing to increased health disparities?Monday, August 18, 2008
Dr. Nuria Homedes is Associate Professor of Management, Policy, and Community Health Sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and El Paso School of Public Health. She directs the UTHSC-SPH Global Health Program. She has extensive international health experience and has worked and written on public health policy in Guyana, Bolivia, Honduras, Columbia, Zambia, Chad, Mozambique, New Guinea, Mexico, and Peru. She is the editor of FARMACOS, a bulletin of the Latin American Network for the Promotion of the Appropriate Use of Pharmaceuticals in Latin America and has published extensively on the topic of the pharmaceutical industry and its impact on health.
Click here for presentation - Is Access to Pharmaceuticals Contributing to Increased Health Disparities?
David S. Lopez
President and CEO, Harris County Hospital DistrictMonday, April 21, 2008
David S. Lopez has been president and CEO of the Harris County Hospital District since April 2OO5. He previously was COO of the HCHD. Mr. Lopez will discuss "Operational and Strategic Priorities" of the District, the main source of medical care for the uninsured and underinsured citizens of Harris County. For further information about the time and date of the meeting, please click on the Meetings page.
Jay H. Stein, MD
Executive Vice-President, Executive Dean Baylor College of MedicineMonday, February 25, 2008
Jay Stein was previously senior vice president and vice provost for health affairs at the University of Rochester Medical Center, New York, as well as the CEO of the Medical Center and Strong Health System. Prior to Rochester, Stein was senior vice president and provost at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. He has also served as chairman of the department of medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, where he was also chief of the division of renal diseases, and prior to that was professor of medicine at Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus.
Stein has served on many national committees including as president of the American Society of Nephrology. His many honors include as a member of Alpha Omega Alpha and a Master of the American College of Physicians. Stein was also the 1 999 recipient of the very prestigious Robert H. Williams Distinguished Chair of Medicine Award from the Association of Professors of Medicine.
Elena Marks, JD MPH
Director of Health and Environmental Policy Mayor's Office, City of HoustonMonday, November 19, 2007
Elena M. Marks earned a J.D. with honors, 1981, from The University of Texas School law and an M.P.H. with a concentration in public policy, 2001, from The University of Texas School of Public Health. She is currently the Director of Health and Environmental Policy, and leads this effort on behalf of Mayor Bill White. She is responsible for development of policies and implementation of strategic actions relating to public health, health care, and environmental matters. Ms. Marks oversees the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Director of Environmental Programming.
John W. Burruss, MD
Chief of Psychiatry, Ben Taub Hospital Assistant Professor, Baylor College of Medicine Director, Affiliated Medical ServicesMonday, August 20, 2007
John Burruss earned an M.D. from Baylor College of Medicine and completed his training as chief resident in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at BCM. He has been a clinical attending at the Ben Taub General Hospital since joining the faculty in 1999, working in the emergency room, the inpatient unit, and the outpatient clinic. He is currently Chief of Psychiatry for Ben Taub. Additionally, Dr. Burruss is the medical director of the Trauma & Grief Program at Baylor, a coordinated response to those who have experienced the catastrophic loss of a loved one. The title of his talk will be: "HCHD: Inadequate by Design?"
Click here for presentation - HCHD: Inadequate by Design?
Pauline Rosenau, PhD
Professor of Management, Policy, and Public Health UT Houston School of Public HealthWednesday, March 21, 2007
Pauline Rosenau was previously a Professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal for two decades. Her Ph.D. was granted by the University of California at Berkeley in 1972, and she received her Masters in Public health in 1992 from UCLA. She is citizen of both Canada and the United States, is fluent in English and French, and speaks some Spanish. Dr. Rosenau authored The Competition Paradigm: America's Romance with Conflict, Contest and Commerce (Rowman & Littlefield, 2003). She edited Public/Private Policy Partnerships (MIT University Press, 2000) and Health Reform in the Nineties (SAGE Publications, 1994).
Sanjiv Harpavat, MD PhD
Resident, Department of Pediatrics Baylor College of MedicineMonday, March 19, 2007
Sanjiv Harpavat earned a Ph.D in Neuroscience and an M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He is currently a first year resident in the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine, with research interests in developmental genetics. He will be speaking on the topic of childhood obesity: "McDonald's and Childhood Obesity: Doing something about it!" He is also author, with Sahar Nissim, of Microcards.
Houston Rescue and Restore
Special event to be hosted at the Rothko ChapelHuman trafficking represents a threat to the health and safety of individuals who may come to the attention of health care providers. We will explore the issue of human trafficking in the Houston community and inform the public of ways to recognize and assist individuals who may be trafficked. See www.houstonrr.org for further information.