Healthcare Burnout Symposium
2023 Distinguished Faculty
Alfred Atanda, MD
Dr. Alfred Atanda, Jr. is a pediatric orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine expert with Nemours Children’s Hospital.
Jeffrey M. Bates, PhD
Dr. Jeffrey Bates is the VCL Deputy Director for Crisis Operations. He previously served as the Acting Director of Associated Health Education in the Office of Academic Affiliations for the Department of Veterans Affairs. In this role, he was responsible for the oversight of VA Health Professions Training programs in over 60 professions representing a budget of approximately $140 million. He has also served as the Director of Psychology Training and Chair of the Coordinated Care Review Board at the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System. Dr. Bates is a past Chair of the national VA Psychology Training Council. He has held professional positions in the Ocala Community Based Outpatient Clinic (VA) as well as various positions within the Federal Bureau of Prisons, working in mostly high security facilities. He received his doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology from The University of Georgia and was a doctoral intern at the Federal Correctional Complex in Butner, North Carolina with an emphasis in forensic psychology. Dr. Bates has published and presented in several areas, including suicide prevention and juvenile delinquency. He serves on the editorial board of Psychological Services, which is a publication of the American Psychological Association, Division 18 and was a Guest Editor of a past issue that highlighted research in the area of Justice Involved Veterans.
Xavier Becerra
Xavier Becerra is the 25th Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and the first Latino to hold the office in the history of the United States.
Alice Benjamin
“Nurse Alice” Benjamin is a board-certified Clinical Nurse Specialist and Family Nurse Practitioner with over 25 years nursing experience specializing in cardiovascular, emergency medicine and critical care. She currently works on the frontline in the emergency department and is also the Chief Nursing Officer at Nurse.org
Nancy Blake PhD, RN, CCRN-K, NEA-BC, NHDP-BC, FACHE, FAONL, FAAN
Nancy Blake PhD, RN, CCRN-K, NEA-BC, NHDP-BC, FACHE, FAONL, FAAN is the Chief Nursing Officer at LAC+USC Medical Center. She was the Chief Nursing Officer at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center from March of 2019 until June of 2021. Prior to that she was the director of critical care services at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) for over 30 years where she helped CHLA achieve Magnet designation. Nancy has been an active member of ANA, SPN, ACNL, AONL and AACN, where she was a national board member from 2003-2006. She is a national speaker on pediatric disaster preparedness, staffing and healthy work environments. Nancy received her BSN from Mount Saint Mary’s College in Los Angeles, she received her MN from UCLA in Nursing Administration and most recently received her PhD in nursing at UCLA. She recently was the co-editor of a book titled Nursing Management of Pediatric Disaster. She was inducted as a fellow in the Academy of Nursing in 2013. She is an Associate Adjunct Professor at UCLA School of Nursing and was recently named the Distinguished Alumni Member for 2021. Nancy has received a DAISY Health Equity Grant for 2021for a research study titled Exploring Social Determinants of Health and Vaccine Declination: Pilot Survey of Adults within a Safety Net Healthcare System. Nancy is a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives, the American Organization of Nurse Leaders and the American Academy of Nursing.
C. W. Burton, PhD, RN, AFN-BC, AGN-BC, FNAP
Dr. Candace W. Burton is an Associate Professor in the Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing at the University of California, Irvine, and the Director of the Orange County Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Education Program. She is a former domestic violence advocate, and her research focuses on the biobehavioral and biological health effects of trauma, particularly intimate partner violence and sexual assault.
Tammie Chang, MD
Dr. Tammie Chang is the Medical Director of MutliCare Provider Wellness in Tacoma, Washington, a board-certified Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist, and co-founder of Pink Coat, MD an innovative, digital platform designed to help women physicians thrive...
Gabe Charbonneau, MD
Gabe Charbonneau, MD is a rural family physician and high-tech entrepreneur. He co-founded the EHR automation software company, Fluent Systems. He serves as EHR faculty at Practicing Excellence, and has been a physician advisor to the AI scribe companies, Tenor and Saykara. He is the founder of the #FightBurnout movement on social media, and FightBurnout.org. He is also a fierce advocate for the patient-physician relationship and the co-creator of the grassroots doctors' organization, Medicine Forward. Gabe lives and practices in Stevensville, Montana.
Katie Cole, DO
Dr. Cole is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and pursued
additional post-graduate training in Functional and Integrative Medicine, Transformational
Coaching, and Physician Leadership. She is also certified in Neuro-Behavioral Programs,
Masters in Reiki Energy Healing and is currently pursuing her Certified Physician Executive
Credential through AAPL. Dr. Cole is also an active member in American College of
Healthcare Executives.
Dr. Cole hosts the “Hope for Healthcare” podcast, where she interviews industry experts
who share insights and data on how to create a bright future for our culture of medicine, the
organizations within it, and our delivery systems.
additional post-graduate training in Functional and Integrative Medicine, Transformational
Coaching, and Physician Leadership. She is also certified in Neuro-Behavioral Programs,
Masters in Reiki Energy Healing and is currently pursuing her Certified Physician Executive
Credential through AAPL. Dr. Cole is also an active member in American College of
Healthcare Executives.
Dr. Cole hosts the “Hope for Healthcare” podcast, where she interviews industry experts
who share insights and data on how to create a bright future for our culture of medicine, the
organizations within it, and our delivery systems.
Reid Conant, MD
Dr. Conant is a CMIO for Nuance Healthcare and a practicing, board-certified physician and CMIO of Tri-City Emergency Medical Group in Oceanside, CA.
Scott A. Cook, MD. MPH
Scott A. Cook, M.D., M.P.H. is an author, physician, businessman, and international lecturer. Currently, Dr. Cook is Medical Director & Chief Medical Officer at multiple addiction & mental health organizations. Dr Cook lectures on avoiding professional burnout and creating world-class corporate cultures. An avid traveler, Dr. Cook has visited more than 50 countries and lectured in many. He has published brain exercise books for both adults and children.
Paul DeChant, MD, MBA
Dr. DeChant advises C-level leaders on transforming organizations to enhance clinician well-being, based on his experience as CEO of a 300-physician group. He speaks internationally on the subject and is co-author of Preventing Physician Burnout.
Omer Dean, MD
Omer J. Deen, MD graduated from medical school at Ross University School of Medicine and completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Nevada-Reno. He went on to fellowship training in Digestive Disease and Clinical Nutrition at Cleveland Clinic, graduating in 2012. He stayed on staff at Cleveland Clinic following his fellowship prior to moving his practice in Clinical Nutrition to Los Angeles County in 2013.
Jessica Dudley, MD
As Press Ganey’s Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Jessica C. Dudley is responsible for leading efforts to support organizations in increasing clinician engagement and improving patient care outcomes, particularly among physicians. Her areas of expertise include leadership development, clinical care redesign through outstanding teamwork, addressing clinician burnout, and advancing professional fulfillment.
Heather Farley, MD, MHCDS, FACEP
As the first Chief Wellness Officer for ChristianaCare in Newark, DE, Dr. Farley’s focus is on advancing the professional fulfillment and wellbeing of healthcare workers. She leads advocacy programs and initiatives aimed at optimizing the caregiver experience and fostering WorkLife meaning, connection, and joy.
Dr. Farley completed residency training in emergency medicine in 2005, fellowship training in administration in 2006, and earned her Masters of Health Care Delivery Science from Dartmouth College in 2018. She has previously served as the Assistant Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at ChristianaCare and was instrumental in establishing the institution’s first freestanding emergency department in 2013, subsequently serving as the medical director for 3 years. In 2014, she developed “Care for the Caregiver” one of the nation’s earliest and largest peer support programs for health care providers.
Dr. Farley is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University. She has held several leadership positions within the American College of Emergency Physicians on the state and national level. She has co-authored multiple peer-reviewed journal articles and has been the principal or co-investigator in over 10 grant-funded studies. She frequently speaks at local, national and international venues with the goal of mutual sharing of best practices and innovations in the field of clinician wellbeing. She continues to oversee a team of dedicated and talented individuals who make the transformational work of ChristianaCare’s Center for WorkLife Wellbeing possible.
Dr. Farley completed residency training in emergency medicine in 2005, fellowship training in administration in 2006, and earned her Masters of Health Care Delivery Science from Dartmouth College in 2018. She has previously served as the Assistant Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at ChristianaCare and was instrumental in establishing the institution’s first freestanding emergency department in 2013, subsequently serving as the medical director for 3 years. In 2014, she developed “Care for the Caregiver” one of the nation’s earliest and largest peer support programs for health care providers.
Dr. Farley is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University. She has held several leadership positions within the American College of Emergency Physicians on the state and national level. She has co-authored multiple peer-reviewed journal articles and has been the principal or co-investigator in over 10 grant-funded studies. She frequently speaks at local, national and international venues with the goal of mutual sharing of best practices and innovations in the field of clinician wellbeing. She continues to oversee a team of dedicated and talented individuals who make the transformational work of ChristianaCare’s Center for WorkLife Wellbeing possible.
Hector Flores, MD
Dr. Hector Flores is a founding member of the Adventist Health White Memorial (AHWM) Medical Center Family Medicine Residency Program in Los Angeles. The Residency Program was established in 1988 with the expressed purpose of providing a high-quality education to prepare physicians and PA/NPs for practice in shortage areas and to contribute to diversity in the health professions. Dr. Flores also serves as Chairman of the AHWM Department of Family Medicine.
Dr. Flores is the Medical Director of the Family Care Specialists (FCS) Medical Group and FCS IPA which collectively serve approximately 30,000 beneficiaries comprised of Medi-Cal, Medicare, and Commercial coverage and 6% who are uninsured. The FCS Medical Group is dedicated to improve the health status of its patients, their families, and the entire community utilizing culturally and linguistically competent services and by deployment of performance standards that reduce or eliminate health disparities.
Dr. Flores and his colleagues at FCS continue to pursue vertical integration of their delivery system using the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) for the group with the FCS IPA and the Adventist Health White Memorial through HMO contracts. This effort includes the integration of mental health and substance use disorder treatment and public health in the delivery system. Similarly, they established a partnership with the Aledade Accountable Care Organization (ACO).for fee-for-service Medicare and commercial PPO/EPO plans. The goals of these partnerships are anchored om the Quintuple Aim: improved quality and patient experience, reduced costs, workforce wellbeing, and health equity. Their most recent affiliation is with Altais Clinical Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Blue Shield of California.
Dr. Flores is the Medical Director of the Family Care Specialists (FCS) Medical Group and FCS IPA which collectively serve approximately 30,000 beneficiaries comprised of Medi-Cal, Medicare, and Commercial coverage and 6% who are uninsured. The FCS Medical Group is dedicated to improve the health status of its patients, their families, and the entire community utilizing culturally and linguistically competent services and by deployment of performance standards that reduce or eliminate health disparities.
Dr. Flores and his colleagues at FCS continue to pursue vertical integration of their delivery system using the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) for the group with the FCS IPA and the Adventist Health White Memorial through HMO contracts. This effort includes the integration of mental health and substance use disorder treatment and public health in the delivery system. Similarly, they established a partnership with the Aledade Accountable Care Organization (ACO).for fee-for-service Medicare and commercial PPO/EPO plans. The goals of these partnerships are anchored om the Quintuple Aim: improved quality and patient experience, reduced costs, workforce wellbeing, and health equity. Their most recent affiliation is with Altais Clinical Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Blue Shield of California.
Jackie Fortiér
Jackie Fortiér is the Senior Health Reporter for National Public Radio member station KPCC and LAist.com. In a reporting partnership with Kaiser Health News and NPR, Jackie covers health in Southern California for local and national audiences. She’s won two regional Edward R. Murrow awards while in California. The first was for excellence in writing in 2021 for her coverage of ICU nurses in L.A. hospitals and the hard news category in 2022 for a piece that changed California state law to include in-home caregivers of people with disabilities in the health worker vaccine mandate. Jackie came to KPCC from StateImpact Oklahoma, where she won a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for her continuing coverage of the Johnson & Johnson opioid trial for national audiences.
As part of a reporting partnership with the New York Times, Jackie uncovered nursing home abuses of people of color during the coronavirus pandemic in L.A. The story was part of an entry that won the 2020 Philip Meyer Award given by NICAR and IRE.
She was a 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fellow of the Association of Health Care Journalists. Jackie is a former young professional fellow of the Journalism and Women’s Symposium, a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and a lifetime member of Kappa Tau Alpha, awarded for her thesis on disability and technology in news reporting. While in Colorado at member station KUNC she was also part of a team recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists with a Sigma Delta Chi award for excellence in breaking news reporting. She has a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in creative writing from Colorado State University and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Colorado, Boulder.
As part of a reporting partnership with the New York Times, Jackie uncovered nursing home abuses of people of color during the coronavirus pandemic in L.A. The story was part of an entry that won the 2020 Philip Meyer Award given by NICAR and IRE.
She was a 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fellow of the Association of Health Care Journalists. Jackie is a former young professional fellow of the Journalism and Women’s Symposium, a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and a lifetime member of Kappa Tau Alpha, awarded for her thesis on disability and technology in news reporting. While in Colorado at member station KUNC she was also part of a team recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists with a Sigma Delta Chi award for excellence in breaking news reporting. She has a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in creative writing from Colorado State University and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Nigel Girgrah MD, PhD
Dr. Girgrah is the Chief Wellness Officer at Ochsner Health. He leads the efforts of the
Office of Professional Well-Being (OPW) at Ochsner Health which is charged with
improving the professional fulfillment of their employed physicians and APPs focusing
on enhanced practice efficiency and personal and team resilience and building an
organizational culture that promotes provider well-being.
Dr. Girgrah received both his medical degree and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto.
He has specialist certification in both gastroenterology and internal medicine with the
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is a practicing transplant
hepatologist and also serves at the Medical Director of Liver Transplantation at
Ochsner Health.
Office of Professional Well-Being (OPW) at Ochsner Health which is charged with
improving the professional fulfillment of their employed physicians and APPs focusing
on enhanced practice efficiency and personal and team resilience and building an
organizational culture that promotes provider well-being.
Dr. Girgrah received both his medical degree and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto.
He has specialist certification in both gastroenterology and internal medicine with the
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is a practicing transplant
hepatologist and also serves at the Medical Director of Liver Transplantation at
Ochsner Health.
Karen A. Grimley, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE
Dr. Karen Grimley serves as the Chief Nurse Executive, UCLA Health and Assistant Dean, UCLA School of
Nursing. She is responsible for the overall delivery and management of patient care and professional
nursing practice, clinical education, profession development, research and clinical services. Dr. Karen
Grimley received a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New
Hampshire and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Anna Maria College in Paxton,
Massachusetts before earning a Doctorate in Nursing from Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University.
Nursing. She is responsible for the overall delivery and management of patient care and professional
nursing practice, clinical education, profession development, research and clinical services. Dr. Karen
Grimley received a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New
Hampshire and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Anna Maria College in Paxton,
Massachusetts before earning a Doctorate in Nursing from Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University.
Roy Guerrero, MD
Waguih William IsHak, MD, FAPA
Waguih William IsHak, MD, FAPA, is a professor and clinical chief of psychiatry at Cedars-Sinai and clinical professor of psychiatry at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Danisha Jenkins PhD, RN
While pursuing her PhD, she worked as the Director of Critical Care and Emergency Services at a hospital that was intensely affected by COVID-19 and has been on the frontlines of the pandemic since it began in 2020. She was also at the forefront of the protests following the death of George Floyd and traveled to San Diego County to provide supplies and first aid support to activists. Amidst her work, research, and activism, Jenkins has been raising her three lovely children.
Stephanie Jones-Wood, MPH
Stephanie has a Masters of Public Health from UCLA. After graduating from UCLA, Stephanie joined the CDC in Atlanta, GA as Public Health Fellow were, she gained expertise strategic planning, organizational development, and management of national and international chronic and infectious disease programs. While working on public health systems issues, Stephanie was introduced to quality improvement which in time became the bridge for her transition to healthcare.
Stephanie now occupies the role of Director of System Provider Engagement and Resilience at Houston Methodist, where she develops and executes the organizational strategy around provider wellbeing. In 2018, she convened a taskforce on provider wellbeing. Under her leadership, the Taskforce developed the Houston Methodist multi-year work plan to strategically coordinate and implement burnout prevention and resiliency initiatives throughout Houston Methodist’s eight hospital system. Initiatives include: Mindfulness, Digital Learning Boards, Provider Engagement Groups, and Positive Brain Training. Stephanie is also the founding Program Director for the Office of Provider Engagement and Resilience, managing a near million-dollar operational budget. In 2022, Stephanie authored a case study in the New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst highlighting her resilience and engagement work a journey towards high reliability.
Stephanie now occupies the role of Director of System Provider Engagement and Resilience at Houston Methodist, where she develops and executes the organizational strategy around provider wellbeing. In 2018, she convened a taskforce on provider wellbeing. Under her leadership, the Taskforce developed the Houston Methodist multi-year work plan to strategically coordinate and implement burnout prevention and resiliency initiatives throughout Houston Methodist’s eight hospital system. Initiatives include: Mindfulness, Digital Learning Boards, Provider Engagement Groups, and Positive Brain Training. Stephanie is also the founding Program Director for the Office of Provider Engagement and Resilience, managing a near million-dollar operational budget. In 2022, Stephanie authored a case study in the New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst highlighting her resilience and engagement work a journey towards high reliability.
Jeffery Lee, MD
Dr. Jeffery Lee is a board-certified physician in Internal Medicine and has practiced primary care in the San Fernando Valley for the past 18 years. He serves as the Assistant Medical Director for Facey Medical Group where he serves on the Board of Directors. He serves as chair of the group's Fee and Coding Compliance Committee and is a Certified Professional Coder. He also has experience in areas of information technology, quality improvement and improving the patient experience
Diana Londoño, MD
Dr. Diana Londoño is a Board-Certified Urologist and one of the 10% of urologists in the US who is a woman, and the 0.5% that are Latinx and a woman. Dr. Londoño is originally from Mexico City, and she received all her education in the Los Angeles Area, going to Claremont McKenna College for her undergraduate studies, then attending UCLA for her medical school training. She finished a 6-year residency in Urology at Kaiser Permanente, Los Angeles.
She has experienced burnout twice which led her to use her experiences and become a writer publishing more than 30 articles in the last year in outlets such as Medscape, Doximity, Kevin MD, Giddy.com. She is also an international speaker and guest on multiple podcasts discussing topics such as wellness, boundaries, ego, humanity in medicine, mindset, and mindfulness. She incorporates movement in her talks and will dance or #moveforwellness to promote messages about self-care on IG. She also has been featured on TV on Univision, Telemundo, Mundo Fox, CNN Latino, KCET, and as a health consultant and discussing different urological topics.
Her journey led her to become a Certified Life Coach and Founder of Physician Coach Support.com, a free and confidential 1:1 peer support platform for physicians which is available, 7 days a week via zoom.
She has experienced burnout twice which led her to use her experiences and become a writer publishing more than 30 articles in the last year in outlets such as Medscape, Doximity, Kevin MD, Giddy.com. She is also an international speaker and guest on multiple podcasts discussing topics such as wellness, boundaries, ego, humanity in medicine, mindset, and mindfulness. She incorporates movement in her talks and will dance or #moveforwellness to promote messages about self-care on IG. She also has been featured on TV on Univision, Telemundo, Mundo Fox, CNN Latino, KCET, and as a health consultant and discussing different urological topics.
Her journey led her to become a Certified Life Coach and Founder of Physician Coach Support.com, a free and confidential 1:1 peer support platform for physicians which is available, 7 days a week via zoom.