KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Randy C. Axelrod, M.D.
Dr. Axelrod joined Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield’s Southeast region in 2003 as vice president and general manager, Health Care Management. He was previously employed with Sentara Healthcare as executive medical director since April 1996. Dr. Axelrod was responsible for the development and implementation of care management strategies in the integrated delivery system. He oversaw Sentara’s programs in quality improvement, medical care management, health and preventative services, pharmacy, worker’s compensation, clinical reporting and coordinated the development of practice guidelines.

Dr. Axelrod served as a physician reviewer and member of the review oversight committee for the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). Dr. Axelrod has lectured and has instructed nationally on quality improvement and clinical informatics. His papers on the use of artificial intelligence have been accepted internationally.

Dr. Axelrod has served as medical director for United HealthCare in Dayton, Ohio; Community Mutual Insurance Company, Cincinnati, Ohio; Wright Health Associates, Dayton, Ohio; and CIGNA Health plan of Ohio, Dayton Region.

Dr. Axelrod has received several national and international awards including the Pinnacle Award from the American Pharmaceutical Association Foundation in 2000, the Innovator’s Award from HIAA in 2001 and second place internationally in the Knowledge Discovery and Datamining Cup in 2002. A board-certified pediatrician, Dr. Axelrod received his medical degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.
  Barbara Baldwin
Barbara Baldwin was appointed Chief Information Officer for the University of Virginia Health System in 2001. The University of Virginia Health System is a progressive academic health care organization located in Charlottesville, Virginia. Ms. Baldwin, in her role as Chief Information Officer, is responsible for overall strategy and coordination of information services including systems deployment for both the Medical Center and the Health Services Foundation.

Prior to joining the University of Virginia, Ms. Baldwin has been privileged to lead information services for several premier Virginia healthcare organizations. Ms. Baldwin served as the Senior Vice President, Information Services for the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University, VP/Chief Information Officer for Bon Secours-Richmond, Director of Corporate Information Services at Riverside Health System (Virginia), and Administrative Director for a professionals standards review organization.

Ms. Baldwin received a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health from Old Dominion University and a Masters Degree in Health Administration from Duke University. Ms. Baldwin has just completed her term as chair of the University Health System Consortium’s CIO Council. She is a diplomat in the American College of Healthcare Executives, published in the HFM Magazine on the topic of executive information systems and received an award from Hospitals magazine for being one of the leading Information Services Directors in health care.
  Teresa Blomberg, MS, RN, CPHQ

Mrs. Blomberg began her career in nursing as a nursing assistant and monitor technician in 1973, after graduation from high school.  She credits these early years with providing the basics in understanding work process flow and teamwork.  She went on to complete her BS in Nursing in 1980 and MS in Nursing Administration in 1990.

She has served as the Patient Safety Officer and Risk Manager for the VHA Rocky Mountain Network, a four-state region within the division of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs since February 2001.  She developed the Patient Safety and Risk Management Programs for this network.  This included standardizing the role of the facility Patient Safety Managers, training staff in human factor principles, and conducting site visits based on these principles.

Since 2001, major injury falls across the Rocky Mountain Network decreased from 5.4 per 10,000 Bed Days of Care to one in 2003 and none for 2004 thus far.  She contributes this improvement to the environmental rounds each of the facility Patient Safety Managers perform with engineering and physical therapy staff and the Root Cause Analyses performed on falls, both of which have their basis in human factor engineering.

Mrs. Blomberg serves on the VA National Sub-Committee for Patient Safety Performance Measurement and is a Team Leader on the VA National Steering Committee for Patient Safety Officers.  She currently resides in the windy but sunny town of Cheyenne, Wyoming with her wonderful husband Christer and their lovable mutt, Bjorn.
  Chuck Biddle, CRNA, PhD
Dr. Biddle arrived at the VCU campus in August of ’99 as Professor and Director of Research. His basic nursing education was obtained at the University of Southern Colorado, after which he went on to obtain his anesthesia education, bachelor of science and master of science degrees from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. While teaching at the University of Kansas’ Graduate Program in Nurse Anesthesia he obtained his PhD (emphasis areas: research methods and epidemiology) and in 1992, assumed the role of Chief Nurse Anesthetist at Dartmouth Medical School and Medical Center in Hanover, New Hampshire.

Dr. Biddle’s research and publication portfolio is highly eclectic in nature, reflecting the diversity of clinical practice that nurse anesthetists encounter. He has served as Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists for over 17 years, serves as a reviewer for several other professional journals, and sits on several national committees, including the National Library of Congress’ Medline review panel for anesthesiology and critical care. His major professional goals are oriented towards helping students, practitioners and scholars bridge the "research to practice gap", and mentoring students who are navigating the challenging course of anesthesia education.

Dr. Biddle’s current research activity focuses upon Closed Claims Analysis that involves morbidity and mortality related to anesthesia care. Such events are generally quite rare, making their study difficult. However, by studying a national database composed of such cases, distinct themes and patterns often emerge which then can be applied to the general care of patients, resulting in safer and more evidence-based approaches to care. Additionally Dr. Biddle is involved in funded research looking at the impact of highly portable computers in scenarios where complex decision making is required, and is also studying the role of “trigger film technology” in simulating real world decision making and intervention. How this new approach might advance patient care, clinical teaching, and patient safety in the setting of the operating room is a major research objective.
Sallie S. Cook, MD
Sallie S. Cook, M.D. serves as corporate medical officer and senior clinical advisor for quality improvement initiatives, review activities and other related VHQC functions.

Dr. Cook joined the VHQC in 1990 after serving as a member of the medical staff and Medical Director of the Blood Bank at the Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Hospitals since 1982.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate from Westhampton College of the University of Richmond, she received a B.S. in Biology. She earned her M.D. from MCV, where she also served a residency in anatomic and clinical pathology. She joined the faculty of the MCV Department of Clinical Pathology in 1981 after completing a fellowship in immunohematology. She is board-certified in anatomic and clinical pathology and in the subspecialty of blood banking. Dr. Cook is an Associate Clinical Professor of Pathology in the MCV School of Medicine.
  Jane Dresselhaus, RN, MSN
Ms. Dresselhaus has over 25 years of health care experience focused primarily in nursing leadership in acute care hospitals. She is currently the Performance Improvement Coordinator at Mary Immaculate Hospital in Newport News Virginia and in that capacity is responsible for the hospital, nursing and medical staff quality programs. Her responsibilities include leading HFMEA processes, conducting Root Cause Analyses, and special projects related to implementation of best practices to improve clinical quality.
 

Rudolph Freeman JR., MD

Dr. Rudolph Freeman has been Vice President of Medical Affairs for Riverside Regional Medical Center since March of 1998.  In 2003, Dr. Freeman assumed responsibilities for quality initiatives for Riverside Health System.  Dr. Freeman has been a member of the Active Staff of Riverside Regional Medical Center since 1984.  He has served in a number of leadership roles at the Medical Center including Medical Director of Adult Psychiatric Inpatient Program between 1991-1998.  He was chairman of the Department from 1993 until 1996.  He was elected as an officer of the medical staff in 1995 and subsequently was President of the Medical Staff in 1997.

Dr. Freeman’s current responsibilities include medical staff affairs, credentialing, quality assessment and performance improvement, medical management initiatives, JCAHO readiness, risk management, care management and pharmacy.  He also served briefly as Acting Administrator for Psychiatric Services in 2000.

A native of Portsmouth, Virginia, Dr. Freeman received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1973 from Hampton Institute.  He was elected to Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities.  He received his Doctor of Medicine Degree in 1977 from the Medical College of Virginia and completed his Internship, Residency and Fellowship Training in Geriatric Psychiatry from the University of Pittsburgh from 1977 to 1981.  While at the University of Pittsburgh, he was chief Resident and Departmental Nominee for the Falk Fellowship by the American Psychiatric Association.  He is Board Certified in Psychiatry with Added Qualifications in Geriatric Psychiatry.

Following his education and training, he served as a Commissioned Officer at the rank of Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Public Health Service from 1981 to 1984.  During his tenure with the Public Health Service, he served as Medical Director of Middle Peninsula/Northern Neck Community Services Board.  Dr. Freeman was in private practice from 1984 until his employment with Riverside in 1996.
Jeff Goldsmith, PhD
Jeff Goldsmith is America's premier healthcare futurist who owns and operates Health Futures, Inc., a firm specializing in corporate strategic planning and forecasting future health care trends. For 20 years Health Futures has analyzed issues facing the healthcare industry, including the future of information technology and healthcare; implications of new biotechnology developments; health care trend analysis; the internet's impact on medicine; the future of managed care and of integrated health systems. Health Futures is a leader in this new field, and Jeff Goldsmith is known internationally as a popular public speaker addressing health conferences.

Health Futures helps healthcare management anticipate the future as it develops, staying abreast of newly available medical and information technologies, and helping institutions adapt their policies to these changes. Jeff Goldsmith's forte is healthcare trend analysis. Many management teams in health care delivery, financing, products, and services have benefited from Health Futures' forecasting expertise and Jeff Goldsmith's vision and strategic advice.

An internationally known writer and public speaker, he continues to write articles and to deliver lectures in the following topic areas: The Health Cost Explosion and What to do About It; The Future of Integration Strategies; The Future of Private and Public Health Insurance; The Future of Information Technology and Health Care, Including the Internet, Biotechnology, and The Future of Physician Practice and Ambulatory Services.
William Hartland, CRNA, PhD
Dr. Hartland is an Associate Professor and Director of Education at the VCU School of Allied Health Sciences, Department of Nurse Anesthesia.
Michelle Mello, PhD, JD
Dr. Mello conducts research into developments in health care law and policy, particularly issues relating to the tort liability system. Her investigations consist primarily of empirical studies of the implications of these developments for patients, health care providers, insurers, attorneys, and litigants. She also conducts qualitative analyses of issues and trends in health-related litigation, as well as empirical studies of non-legal topics in health care delivery, such as managed care.

Dr. Mello’s recent work includes analyses of legal and ethical issues in patient safety, insurance coverage disputes, the obesity epidemic, and end-of life care; analyses of trends in medical malpractice litigation; and studies of enrollment dynamics and health services utilization in Medicare HMOs. She continues to pursue projects in the areas of medical errors and patient safety, the medical malpractice system, managed care, mass tort litigation, and bioethics.
Blackford Middleton, MD, MPH, MSc
Dr. Blackford Middleton is Chairman of CITL's Executive Committee, Director of Clinical Informatics Research & Development for Partners HealthCare, and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Previously, he was Medical Director of Information Management and Technology at Stanford Health Services and Senior Vice President for Clinical Informatics and Chief Medical Officer for MedicaLogic/Medscape. Dr. Middleton has focused his research on clinical decision support systems, systems integration, and patient computing.
  Arnold Milstein, MD
Arnie Milstein is the Medical Director at PBGH and the National Health Care Thought Leader at William M. Mercer. His work focuses on improving managed care programs for large purchasers and government.

Dr. Milstein's 30 book chapters and published articles have centered on managed care program design. A member of NCQA's national committee to develop HEDIS and the Performance Measures Coordinating Committee, Business Insurance magazine selected him as "one of the 20 people who has made a difference in employee benefits management in the past 20 years." Last year's New England Journal of Medicine's series on employer sponsored health insurance described him as a "pioneer" in employer efforts to advance quality.

In January 2002 Dr. Milstein was named to the Strategic Advisory Council of the National Quality Forum (NQF).

Dr. Milstein holds a medical degree from Tufts University and a master's degree in health services planning from the University of California, Berkeley. He received a bachelor's degree in economics from Harvard University. He is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center and a Worldwide Partner at Mercer.
  Bert Reese
Bert Reese is Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Sentara Healthcare, an integrated health system with net revenues of $1.6 billion. Sentara, a not-for-profit health care provider in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina, is comprised of 5 acute care hospitals, health plans with 300,000 covered lives, 7 nursing centers, 3 assisted living centers, and 160 physician medical group. Sentara was ranked the number one integrated health care network in the United States in 2001 by Modern Healthcare magazine and is the only health care system in the nation to be named in the top 10 for five consecutive years.

As the Chief Information Officer of Sentara, Mr. Reese’s responsibilities includes developing a highly motivated technical management team with which to administrate the computer and telecommunication functions of Sentara. He is also responsible for development and implementation of the long-term system strategies in conjunction with corporate goals and objectives.

Sentara is an innovator utilizing technology to enhance clinical outcomes. Sentara was the first in the nation to implement eICU a remote monitoring and management system for critical care patients. This technologically advanced life monitoring system has produced a dramatic reduction in intensive care mortality. Named as one of the top wired health care systems since 2000 in Hospitals and Health Networks Sentara is connecting its hospitals, pharmacists, physicians, nurses, radiologists, emergency departments, area long term care providers and medical transportation resources in seamless communication system.

Mr. Reese received his MBA from the University of Utah in 1975. For the past 30 years he has served in a senior leadership role for Information Technology in the healthcare industry. He is a full professor to the Medical College of Virginia and given lectures at various universities throughout the country.

Mr. Reese is a member of delegations to both Soviet Republic and South Africa to discuss the role of technology in the delivery of healthcare. He has been recognized as a local leader of technology in the Hampton Roads community and is a board member of the Hampton Roads Technology Council.

He resides with his family in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
  Ramesh Shukla, PhD
Ramesh K. Shukla (Ph.D., systems engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison). Dr. Shukla's areas of expertise include manpower utilization and productivity, decision support systems and hospital information systems. He has conducted extensive research on evaluating various strategies for improving manpower productivity without reducing quality of care or employee satisfaction. His recent research focus is on assessing and separating the effects of people, structures, and systems on manpower performance and productivity in nursing services. Dr. Shukla has developed a systems model of nursing performance that has been implemented and evaluated in several hospitals. He is a member of several professional associations, is a frequent speaker at national and international meetings, is a consultant to several large health care corporations, and has published extensively in his areas of scholarly interest. 
  Robert Wachter, MD
Robert M. Wachter, MD is Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, Associate Chairman of UCSF’s Department of Medicine, and Chief of the Medical Service at UCSF Medical Center. He has published more than 100 articles and three books in the areas of clinical epidemiology, health policy and economics, medical education, and ethics. As a national leader of the hospitalist movement, he coined the term “hospitalist” in the New England Journal of Medicine, directs the leading academic hospitalist program in the country, edits the field’s major textbook (Hospital Medicine), and was the first elected president of the Society of Hospital Medicine.

He is also a leader in the field of medical errors and patient safety. He is editor of both AHRQ WebM&M (http://webmm.ahrq.gov), a case-based patient safety journal on the web, and “Quality Grand Rounds,” a case-based academic series on errors in the Annals of Internal Medicine. He was project director of Making Healthcare Safer: A Critical Analysis of Patient Safety Practices, produced for AHRQ and published in 2001. His lay-oriented book on medical errors (written with Dr. Kaveh Shojania), Internal Bleeding: The Truth Behind America’s Terrifying Epidemic of Medical Mistakes, was published in February 2004 to both positive reviews. It is presently on several bestseller lists.

  David Warren, MD

Dr. Warren received his M.D. degree from the University of Pittsburgh. He completed his internal medicine training and fellowship in infectious diseases Washington University School of Medicine before joined the Infectious Diseases Division faculty in 2001. The major focus of Dr. Warren's current research is on the epidemiology and prevention of healthcare-associated infections. A second focus is epidemiology of antibiotic resistant organisms among hospitalized patients. Dr. Warren also serves as Associate Hospital Epidemiologist for Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
Laishy Williams-Carlson, CPHIMS

Laishy Williams-Carlson is the Chief Information Officer for Bon Secours Hampton Roads’ integrated delivery system. She has worked in healthcare I.S. and Finance for 20 years in various roles including Controller, Director, and Local System CIO. Ms. Williams-Carlson’s focus is information technology used for process improvement, and she recently achieved the Six Sigma “Black Belt” certification.

Ms. Williams-Carlson chairs the Information Security Program for 24-hospital Bon Secours Health System. She is the Program Chair for the Virginia HIMSS Chapter, and in 2002-2003, she served as Virginia HIMSS Communications Chair.